Monday
Focus on the dining room
Ryan Kahn, a career coach, told Forbes it’s best to keep Mondays light when it comes to workload. We think that sounds like a good idea when it comes to housework, too!
- Remove clutter in the dining room
- Wipe down dining room furniture with a microfiber cloth and/or a vinegar cleansing solution
- Vacuum upholstery
- Lightly dust china cabinets, hutches, etc.
Tuesday
Focus on shared living spaces
Go wild on dusting, vacuuming and Windex-ing shared living spaces. This is also a good opportunity to clean small bathrooms (powder rooms) or guest bedrooms that rarely get used.
- Vacuum shared living spaces (living room, dining room, kitchen, hallways, mudroom)
- Dust knick-knacks and books on shelves
- If you have a powder room, wipe down the sink, toilet and other surfaces
- Vacuum guest bedroom and dust as needed
- Use Windex or vinegar and newspaper on mirrors and glass*
*You don’t have to go wild on windows all over the house. However, wiping down windows in doors or above sinks is a good idea.
Wednesday
Focus on high-traffic areas
Mid-week is a great time to tackle high-traffic areas or zones that have a tendency to accumulate lots of… stuff. We’ll split this up over the course of two days so it’s not overwhelming.
- Clear living room of clutter
- Dust television, console, gaming systems, baseboards, etc.
- Wipe down coffee table and side tables
- Fold blankets and stack them in a basket or drape them on a blanket ladder
- Fluff pillows
- Vacuum living room again if needed, especially under and behind large furniture
- Do a load of laundry
- Wipe down surfaces in the laundry room as the cycle runs
- Fold clean laundry
- Distribute clean laundry to its rightful home
- Clean lint traps after every dryer cycle
Thursday
Focus on high-traffic areas
Day Two of tackling high traffic areas! This time, you’ll want to focus on hallways, entryways, mudrooms and bedrooms. According to Merry Maids, these are the spaces that have probably taken the biggest hit over the course of the week. If you’ve got kiddos, make it a bedroom cleaning party night and blast music!
- Do a load (or two) of laundry with bedding and other linens
- Change bedding in all bedrooms
- Vacuum floors, including the areas behind bedside tables, behind dressers, halls between bedrooms
- Remove items on bedside tables and dressers, wipe down everything, put everything back
- Declutter entryway tables, coat racks and shoe racks
- Mop entryway (especially in winter, when salt stains accumulate)
Friday
Focus on home office
Friday is a great day to give yourself some time off from bigger cleaning endeavors. It’s the end of a week you’ve got a fun weekend ahead of you, and you might want to ignore the clutter for a few hours.
If you want to tackle something on Friday, make it your home office. Kahn told Forbes preparing your office for Monday on Friday will make life a whole lot easier when you return to the office (or your work-from-home nook) the following week.
- Remove everything from your desk and wipe it down
- Dust your monitor, keyboard and desk lamps
- File papers appropriately (To Do, Completed, etc.)
- Vacuum floors, upholstery, chairs
- Detangle cords
- Plug in any devices you’ll need fully charged come Monday
Saturday
Focus on deep cleaning the bathroom
Even though the weekend is all about deep cleaning, once you’ve got a system down, these rooms fly by. Plus, if you’ve been keeping up with those simple, daily cleaning tasks, a more intense scrubbing won’t require as much elbow grease.
Sunday
Focus on the kitchen
Meal prep is often reserved for Sundays, so why not tackle the kitchen at the same time? Remember to clean as you go!
- Wipe down counters, cabinets, stove top and all other surfaces
- Clean inside and outside of the microwave
- Wipe down all handles (cabinets, fridge, microwave, oven, sink nozzle)
- Polish appliances
- Clean coffee maker and/or Keurig
- Mop floor
- Clean interior of oven and dishwasher (Note: you can get away with doing this four times a year, rather than every week, but it’s good to have on your radar!)
- Toss old, expired food
Again, if this schedule doesn’t suit your lifestyle, home or family, adjust it! Weekly cleaning schedules work best when they take your unique needs into account.