Home Cleaning Hacks on a Budget

Most Brits, surveys show, spend around £150 on cleaning supplies every year — and although that £12 or so a month can certainly sting if you’re on a tight budget, that number doesn’t seem quite right to us. It’s the little things that sneak up on you that ultimately get you down in this challenging economy.
Have you been Googling around for tips on saving money while still keeping your cleaning budget as low as reasonably possible? Put your hands up if you’re bored out of your mind every time a blog or video venerates the old baking soda/vinegar “hack” as the be-all-and-end-all of all money-saving measures.
You already know about that one. (Right? It’s practically impossible to have missed that one.) We’re just going to assume that you’re familiar with lemon or orange peels in vinegar as a homemade cleaner, too. Those things are neat, and they absolutely do work, but they’re probably not what will make the difference between forking out on keeping your home clean and having a little left over to enjoy a nice meal at a restaurant once in a while.
Those kinds of tips call for a deeper dig. A much deeper dig.
The budget-friendly home cleaning tips you’ll find here focus on three things:
- Covering your cleaning basics really well, so you won’t feel the need to overspend on supplies you don’t need.
- Making do with stuff you already have lying around your home.
- Shifting your mindset entirely. This one focusses on the bigger picture, from savvy budgeting to creative swaps with neighbours.
Ready to start saving? Dig in!
1. All the Basic Supplies You Really Need to Keep Your Home Clean
Look around the cleaning aisle at your local Tesco’s or Sainsbury’s, and you’ll see an army of highly specialised supplies. There’s stuff for everything. Floor cleaner (with multiple options for different kinds of floors), kitchen cleaner, degreaser, bathroom cleaner, toilet cleaner, mould remover, stain remover, washing-up liquid, window cleaner, screen cleaner, and we could go on. And on.
Your great-grandparents didn’t have any of those, and their home probably still sparkled. You don’t need them either. The idea that you need a dedicated product for everything is one of the biggest money-guzzlers around.
Let’s say you only had:
- Washing-up liquid. (£3 for a really big bottle that’ll last you ages — buy real-deal Fairy Liquid, because it’s much more concentrated than cheaper options.)
- Baking soda (we won’t devote too much time to it, but yes, it still rocks.) (£1.40 for 200 grams.)
- (A very cheap, basic) vinegar. (No more than 35 p!)
- Methylated spirits, AKA surgical spirits, with an ethanol content of at least 70 per cent, to disinfect and clean. (£6.50 for 500 ml.)
- Bleach (for when you really need it — skip if you’re completely committed to eco-friendly products). (Around 7 p for the Tesco brand one.)
- Add one essential oil of your choice, and you’ll get your home to smell great. The splurge may be worth it! If you’re buying oranges or lemons anyway, you can also soak the peels in vinegar for six weeks and end up with a DIY cleaner that smells like heaven.
That wouldn’t be too bad. You can get nearly everything done with that.
Here’s how.
Washing-Up Liquid
You can use washing-up liquid for so much more than washing up:
- Heavily dilute Fairy Liquid to use it as a floor cleaner. Add a few drops of essential oil or homemade orange cleaner.
- Use a more concentrated version to clean stains out of carpets and upholstery.
- Clean kids’ toys, table tops, kitchen counters, and bathroom surfaces with washing-up liquid, adding a few drops of essential oil.
- Clean garden furniture with washing-up liquid.
Honestly — it’s gentle enough for almost any surface, and (as the ads keep reminding you) a little goes a very long way. Why not put it to good use and save money?
Baking Soda
Baking soda (soda bicarbonate) is slightly abrasive, making it perfect for removing stuck-on dirt and grime. Adding a little water to make a thick paste is a great spot-cleaning hack that you can put to work to scrub kitchen counters, bathroom grouting, kitchen tiles with oil splatters, ovens and cookers, and even toilets. Use a normal or steel wire sponge to really get scrubbing!
Add vinegar, and you’ll get a fizzy cleaning solution that can declog drains, make entire ovens sparkle, get your sink shining, get your fridge looking and smelling great, get limescale out of your kettle, or remove limescale from toilets and bathrooms. Let the mixture work its fizzing magic and wait for it to calm down before you start scrubbing.
On its own, baking soda is a fantastic deodorizer. Sprinkle the dry powder onto carpeting or upholstery, leave it to sit for a while, and then hoover it right up. If you have a cat, adding a little baking soda to the litter box is a wonderful hack. Plus, it also works on those nasty gym shoes that smell like a biohazard right now!
Vinegar
Vinegar is a handy all-purpose cleaner and stain remover that’s great for busting limescale. Not everyone loves the smell, but if you don’t mind it, a half-water, half-vinegar solution is pretty effective for cleaning windows and mirrors. If you have a bit of a mould or mildew issue, vinegar will help you kill it (in combination with better ventilation).
Warning: Never use vinegar on wooden surfaces!
Spirits
Methylated spirits, with an ethanol content of 70 per cent or more, are an obvious alternative to dedicated commercial disinfectants. Besides killing germs, it’s also a decent cleaner in its own right. Use methylated spirits to:
- Clean and disinfect high-traffic points that everyone has had their grimy hands on, like doorknobs and light switches.
- Clean mirrors and windows with a half-water, half-spirits solution with a drop of washing-up liquid.
- Fight mould and mildew in the bathroom.
- Clean metal and machinery — a rust-free DIY cleaning hack, as alcohol evaporates almost immediately.
- Disinfect toilets and bathrooms (after scrubbing with baking soda).
