Maryland startup KLEENUP wants to shake up the cleaning industry by cutting out the middleman

This story was produced with support from the Howard County Economic Development Authority, which operates the Maryland Innovation Center and helps entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes access the funding, guidance, and connections they need to grow in Howard County, Maryland.

Workers in the cleaning industry can be easily taken advantage of by the agencies they work for — a dynamic that founder Asrorjon Shukurov knows firsthand, having lived on both sides of it.

After immigrating to the United States from Uzbekistan more than 20 years ago, he worked as a house cleaner and eventually started his own business connecting other cleaners with jobs.

While the work was profitable for him, he knew it didn’t pay enough to support other cleaners. Middlemen, or agencies that assign cleaners to customers, often take large cuts, and many immigrant workers depend on them for steady work. His company, KLEENUP, takes the extra step out of the equation by connecting cleaners to residential clients directly, Per Jacobsen, Shukurov’s KLEENUP cofounder, told Technical.ly.

“We remove the ambiguity from the job description, and we give the opportunity to cleaners to bid with a fixed price,” Jacobsen said. 

The Howard County, Maryland-based startup launched last year and is currently operating a test market from Towson to Annapolis, with plans to expand to Baltimore, DC and Richmond in 2026.

Through KLEENUP, cleaners can bid on jobs posted by clients, who then choose a worker based on their profile and cost. The platform also removes some of the uncertainty common in gig work by requiring clients to clearly detail what areas of a room need to be cleaned.

The app is free for clients to use and takes a 10% cut from cleaners’ fees. This differs from similar platforms like TaskRabbit, which charges a service fee that customers absorb. 

Jacobsen said KLEENUP’s cut is substantially less than what cleaning agencies charge — closer to 30% to 40%, he’s heard, though there’s no industry standard — and provides more transparency upfront for workers. 

“The fee is designed to be less obtrusive for cleaners,” Jacobsen said. “We aren’t selling leads — we’re selling fully baked projects and we only get paid after the cleaner is paid.” 

Filling a customer gap

The KLEENUP team interviews and runs background checks on every cleaner onboarded onto the platform. Recruiting cleaners to join hasn’t been an issue, Jacobsen said. He says cleaners are eager for a new pool of jobs and a platform that mediates common disputes with clients. 

About 2.5 million people work as janitors and building cleaners, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. KLEENUP currently hosts about 100 cleaners active on the app. 

The bigger challenge, according to Jacobsen, is finding customers to use the platform. 

In response, the company recently reengineered the sign-up process and launched a marketing campaign to reach more customers in its test markets. 

While customers can use the platform to find a regular cleaner, KLEENUP recommends bringing on a new worker each time, Jacobsen said. That allows for more flexibility in scheduling and keeps prices low, as the worker willing to accept the lowest price typically gets the gig.

“It’s better for you to actually put the job out in the ether and get the best person for the job and the best price,” Jacobsen said.