SOC 37-2011.00Bright outlook

    Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners

    Keep buildings in clean and orderly condition.

    Median pay
    $36,840
    Growth
    +2.2%
    As fast as average
    Openings a year
    321,800
    Typical education
    No formal credential

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

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    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $28,640
    Median
    $36,840
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $50,270
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    2,209,760 people work in this occupation.

    What janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners do

    Job Zone 3: Medium preparation

    Keep buildings in clean and orderly condition. Perform heavy cleaning duties, such as cleaning floors, shampooing rugs, washing walls and glass, and removing rubbish. Duties may include tending furnace and boiler, performing routine maintenance activities, notifying management of need for repairs, and cleaning snow or debris from sidewalk.

    Usually vocational training, an associate degree or related experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    96 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    2 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    0 / 100
    Social (S)
    18 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    11 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    60 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCS. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    79
    Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
    72
    Performing General Physical Activities
    70
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    68
    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    68
    Getting Information
    66
    Handling and Moving Objects
    65
    Developing and Building Teams
    63
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    62
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    60
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Active Listening
    • Speaking
    • Coordination
    • Critical Thinking
    • Monitoring
    • Time Management
    • Active Learning
    • Social Perceptiveness
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Service Orientation

    Knowledge

    • Public Safety and Security
    • Administration and Management
    • English Language
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Transportation
    • Law and Government
    • Telecommunications
    • Personnel and Human Resources
    • Communications and Media
    • Administrative

    Abilities

    • Near Vision
    • Trunk Strength
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Extent Flexibility
    • Manual Dexterity
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Oral Expression
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Static Strength
    • Information Ordering

    Work styles

    • Dependability
    • Attention to Detail
    • Cautiousness
    • Integrity
    • Cooperation
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Optimism
    • Perseverance
    • Initiative

    Also called

    Airport Attendant · Alley Cleaner · Blinds Cleaner · Blinds Washer · Brass Cleaner · Brass Polisher · Building Attendant · Building Custodian · Building Exterior Cleaner · Building Maintenance Custodian

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Certifications

    Core certifications employers recognise for this work.

    Search all certifications on CareerOneStop

    Licenses by state

    9 states list a license for this work. Open your state for the license and the agency that issues it.

    Check license requirements on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Your plan

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    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

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    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.