Cleaner (Commercial) — Job Description & Salary in Germany
Job description, wages, minimum-wage rules, sourcing channels and 15 interview questions to hire a commercial cleaner in a German SMB.
At a glance
- Time to fill15–30 days
- Experience0–3 years
Wages, minimum-wage rules and the right channels first
For a cleaner, the requirements list is rarely what decides whether the role fills quickly and well. Two other things decide it: whether the pay offer matches market reality, and whether the ad runs where this audience actually looks. Both can be settled before you write the first ad.
What the role has to pay. Cleaners in Germany rarely earn the statutory minimum wage — most commercial and industrial cleaning jobs sit above a higher floor. The building-cleaning collective wage (Tariflohn, wage group 1, interior and routine cleaning) has stood at €15.00 per hour since 1 January 2026, a good euro above the statutory minimum wage of €13.90. It has been generally binding (allgemeinverbindlich) across the entire sector since 1 February 2025, regardless of whether your own business is bound by a collective agreement. Anchoring your offer to the statutory minimum wage often means undercutting the real market floor for this work without realizing it. Also budget in weekly hours rather than annual salary: most positions in this field are part-time or mini-job roles, often covering a single office area or a fixed site schedule of 15 to 25 hours a week.
Where candidates actually look. For cleaners, Indeed is usually the channel with the largest application volume: this audience searches specifically for hourly-wage jobs near home and is rarely active on business networks like LinkedIn or XING. Multiposting tools like Join automatically distribute an ad to more than ten organic job boards and, when needed, opens up over 250 additional regional and niche portals, at rates up to 50% cheaper than buying directly — valuable for a market segment where a single ad on a single platform is rarely enough. Beyond that: regional job boards and postings, whose reach usually stays under 20 kilometers, employee referrals, since cleaning teams often recommend each other, and temp agencies for short-notice needs or as a trial run before a permanent hire.
Once the pay offer and channel mix match the reality of this market, build out the rest of the ad from the template on the Job description tab.
Where to source this role
Indeed
Cost-per-click, daily budget, no fixed priceUsually the channel with the largest application volume for cleaners in Germany. This audience searches specifically for hourly-wage jobs near home and is barely active on business networks like LinkedIn or XING. Stating weekly hours, shift times and hourly wage right in the ad headline noticeably improves the quality of applications.
Regional job boards and local postings
Municipal portals usually free, local newspaper €100-300 per adAn underrated channel for this role: most cleaners search within 20 kilometers of home, often without actively searching on the major job platforms. A visible notice at the site itself, municipal job portals and the local newspaper reach returning workers and candidates tied to a specific area who search Indeed less often.
Employee referrals
A particularly effective channel in the cleaning industry: existing cleaners often know other cleaners from the same circles and pass along open roles directly. A simple, quickly paid referral bonus reaches candidates who never read a job ad but could start tomorrow.
Temp agencies specialising in commercial cleaning
The most pragmatic channel for short-notice needs: covering for illness, seasonal peaks, or a new site that needs a cleaner immediately. Many businesses also use temp staffing as an informal trial period before a permanent hire. The agency's margin runs noticeably above what a direct hire would cost, but it pays off during an acute shortage.
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