How to Keep the House Clean When You Suck at Cleaning

I think most of us have been raised to have pretty rigid ideas about how to keep the house clean. Somehow we’ve all learned that keeping your home clean requires spending a lot of time cleaning the entire house every weekend.

But, honestly, a weekly cleaning schedule just doesn’t work for me. Even as a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom of three, I’ve never been able to get myself to do a big clean every weekend.

And I definitely couldn’t hire someone to do it for me… so I had to find another way to stay on top of the housework.

Over the years, I’ve learned what does and doesn’t work for me. And my mindset has shifted. I’ve let go of the idea that having a tidy house is important and instead accepted that mess is an inevitable part of having children!

I’ve also accepted that I’m just not someone who naturally loves or is good at cleaning. Of course traditional cleaning routines aren’t going to work for me!

I’ve tried so many cleaning tips and tricks – some of which have helped and some of which have not. It’s been a case of trial and error, not to mention patience and perseverance!

So today I want to share my hard-won tips for keeping your house clean if the whole weekly cleaning schedule thing doesn’t work for you either.

Whether you’re a busy parent, a full-time worker or carer, someone with a disability, low energy, ADHD, or anything else that makes keeping on top of the house difficult, I hope you find at least one or two new cleaning tips in here that work for you!

How to Keep The House Clean Without Weekly Cleans

Here are 14 ways to keep your house clean if the dreaded weekly deep clean feels like an impossible task. Take the tips that sound manageable and leave any that feel tricky.

Remember, you’re not aiming to become a master house cleaner overnight! If you can find just one or two ways to maintain a slightly cleaner home, that’s a huge win.

1. Do Small “As-You-Go” Cleaning Projects

One of the best ways to keep your house clean is to get into the habit of doing small tasks as you go about your everyday life. 

While you’re waiting for bread to toast or water to boil, wipe fingerprints off the cabinets or clean the inside of the microwave. If you’re cooking and have a few spare minutes, unload the dishwasher, empty the trash, or wipe down the counters. While you’re waiting for your conditioner to work its magic, quickly wipe down the shower tiles.

These small tasks don’t take much time, but they make a big difference. For starters, it means at least one thing is always clean. And because you’re staying on top of the housework on a daily basis, it never gets to the point where cleaning your entire house feels like a herculean task.

2. Change Your Mindset

If you’re anything like me, you probably grew up thinking cleaning meant doing a big weekly clean, the occasional deep clean, and those dreaded annual spring cleans.

The problem with this mindset though, is that it turns cleaning into this big chore you have to set aside a lot of time for… which only makes it that much more frustrating when your beloved family members immediately undo all your hard work!

So why not try thinking of cleaning as more of a way of being or a lifestyle? Keep an eye out for little things that need cleaning, wipe things down when you notice they need it, and deal with messes as they happen.

This way, cleaning never becomes a big chore that needs doing. It’s just something that happens naturally as you go about your everyday life.

3. Keep Cleaners Handy

One super simple way to keep your house clean is to make sure your cleaning supplies are always within easy reach. Keep a bottle of multi-purpose cleaner, plus any other cleaning products you use on a regular basis, like a microfiber cloth, glass cleaner, or a lint roller, in every major room.

That way, you can grab them when you need them, instead of trekking to the cleaning closet (or not because it feels like too much effort!). Little tasks like wiping down the dinner table or a windowsill are suddenly so much easier when the supplies are right there.

Don’t worry though… You don’t have to sacrifice style for this! Treat yourself to a pretty spray bottle for each room and decant your cleaner into it. Store less aesthetically-pleasing items in objects that match your decor, like a decorative basket or box.

This trick works with other items too. For example, I keep a soap-filled dish brush in the shower to quickly scrub the tiles after I get out. Tucking a small handheld vacuum into a cupboard in the living room could also be helpful for quick pick-ups.

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4. Create Drop Zones

If you just can’t get your kids to put things away after they’ve used them, try creating drop zones.

Drop zones are designated spots around the house where you can dump things that haven’t been put away, like toys, hoodies, and chargers. You might have a basket somewhere near the bottom of the stairs, for example.

Whenever you come across something that’s in the wrong place, you simply pick it up and put it in the nearest drop zone. Then, at the end of the day, you can take the basket and deliver the various objects to their rightful homes. Or start a family routine where everyone checks the basket for their belongings before bed.

This is a simple way of maintaining a tidy home without putting in much effort, and it can become second nature pretty quickly.

5. Stagger Your Cleaning Tasks

If time and energy are issues for you, cleaning your entire home in one go probably isn’t the right approach. So let go of the idea that you have to clean the whole house, or even a whole room, at once. 

If you pick and choose what you most feel like doing or what’s most in need of attention, you’re far more likely to actually do it than if you try to do everything all at the same time. Getting yourself to clean the whole bathroom can feel daunting. But getting yourself to clean the bathroom sink? Way easier!

6. Clean Immediately After Use

One of the highest-impact ways to keep your house clean is to clean up right after using something.

For example, keep a sponge or cloth by the bathroom sink and quickly wipe away water droplets after washing your hands or brushing your teeth. You can also keep a soap-filled brush by the sink to give it a quick once-over after use. If everyone in the house does this, the sink stays mostly clean with very little effort.

