Carpet Cleaning Cost: Pricing by Room and Square Footage
Professional carpet cleaning typically costs $115 to $260 for an average home, or roughly $30 to $80 for a single room, with pricing scaling by the number of rooms or total square footage.
What drives the price
Carpet cleaning is priced either per room or per square foot, and the number of rooms is the main driver of total cost. Most homeowners are quoted per room since it's simpler to estimate upfront.
| Number of rooms | Typical total cost |
|---|---|
| 1 room | $30 – $80 |
| 2 rooms | $60 – $160 |
| 3 rooms | $90 – $240 |
| 4 rooms | $120 – $320 |
| 5 rooms | $150 – $400 |
Per square foot pricing
Some companies price by square footage instead of by room, typically $0.25 to $0.60 per square foot depending on the cleaning method and how deep the clean needs to be. Deep cleaning for heavily soiled carpet runs toward the higher end of that range.
Steam cleaning
Steam cleaning, the most common professional method, typically costs $100 to $300 for an average home. It's effective for deep cleaning and allergen removal, though it requires 4 to 6 hours of drying time afterward, which is worth planning around if you need the room usable soon.
What else affects the total
- Stain removal — a stubborn stain treatment often carries a minimum charge on top of the base cleaning cost, sometimes around $100.
- Carpet condition — older, more worn carpet can take longer to clean effectively and may not fully restore to a like-new appearance regardless of method.
- Furniture moving — some companies charge extra to move furniture rather than clean around it.
- Upholstery add-ons — cleaning a sofa or chair alongside carpets is usually a separate line item, often starting around $50 minimum.
Is your quote reasonable?
For a standard 3 to 4 room home, a quote in the $90 to $320 range is typical nationally. If a whole-home quote comes in notably above that without stain treatment or heavy soiling involved, ask for a per-room breakdown; that's the fastest way to spot padding in the quote.
Last updated: August 2026