Air duct cleaning cost
What you pay for duct cleaning comes down to how many vents there are, how easy the ducts are to reach and what shape they are in. Here is how to tell whether cleaning is the right spend.
Updated September 2026 by the Air Cove HVAC team
Duct cleaning is priced by the number of vents and how hard the ducts are to reach.
Every supply register and every return grille is a run of duct that has to be opened, brushed and vacuumed. More vents mean more runs and more time. Ducts in a roomy attic are quicker to work on than ducts in a tight crawl space or under an old floor.
After that, the condition of the ducts decides the rest. We look at the ducts before we price air duct cleaning, so you know whether cleaning is what they need.
What moves the price
These are the things we check before we give you a number.
| Factor | What it does to the price |
|---|---|
| Number of vents | Each supply and return is another run to clean. |
| Size of the house and number of systems | A second system means a second air handler and a second set of ducts. |
| Access | Attic ducts are the easiest. Crawl spaces, low attics and ducts under the floor take longer. |
| How dirty they are | Normal dust is quick. Renovation debris, pet hair and heavy buildup take more passes. |
| The air handler and coil | Cleaning the blower and the coil along with the ducts adds time, and a dirty system recontaminates clean ducts. |
| Duct type | Metal ducts take firm brushing. Flexible ducts need a gentler method so they are not torn. |
| Add-ons | A dryer vent cleaned on the same visit is a separate item. |
When cleaning is not the fix
Cleaning removes what is inside a duct. It does not fix a duct that is broken, and paying for cleaning when the ducts need repair is money spent on the wrong thing.
- Dust that keeps coming back. If the house gets dusty again soon after cleaning, a leaking return duct may be pulling air and insulation dust in from the attic. Sealing the leak fixes it. Cleaning does not.
- Torn or crushed flexible duct. A split or flattened run leaks air into the attic and starves a room. It needs repair or replacement.
- One room always hot or cold. That is usually an airflow problem, a crushed run, a disconnected duct or a room the ducts were never sized for.
- Old ducts at the end of their life. Brittle, patched and leaking ducts cost you in comfort and in power bills. Replacement is the better spend.
In those cases, duct repair and sealing is where the money should go. We tell you on the visit which one your ducts need.
Why the answer is different in Los Angeles
Attic ducts and hot afternoons. Many Los Angeles homes run their ducts through the attic, and in the inland valleys that attic gets very hot. A leak there pulls hot, dusty attic air into the house and makes the air conditioner work harder. That is why we check for leaks before we sell you a cleaning.
Smoke and renovation. Wildfire smoke and remodeling dust both settle in ducts. After either one, a cleaning can make a real difference to the air in the house.
Replacement runs into Title 24. If the ducts need replacing, California's energy code sets how tight they have to be. Altered or existing ducts usually need to test at 15 percent leakage or better, and an entirely new duct system at 5 percent or better. An independent HERS rater checks the result. That test is part of a duct replacement or a system changeout here, and it belongs in any replacement quote.
Older houses. Older homes can have ducts under the floor, in tight crawl spaces or patched over decades. Access is often the biggest part of the time.
The decision you are making
The real question is not the price of a cleaning. It is whether your ducts need cleaning, repair or replacement.
Cleaning makes sense after a renovation, after smoke, when you move into a house with an unknown history, when you see dust blowing from the registers or debris inside them, or when pets shed heavily. It is less useful when the ducts are simply old and leaking.
To help you decide, we look at the inside of the ducts, the return, the air handler and the coil, and we check the runs in the attic or crawl space for leaks and damage. Then we tell you what they need and price it. When you are ready, our page on air duct cleaning explains how we clean the system from end to end.
Duct cleaning cost questions
What is the average cost to clean air ducts?
It depends on the number of vents, the access and how dirty the ducts are. A small house with an open attic is a short job. A large house with two systems and ducts under the floor takes much longer. We count the vents, check the access and price your house after we have seen it.
Is air duct cleaning really worth the money?
It is worth it when there is something in the ducts to remove. After a renovation, after smoke, with heavy pet hair or visible buildup, a cleaning makes a real difference. If the ducts are leaking or crushed, repair is the better spend, and we tell you which one you need.
How long does a duct cleaning take?
It depends on the number of vents and the access. We give you a time along with the price, and we cover the floors and furniture near each vent while we work.
Cleaning or repair? Tell us what you are seeing at the vents and we will look at the ducts.
Find out what your ducts need
Call us, or send the form and we will call you back to set up a visit anywhere across Los Angeles.