Office Hygiene: 8 Practical Tips to Keep Your Office Clean and Healthy

Good office hygiene comes down to a clear cleaning schedule, a cleaner who knows exactly what’s expected, and everyday habits that staff actually follow. Professional cleaning does the heavy lifting, but what happens between cleans decides how clean the office feels at 3 pm on a Thursday.

These eight tips are for office managers: what to clean and how often, how to handle desks, kitchens, meeting rooms and hot desks, and what to ask of your cleaner. For the employer side – what WHS guidance expects you to provide, hygiene policies and who is responsible for what – see our guide to workplace hygiene.

1. Set a written cleaning schedule

A schedule makes sure nothing is missed and makes it clear who does what. Split tasks by frequency and by who is responsible: your cleaning contractor, or staff.

Daily (cleaning contractor or nominated staff)

• Empty bins and replace liners, including kitchen and washroom bins.
• Clean and restock toilets and washrooms: toilets, urinals, basins, mirrors, soap, paper towels and toilet paper.
• Wipe kitchen benches, sinks, tap handles and appliance handles.
• Clean high-touch points (see tip 2).
• Vacuum walkways and high-traffic carpet; mop hard floors in kitchens and washrooms.

Weekly

• Dust desks (where clear), window sills, shelving and partitions.
• Vacuum all carpeted areas, including under desks where accessible.
• Clean internal glass doors and partitions.
• Wipe the inside and outside of microwaves and the outside of fridges.

Monthly or quarterly

• High dusting: vents, light fittings and the tops of cupboards.
• Clean skirting boards and spot-clean carpet stains.
• Book periodic work such as carpet extraction and hard-floor maintenance.

Adjust the schedule to your headcount and how busy the office is. A small team on a single floor needs less than a busy office with visitors all day.

2. Focus on high-touch points

Germs spread most easily through the surfaces many people touch. Put these on the daily list:

• door handles and push plates
• light switches and lift buttons
• kitchen tap handles, fridge and microwave handles, and kettle and coffee machine controls
• shared phones, printer panels and meeting room remotes
• stair rails and reception counters.

Clean with detergent and water first to remove dirt. If you also use a disinfectant or sanitiser, apply it to a clean surface and follow the label instructions. Our guide to the difference between cleaning and sanitising explains when each step is needed.

3. Make hot desks easy to keep clean

Shared desks are a common weak point. WorkSafe Queensland’s hot desk hygiene guidance recommends regularly sanitising workspaces with disinfectant wipes or surface cleaners, keeping workspaces clutter-free, and promoting personal equipment to minimise device sharing.

Practical steps:

• Put wipes or surface cleaner and a bin within reach of every bank of shared desks.
• Ask staff to clear desks fully at the end of each day so cleaners can wipe them.
• Supply personal keyboards and headsets where you can, or provide lockers so people can store their own.

4. Keep the kitchen under control

The office kitchen is often the area that causes the most complaints. A few simple rules help:

• Fridge clear-out on a set day each week, with notice to staff. Anything unlabelled or out of date goes.
• Dishes washed, or loaded into the dishwasher, straight after use.
• Dishcloths and sponges replaced or laundered regularly; single-use paper towel is easier to keep hygienic.
• Spills wiped up straight away, before they’re walked through the office.
• Bins on the cleaner’s daily list, with a spare liner kept under the bin so staff can swap a full one.

5. Reset meeting rooms after every booking

Meeting rooms are shared by different groups all day, and they’re often where visitors form their first impression.

• Ask whoever booked the room to remove cups, food and rubbish when they leave.
• Keep wipes in each room for the table and remote, and a bin by the door.
• Wipe whiteboards and put markers back so the next group isn’t looking for them.
• Ask your cleaner to include tables, chairs and remotes in the daily clean, and to report any stains on chairs or carpet.

6. Look after washrooms between cleans

Washrooms affect how people judge the whole office. Between scheduled cleans:

• Check and restock soap, paper towels and toilet paper during the day in busy offices.
• Make sure sanitary disposal units are serviced on schedule.
• Give staff an easy way to report a problem, such as a QR code or a contact on the door, so issues are fixed quickly.

