What To Clean In A New Apartment Before You Unpack A Single Box
A short window opens between getting the keys and the truck arriving. This is what to spend it on.
The window closes faster than people expect
An empty apartment has no furniture to move, no cords to work around, and nothing on the shelves. Every surface is reachable. Two hours here is worth a full day later.
The rule for deciding what goes first is simple. If something will be covered, blocked, or filled by the end of the day, clean it now. If it will still be reachable next weekend, it can wait.
Kitchen, before anything goes in the cabinets
- Wipe out every cabinet and drawer, including the corners and the underside of the shelf above.
- Pull out old shelf liner. It hides crumbs and it is almost never worth keeping.
- Clean the refrigerator inside, including the drawers, the door seals, and the shelf tracks.
- Clean the oven interior, the racks, and the drawer underneath.
- Run the dishwasher empty on a hot cycle with a cup of vinegar on the top rack.
- Wipe the inside of the microwave and the underside of it, where the last tenant's splatter lives.
Bathroom, before the first shower
This is the room people most want to feel handled on night one, and it is quick when the counter is bare.
- Toilet bowl, seat, hinges, base, and the floor behind it.
- Tub or shower walls, the ledges, the drain, and the door track if there is one.
- Sink, faucet, the vanity inside and out, mirror, and the medicine cabinet shelves.
- The exhaust fan cover, which is easier to reach before anything is stored on the counter.
Closets, shelves, and storage
Closet floors and top shelves collect dust, old hangers, and whatever the previous tenant left behind. Wipe the shelves and rods, sweep the floor, and check the top shelf you cannot see from standing height.
The same goes for a linen closet, a pantry, and any storage space in the unit. Once your things are in, these become the last places anyone cleans.
Floors, baseboards, and window tracks last
Work top down through the apartment, then do the floors once at the end so you are not cleaning them twice.
- Vacuum or sweep every room including closet floors and the edges along the baseboards.
- Wipe baseboards while they are still fully exposed.
- Clean window sills and tracks, which fill with dead insects and grit and are a pain to reach behind furniture.
- Mop hard floors, then let them dry before the truck arrives.
What can wait, and when to hand it over
Walls, light fixtures, blinds, and the inside of the washer and dryer can wait for your first weekend. They stay reachable.
The reason to hand move-in cleaning to someone else is usually timing rather than difficulty. Keys and the truck often land on the same day, and the empty window disappears while you are carrying boxes.
That gap is what move-in apartment cleaning is for: the apartment gets cleaned while it is empty, before your things are in the way. If you would rather do it yourself, the move-in deep cleaning checklist goes room by room.
Good answers before a cleaner shows up.
How long does it take to clean an empty apartment?+
For a one-bedroom that was left in reasonable shape, two to four hours covers the kitchen, bathroom, closets, and floors. An older unit or one that was not cleaned at turnover takes longer.
The apartment looks clean already. Should I still do this?+
Check the cabinet interiors, the fridge drawers, the oven, and behind the toilet. Turnover cleaning is aimed at what a new tenant sees first, and those spots are often skipped.
What order should I clean in on move-in day?+
Top down and dry to wet. Cabinets and shelves, then appliances, then the bathroom, then baseboards and window tracks, then floors last.
Should I clean before or after the movers leave?+
Before, if you can get the keys even a few hours early. Cleaning around stacked boxes takes far longer and you will skip the parts that are covered.
Related apartment cleaning guides
Move-In Deep Cleaning Checklist: What To Clean Before You Unpack
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Read guideMoving Into An Apartment As-Is: What To Clean And Document Before You Unpack
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Read guideFirst Apartment Cleaning Supplies: What You Actually Need In A Small Space
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Read guideWant the apartment handled by a cleaner?
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