Should I be home while the cleaner is there?

Not necessarily. Many cleaners work faster and more thoroughly alone, and most recurring arrangements run while the household is out. Being home for the first visit is genuinely useful, because it is when you agree scope and access.

Is it safe to give a house cleaner a key?

It is common practice, and it is a judgement about the person rather than about keys. A revocable code is safer than a key because it leaves a record and needs no return, but the more important safeguard is hiring someone whose references you checked.

What if the cleaner sets off my alarm?

Expect it to happen at least once. Give them a dedicated user code, tell them the entry delay, and make sure they have a number to call. Many cities charge for repeat false-alarm callouts, so it is worth getting right early.

Should I change the locks when a cleaner stops working for me?

Revoke codes always. Rekey if a physical key was not returned, or if you cannot account for every copy. If keys came back and no code was shared, rekeying is usually unnecessary.

Can I ask a cleaner not to bring anyone else?

Yes, and it is a fair thing to establish up front. Some cleaners work in pairs or bring a trainee. Ask who will actually be in the home, and whether that changes week to week.

Do I have to tell a cleaner about my indoor cameras?

Tell them regardless of what the law requires where you live. It is the difference between a non-issue and a breach of trust discovered mid-shift. Pay particular attention if the camera records audio, because several states require all parties to a recorded conversation to consent.

Where should I never put a camera?

Anywhere a person could reasonably expect privacy. Bathrooms and any room where someone changes are the clear cases, and a camera there is likely unlawful as well as unacceptable. Entrances and shared living areas are the ordinary places people put them.

Can I give a cleaner a key if I rent?

Usually, but read the tenancy first. Some agreements limit giving keys to people outside the household or ask that the landlord be informed. One message to the agent settles it, and settles it before rather than after a deposit dispute.

What if a housemate objects to the cleaner having a code?

Settle it before issuing one. Everyone living in the home has a stake in who can walk into it, and a code issued over an unresolved objection tends to produce an unpleasant scene that the cleaner has to stand in the middle of.

Hiring guide

Giving a cleaner access to your home: keys, codes, and alarms

Recurring cleaning is worth having precisely because it happens without you: you come home to a clean house on a Thursday rather than spending Saturday on it. That convenience only works if the access question is settled properly, and it is the part of hiring a cleaner people improvise most and regret most.

Published August 31, 2026, last updated September 9, 2026. No prices on this page are quotes — request one from cleaners serving your exact ZIP code.

Short answer

Most recurring cleaning happens while nobody is home, so access has to be decided before the first visit rather than improvised. A keypad or smart-lock code you can issue and revoke per cleaner is the safest common option, because it leaves a record and needs no key returned. Whatever you choose, agree in writing who holds access, and what happens when the arrangement ends.

The access options, and what each one costs you

There is no single right answer here — it depends on your lock, your schedule, and how many people work in the home. What matters is choosing deliberately rather than defaulting to whatever was easiest on the first visit.

Arrangement	Works well when	The catch
You are home	You work from home, or the visit is occasional	Ties your schedule to theirs, and many cleaners work faster alone
A physical key	A traditional lock and a long-standing cleaner	No record of use, and it must be returned or the lock rekeyed when the arrangement ends
Lockbox with a key inside	You cannot change the lock — a rental, for instance	The box is only as good as its code, and the code rarely gets changed
Smart lock or keypad code	You want a per-person code you can issue and revoke	Needs a lock that supports it, and codes must actually be revoked
Building concierge or front desk	Apartment and condo buildings	The building sets the rules, and access may need registering in advance

A code you can revoke without touching the lock is the option that fails most gracefully — which matters more than how it performs when everything goes well.

Alarms are where things go wrong

A false alarm is the most common access failure, and it is expensive: many municipalities charge for police response after the first or second occurrence, and the charge lands on the homeowner rather than the cleaner.

Give a dedicated user code rather than your own, so the panel log shows who disarmed it and when. Tell the cleaner what the entry delay is and what the panel does if they get it wrong. If you have a monitored system, add the cleaner to the verbal password list or agree the visit window with the monitoring company, so a genuine alarm still gets a response and a mistaken one does not become a callout.

Pets, and the failure nobody plans for

The single most common serious incident in home cleaning is not theft or breakage — it is a pet getting out through a door propped open while equipment is carried in. Say explicitly which animals are in the home, where they should stay, and whether any door must never be left open.

If a dog is unpredictable with strangers, contain it and say so rather than hoping it settles. A cleaner who is nervous of the dog will work around it, badly, and will not tell you.

What to put in writing before the first visit

None of this needs a contract. A short written exchange — email or message — that both of you can refer back to is enough, and it is what turns an assumption into an agreement.

How they get in, and who else has that same access.
The alarm code they should use, and who to call if it triggers.
What happens to keys or codes when the arrangement ends, and who pays if a lock needs rekeying.
Which rooms are off limits, if any, and where pets should stay.
Whether anyone else may be in the home during the visit, in either direction.
How to reach you if something is wrong, and whether they should proceed or stop.

