50 Inspirational Cleaning Quotes to Motivate Your Tidying Journey

"Cleanliness is not next to godliness, it is godliness"

- Mahatma Gandhi

"A clean house is a happy house."

- Louisa May Alcott

"Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Lower the bar. Actually spending ten minutes clearing off one shelf is better than fantasizing about spending a weekend cleaning out the basement."

- Gretchen Rubin

"Cleaning the house is not just about tidying up your physical space; it's about decluttering your mind and creating a fresh environment for inspiration and productivity. Embrace the process, one task at a time, and remember that a clean home is a reflection of a clear and focused mind."

- purple-parrots

"Minimalism isn’t about removing things you love. It’s about removing the things that distract you from the things you love."

- Joshua Becker

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."

- William Morris

"The question of what you want to own is actually the question of how you want to live your life."

- Marie Kondo

"Cleaning is the key to unlocking your potential."

- Marie Kondo

"Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity."

- Albert Einstein

"The way to get started is to quit talking and start doing."

- Walt Disney

"The objective of cleaning is not just to clean, but to feel happiness living within that environment."

- Marie Kondo

"Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor – it’s anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living."

- Peter Walsh

"Cleaning is the art of preserving human health."

- Nina Fedoroff

"Cleaning is my favorite way to relax. I clear things out and get rid of the stuff I don't need. When the food pantry and the refrigerator are organized, I feel less stressed."

- Jennifer Morrison

"A clean environment is a happy environment."

- Lailah Gifty Akita

"Next time you are trying to talk yourself into doing a care task, what would it be like to replace the voice that says, “Ugh, I should really go clean my house right now because it’s a disaster,” with “It would be such a kindness to future me if I were to get up right now and do _______. That task will allow me to experience comfort, convenience, and pleasure later.” It isn’t a hack, really. It’s not a formula guaranteed to make you get up. Sometimes you may not get up even with the change in self-talk. But you know what? You weren’t getting up when you were being mean to yourself either, so at least you can be nice to yourself. No one ever shamed themselves into better mental health."

- namster17

"Cleaning is not a punishment; it's an act of self-respect."

- Kim John Payne

"At worst, a house unkept cannot be so distressing as a life unlived."

- Rose Macaulay

"For every minute spent on organizing, an hour is earned."

- Benjamin Franklin

"A trick for me to not only get started, but also be kinder to myself, is to just take it one day at a time. Has the room been a mess for weeks and has your frustration grown exponentially day by day? Does the task of ‘cleaning the room until it’s 100% tidy’ demotivate you? Do just one thing today. Pick up (some of) the trash. Pick up some clothes off the floor and put them in a pile. Tomorrow, put them in the washing machine & drier. Put some clutter back in their spot. Cleaning isn’t do or die. Be patient and kind to yourself. Failing to clean everything or anything at all is not a moral failing."

- jiwufja

"If someone doesn’t live with you, neither should their stuff."

- Monika Kristofferson

"I lived a sloppy life. So I took very small increments in my life. I started making my bed. I started cleaning my room. There were dishes in the sink. It started off with doing small house chores. I saw that the yard needed to be mowed. So instead of being told it needed to be mowed, I would mow it."

- David Goggins

"I look forward to spring cleaning and putting things in their place. It's therapeutic for me."

- Kimora Lee Simmons

"Clutter is nothing more than postponed decisions."

- Barbara Hemphill

"Decluttering can be overwhelming, so start with that one small thing. Clean out your junk drawers. It can lead to so many more beautiful things. Start there, and you’ll find yourself cleaning the whole rest of the house."

- Bobby Berk

"Decluttering is infinitely easier when you think of it as deciding what to keep, rather than deciding what to throw away."

- Francine Jay

"Having a simplified, uncluttered home is a form of self-care."

- Emma Scheib

"Edit your life frequently and ruthlessly. It’s your masterpiece after all."

- Nathan W. Morris

"Love people, use things. The opposite never works."

- Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus, The Minimalists

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."

- Hans Hofmann

"The stuff you own has to help you create the life you want. And if it doesn’t, why is it in your home?"

- Peter Walsh

"We are used to cleaning the outside house, but the most important house to clean is yourself – your own house – which we never do."

- Marina Abramovic

"Cleaning and organizing is a practice not a project."

- Meagan Francis

"Nothing inspires cleanliness more than an unexpected guest."

