Guests won’t write a glowing five-star review because your flat had a great view. They’ll write it because the towels were folded properly, the oven didn’t smell of the last guest, and the shower screen was streak-free when they arrived. Cleanliness drives more Airbnb reviews than any other single factor, and in London, where guests have dozens of comparable options, it’s often the difference between a booking and a scroll-past.
You’ve probably already experienced this. One rushed turnover, one missed detail, and the review comes in: “lovely location but not very clean.” That comment can sit on your listing for months and cost you far more in lost bookings than a professional clean would have.
This airbnb cleaning checklist covers every room, every task, and every restocking item a London host needs to deliver a five-star turnover. Use it yourself or hand it directly to your cleaning team.
Why a Checklist Matters More Than You Think
Most hosts who get poor cleanliness reviews aren’t lazy or careless. They’re rushed. They’ve got a guest checking in at 3pm, checked-out at 11am, and only four hours to reset an entire flat.
In that window, something gets missed. It’s almost always the same things: the shower screen, the oven interior, the inside of the fridge, the bathroom grout.
Natasha hosts a one-bedroom flat in Islington. For the first year, she cleaned it herself and averaged a 4.6 rating. Not bad, but not Superhost. She started using a checklist in January and handed it to a professional cleaner in April.
By June, her cleanliness score had risen to 4.9 and she’d picked up Superhost status. She told us she didn’t change anything about the property itself. She just started being systematic about the clean.
A checklist doesn’t just ensure nothing gets missed. It also reduces the cognitive load of every turnover. When you’ve got a phone full of messages, a checkout to manage, and a check-in to coordinate, having a written system means you’re not relying on memory.
Before You Start: What You Need on Hand
Before every turnover, make sure the following are available at the property or in your cleaning kit:
Cleaning products
– Multi-surface spray
– Bathroom and limescale remover
– Oven cleaner (specialist degreaser)
– Glass cleaner (for mirrors and shower screens)
– Toilet cleaner
– Washing-up liquid
– Fresh sponges and microfibre cloths (replace between guests)
Linen and towels
– Full set of clean bedsheets for each bed
– Bath towels, hand towels, and face cloths (or guest flannels)
– Tea towels for the kitchen
Guest supplies to restock
– Toilet rolls (at minimum two per bathroom)
– Hand soap
– Washing-up liquid and sponge
– Any welcome items you offer (coffee, tea, milk, etc.)
Prefer to hand this to someone else? Feel Clean’s Airbnb cleaning service handles the full turnover for London hosts, including linen management, with bookings accepted as little as four hours before check-in.
The Complete Airbnb Cleaning Checklist
Kitchen
The kitchen is where guests spend more time than any other room except the bedroom. Odours, grease, and residue from the previous guest are immediately noticed. This section takes the longest, budget at least 30-45 minutes for a standard kitchen.
Surfaces and general
– Worktops wiped down and disinfected
– Splashback tiles degreased and wiped
– Sink scrubbed and polished
– Sink plug and drain cleared of debris
– Cupboard doors wiped down (inside and outside)
– Drawer fronts cleaned
– Any food or residue inside drawers removed
Oven and hob
– Hob rings or induction surface degreased
– Oven interior wiped down (racks removed, soaked if needed)
– Oven door glass cleaned inside and out
– Grill pan cleaned
– Extractor hood filters degreased (this is often missed)
Appliances
– Microwave interior wiped clean (including the turntable)
– Fridge emptied of any leftover food, shelves wiped
– Fridge exterior wiped including door handle
– Freezer checked for ice build-up (defrost if needed)
– Dishwasher filter cleaned and interior wiped
– Washing machine drum wiped, door seal checked
– Kettle descaled (monthly is sufficient, check lime build-up)
Restocking
– Washing-up liquid refilled or replaced
– Fresh sponge/cloth placed by sink
– Fresh tea towels folded and placed
– Any kitchen guest welcome items restocked
Bathrooms
Bathrooms receive the most scrutiny in Airbnb reviews. Limescale, hair, soap residue, and odours are the most common complaints, and all preventable with a thorough clean.
