The same two people clean the gutters and the outside of your windows in one visit here in North Chicago. We do the gutters first and the glass last, so nothing runs back down onto clean panes. We price the job by the number of stories and the approximate window count, and doing both in one visit costs less than booking two separate trips. Across Illinois, most of our customers book this in spring and fall, and that is the rhythm we keep here too.
Priced by stories, not by a visit. The bundle costs less than two trips, and the number on the phone is the number on the invoice.
We price professional window cleaning by the number of stories and the approximate window count, and the number we give on the phone is the number we charge. Doing the gutters and the exterior window washing in one visit costs less than booking the two jobs separately, and the bundle saving is shown in your quote. Downspout flushing, screen rinsing and sill wiping are part of the job and are not billed as extras.
On our jobs, a few things move the quote. Multi-story buildings and a roof too steep to walk take more time on the ladder. Window count and oversized panes change the glass work. Gutters that have not been cleaned in years, or that are packed with needles and leaves, take longer to clear before we can flush them. Gutter guards that must be lifted and reseated add time. Hard-water spotting from sprinklers is not removed by cleaning solutions or water alone, so we flag it on the visit and quote it separately. Many houses also show signs of water damage from gutters that overflowed for a season, and we photograph those runs for you.
To get an exact number, text us the front of the house and tell us the number of stories and roughly how many windows face outside. A photo of the front of the house is usually enough for us to give you a firm estimate. We will confirm the figure before the crew is scheduled, so the number you hear is the one on your invoice. Clogged gutters on the back of the house are easy to miss from the ground, which is why we walk every run and send photos of each one.
| Gutters only | Exterior windows only | Both in one visit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| One story | from $150 | from $150 | from $240 |
| Two stories | from $195 | from $210 | from $325 |
| Three stories | from $255 | from $285 | from $430 |
For context, nationally. Angi puts the average US gutter cleaning at $168, most homeowners paying $119 to $234 (Angi, 2026). Exterior-only window cleaning runs roughly $4 to $10 per window, or $100 to $250 for a typical home, with $3 to $5 per window more on upper stories (Angi, HomeGuide, via Google AI Overview, Oct 2026). Priced by stories, the most common model, a two-story gutter cleaning sits around $150 to $300 nationally. If a quote you are holding sits far outside these, ask what is driving it.
On every house we work, the first scoop out of a gutter ends up on the wall below it. We put the glass last so it ends up there once.
Gutters first, glass last. That is the order on every job our crew does, and it is the reason we book both with one crew instead of sending two.
What we see from the ladder. When we clear a run, the leaves, the grit and the black water that sits under them come down the wall and across any window below it. Flushing a downspout throws more of it, in a stream, onto the panes beside the outlet. If the glass was washed first, someone has to wash them again before we are off the ladder. So we do the roof blow-off, clear the gutters, flush every downspout, give the wall a few minutes to stop dripping, and only then start on the glass. The panes under the downspout outlets are the last ones we touch on the house.
Two things we do differently from a window-only crew. We rinse the siding under each run before we move to the glass, so nothing left on the wall washes down onto it in the first rain. And we do the top-floor glass from the same ladder position as the gutter run, one setup per side of the house, which is where the bundle saving comes from: no second trip, no second setup.
Downspouts flushed, screens rinsed, sills wiped, bags hauled. None of it shows up as a line item.
Gutters. Roof blow-off where debris sits above the gutter line. Every run hand-cleared, not just the visible stretch from the ground. Every downspout flushed with water until it runs clear, and a blocked one cleared on the spot where it can be reached from above. A downspout that feeds a buried drain line is checked at the outlet; clearing the buried line is a separate job, quoted before anyone touches it. Debris bagged and taken away. Before-and-after photos of each run, sent to you before the crew leaves.
Windows, exterior only. Every reachable pane on the outside of the house, cleaned with a water-fed pole and purified water so the glass dries without streaks or towel lint. Frames wiped. Screens taken down, hand-rinsed and put back on request. Sills wiped. Upper-story windows done from the pole, not from a ladder leaned on the siding.
Not included, and we say so up front. Interior glass. Hard-water or sprinkler staining etched into the glass, which needs a separate mineral treatment and is quoted after the crew sees it. Post-construction paint, stickers or stucco. Skylights and solar panels. Pressure washing of siding, decks or driveways. Gutter guards: if a run is covered, lifting and reseating the guard adds time and is quoted by the foot before the visit, never on the day.
Twice a year for both, and the same two months, which is why one visit covers it.
Most of our North Chicago residential properties book both jobs twice a year, once in spring and once in fall, which is why one crew in one visit makes sense for these cleaning services. Spring is when a pollen film settles on south-facing glass and seed paste packs into the downspout elbows. Fall is when the leaf load comes down and the wet leaf mat sits in the gutters before the first hard freeze.
