Most offices ask for 'cleaning', 'sanitising' and 'disinfecting' as if they were the same job. They aren't, and knowing the difference tells you what you're actually paying for.
Cleaning removes dirt
Cleaning physically removes dust, grime and spills using detergent, water and effort. It doesn't necessarily kill germs, but it removes many of them along with the dirt, and it's the essential first step.
Every regular visit includes cleaning: desks, floors, kitchens and washrooms.
Sanitising and disinfecting reduce germs
Sanitising lowers the number of germs on a surface to a safer level. Disinfecting uses stronger products to reduce them further, and needs the right dilution and contact time. Neither works well on a dirty surface, which is why the order is always clean first.
We cover the main touch points and washrooms at every visit, and offer dedicated sanitising and a full deep sanitise.
What you actually need
For most offices, regular cleaning with sanitised touch points and disinfected washrooms is right. A deep sanitise makes sense after an outbreak of illness or before people return to a closed space.
Be sceptical of anyone promising to make a space 'germ-free': no cleaning does that, and honest companies won't claim it.
Clean first. Then sanitise or disinfect. In that order, or it doesn't work.
The short answer
Cleaning removes dirt, sanitising and disinfecting reduce germs, and each depends on the one before. Ask a company exactly what it does, and how.