Full guide

How to start a window cleaning business as a teenager

Windows are the job people look at every day and never get round to. It is also the one where the difference between amateur and professional is visible from across the room — which is good news, because the professional method takes about twenty minutes to learn.

Under $50From age 14First dollar: A weekend.

What it costs

What you actually need

A squeegee: $20–$35
A scrubber or sleeve: $15
A bucket and dish soap: $10
Microfibre cloths: $15
An extension pole: $30–$50

Borrow before you buy

Do your first three jobs with equipment you already have access to. Buy your own out of money a customer has already handed you, never out of money you are hoping to make.

What to charge

Pricing, honestly

Start at the lower end of each range. Raise it once five people have paid you without hesitating.

Ground-floor windows, inside and out: $4–$7 per window
Small house, ground floor, both sides: $60–$120
Outside only: About half
Tracks and sills: +$1–$2 per window

Your first five

Exactly who to ask, in order

Warmest first. Your first attempt should be with someone who will be kind about it, because you will be bad at it.

Person 1
Your own house, free, so you learn the method and have something to photograph.
Person 2
The neighbour whose windows you can see are bad from the street.
Person 3
Anyone you already mow, shovel or walk a dog for. You are already trusted and already there.
Person 4
A small shop or office on your street — storefront glass gets dirty weekly and they usually pay someone.
Person 5
Everyone who saw you working on the first house. Knock next door while your bucket is still out.

Send this

“Hi — I'm Eli, I clean windows in the neighbourhood. I'd do your ground-floor windows inside and out for $80, and I can show you the house at number 6 that I did last week. I'm free Saturday morning if you want it.”

Change the names and the price. Keep the shape: who you are, how they know you, what you do, the price, and an easy way to say yes.

Not optional

Staying safe

No ladders. Use an extension pole from the ground, and quote only what you can reach that way.
If a customer asks for upstairs windows, say no. Every serious injury in this trade is a fall.
Wear gloves — old window edges and hardware are sharper than they look.
Never lean out of an open upstairs window to reach the outside of it.
Work with dry footing. Wet decking and a soapy bucket is how people land badly.

Tell a parent or guardian where you are working and when you expect to be finished, every time.

The actual business

Getting them to book you again

Twice a year is the natural rhythm: spring and autumn. Say so, and put it in their calendar.
Take a photo of one window half done. It sells the next job better than any words.
Do the front door glass for free. It takes two minutes and it is what visitors see.
Leave the sills dry and the edges clean. Streaks in the corner undo an otherwise perfect job.
Message six months later. Most people simply forget it is a thing you can pay someone to do.

Anything about licences, taxes or getting paid under 18 is on the Ontario guide. More ideas are on the full list.

Free, for students

Want help actually starting one?

Launch League is free for students from age 12. Pick an idea, work through eight short modules, build a one-page plan, and go and get your first paying customer. If you want, enter it in the Ontario competition at the end.

Start free See the competition

These are what people commonly charge, not what you will make. Look up what adults near you charge for the same job, then start a little under it and raise your price once you have five happy customers.

All the ways to make money 50 business ideas Getting your first customer