Before a first cleaning, most people ask the same practical question: do I need to buy anything? It's a fair thing to wonder. Some cleaners arrive with a full kit, some expect to work from what's under your sink, and a lot of the advice online ends with "it depends."
For our customers it doesn't depend. Below is what our cleaners bring, what you can ask us to use instead, and where the supplies sit in the price you pay, with the arithmetic shown.
Do cleaning services bring their own supplies?
Many do, but it varies by company and by cleaner, so ask before the first visit. At Hometress the answer is yes: professional, eco-friendly products and equipment come standard with every visit, and there's nothing for you to stock or provide. Plant-based, low-fragrance products and HEPA-filter equipment are the default on every reset, not an upsell, and there is no separate supplies charge on the price.
| Question | At Hometress |
|---|---|
| Do I need to buy cleaning products? | No. Products come standard with every visit. |
| Do I need to provide a vacuum or other equipment? | No. Equipment comes standard too, and HEPA-filter equipment is the default. |
| What kind of products? | Plant-based and low-fragrance by default. |
| Can you use my products instead? | Yes. Note it at booking. |
| Is there a supplies fee? | No. The price has no supplies line. |
| Is it the same kit every time? | Yes. Cleaners work one Hometress method, with the same checklist and products in every home. |
What "supplies included" covers at Hometress
Our FAQ puts it in one sentence: "Professional, eco-friendly products and equipment come standard with every visit. There's nothing for you to stock or provide." A few details make that promise more specific than most:
- The products have a standard. Plant-based and low-fragrance is the default on every reset, not a premium tier you pay more for.
- The equipment has a standard. HEPA-filter equipment is the default, on every visit.
- It's the same kit in every home. Our cleaners work one Hometress method, the same checklist and products in every home, so what shows up at your door doesn't depend on who booked the slot before you.
- It travels with the cleaner. On our How it works page, step three reads: "A vetted, background-checked cleaner works the same routine every visit. Your checklist, your preferences, and the supplies are all held for you."
If you want to know which products we think are worth buying for your own in-between cleaning, that's a different question, and we answer it in the best cleaning products recommended by Philadelphia professionals. For the low-fragrance and indoor-air side of this, see eco-friendly cleaning in Philadelphia.
Do you need to provide a vacuum for your house cleaner?
Not with us. Equipment comes standard with every visit, so you don't need to leave a vacuum, a mop or a bucket out.
This matters more than it sounds, because floor and furniture work is a real share of the job. Of the 40 items on our Standard checklist, 7 name vacuuming, mopping or sweeping, quoted here as they appear on the checklist:
- Vacuum Upholstered Furniture
- Hallway & Staircases Vacuumed And/or Mopped
- Floors Swept / Mopped / Vacuumed (whole house, and again in the kitchen)
- Hardwood / Tile / Vinyl Swept and Mopped
- Vacuum Under Bedroom Frames
- Open Carpet Areas Vacuumed
If a cleaner depends on your vacuum, all of those items depend on the state of your vacuum: a full bag, a tired filter or a dead battery. When the equipment arrives with the cleaner, the checklist doesn't hinge on what's in your closet. The same goes for the add-ons that are equipment-heavy. Pet Shed Removal is a $25 add-on, described in our add-on list as "Vacuum + lint roll · pet-safe", and it adds about 20 minutes.
Can you ask the cleaner to use your own products?
Yes. Our FAQ says it plainly: "Have a sensitivity or a preferred product? Note it at booking." The booking form has an optional Arrival notes card with room for a short note, and what you write is recorded with your booking.
Good reasons to ask for your own product:
- Someone in the home has a sensitivity to a scent or an ingredient.
- A surface came with care instructions, like a natural stone counter or a specialty floor finish, and you have the product the maker recommends.
- You simply prefer a product and want the home to smell the way you're used to.
If you leave a product out for us, keep it in its original container so the label is right there. The EPA guidance on household products is to "follow label instructions carefully" and to "never mix household care products unless directed on the label." A labeled bottle makes that easy for anyone using it, you included.
Where the supplies sit in the price
The articles we read on this question don't publish a price, so here is ours. Supplies cost money, so the honest question is not whether they're free but where they are in the bill. On our price, they're inside the tier. Our booking price is built from four lines: a base price for the tier, a line for bedrooms, a line for bathrooms and a line for the home's size. Then add-ons, if you choose any, and the recurring discount, if you're on a plan. There is no line for supplies or equipment.
Here's one Philadelphia rowhome, worked out:
- Standard clean base: $170
- 3 bedrooms: +$45
- 1.5 baths: +$30
- Spacious home: +$30
- Total: 170 + 45 + 30 + 30 = $275 for a one-time visit, before sales tax
On an every-2-weeks plan, that same visit takes 10% off: $275 × 0.90 = $247.50, or about $248 for a whole-dollar budget. Checkout charges to the cent; whole-dollar figures are budget estimates, not checkout rounding. Weekly takes 15% off and every 4 weeks takes 5%. These ongoing rates exclude tax, tips, coupons, any first-clean offer and arrival-window adjustments. In every version, the products and equipment are already in the number. Nobody adds a supplies fee at the door.
For the full line-by-line breakdown across tiers and home sizes, see our Philadelphia house cleaning price breakdown.
Why a cleaner's own kit is usually the better deal
You could look at it the other way: if you supply the products, shouldn't the cleaning cost less? On our price there's nothing to subtract, because supplies were never a separate line. And there are good reasons for the kit to travel with the cleaner.
- Consistency. The same products in every home means the result doesn't swing with whatever happens to be under a given sink.
- No shopping list. Products and equipment come standard, so you do not need to stock a kit for the visit.
- The person doing the work knows the kit. OSHA's page on the cleaning industry notes that cleaning workers "may be exposed to potentially hazardous chemicals." Working from a known set of products is one fewer unknown bottle for the cleaner, too.
Supply questions we get
Is it normal for a house cleaner to ask you for supplies?
It happens, and it isn't a red flag on its own. Arrangements vary, especially with independent cleaners, so the useful move is to ask before the first visit and get the answer in writing. With Hometress you won't be asked: products and equipment come standard with every visit.
Do I need to leave anything out before the cleaner arrives?
No supplies. If you'd like a specific product used, leave it out in its original container and mention it in your booking note. Everything else arrives with your cleaner.
Are your products safe around kids and pets?
We won't make a health promise we can't back up. What we can tell you is the standard: plant-based, low-fragrance products by default on every visit. If anyone in your home, two-legged or four, has a sensitivity, note it at booking. The booking form also has a "Pet in the home" quick flag so the note is on record.
Do add-ons cost extra for supplies?
No. Add-ons have one price each, and that price is the whole thing. Inside the fridge is $35, inside the oven is $35 and interior windows (up to six) is $60. There's no supplies surcharge on top of any of them.
If you'd like to see your exact price, supplies included, with nothing to buy first, you can book a cleaning in a few minutes. We currently clean in Philadelphia.