What we find at each visit depends on the season. In spring we see a dull film on every window and a dense mat of seed in the gutters. In fall we see wet leaf mats and grit that can keep water running behind the fascia. Storm and wind seasons move the dates, so we confirm the slot with you a few days ahead rather than locking in a calendar date too early.
Most houses are fine with the regular cleanings twice a year. Some need a third visit. Heavy tree cover over the roof keeps needles and grit moving into the gutters between visits. A sprinkler line that hits the glass leaves spots that come back a day after cleaning. A house near a busy road or a construction site picks up extra dust and grime that clouds the glass faster than a quiet street does. If one of these applies to your house, we will tell you on the first visit.
The sign windows need cleaning is haze you only notice when the sun is low on the glass. The sign gutters need cleaning is water sheeting over the edge during rain instead of running down the downspout.
Most two-story homes are done in a morning. You do not need to be there, and you get the photos either way.
The crew calls the day before with a two-hour arrival window, and again when they are on the way.
How long. This Old House puts a professional gutter cleaning at 30 minutes to an hour on a typical house. Exterior windows on the same house run about the same again or a little more, so plan on a morning for a two-story home and most of a day for three stories or a house with a lot of glass. Gutters that have not been touched in years, steep roofs and wraparound porches run longer.
Before the crew arrives. Turn the sprinklers off the night before, so the glass is dry and the ground is not mud. Move cars off the driveway if windows face it. Keep pets inside while ladders are up. Unlock side gates. Nothing else; the crew brings its own water and power.
While they work. Gutters first, glass last, as described above. Nobody needs to be home for exterior work; the crew does not come inside. If something cannot be reached safely (a pane over a sunroom roof, a gutter run behind a tree limb) the crew photographs it and tells you rather than guessing.
After. Photos of every gutter run and the finished glass, sent by text or email before the crew leaves. The invoice matches the number quoted on the phone.
Send a photo and we tell you what it is. No argument about whether it rained.
Streaks. Purified water dries clean; a streak means something was missed, and that is on us. Send us a photo of it and we tell you what it is.
Spots that come back. Round white spots that return a day after cleaning are mineral deposits from sprinklers or hard water etched into the glass, not dirt. Cleaning cannot remove them; a mineral treatment can. The crew flags it on the visit so you are not surprised.
Rain the next day. Rain is distilled water and does not dirty clean glass by itself; what spots glass after rain is dust already on the frame or screen washing down. That is why frames and screens are done, not just the pane. If it looks worse after a storm, send the photo and we look at it.
Overflow after a cleaning. If a gutter runs clean and still sheets water over the edge in the next rain, the cause is slope, a sagging hanger or an undersized downspout, not debris. The crew notes what it saw and tells you; cleaning it again will not fix it, and we will not sell you a second cleaning for a slope problem.
Your house. Ladder stand-offs on every ladder so nothing rests on the gutter lip or dents the siding. Screens go back in the window they came out of.
Neighborhood by neighborhood, with a lead time we say out loud, and a call before the truck turns in.
Our crew works across North Chicago, and window cleaning services and washing services are booked on one slot. To schedule service, text us the number of stories and a photo of the front of the house, or call (866) 435-6328 and we will tell you the first open date. Lead time depends on the calendar. The two busy windows of the year are the spring and fall visit periods, when our calendar fills fastest for residential window cleaning and gutter work. Booking early in those windows gets you a slot that suits your schedule.
Nobody needs to be home for exterior work. The crew works outside and does not come inside, and we call before we come so you know when to expect us. Condos and multi-unit buildings are scheduled around the building's access, and we coordinate with whoever manages the common areas. Runoff from the roof carries dirt and debris down the wall, so we clear the gutters and downspouts before we touch the glass. That order lets us remove dirt from the gutter before it can land on the wall below it.
Yes, for us it is the same two people in one visit. We clean the gutters first and the exterior glass last, so the debris does not end up on clean windows.
The number comes from the number of stories and the approximate window count. Text us a photo of the front of the house or call (866) 435-6328, and we will give you the exact figure before we schedule.
Usually yes, because the outside carries the pollen, rain dust and sprinkler spotting that build up here, and clean outside glass is what most people see first, so it does the most for curb appeal. The inside can stay as it is, since we only clean the exterior on this visit.
Spring and fall fill our calendar for both residential and commercial jobs in North Chicago, so booking early in either season gets you the slot you want.
No, because we clear the gutters and flush the downspouts before we touch the glass. Gutters first, glass last keeps the runoff off panes we have already done.
Screens are rinsed and sills are wiped as part of the exterior visit, and we do not bill them as extras. Tracks are included on the outside of the window frame. Picture windows get the same exterior treatment.
Exterior only on this visit, so interior and exterior glass are separate bookings. We do not clean windows inside and we do not do pressure washing on this job.
No, you do not need to be home. Turn the sprinklers off the night before, move cars off the driveway, keep pets inside, and leave the side gate unlocked. We will call before we arrive.
Stories, rough window count, a photo of the front by text. That is a real number, not an appointment.
