Floor Care · Statewide
What drives commercial floor stripping and waxing cost
Floor care is quoted for the actual serviceable area, compatible procedure, finish condition, furniture handling, approved coats and access. Strip-and-wax, scrub-and-recoat and burnishing are separately scoped; no automatic price ratio is assumed.
6 min read · Updated September 2026
The factors that move the number
When two bids on the same building differ sharply, it is almost never the labor rate. It is a different assumption about one of these.
- Condition of the existing finish — years of buildup takes more passes to remove than a floor stripped last year
- Coat count — we lay four to five coats on VCT; a three-coat bid is a cheaper, shorter-lived floor
- Furniture — rooms that must be emptied and reset cost more than open corridors of equal size
- Layout — small rooms, tight corners and heavy edge work slow a crew far more than square footage suggests
- Access — elevators, loading restrictions, security escorts and water source distance all add hours
- Scheduling — after-hours and weekend work is standard for floor care and is priced into the job
- Floor type — VCT, ceramic and grout, concrete and hardwood are different scopes, not interchangeable
Why the cheapest bid usually isn't
The two easiest places to cut a floor bid are coat count and stripping thoroughness, and neither is visible on the night the work is done. Both are obvious six months later when the floor ambers early or wears through in the traffic lanes.
The other quiet cut is skipping neutralization after stripping. Finish applied over stripper residue will not bond correctly, and the floor fails early no matter how many coats went on.
How to compare floor bids line by line
Ask each bidder for the same five items in writing. Any bid that cannot produce them is not comparable to one that can.
- Square footage being treated, and which areas are excluded
- Number of finish coats, stated as a number
- Whether furniture moving is included or billed separately
- Whether the price is a full strip or a scrub and recoat
- The schedule — which nights, and when the space is returned to you
Lowering cost without lowering quality
The legitimate way to spend less per year on floors is to strip less often, and the way to strip less often is to protect the finish between strips. Walk-off matting, neutral cleaner and a scheduled burnishing program cost a fraction of a strip cycle.
Bundling floor care into a recurring janitorial contract also helps: the crew is already routed to the building, and periodic work scheduled a year in advance is cheaper than emergency floor work booked on two weeks' notice.
Frequently asked
How much does commercial floor stripping and waxing cost?
Floor care is quoted for the actual serviceable area, compatible procedure, finish condition, furniture handling, approved coats and access. Strip-and-wax, scrub-and-recoat and burnishing are separately scoped; no automatic price ratio is assumed.
Why is one strip-and-wax bid half the price of another?
Usually coat count, furniture assumptions, or one bid quoting a scrub and recoat against another quoting a full strip. Compare the number of coats and the areas included before comparing the totals.
Is floor care included in a janitorial contract?
It should be named either way. Periodic floor care is commonly quoted separately from nightly cleaning — what matters is that the contract states which periodic services are included, at what frequency, on a calendar rather than 'as needed.'
Do you move furniture?
We can, and when we do it is stated in the quote. Rooms that need to be emptied and reset carry more labor than open floor area, so it is priced explicitly rather than assumed.
Your property. A considered scope.
Tell us about your property. Services, schedules and pricing are confirmed in your written agreement.