The End of Tenancy Cleaning Checklist Agents Actually Use

Work through this checklist room by room, in the order given, and you will cover everything a UK inventory clerk inspects at check-out. Clean top to bottom in each room so dust falls onto surfaces you have not done yet, and leave the floors until last.

The sections near the end, the ones people forget, are where most deposit deductions actually originate. Cleaning is the biggest single cause of deposit claims in the UK, accounting for 29.38% of them according to Deposit Protection Service data reported in 2026, and it is rarely the obvious surfaces that cause it.

What you need

Buying the right six things makes this dramatically easier than buying twenty of the wrong ones.

• Caustic or gel oven cleaner, ideally a kit with a bag for the racks
• Long chemical-resistant gloves, not washing-up gloves
• Limescale remover, essential in hard water areas. Vinegar works for light film only
• A proper degreaser for the kitchen
• Biological washing powder for soaking oven racks and extractor filters. Cheap and very effective
• Microfibre cloths, at least eight, colour-coded so the bathroom cloth never touches a worktop
• A plastic scraper and an old toothbrush
• A stiff brush for grout
• Wire wool for oven racks only, never on enamel
• A working vacuum with a clean filter and a brush bar free of hair

A quick note on order of operations that saves hours: put the oven cleaner on and the racks in to soak in the first five minutes, then go and do another room while it works. The same applies to descaler on taps and the extractor filter in the sink. Chemicals need contact time, and that time should overlap with other work.

Kitchen

The kitchen takes roughly 40% of the total time and causes most of the disputes. Start it first so the soaking happens while you do everything else.

Get the chemicals working immediately

• Oven cleaner applied to interior sides, back, floor and roof, avoiding the element and fan
• Racks into a bag or a bath of hot water with biological washing powder
• Extractor filter into the sink with very hot water and degreaser
• Descaler wrapped around the tap spout in a cloth or a small bag

Then work through

• Inside every cupboard and drawer, including back corners and runners
• On top of the cupboards, where grease and dust combine
• Underneath the kickboards if they lift out
• Splashback and tiles, degreased from the bottom upwards to prevent streaks
• Grout with a stiff brush
• Fridge: shelves and drawers washed in the sink, interior wiped with warm water and bicarbonate of soda rather than scented cleaner, seals done with a toothbrush
• Freezer defrosted, washed, left switched off with the door propped open
• Washing machine: detergent drawer removed and washed, rubber door seal pulled back and cleaned inside the fold, filter emptied behind the bottom panel over a towel
• Dishwasher: filter unscrewed and cleaned, spray arm holes cleared with a cocktail stick
• Microwave inside and out, including the turntable and the roof
• Hob, including under the burner caps and around the seals
• Extractor hood exterior

Finish the oven

• Scrape softened deposits with a plastic scraper, never metal
• Wipe repeatedly with hot water until no residue remains, since caustic residue smokes on first use
• Door glass scraped at a shallow angle. Many doors come apart via two screws at the top edge, giving access between the panes
• Racks out of the soak, wire wool, rinsed, dried immediately so they do not rust

Then

• Worktops, including the join at the back wall
• Sink, drainer, taps and overflow, descaled and polished last, since the sink has been your dirty water reservoir
• Bin cleaned inside and out
• Skirting, radiator, light switches, door handles
• Floor swept, then mopped, working out of the room

Bathrooms

Slow, detailed and unforgiving. Apply descaler first and let it dwell.

• Limescale removed from taps, shower head, shower screen, tiles and grout. Wrap a descaler-soaked cloth around the tap spout and leave it fifteen minutes to an hour
• Shower head ideally unscrewed and soaked, or bagged with descaler
• Shower screen treated over the whole panel, left, then wiped with a soft pad and buffed dry
• Screen seals and the tracks they sit in
• Bath, including the sealant line and the overflow
• Toilet: bowl, under the rim, seat hinges, the base, and behind the pan. Push the water level down with the brush first so descaler contacts the waterline scale
• Basin, pedestal and plughole
• Mirrors and chrome polished so there are no water spots
• Extractor fan vent dusted
• Cabinet interiors
• Towel rails and radiators
• Tiles washed down properly, not wiped
• Skirting, light pull cord, door handles
• Floor mopped, including behind the toilet

Two safety points. Never mix descaler with bleach, which releases chlorine gas. And never use acidic descaler on natural stone such as marble or limestone, which it dissolves permanently.

