Housework & Cleaning calorie burn by intensity
Estimates use the formula kcal = MET × weight (kg) × hours, with MET values from the 2011 Compendium of Physical Activities. Figures are gross burn — they include the calories you would have burned at rest.
| Intensity | MET | kcal / 30 min* | kcal / 60 min* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light cleaning / dusting | 2.5 | 88 | 175 |
| General housework (vacuuming, mopping) | 3.3 | 116 | 231 |
| Heavy cleaning (scrubbing, moving furniture) | 3.8 | 133 | 266 |
*For a 70 kg (154 lb) person. Use the calculator above for your own weight.
Burn by body weight
At a typical intensity for housework & cleaning (3.3 METs), here's how the burn scales with body weight:
| Body weight | 15 min | 30 min | 60 min |
|---|---|---|---|
| 55 kg (121 lb) | 45 | 91 | 182 |
| 70 kg (154 lb) | 58 | 116 | 231 |
| 85 kg (187 lb) | 70 | 140 | 280 |
| 100 kg (220 lb) | 82 | 165 | 330 |
Getting more from housework & cleaning
- Mopping, vacuuming and scrubbing beat dusting and tidying by a wide margin.
- Carrying laundry up stairs is genuinely expensive movement — stop consolidating trips if burn is the goal.
- Music with tempo measurably speeds cleaning pace, raising the burn for free.
Want the bigger picture? Your workout is one slice of total daily burn — estimate the whole thing with the TDEE calculator, or compare against 25+ other activities in the calories burned calculator.
More activities
- 🚶 Walking
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- 🐢 Jogging
- 🚴 Cycling
- 🏊 Swimming
- 🏋️ Weightlifting
- 🪢 Jumping Rope
- 🥾 Hiking
- 🧘 Yoga
- 🤸 Pilates
- 🚣 Rowing
- ⚙️ Elliptical
- 🪜 Stair Climbing
- 💃 Dancing
- 🏀 Basketball
- ⚽ Soccer (Football)
- 🎾 Tennis
- ⛳ Golf
- 🔥 HIIT Workouts
- 🥊 Boxing
- 🛶 Kayaking
- 🌱 Gardening
- 🧍 Standing
- 😴 Sleeping
- 🏸 Badminton
Sources
- Ainsworth BE, Haskell WL, Herrmann SD, et al. 2011 Compendium of Physical Activities: a second update of codes and MET values. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011. [link]
Frequently asked questions
How many calories does 2 hours of cleaning burn?
General housework runs about 230 kcal/hour for a 70 kg adult, so a two-hour deep-clean lands near 450–500 kcal.
Does housework count toward daily exercise goals?
Light-to-moderate housework counts toward general movement (NEAT) rather than structured exercise, but its daily accumulation meaningfully affects energy balance.