Okay, so last week, my place in Newcastle was looking like a bomb hit it. Seriously, between work and life, cleaning fell right off the cliff. Needed some pros to sort it out, fast. I remembered a mate mentioning comparing cleaning companies, not just grabbing the first one. Figured I'd do the same, share how it went.

The Starting Point: Overwhelmed!

First, I just googled something like "cleaning companies Newcastle". Holy moly, pages and pages popped up. Felt like everyone and their uncle had a bucket and mop. How do you even pick? Right, prices and quality. Not just the cheapest or the flashiest name.

The Digging Phase: Sites & Screenshots

Sat down with my laptop and a cuppa. Went through maybe... 15 different company websites? Made a silly spreadsheet on my phone – just two columns: price and what I could see about their service. Some had instant quote tools – punched in my flat size and frequency (once-off deep clean). Prices swung wildly! Like, £80 to £160 for basically the same square footage? Got confusing.

Then came the quality bit. That's trickier. Looked for:

• Real photos of work: Like, actual before-and-afters, not just shiny stock images.
• Specific mentions: Did they talk about the stuff I care about? Oven cleaning? Tackling pet hair? Proper dusting? If it felt generic... probably skip.
• Reassurance stuff: Were they insured? Did background checks on staff? Made me feel safer.

The Mystery Shop & Chat

Didn't trust just the websites. Emailed a few with my actual postcode and cleaning wishlist:

• "Can you clean inside kitchen cupboards?"
• "How long will a deep clean take?"
• Got quotes back – matched 'em to my spreadsheet. One place added £25 'just because' when they replied? Crossed them off sharpish.

Also rang three. Wanted to hear how they handled simple questions. One sounded rushed and annoyed I asked about pet hair removal. Another sounded lovely, chatted like a mate. Big difference.

The Review Trap

Checked reviews next. On Trustpilot, Google, everywhere. Learned the hard way – some "5-star" places had like… 2 reviews? Probably fake. Dug deeper. Looked for patterns:

• Consistency: Were people saying the same things (good or bad) over months? Sporadic praise or complaints might be a one-off.
• Details: Reviews like "Great!" useless. Ones like "Cleaned behind the toilet properly, staff polite" – gold.
• Noticed a decent-priced company had a lot of moans about cancellations or cutting corners. Price suddenly seemed less great.

The "Aha!" Moment... Kinda.

Okay, so comparing wasn't easy. It wasn't just "£90 vs £100" done. Ended up with three contenders:

• Company A: Cheapest (£85), but reviews vague, few photos. Felt risky.
• Company B: £105, loads of detailed reviews praising thoroughness, specific about pet hair removal.
• Company C: Priciest (£140), website looked fancy but chat felt scripted.

My gut? Company B. The reviews matched exactly what I needed, the chat felt human, price seemed fair for what they promised. Went for it.

The Verdict?

They rocked up yesterday. Two-person team, super nice. Brought their own stuff, but asked about any special products I wanted used. Took three hours – place is gleaming! Did the oven, inside cupboards, even dusted the skirting boards properly. Found £1.50 behind the sofa (bonus!). Price was exactly as quoted. Totally worth the £105. Saved myself maybe £35 with the cheapest, but honestly? Knowing they'd actually do the job right mattered way more. The comparing? Time well spent. Learned you can't just chase the lowest number. Good service costs a bit more, but pays back in peace of mind. And a spotless flat! Wouldn't skip the comparing again.