How to Start a Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Business in the UK: Tools, Training & Growth Tips
🧼 Thinking About Starting a Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Business in the UK?
If you're looking for a hands-on business with strong earning potential, low startup costs, and growing demand—carpet and upholstery cleaning could be a smart move. It’s a trade that’s always in demand in homes, offices, rentals, and commercial spaces. Whether you’re starting out solo or planning to scale, this guide will walk you through the basics.
💷 The Benefits of Starting a Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Business
Low overheads: You don’t need a huge premises or team to get going—most people start mobile.
Flexible working hours: You can build your diary around your lifestyle.
High repeat business: Clients often rebook every 6–12 months.
Domestic & commercial demand: Work includes homes, offices, landlords, letting agents and end-of-tenancy cleans.
Scalable: Start as a one-person operation and grow into a multi-van business.
📊 Market Size & Demand in the UK
The UK carpet and upholstery cleaning market is worth over £600 million annually, and demand continues to rise with the growth of rental properties, short-term lets, and busy households needing regular upkeep.
Especially in areas like London, Essex, Manchester, and Birmingham, the end-of-tenancy and commercial cleaning sectors are booming.
🎓 Qualifications and Training
You don’t legally need a qualification to start, but training is highly recommended if you want to build trust and deliver quality results.
Look into:
NCCA (National Carpet Cleaners Association) training
Prochem or Cleansmart courses
Health & safety awareness (COSHH if handling chemicals)
Certification helps you stand out and builds customer confidence—especially for commercial contracts.
🧰 Equipment You’ll Need to Get Started
Here’s a list of essentials to launch your business:
Professional carpet cleaning machine (hot water extraction or dry compound systems)
Upholstery tools/attachments
Eco-friendly cleaning solutions and stain removers
Spotting kit for stain treatment
Wet vacuum or extractor
PPE: gloves, masks, shoe covers
Branded uniform & van signage (optional but great for trust)
Quality gear matters—cheap equipment leads to poor results and lost customers.
💻 Why a Proper Website Is Crucial for Growing Your Cleaning Business
Most of your future customers are searching for local services online. That’s why you need more than just a Facebook page—you need a website that gets found and gets results.
That’s where we come in.
At SMB Booster, we help UK cleaning and trade businesses build fully-managed, lead-generating websites with all the features you need:
✅ Service pages (e.g. carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, stain removal)
✅ Location-based pages to rank on Google in your local areas
✅ Mobile-friendly design
✅ Tap-to-call buttons & instant quote forms
✅ Chat widgets for quick questions
✅ Google reviews pulled into your site
✅ "Leave a Review" buttons
✅ SEO-friendly setup and monthly maintenance
Whether you’re just starting or looking to upgrade your old DIY site—we’ll take care of everything so you can focus on the work. Check out our example Carpet Cleaner Website here.
We’ve helped landscapers, locksmiths, and now cleaning pros get serious results with websites that convert browsers into bookings.
🚀 Ready to Launch Your Carpet Cleaning Business the Right Way?
Whether you're going solo or planning to scale up, a smart website and marketing system can give you a huge head start.
👉 Visit smbbooster.co.uk to learn more and get started from just £199/month — no tech stress, no big upfront costs, just leads.