- Radhika Mundra

"As you embark on this journey, I invite you to remember these words: slow, quiet, gentle. You are already worthy of love and belonging. This is not a journey of worthiness, but a journey of care... Because you must know, dear heart, that you are worthy of care, whether your house is immaculate or a mess."

- K.C Davis, LPC

"Your home is living space, not storage space."

- Francine Jay

"I love to cook and really enjoy cleaning my house. People always tease me about getting a maid. My girlfriend tells me that they are only $40 and will do everything. But that is my time to unwind, put my hair in a ponytail, throw on sweats, and be myself."

- Amy Weber

"Today as I stripped my bedsheet, I was verging on quitting halfway through. “Maybe I’ll just put on the new sheets later.” But then I told myself, “this is an act of love to myself. I deserve to slide right into a fresh, clean bed tonight when I’m tired.” And that made me finish it right then and there! Looking forward to bedtime tonight."

- Copterwaffle

"Cleaning anything involves making something else dirty, but anything can get dirty without something else getting clean."

- Laurence J. Peter

"Messy stuff irritates me. I don't like messiness. If you leave something around my house, I'll tell you to move it back, clean it up, throw it in the trash - don't matter, just get rid of it. I need stuff neat, organized. And once I start cleaning stuff, I don't stop until it's done. Otherwise I'm irritated all day."

- Russell Westbrook

"I'm not a potato sack; I've never sat on my couch. If I'm home, I'm cleaning, feeding my dogs, doing stuff. Life is too precious to waste time."

- Gisele Bundchen

"I clean my house, although I have help. I'm on the floor getting spots. I can't stand a dirty house. I'm a cleaning fanatic."

- Patti LaBelle

"Anything worth having is worth maintaining. Anything not worth maintaining is not worth having."

- CaruthersWillaby

"You don't exist to serve your space; your space exists to serve you."

- K.C. Davis

"Dust is a protective coating for fine furniture."

- Mario Buatta

"Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing up is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing."

- Phyllis Diller

"If your house is really a mess and a stranger comes to the door, greet him with, “Who could have done this? We have no enemies.”"

- Phyllis Diller

"Love is the thing that enables a woman to sing while she mops up the floor after her husband has walked across it in his barn boots."

- Hoosier Farmer

"Housework is work directly opposed to the possibility of human self-actualization."

- Ann Oakley

"I hate housework. You make the beds, you wash the dishes and six months later you have to start all over again."

- Joan Rivers

"Housework is like cleaning fish. No matter how often you do it, it still stinks."

- Thelma Harper

"It’s all in the attitude…housework is exercise. Slim your way to a clean home!"

- Linda Solegato

"Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh since there is less cleaning up to do afterward."

- Kurt Vonnegut

"Have a place for everything and keep the thing somewhere else; this is not a piece of advice, it is merely a custom."

- Mark Twain

"For a woman to get a rewarding sense of total creation by way of the multiple monotonous chores that are her daily lot would be as irrational as for an assembly line worker to rejoice that he had created an automobile because he tightened a bolt."

- Edith Mendel Stern

"Oh! Old rubbish! Old letters, old clothes, old objects that one does not want to throw away. How well nature has understood that, every year, she must change her leaves, her flowers, her fruit and her vegetables, and make manure out of the mementos of her year!"

- Jules Renard

"Housework is what a woman does that nobody notices unless she hasn’t done it."

- Evan Esar

"Everybody wants to save the earth; no one wants to help mom do the dishes."

- P.J. O’Rourke

"Housekeeping ain’t no joke."

- Louisa May Alcott

"My idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance."

- Erma Bombeck

"My idea of superwoman is someone who scrubs her own floors."

- Bette Midler

"A bright person can always think of something better to do than housework."

- Ruby Lou Barnhill

"Cleaning up with children around is like shoveling during a blizzard."

- Margaret Culkin Banning

"Have you ever taken anything out of the clothes basket because it had become, relatively, the cleaner thing?"

- Katherine Whitehorn

"If you love God, you can't hate anything or anyone. If the love one offers is met with hate, it doesn't die, rather it manifests in the form of compassion. That is universal love. It is not just a sentiment. It cannot be manifested merely by a shift in mental disposition. It can only come from inner cleaning, an inner awakening."

- Radhanath Swami

"A man thinks all dust stays outdoors."