Toilet
– Inside the bowl cleaned and descaled
– Under the rim cleaned (often missed)
– Seat and lid wiped inside and out
– Base and floor around toilet cleaned
– Cistern top wiped
Shower and bath
– Shower tray or bath scrubbed and rinsed
– Shower screen cleaned and squeegeed (no water marks)
– Grout scrubbed if discolouration visible
– Showerhead descaled if lime build-up present
– Taps and fittings polished to remove limescale
– Shower curtain checked (replace if mildewed)
– Bath panel wiped
Basin
– Basin scrubbed and rinsed
– Taps polished
– Plug hole cleared of hair
– Underneath the basin wiped (often dusty)
Mirror and storage
– Mirror cleaned streak-free
– Bathroom cabinet wiped inside and out
– Any toiletries left by previous guest removed
Restocking
– Toilet rolls restocked (minimum two visible)
– Hand soap refilled or replaced
– Fresh towels placed: bath towel, hand towel, face cloth per guest
– Any welcome toiletries laid out if you offer them
Bedrooms
Linen and beds
– All bed linen stripped (duvet cover, pillowcases, fitted sheet)
– Mattress protector checked and replaced if soiled
– Fresh fitted sheet fitted, pulled tight at corners
– Fresh duvet cover and pillowcases on
– Duvet and pillows plumped and arranged neatly
– Any decorative cushions straightened
Furniture and storage
– Wardrobe checked for left-behind belongings
– Wardrobe interior wiped if dusty
– Drawers checked and emptied if guests have left items
– Bedside tables wiped
– Lampshades dusted
– Surfaces dusted including skirting boards
Floors
– Under the bed checked and hoovered
– Carpet or hard floor hoovered thoroughly
– Hard floor mopped after hoovering
Living Room and Hallway
Soft furnishings
– Sofa cushions plumped and covers straightened
– Any throws folded and placed neatly
– Cushion covers checked (replace if marked)
Surfaces and tech
– Coffee table wiped
– TV remote wiped (one of the highest-touch items in any property)
– TV screen wiped with appropriate cloth
– Any shelving dusted
– Window sills wiped
Floors
– Rugs hoovered (lift and check underneath if possible)
– Hard floors hoovered and mopped
– Hallway and entrance mat shaken out or hoovered
Windows and doors
– Internal glass cleaned at fingerprint height
– Handles and light switches wiped (high-touch surfaces)
– Front door area tidied
General Checks (Every Room)
Before signing off the clean, walk the property and check:
- No odours, if needed, ventilate the flat for 20 minutes before check-in
- No belongings left by previous guest (check under beds, in wardrobes, behind bathroom doors)
- All rubbish removed from every bin and taken to the building’s bin area
- Fresh bin bags in place
- All lights working (replace bulbs if needed)
- Thermostat set appropriately for the season
- Key, keypad code, or lockbox working correctly
- Any welcome items (coffee, tea, guide book) in place
- Property guide or instructions visible
The Things Most Hosts Miss
Marcus manages two flats in East London and was getting consistent 4.7 ratings despite putting in the work. A walkthrough with a professional cleaner identified three things he was missing every time: the extractor fan filter above the hob (coated in grease), the drain in the shower tray (hair build-up), and the handles on kitchen cupboards (sticky to the touch).
None of these are hard to clean. But they’re easy to overlook in a rushed turnover. After adding them to a written checklist, his next six reviews all mentioned cleanliness positively.
These are the areas most commonly missed in rushed turnovers:
- Extractor fan filter: Grease builds up invisibly and creates a smell in the kitchen
- Oven back wall: The very back of the oven interior gets missed even when the front is cleaned
- Behind the toilet: Dust and hair collect here and are obvious to a crouching guest
- TV remote: Touched constantly by every guest, rarely cleaned
- Light switches and door handles: Covered in fingerprints, noticeable in certain light
- Inside the microwave door hinge: Food splatter collects in the fold
- Under furniture: Dust bunnies under sofas and beds are visible when guests put things on the floor
Professional vs. DIY: When to Hand Over the Checklist
Using a checklist dramatically improves DIY cleans. But there’s a ceiling on what self-cleaning can achieve when time is short or the property has multiple bedrooms.
A professional Airbnb cleaning service brings two things a checklist alone can’t replicate: specialist cleaning products for oven interiors and limescale, and no time pressure. A cleaner who isn’t simultaneously managing check-in messages and guest access logistics can do the job more thoroughly.
For properties where the cleaning standard has slipped over a long stay or after a particularly busy season, a one-off professional deep clean resets the baseline before you return to regular turnovers.
The checklist above is designed to work both ways: as a self-cleaning guide and as a brief you hand to any cleaner to ensure nothing gets missed.
Final Walkthrough: Completing Your Airbnb Cleaning Checklist
Before you mark the property ready, do a final walk as if you’re the guest arriving for the first time:
- Smell the flat from the front door, if you notice anything, a guest will too
- Check the kitchen from guest height, crouch and look at surfaces at eye level
- Look at the shower screen in the light, streaks show in direct light that you miss from an angle
- Run your finger along the top of the fridge, door frames, and skirting boards, if it comes away dusty, dust those areas
- Check under the beds and sofas, put your phone torch down there
- Sit on the sofa and look at the room, you’ll notice things standing up that you miss from a seated position
This walkthrough takes five minutes and catches the things that end up in reviews.
Keeping Your London Airbnb at Five Stars
A five-star clean isn’t one perfect turnover. It’s the same standard delivered consistently, every guest, every time.
Here’s what that requires:
- Use the same checklist every turn, not memory, not improvisation
- The hardest areas take specialist products, oven interiors and limescale need the right chemicals, not elbow grease alone
- Build in time, a rushed clean is always an incomplete clean; budget the right amount for your property size
- Do the five-minute final walkthrough, catching issues before check-in is far cheaper than managing a bad review
- Hand it over when the volume grows, as bookings increase, self-cleaning becomes the limiting factor on your rating
If you’d rather take the whole thing off your plate, Feel Clean’s Airbnb cleaning service covers London hosts with same-day availability, linen management, and a satisfaction guarantee. Every clean follows a version of this checklist.
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