Move-In Cleaning Checklist for a New Apartment

The best time to clean a new apartment is the day you get the keys, before a single box comes through the door. Work top to bottom and inside out: kitchen and bathrooms first, then closets and cabinets, then walls, windows and floors last. An empty unit takes roughly half the time a furnished one does, and it is the only chance you get to reach every corner.

Even when the previous tenant or the landlord says the place was cleaned, a move-in clean is worth doing. Turnover cleans are often rushed between leases, and the spots that get skipped (inside the range hood, behind the fridge, the top of the kitchen cabinets) are exactly where you will be storing food and dishes for the next year.

Before you clean: photograph everything

Walk the empty unit with your phone before you touch anything. Take wide shots of each room and close-ups of any damage: scuffed walls, chipped tiles, stained carpet, burn marks. Open the oven and the fridge and photograph the inside too.

This takes ten minutes and protects your deposit later. Many provinces and states expect a move-in condition report, and in some places (Ontario's standard lease, for example) it is not mandatory but is still the cleanest record you can have. Date the photos, keep them in a folder you will not lose, and send a copy to the landlord or property manager by email so there is a timestamp on both sides.

Supplies to bring on key day

Bring everything at once; a store run halfway through kills the afternoon.

• All-purpose cleaner and a degreaser for the kitchen
• Bathroom cleaner that handles soap scum and hard water
• Microfibre cloths (at least ten), a non-scratch scrub pad and an old toothbrush
• A step stool, since most apartments have shelves and cabinet tops you cannot reach
• Vacuum with a crevice tool, a mop and a bucket
• Trash bags, rubber gloves and a roll of paper towels

Kitchen

Start here. It holds the most grease and the most hidden dirt, and it is the room you will want usable first.

• Range hood and filter. Pull the metal filter and soak it in hot water with dish soap or degreaser. Wipe the underside of the hood, which collects a sticky film most people never look at.
• Oven. Remove the racks, check the floor of the oven for old spills and run a cleaning cycle only if the oven supports it and the unit is ventilated. Otherwise use an oven cleaner and wipe it out fully.
• Stovetop. Lift the burner grates or coil drip pans and clean underneath. On a glass top, use a scraper and a cooktop cleaner.
• Fridge and freezer. Take out every shelf and drawer, wash them in the sink and wipe the inside walls and door seals. Pull the fridge forward if you can and vacuum behind it and the coils at the bottom.
• Cabinets and drawers. Wipe inside, outside and the tops. Check the back corners of lower cabinets and the cabinet under the sink for leaks or droppings.
• Dishwasher. Pull the filter at the bottom, rinse it and run an empty hot cycle.
• Sink and counters. Scrub the sink and faucet base last, after the dirty water from everything else has gone down it.

Bathrooms

Do the bathroom second, because you will need it the first night.

• Toilet: inside the bowl, under the rim, the seat hinges, the base and the floor around it.
• Tub and shower: soap scum, grout lines, the drain cover and the showerhead. If the showerhead has mineral buildup, soak it in vinegar in a sealed bag for an hour.
• Vanity: inside the cabinet and drawers, the mirror, the faucet and the overflow hole in the sink.
• Exhaust fan: pop off the cover and wash it. A clogged fan is a common reason apartment bathrooms grow mildew.
• Replace the shower curtain liner if one was left behind. It is cheaper than cleaning someone else's.

Bedrooms and living areas

• Closet shelves, rods and the closet floor, especially the back corners.
• Light fixtures and ceiling fan blades. Do these before the floors, because the dust falls down.
• Window sills, window tracks and blinds. Tracks fill with grit, so vacuum them first, then wipe.
• Light switches, door handles and outlet covers. These are the most touched surfaces in any unit.
• Baseboards and door frames, wiped with a damp cloth.

Walls, windows and floors

These come last, working from the high points down.

Spot-clean marks on the walls with a damp microfibre cloth and a little dish soap. Test a hidden area first on matte paint, which can lift or shine if you scrub too hard. Clean the inside of the windows and any glass doors.

For floors, vacuum everywhere first, including the edges where baseboards meet the floor. Then mop hard surfaces, starting at the far corner of each room and backing out toward the door. If the apartment has carpet that smells or shows stains, this is the moment to have it cleaned, before furniture covers it.

Things to check while you clean

A move-in clean doubles as a quiet inspection. While you are in every cabinet and corner anyway, note:

• Signs of pests: droppings, egg cases or chewed packaging under sinks and behind appliances
• Water damage or soft spots under the kitchen and bathroom sinks
• Mould around windows, in the shower or in closets on exterior walls
• Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors that are missing or do not test
• Appliances that do not work, burners that do not light, a fridge that does not hold temperature

Report anything you find to the landlord in writing the same day. It is far easier to get a repair approved before you move in than to argue about who caused it a year later.

How long it takes and when to hire it out

For a one-bedroom apartment that was left in fair shape, a thorough move-in clean takes most people four to six hours. A two- or three-bedroom unit, or one with a greasy kitchen, can take a full day.

Hiring a move-in clean makes sense when the keys and the moving truck land on the same day, when the previous tenant clearly left the place dirty, or when you simply want the kitchen and bathrooms handled properly before your family arrives. Prices depend on the unit size, the state of the oven and fridge, and whether you add carpet or interior windows. Our guide to move-in cleaning costs for an empty rental breaks down the typical ranges and the factors that change them, and the move-in cleaning service page lists exactly what the checklist covers.

Frequently asked questions

Do you need to clean a new apartment if the landlord already cleaned it?

Yes, at least the kitchen and bathrooms. Turnover cleans happen under time pressure between tenants, and the inside of appliances, cabinet tops and exhaust fans are often skipped. A quick check with a white cloth on the top of a door frame or inside the range hood tells you how thorough the last clean was.

What should you clean first when moving into an apartment?

Start with the kitchen, since it has the most grease and you will want to store food there first. Do the bathrooms next so they are usable on the first night. Leave floors for the very end, because dust and debris from cleaning higher surfaces falls onto them.

Can you ask the landlord to pay for a move-in clean?

You can ask, and some landlords will agree if the unit was clearly left dirty, especially if you send photos on key day. Rules on rental condition vary by province and state, but most require the unit to be in reasonable, sanitary condition at the start of a tenancy. Put the request in writing and keep the photos with it.

How long does a move-in clean take for a one-bedroom apartment?

Doing it yourself, plan on four to six hours for an empty one-bedroom in fair condition. A professional crew of two usually finishes the same unit in a few hours. Heavy grease in the oven, a neglected fridge or carpet extraction adds time either way.

Get the place ready before the boxes arrive

If you would rather spend key day setting up than scrubbing, tell us about the apartment through the quote form. Include the size, the move-in date and anything you noticed on the walkthrough, and we will send back a written quote based on your unit.