Italy’s the leader in cleaning – Germany’s just average

It doesn’t matter how old you are, your gender or your wealth – everyone has to clean their home from time to time if they don’t want to live in a pigsty. But how often do Europeans vacuum, scrub and dust? How often do we delegate work to cleaners and robot vacuum cleaners? And how regularly do we clean our bathrooms?

As part of a representative study conducted by market researcher YouGov Switzerland on behalf of online retailer Galaxus, 5,045 people from Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy and France provided information on this topic.

Women clean

In Germany, eight out of ten people say that they or their partner clean their home. This puts Germany at the top of this ranking – just ahead of Austria, Switzerland and France. Italy has the lowest number of households that do their own cleaning (7 out of 10).

And the stereotype is still clear – far more women than men reach for the cleaning products. 91% of women surveyed clean their homes themselves, compared to 68% of men. On the other hand, one in two men specify that it’s their partner who does the cleaning. Whereas for women, it’s not even one in seven whose better half tackles the dirt.

In contrast, only around one in ten people in Europe hire a cleaner. Men are more likely to hire outside help than women.

Squeaky-clean floors

Eight out of ten people in Germany and Switzerland clean their floors at least once a week, three of these eight several times a week. In France and Austria, every second person vacuums and sweeps their own home several times a week. But Italian floors are the best place to eat. Six out of ten floors are cleaned several times a week.

Considerably more often than the average, the Swiss population uses a corded vacuum cleaner for floor cleaning (seven out of ten). In contrast, only one in six uses a robot vacuum cleaner – the lowest figure in Europe. In France and Italy, more than half of all households are swept by brooms. And cordless vacuum cleaners are used in around four out of ten households. There aren’t many more corded vacuum cleaners nowadays.

This is very different in Switzerland and Germany, where twice as many people still use corded vacuum cleaners instead of cordless alternatives.

When it comes to mops, however, all countries are in agreement. More than two thirds of those surveyed use them to mop their floors.

Incidentally, Switzerland is the least active when it comes to dusting. Just under half use a feather duster at least once a week. In Germany, France and Austria, the figure is around two thirds. In Italian households, dust has no chance. More than four out of five people dust at least once a week.

WC cleaning

Finally, let’s jump into the bathroom. If you’re visiting somewhere and have to go to the bathroom, sometimes you can’t help but wonder when the last time the place was cleaned? But we can reassure you – the answer’s a positive one.

Bathrooms in Switzerland are comparatively dirty. There, a quarter of toilets, showers and mirrors are cleaned several times a week, and half are cleaned once a week. This is the lowest figure in Europe. The undisputed leader is Bella Italia, where almost two thirds of the population clean their bathroom several times a week and just under a third once a week.

Fun fact: in Europe, over-60s are the most likely to clean their bathroom several times a week (60%), while only a quarter of under-30s clean their bathroom more than once a week.

What does your home look like? Do you take care of the cleaning yourself or does your partner do it? Do you have a cleaner? And would you ever give up your robot vacuum? We’re looking forward to your comments.