How to Win Federal Janitorial Contracts (NAICS 561720)

Federal janitorial contracts are some of the most accessible, most recurring work in all of government contracting. The government cleans millions of square feet every day — courthouses, military bases, VA hospitals, post offices — and buys that service on multi-year contracts under NAICS 561720, Janitorial Services.

For a small cleaning company, it's one of the clearest paths into govcon. Here's the 2026 playbook.

The quick version

Register in SAM.gov and list NAICS 561720 — mandatory and free.
Know the SCA wage floor — it's where new bidders lose money.
Chase recompetes — expiring contracts are your highest-probability work.
Win on reliability + a compliant, competitive price — not just the lowest number.

Why janitorial is a smart first vertical

Recurring revenue. Most contracts run one base year + four options — up to five years if you perform.
Straightforward requirements. You already know how to clean a building. The hard part is the federal process, not the service.
Local competition. Place-of-performance limits the field to providers who can staff that location.
Set-asides are common. Much of this work is reserved for small, 8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, or WOSB firms.

Step 1 — Get registered and eligible

Before you can win anything:

Get a UEI and register in SAM.gov — mandatory and free.
List NAICS 561720 (plus 561210 Facilities or 561730 Grounds if you offer them).
Build your DSBS / SBA profile — contracting officers search it for set-aside work.
Pursue any set-aside certifications you qualify for — 8(a), WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB, or HUBZone narrow the competition fast.

Step 2 — Understand SCA (where new bidders lose money)

Federal janitorial work is covered by the Service Contract Act (SCA). For each locality, the government publishes a wage determination setting the minimum hourly wage and Health & Welfare (H&W) fringe you must pay. You can't legally bid below it.

This trips up new contractors two ways:

Bid below the floor → non-compliant, and you lose money or face a Department of Labor problem.
Bid too high → you lose on price, often on a lowest-price-technically-acceptable (LPTA) evaluation.

The win: clear the legal wage floor, add your fringe, overhead, and a thin margin — and land where real winners land. We break this down in How to Price a Federal Service Contract, with a free janitorial calculator to model it.

Step 3 — Find the right opportunities (and the recompetes)

Don't just refresh SAM.gov. Your highest-probability work is the recompete — a contract expiring soon, with a known incumbent, known scope, and a known timeline.

Filter for:

NAICS 561720 (plus 561210 / 561730 if relevant)
Your state / region
Set-asides you qualify for
Award sizes you can staff — don't chase a $15M base when you're built for $500K jobs

FedRange surfaces exactly this: open janitorial solicitations and contracts coming up for recompete, filtered by NAICS, state, set-aside, and size — with the pricing band attached.

Step 4 — Build a winning bid

On most service work, contracting officers want the most reliable provider at a fair price — not just the cheapest. Nail four things:

A clear capability statement — your experience, certifications, and why you're the safe choice.
Strong past performance — commercial, municipal, or prior federal cleaning references.
A credible transition plan — how you'll hire (often the incumbent's crew), train, and start day one.
A compliant, competitive price — above the SCA floor, covering your costs, inside the competitive band.

Step 5 — Use your first win to build past performance

The data is sobering: many small businesses take about three years and a year of active bidding before their first federal win.

So treat early bids as pipeline-building, not lottery tickets — every proposal sharpens your pricing and your past-performance story. Once you win one, recompetes of your own contract and adjacent buildings become your easiest next targets.

Frequently asked questions

What NAICS code is federal janitorial?

NAICS 561720, Janitorial Services. Related codes: 561210 (Facilities Support) and 561730 (Grounds), which many cleaning companies also bid.

Do I need past federal experience?

No — but you need past performance of some kind (commercial or municipal references work). Set-aside contracts are the most realistic entry point for a first federal win.

How much do federal janitorial contracts pay?

It varies widely by square footage, scope, and locality, and the SCA wage determination sets the labor floor. The reliable way to price is to look at what comparable awards in your state actually paid.

How long are these contracts?

Typically one base year + up to four option years — about five years if you perform — after which it goes up for recompete.

Keep reading

Federal Contract Recompetes
Federal Set-Asides Explained
See live janitorial data on the NAICS 561720 page.

FedRange shows small janitorial and facilities contractors which federal contracts are open, which are coming up for recompete, and what comparable contracts actually paid — by NAICS, state, and set-aside. Find janitorial contracts →