7. Keep air moving

Stale air and lingering odours make an office feel less clean even when the surfaces are spotless. Ask your building manager how often the air-conditioning on your floor is serviced and who to contact if a vent is dusty or the air feels stuffy. Where windows open, fresh air on mild days helps clear stale air and odours. Keep vents clear of boxes and furniture, and add vent dusting to the periodic cleaning list.

8. Agree a few office hygiene rules

Cleaners can’t fix what happens during the day. A short set of office cleanliness rules (office hygiene etiquette), shared at induction and on the kitchen wall, goes a long way:

• Wash or sanitise hands after using the toilet and before eating.
• Cover coughs and sneezes, and put used tissues in the bin.
• Stay home when unwell, where your leave policy allows.
• Clear your desk at the end of the day.
• Clean up after yourself in the kitchen and meeting rooms.
• Report spills, breakages and empty dispensers.

Keep the rules short, explain why they matter, and make the supplies easy to find. If you need to turn these habits into a formal policy, our workplace hygiene guide includes a policy outline.

What to ask of your cleaner

A cleaner can only deliver what’s been agreed. Before the service starts, and at each review, ask for:

• A written scope listing each area, the tasks and how often they’re done – daily, weekly and periodic.
• Clarity on consumables: who supplies and restocks soap, paper towels, toilet paper and bin liners.
• Periodic tasks booked in, such as carpet extraction, high dusting and hard-floor maintenance, with dates.
• A way to report missed items and an agreed time to fix them.
• Safety data sheets (SDSs) for any hazardous chemicals they use on your site.
• Regular inspections of the site against the scope, and a named contact for feedback.
• Agreed access and clear-desk arrangements, so cleaners know which desks and rooms they can clean.

Choosing products: check the label and SDS

Choose products suited to each surface and task, and store them safely. Under work health and safety laws, manufacturers and importers must prepare a safety data sheet (SDS) for each hazardous chemical, and suppliers must pass it on. Not every cleaning product is classified as hazardous, but if your workplace uses hazardous chemicals you must obtain the current SDS and make it available to workers. Follow the label for dilution and use. If you prefer lower-impact products, see our guide to green cleaning solutions.

Quick office hygiene checklist

• Written cleaning schedule split between cleaner and staff
• High-touch points on the daily list
• Wipes and bins at every bank of hot desks
• Fridge clear-out day set and announced
• Meeting rooms cleared after each booking
• Washroom consumables checked during the day
• Vents clear and air-conditioning servicing confirmed with the building manager
• Office etiquette rules shared at induction and displayed
• Cleaner’s written scope, consumables and reporting process agreed

Frequently asked questions

What are the basic hygiene practices in an office?

The basics are clean washrooms and kitchens, high-touch points wiped daily, bins emptied, and desks clear enough to be cleaned. Add good airflow and a few staff habits, such as washing hands and cleaning up after yourself, and most offices are covered.

What should staff do if the cleaners only come once a week?

Staff then need to cover the daily basics: wipe kitchen benches and handles, empty kitchen bins, top up washroom soap and paper, and deal with spills straight away. Write these tasks into a simple roster so they don’t fall to whoever notices first. If the list keeps growing, that’s usually a sign the professional clean needs to happen more often.

Who should clean hot desks: staff or the cleaner?

Both. Each user wipes the desk, keyboard and mouse when they arrive or leave, using the wipes provided. The cleaner does the scheduled clean of desks that have been cleared. Put this split in your cleaner’s written scope so nobody assumes the other person has done it.

How often each area should be cleaned, and what employers must provide, is covered in our workplace hygiene guide.

Hand the schedule to a cleaner you can check

If keeping on top of tip 1 is taking up too much of your week, B&K Services provides office cleaning in Sydney, Wollongong and Nowra. We start with a free site walk-through. Then we agree the daily, weekly and periodic tasks in writing, along with who handles consumables. Once the service starts, we carry out scheduled quality checks against that scope. If you’re budgeting, our guide to office cleaning cost explains what drives the price.

Book a free site walk-through or call 1300 136 954.