What Cleaning Experts Do Daily to Keep Their Homes Immaculate

If it feels like you’re the only person with a messy, cluttery house—trust me, you’re not alone. For many of us, keeping the house spotless seems like an insurmountable task. So how do cleaning experts do it? By keeping a tight to-do list that they cross off every day.

“People that have a clean house use a routine and a system for how and when they clean their homes,” says Becky Rapinchuk, founder of Clean Mama. “Daily tasks and weekly tasks are the most effective for keeping up with the daily messes and dirt.”

Ready for a cleaner house? The experts recommend checking these fast tasks off your list every day to help you keep the clutter and mess in check—and make a cleaner house a reality.

1. They put things away as they use them

The number one tip both experts recommended? Put things away as you use them. It’s always much faster and easier to put away the coffee grounds or keys right after you use them, rather than keeping them out and having to do a longer clean-up later. One key time to pay attention to this is when you’re cooking, Rapinchuk recommends—if you put away ingredients and dirty dishes as you prep the meal, you’ll likely have very little cleanup once it’s done.

2. They make the bed

No one likes tucking back in to a rumpled set of sheets after a long and busy day. Making the bed when you get up ensures you’ll be coming back to a neat spot to rest (turndown service and chocolate on the pillow totally optional).

3. They wipe down the counters after every meal

Unless you had a major spill, you can check this to-do off your list in just minutes, says Jamie Hord, founder of Horderly. And the big plus here: If you’re wiping down the counters after every meal is done, any spills or stains won’t have time to set in—so keeping your counters sparkling will be that much simpler.

4. They deal with potential clutter as soon it comes into the house

If it feels like the pile of mail multiplies while you sleep, you’re probably not addressing another key issue that both our cleaning experts recommend: tackling anything coming into the house right away. That means tossing all that junk mail, and sorting what’s left and putting it away in files or a to-do pile that should be tackled quickly. Groceries, packages, and anything else that comes into the house shouldn’t be left to languish, but put where it belongs. “Everything needs an easy, apparent home,” Hord recommends. When that happens, you won’t have extra clutter to clean down the line.

5. They do a little laundry

If you’re dealing with a family’s worth of dirty clothes, Rapinchuk recommends tackling a load a day, rather than waiting for the mountain to pile up at the end of the week.

6. They clear the kitchen sink

Waking up to a pile of dirty dishes can be a major bummer—so both experts suggest finishing off the dishes and cleaning the sink before you go to bed at night. Hord recommends having the dishwasher emptied before you prep dinner, so dirty dishes can be tossed in as you go.