Cameras, and telling people about them

Indoor cameras are now common enough that most cleaners assume a doorbell camera and many expect one in a hallway. What turns that from unremarkable into a problem is not the camera, it is not being told about it.

Say it plainly before the first visit: where the cameras are, whether they record audio, and whether anyone watches live. Cleaners overwhelmingly do not mind. Discovering a lens in a bedroom halfway through a shift is a different experience entirely, and it ends arrangements.

Two rules are worth holding to whatever your local law says. No cameras anywhere a person could reasonably expect privacy, which means bathrooms and any room someone changes in. And treat audio as the sensitive one: several states require every party to a recorded conversation to consent, so a camera that records sound can put you on the wrong side of a statute that a video-only camera would not.

If you use footage to raise something, say that you did. Producing a clip nobody knew existed converts a small conversation about a missed skirting board into a much larger one about surveillance.

Buildings, gates and the second door

Plenty of lock-outs have nothing to do with your front door. The obstacle is a lobby, a gate, a concierge who was not told, or a lift that needs a fob at the weekend.

Access to a managed building usually has to be arranged with the building, not just with you. A visitor list, a registered contractor, a parking permit, a service lift booking for anything bulky. None of that is the cleaner's to sort out, and none of it appears until the first time it stops them at the door.

Register them with the concierge, porter or management by name, and say how often they will come.
Cover the gate code, the lobby code, and the door code separately. They are rarely the same and rarely change together.
Say where to park, and whether a permit is needed on a weekday.
Check whether weekend or evening access uses a different entrance or fob.
Name a neighbour or a number to call if any of it fails.
Tell them how bins and recycling work, because building rules on that are strict and unwritten.

When access is shared with other people

Housemates, adult children, a former partner still on the deeds, a lodger. Where more than one person has a stake in the home, the person arranging the cleaning is not automatically the only person entitled to decide who holds a key.

Tell everyone who lives there before a stranger arrives with a code. It sounds obvious and is the single most common cause of an alarming afternoon, in which someone working from home upstairs discovers an unexpected person in the kitchen. It is also the fastest way to lose a cleaner, who did nothing wrong and will not enjoy the encounter either.

For a rental, check the tenancy before issuing a key to anyone. Some agreements restrict handing keys to third parties, and a few require the landlord to be told. The cost of asking is one message; the cost of not asking can be a deposit.

Ending the arrangement cleanly

Most cleaning relationships end quietly and amicably, which is exactly why access is often left dangling. A code that was never revoked or a key that was never returned is not evidence of bad intent, but it is an open door you have stopped thinking about.

Make the last step explicit when you end the arrangement: revoke the code, collect the key, remove the alarm user. If a key was never returned and you cannot account for it, rekeying the lock costs less than the uncertainty.

Frequently asked questions

Should I be home while the cleaner is there?: Not necessarily. Many cleaners work faster and more thoroughly alone, and most recurring arrangements run while the household is out. Being home for the first visit is genuinely useful, because it is when you agree scope and access.
Is it safe to give a house cleaner a key?: It is common practice, and it is a judgement about the person rather than about keys. A revocable code is safer than a key because it leaves a record and needs no return, but the more important safeguard is hiring someone whose references you checked.
What if the cleaner sets off my alarm?: Expect it to happen at least once. Give them a dedicated user code, tell them the entry delay, and make sure they have a number to call. Many cities charge for repeat false-alarm callouts, so it is worth getting right early.
Should I change the locks when a cleaner stops working for me?: Revoke codes always. Rekey if a physical key was not returned, or if you cannot account for every copy. If keys came back and no code was shared, rekeying is usually unnecessary.
Can I ask a cleaner not to bring anyone else?: Yes, and it is a fair thing to establish up front. Some cleaners work in pairs or bring a trainee. Ask who will actually be in the home, and whether that changes week to week.
Do I have to tell a cleaner about my indoor cameras?: Tell them regardless of what the law requires where you live. It is the difference between a non-issue and a breach of trust discovered mid-shift. Pay particular attention if the camera records audio, because several states require all parties to a recorded conversation to consent.
Where should I never put a camera?: Anywhere a person could reasonably expect privacy. Bathrooms and any room where someone changes are the clear cases, and a camera there is likely unlawful as well as unacceptable. Entrances and shared living areas are the ordinary places people put them.
Can I give a cleaner a key if I rent?: Usually, but read the tenancy first. Some agreements limit giving keys to people outside the household or ask that the landlord be informed. One message to the agent settles it, and settles it before rather than after a deposit dispute.
What if a housemate objects to the cleaner having a code?: Settle it before issuing one. Everyone living in the home has a stake in who can walk into it, and a code issued over an unresolved objection tends to produce an unpleasant scene that the cleaner has to stand in the middle of.