- Ernest Vincent Wright

"If you have debt I’m willing to bet that general clutter is a problem for you too."

- Suze Orman

"Nature abhors a vacuum. And so do I."

- Anne Gibbons

"One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries."

- A.A. Milne

"Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward."

- Kurt Vonnegut

"Sweeping only moves the dust somewhere else."

- Marty Rubin

"I always clean before the cleaning lady comes. If not, when I come home, I can’t find anything. Cleaning ladies are always hiding things you leave out."

- Celia Cruz

"The day I worry about cleaning my house is the day Sears comes out with a riding vacuum cleaner."

- Roseanne Barr

"There was no need to do any housework at all. After the first four years the dirt doesn’t get any worse."

- Quentin Crisp

"Impossible is for the unwilling."

- John Keats

"Housework can’t kill you but why take a chance."

- Phyllis Diller

"No pressure, no diamonds."

- Thomas Carlyle

""I spent 1.5 hours cleaning this kitchen. If you mess it up … I will cut you. <3 Mom""

- The Butler Did It! CLT / AVL

"Outer order contributes to inner calm."

"Cleaning is a form of self-care that nurtures your environment and your soul."

"Cleaning is the outward expression of an inward desire for order."

"A clean and organized space profoundly impacts our mental and emotional well-being."

"A clean home is a haven for relaxation and rejuvenation."

"A clean environment nurtures a peaceful heart."

"Cleaning is an investment in your physical and mental well-being."

"Cleaning is not about perfection, it's about progress."

"A clean home is a reflection of a clean mind and a clear soul."

"Cleaning is not a one-time task; it's a way of life."

"Cleaning is not for the faint of heart; it's for the determined and the dedicated."

"Cleaning is a way to invite positive energy into your life."

"A clean space promotes a positive mindset."

"Cleaning your house is a never-ending task, but the joy of a clean space is timeless."

"A clean home is a platform for creating beautiful memories."

"Cleaning is the art of finding peace in simplicity."

"Cleaning is a way of showing gratitude for the space we occupy."

"A clean house is a canvas for a happy life."

"Cleaning is not a burden; it's an opportunity for transformation."

"Cleaning is the process of making visible what was previously hidden."

"Cleaning is not just a mundane chore; it is a transformative practice beyond tidying up physical spaces. It can bring order, clarity, and serenity into our lives."

"Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy."

"Cleaning is an act of mindfulness and presence."

- Unknown

"A clean and organized space creates a sense of serenity and calm."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is a dance between chaos and order"

- Unknown

"A clean space promotes a clear mind and a calm spirit."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is a journey that leads to self-discovery and growth."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is a way to create space for new possibilities."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is a way to restore order in a chaotic world."

- Unknown

"A clean home allows for clarity and focus."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is a tangible expression of love for yourself and those around you."

"A spotless house is a sign of a misspent life."

"Cleaning is the foundation of a harmonious home."

"Cleaning is an act of love towards yourself and your space."

- Unknown

"A clean home brings clarity and inspiration."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is the foundation for a balanced and harmonious life."

- Unknown

"A clean space invites positive energy and new beginnings."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is an investment in your personal and emotional well-being."

- Unknown

"A clean house is a reflection of a well-lived life."

- Unknown

"Cleaning is an act of self-discipline and self-respect."

- Unknown

"A clean environment fosters happiness and peace."

- Unknown

"Cleanliness is next to godliness."

"There is no substitute for a clean home."

"We dream of having a clean house — but who dreams of cleaning?"

"You don’t have to clean everything at once. Just focus on one task at a time."

"Cleaning is not a chore; it’s a way of life."

"Cleaning is the first step towards self-care."

"Cleaning is the act of bringing order to chaos."

"Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance?"

"Don’t find yourself cleaning up the same mess twice."

"Dirt has so little cause for pride that it never boasts."

"Cleanliness becomes more important when disease is rife."

"Don’t get discouraged by the mess. Focus on the progress."

"Dust settles everywhere, even in the best-regulated houses."

"Cleaning and decluttering can be a very meditative experience."

"Cleaning and organizing is a practice, not a project."

"Cleaning is a never-ending battle, but a battle worth fighting."

"Cleaning isn’t punishment; it’s self-care for your environment."

"Housework, if you do it right, can kill you."

"A clean home is a sanctuary for the soul."