This simple habit prevents buildup, which means cleaning never turns into something gross or overwhelming. By doing a handful of simple tasks like this on a daily basis, you get to live in a mostly-clean home without spending the entire weekend on your hands and knees!

7. Reduce (and Contain) the Mess

One of the easiest ways to keep a clean home is to create less mess in the first place. The less mess you make, the less there is to clean up later.

Use a food cover when microwaving so splatters don’t build up. Take shoes off at the door. Set boundaries like keeping pets off the furniture or not letting kids take food upstairs. Small rules like these make a big difference over time.

If muddy shoes are constantly undoing your cleaning efforts, set up a simple mudroom system. Add a seat outside or just inside the door for kids to stop and take off their shoes, plus a basket nearby for them to toss shoes into.

Limiting the mess at its source is the best way to keep a house clean!

8. Trick Yourself Into Cleaning Regularly

If you’re a bit of a procrastinator, sometimes the best way to stay on top of housework is to give yourself some external motivation. So force your own hand! Put things in your schedule that give you an incentive to clean.

You could invite friends over, host regular playdates, or even have your mother-in-law visit. Knowing someone else is going to see your messy house will make you want to clean it! This trick helps you to keep your house clean without relying on willpower.

9. Make Things Easy to Maintain

If keeping your house clean feels like an impossible task, it could be because your systems are working against you. Is doing the right thing harder than it needs to be?

For example, if your partner always ends up dropping their towel on the floor instead of folding it neatly on the towel bar, swap the bar for some hooks. Tossing a towel onto a hook is much easier than folding it, so it’s more likely to happen.

What little things do your family members do or not do that undo all your cleaning efforts? Are there things on your cleaning to-do list that you never quite get round to because they’re too much of a pain? Find ways to make those tasks easier!

When you make the “right” thing the easiest thing to do, keeping a clean home is much more manageable.

10. Clean Smarter, Not Harder

One of the lowest-effort ways to keep your home clean is to use tools that make cleaning simpler or that do double duty. A 2-in-1 vacuum/mop, for example, lets you sweep and mop at the same time, cutting your workload in half. I love those things!

Robot vacuums are another lifesaver. Even if they don’t clean as thoroughly as you would, running them on a daily basis keeps floors under control and reduces your weekly cleaning time.

There are also tools that tackle the tough parts of cleaning, like electric scrubbers that spin while you clean. So have a think about how you could automate or semi-outsource some of the chores you hate most. Removing them from your to-do list could make a huge difference to your attitude to cleaning!

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11. Choose Home Goods That Are Easy to Clean

Here’s a clean house hack that most people don’t think of: fill your home with items that are easier to clean.

Doors with ridges, bannisters with lots of curves, ornaments with lots of intricate details… they all collect dust and therefore look dirty faster than straight-edged, simpler items.

You can save yourself hours of cleaning every week simply by switching them for equivalents that are easier to maintain.

Go for a tablecloth that’s easy to wipe down or throw in the washing machine. Pick metal bar stools over upholstered ones. Opt for darker-colored carpets and furniture.

Obviously there’s no need to go out and immediately overhaul your entire home, but definitely bear this in mind whenever you buy something new. Ask yourself if it will be unnecessarily difficult to keep clean, and find a simpler alternative where possible. Future you will thank you for it!

12. Protect Hard-to-Clean Items

Another simple way to keep your house clean is to protect the things that are hardest to maintain. Use liners, mats, or covers on surfaces so you can wipe them down easily or toss them in the washing machine. Think sofa covers, shelf liners, wipeable tablecloths, rugs that can be washed, and mattress protectors.

If a piece of furniture or a particular item is consistently a pain to clean, see if you can switch it for something that would be easier to clean. For example, if you hate changing your fitted sheets, switch to a coverless duvet that can go straight in the wash.

Making these simple switches will save you both time and energy. Yay!

13. Build Tiny Cleaning Habits Into Your Routine

One of the best ways to stay on top of housework is to make cleaning automatic by attaching small tasks to habits you already do.

For example, clear the kitchen and run the dishwasher after dinner, do a quick sweep of the main rooms when you get up to go to bed, or pick up one item and put it away every time you get up. You can also wipe down the sink while brushing your teeth or clean the shower while you’re in it.

These tiny habits take almost no extra effort but they add up to make a big difference, keeping your home clean with minimal stress.

14. Actually Make Cleaning Fun

If cleaning feels like a chore, you’re much less likely to do it, so why not make it fun? Think about what you love and build it into your cleaning routine.

If you’re competitive, turn it into a game: see how much you can tidy in five minutes, or race against someone else. If you love music, blast your favorite playlist and dance as you clean. Podcasts or audiobooks are another great option, especially if you only let yourself listen to them while you’re cleaning. That way, you cleaning actually feels like a treat!

There Is No Best Way to Keep A House Clean

There’s no single “right” way to clean. For some people, a weekly deep clean works perfectly. For others, like me, it doesn’t.

The key is finding little habits and tricks that actually work for you and your home. If a method helps you keep your home clean, it’s a winner, no matter how unusual it is.

At the end of the day, if your family is comfortable in your home and nothing is obviously unsanitary, a little dust on a shelf is completely fine. There are much more important things in life!