Bedrooms

• Wardrobe and drawer interiors, including rails and the top shelf
• On top of wardrobes
• Under the bed and behind furniture
• Window interiors, sills, frames and the tracks the windows run in, using a vacuum crevice tool then a damp cloth
• Curtain poles and blind slats
• Light fittings and lampshades
• Mirrors
• Radiators, including behind them
• Skirting boards, door tops, switches and handles
• Marks removed from walls where they lift without taking paint. Stop if paint starts to come away, since damaged paint is a bigger deduction than a mark
• Carpets vacuumed thoroughly, including edges and where furniture stood

Living areas

Everything on the bedroom list, plus:

• Behind and underneath any remaining furniture
• Fireplace or surround
• TV points, sockets and cable runs dusted
• Shelving units inside and on top
• Any internal glass or glazed doors

Hallway, stairs and entrance

• Stair carpet vacuumed, including edges and risers, which are usually filthy and never done
• Bannister and spindles wiped
• Front door, both sides, including the letterbox and any glass
• Meter cupboard
• Coat hooks and the wall behind them
• Light fittings and the ceiling around them

The areas people forget

Read this section twice. These are the items that appear in deduction claims.

• Inside the oven door glass. Clerks open the door and look through it.
• The washing machine rubber seal. Black mould sits in the fold.
• On top of kitchen cupboards. Nobody looks up there until inspection day.
• Window tracks and hinges. Grit collects and photographs badly.
• Behind the toilet and the base of the pan.
• Extractor filters, kitchen and bathroom.
• Skirting boards behind where furniture stood, which have often never been cleaned.
• Light switches and door handles, which show finger marks in photographs.
• The bin store or outside bin, if it belongs to the property.
• Loft hatch and airing cupboard, if they are in the inventory.
• The inside of the front door, particularly around the handle and letterbox.
• Radiator backs and the wall behind them, which collect dust streaks.

Timings, so you can plan

Add two hours if the oven has not been cleaned in over a year. Add an hour per additional bathroom. Add two to three hours in a hard water area for limescale.

If those numbers do not fit around your move, that is the honest argument for booking a company. A professional end of tenancy clean runs £180 to £420 depending on property size, with London higher.

A realistic two-day plan

If you are doing it yourself around a move, split it.

Day one, after the van has gone

• Kitchen entirely, starting with the oven chemicals
• Bathrooms, starting with descaler
• Both take roughly six hours combined for a two bedroom flat

Day two

• Bedrooms and living areas, top to bottom
• Windows, skirting, high level
• Carpets last, whether hired machine or professional
• Floors throughout
• Photographs

Leave at least one clear day before the check-out appointment so anything flagged can be fixed.

After you finish

Photograph everything. The oven interior with the door open, the shower screen, inside the fridge, the carpets, every cupboard interior, the window tracks. Date-stamped. Keep the images somewhere you will still have them when the deposit is returned, which may be six weeks later.

Keep the paperwork. If you used a company, keep the itemised checklist alongside the invoice. A one-line receipt saying "cleaning £250" proves you spent money, not what was done.

Run the oven empty at 200°C for fifteen minutes with a window open to burn off residue, then leave the door slightly ajar so it does not develop a smell in an empty property.

Leave the fridge and freezer switched off with doors propped open.

Hand the keys back on time. Late key return causes separate deductions entirely unrelated to cleaning.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to clean the carpets professionally? Only if your tenancy agreement requires it, which is common where pets have been kept. Otherwise thorough vacuuming meets the standard, provided the carpets were not professionally cleaned at check-in.

What if I cannot remove a mark? Note it, photograph it, and check the check-in inventory. If it was there when you moved in, it is not your deduction. If it is genuine damage rather than dirt, cleaning will not fix it and pretending otherwise wastes your time.

Should I clean the windows outside? Only if the inventory records them as clean and access is safe. Most agreements do not require tenants to work at height, and falls from ladders are a real risk not worth taking for a deposit.

How clean is clean enough? As clean as the property was at check-in, allowing for fair wear and tear over the length of your tenancy. Not showroom condition, and not better than you found it.

Can I do this the morning of check-out? Strongly advise against it. Leave a full day so anything the agent flags can be corrected before the keys change hands.