Don’t use spirits to clean plastics or wood, though, because they can do a lot of damage!
Bleach
People looking for budget cleaning hacks rather than green cleaning hacks might find it cost-efficient to invest in bleach to keep their bathrooms clean. Bleach is often faster and better at cleaning toilets than anything else. It’s also a strong mould killer.
Bonus: Scents for Your DIY Cleaning Products
The basic cleaning products we looked at work. They also have tell-tale smells that can serve as a constant reminder that you’re “too poor to buy proper cleaning supplies” — a little demoralising. Adding some lovely fresh scents can make all the difference. Try:
- Choosing an essential oil you love the smell of and adding just a few drops.
- Soaking citrus peels in vinegar for six weeks. Vinegar has just gone from a basic ingredient to a real cleaning hack that smells decadent!
- Adding dried or fresh herbs to (basic sunflower) oil, letting it sit for a few weeks, and adding a few drops to your floor cleaner. This also happens to be a great way to moisturise your wooden surfaces!
You’ll fall in love with your back-to-basics approach to cleaning if your home smells better than ever, and that’s the real hack. Even if your budget suddenly goes up drastically, you won’t feel tempted to splurge on commercial formulas anymore!
2. Common Household Objects You Can Put to Work to Make Your Home Sparkle
You’re now armed with a list of essential and budget-friendly cleaning agents, but you’ll still need implements to put them to work. How much you need depends on what you’re starting with, so have a look at these assorted tips.
- Don’t own a good mop? Tie an old towel around your broom and use that.
- Need a duster? Tie an old sponge around a long stick with a rubber band, and use that. This tip is more effective at clearing cobwebs than tying a microfiber cloth to a stick.
- Want to get up close and personal with the grime in hard-to-reach areas of your cooker, washing machine, or kitchen counters? Toothpicks are really handy.
- Old toothbrushes can also come to the rescue, especially when you need to clean your grouting.
- Don’t want those nasty streaks after cleaning your windows? Use either old newspaper or unused coffee filters to dry them!
- Don’t fancy buying expensive microfiber cloths? Cut old towels up into smaller cloths.
- Cut up old kitchen sponges and make protective padding for chairs and table legs. Floors that don’t get scratched are easier to keep clean!
The basic idea is always the same — adopt a “hack” mindset. When you have a cleaning dilemma that needs solving, don’t immediately run to the shop. Instead, try to repurpose things you already have. You’ll find something to work with 95 per cent of the time!
3. Hacking Your Mindset: Towards a Cheaper, More Creative Approach to Cleaning
A whole industry has emerged around “DIY cleaning hacks.” If we’re honest, most of them miss the mark. They either don’t save money, don’t work, or actively damage your belongings. Nobody wants to crush up eggshells to use them as metal polish, and nobody should. Nobody really wants to use banana peels as a leather cleaner, either.
The things that do work? They’re common sense more than anything — and they involve “hacking” your mindset rather than using household cleaning hacks.
Who knows? Maybe that floor cleaner with the fantastic smell that you’re sad you can’t afford in this economy suddenly becomes very accessible if you put these tips to work?
Hacks to Save Electricity
Many people focus on the cost of cleaning supplies when they look for household hacks, but don’t forget about the appliances that eat electricity! Sweeping the floor is cheaper than hoovering because it doesn’t make the numbers on your meter go up. Doing the washing up yourself is cheaper than running the dishwasher.
Line-drying your laundry can save a lot, too, but only if you can do it outdoors. Line-drying indoors creates a humid environment perfect for mould, and it’ll come back to bite you later.
Declutter (So You Have Less to Clean)
We hate to state the obvious, but the less you have, the less you need to clean. Most people have too much stuff. That problem rises exponentially when you’re on a super tight budget and you get stuck in the “might need it later” mindset. Before you know it, you’ll have cupboards full of nonsense — gathering dust.
You can declutter without being wasteful by giving stuff you no longer need or want to others who do have a use for it. You might get something you could do with in return!
Prioritise Ventilation
Fresh air solves a lot of problems. Open your windows every day for at least 15 minutes, ideally at night when there’s less traffic and dust. Your home will smell nicer and cleaner, and you’ll greatly reduce the risk of mould and mildew.
Clean Messes Right Away
Here’s another Captain Obvious solution that’s definitely not a hack but nonetheless really works. Don’t wait for dirt and grime to get “caked on.” Deal with it right away. You’ll need less product to clean it successfully, and it’ll be faster, too.
Swap and Barter with Neighbors and Friends
Big ticket expenses are the worst. If you’re on great terms with your neighbors, why not collectively invest in carpet cleaners or pressure washers that everyone can use? You’ll spend a fraction of the cost and still have access to the deep-cleaning products that can really make your home shine.
The same principle can work on a smaller scale, too. The fact that it is usually more cost-effective to buy larger packages of things like washing powder and multi-surface cleaners is a bit of a curse when you’re on a budget. Why not go halves with someone and bring the cost per kilo down significantly?
A Final Word
Once you “hack” yourself, everything else follows quite naturally. Decoupling yourself from the idea that you need a dedicated commercial product for every cleaning chore, and going back to basics, is a great start. Getting creative with what you already have is the next. From there, you can look for ways to save electricity and resource-share with friends and neighbors.
Cleaning your home does not have to cost a fortune — and a budget-friendly cleaning approach doesn’t even require special hacks. It’s all about making do with what you have in one area, so that you can make your money work in ways that really count.