# Find, price and write government janitorial bids

URL: https://us.falkview.com/janitorial/
Updated: 2026-11-04

> **How does a small janitorial company find and win government cleaning contracts?**
>
> Federal janitorial work is posted on SAM.gov under NAICS 561720 and product service code S201. State, city, county and school district work is posted on their own portals. Falkview watches both, scores each notice for your company, and builds the compliance matrix, the price build-up from the wage determination and a first draft for your team to review.

## Key facts

- NAICS code: 561720 Janitorial Services. Product service code: S201 Housekeeping, Custodial Janitorial.
- Federal janitorial contracts over $2,500 fall under the Service Contract Act: you must pay at least the wage determination's rates and fringe benefits.
- Federal service contracts usually run a base year plus option years, 5 years in total at most unless the agency approves longer.
- Most federal janitorial contracts are evaluated on technical approach (staffing and quality control), past performance and price.

## Where are government janitorial contracts posted?

Federal janitorial contracts are posted on SAM.gov Contract Opportunities. State and local contracts are posted on each state's procurement portal and on city, county, school district and housing authority bid pages.

- SAM.gov: search NAICS 561720 or product service code S201, and filter by set-aside (small business, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB) and place of performance.
- Watch sources sought notices and presolicitations, not only solicitations. Answering a sources sought notice helps decide whether a contract is set aside for small business.
- State portals: each state runs its own vendor registration and bid notices. Register once per state and switch on e-mail notices for janitorial and custodial categories.
- Cities, counties, school districts, transit agencies and public housing authorities post their own bids. Many use a hosted portal that e-mails registered vendors.

## Which agencies buy janitorial services?

Almost every agency with buildings does. Common federal buyers are VA medical centers, military installations, the Army Corps of Engineers, GSA's Public Buildings Service and land management agencies.

Locally, the steadiest buyers are school districts, city and county facilities departments, transit agencies and housing authorities. Their contracts are smaller, but there are many more of them and past performance requirements are often lighter.

Award history on USAspending.gov shows who holds a federal contract now, what the agency paid and when the contract ends, which tells you when it will come back out for bid.

## How is a government janitorial bid priced?

Start with labor hours from the square footage, cleaning frequency and production rates, multiply by the wage determination's rate for each job, then add fringe benefits, payroll taxes, insurance, supplies, overhead and profit.

The wage determination sets a floor, not your price, so the bids that win usually differ on productivity, supervision and overhead. Our guide to SCA wage determinations walks through each line.

The lines of a typical janitorial price build-up:

| Line | Where the number comes from |
| --- | --- |
| Productive hours | Cleanable square feet by area type, divided by your production rate (square feet an hour), times the frequency in the performance work statement |
| Supervision and relief | Project manager, leads and coverage for leave, from your staffing plan |
| Base wages | The rate for each occupation on the wage determination attached to the solicitation (Janitor is code 11150) |
| Fringe benefits | Health and welfare, vacation and holidays, as the wage determination lists them |
| Payroll taxes and insurance | FICA (7.65%), federal and state unemployment, workers' compensation and general liability |
| Supplies and equipment | Consumables, chemicals, equipment depreciation, unless the government furnishes them |
| Overhead and profit | Your G&A rate and the margin you choose |

## What do evaluators look for in a janitorial proposal?

Exactly what Section M of the solicitation says. For janitorial work that is usually a staffing plan, a quality control plan, a transition plan, relevant past performance and a realistic price.

- Lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA): meet every requirement, then the lowest price wins. Compliance matters more than polish.
- Best value tradeoff: a stronger technical approach or past performance can justify a higher price.
- A price that is too low for the hours the work needs can be found unrealistic, so show your hours and production rates.
- Answer every requirement in the performance work statement where Section L asks for it. A compliance matrix keeps that straight.

## What Falkview does for a janitorial bid

Falkview finds and scores the notices, reads the whole solicitation package and drafts the bid from your own documents. A person on your team reviews everything and submits.

1. Find: new SAM.gov notices for 561720 and S201 every day, plus the state and local bid e-mails you forward, in one list.
2. Score: a bid/no-bid score against your codes, set-asides, location, size and past performance.
3. Read: the performance work statement, Sections L and M, attachments and the wage determination, with page and section references.
4. Comply: a compliance matrix of every requirement, with where it is answered.
5. Price: a price build-up with the labor categories from the wage determination, where you set production rates, burden, overhead and profit.
6. Draft: first drafts of the technical volume, staffing plan and quality control plan from your past proposals, capability statement and past performance.

## Is Falkview a fit for your cleaning company?

Falkview is built for janitorial companies that already have a SAM.gov registration and some government or commercial past performance, and that bid at least a couple of times a month.

If you are just starting out in government contracting, start with your local APEX Accelerator, which helps with registration and first bids at no cost. Come back when bid volume is the problem.

## Questions

### What NAICS code is janitorial services?

NAICS 561720, Janitorial Services. On federal notices the matching product service code is usually S201, Housekeeping, Custodial Janitorial. Add both to your SAM.gov registration and your search filters.

### Do federal janitorial contracts require prevailing wages?

Yes, in most cases. Federal service contracts over $2,500 performed mainly by service employees fall under the Service Contract Act. You must pay at least the wages and fringe benefits in the wage determination attached to the contract.

### How long is a federal janitorial contract?

Usually a base year plus option years. Under FAR 17.204(e) the base and option periods of a service contract may not exceed 5 years in total unless the agency approves otherwise.

### Can a new cleaning company win a government contract?

Yes, but past performance counts. Commercial cleaning contracts of similar size can count as past performance. Small set-asides, subcontracts under an incumbent and local government work are common first steps.

### Does Falkview submit bids for us?

No. Falkview finds, reads, prices and drafts. A person on your team reviews and submits in SAM.gov, PIEE or the buyer's portal, and signs every representation and certification.

## Sources

- [SAM.gov Contract Opportunities](https://sam.gov/opportunities)
- [SAM.gov wage determinations](https://sam.gov/content/wage-determinations)
- [FAR 22.1002-1, Service Contract Labor Standards: general](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/22.1002-1)
- [FAR 17.204, option contracts and the 5-year limit](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/17.204)
- [Product and Service Codes (PSC) Manual](https://www.acquisition.gov/psc-manual)
- [SBA table of size standards](https://www.sba.gov/document/support-table-size-standards)
- [APEX Accelerators](https://www.apexaccelerators.us/)

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Falkview US finds federal, state and local solicitations, scores them, builds the compliance matrix and price build-up, and drafts proposals from a company's own documents. People review and submit. Book a demo: https://us.falkview.com/contact/