A kitchen that looks clean can still be hiding weeks of grease and residue. The spots people skip are predictable: above the cabinets, behind the toaster, around appliance handles, inside the microwave, along the range hood, and at the floor edges. A real kitchen deep clean is not just more wiping. It is a controlled reset done in the right order.
At Now It’s Clean, we follow one rule across every home and every kitchen we work in. Sequence first, surface compatibility second, detail work third. The goal is never the strongest product on every surface. It’s removing the right soil from the right surface without creating a new problem. This is how we treat every kitchen in every home we clean.
Kitchen Cleaning Checklist at a Glance
Declutter first. Protect food. Dust high areas. Clean cabinets and appliances. Degrease the stovetop and range hood. Wash the backsplash and counters. Clean the sink, drains, and high-touch points. Finish with baseboards and floors.
Work top to bottom. Dust and crumbs fall onto areas you haven’t cleaned yet, so save the lowest surfaces for last.
What Is Included in a Kitchen Deep Clean?
Routine maintenance keeps a working kitchen under control. Deep cleaning targets what routine wiping misses. That includes grease film, cooked-on food, cabinet residue, appliance grime, sticky handles, splash zones, neglected drains, and floor detail work.
A thorough kitchen deep-cleaning checklist can include:
- Top of the refrigerator, cabinet tops and accessible high ledges
- Exterior cabinet doors, handles and drawer pulls
- Inside cabinets or drawers when that scope is requested
- Microwave interior and exterior
- Oven, racks, stovetop and range hood based on appliance instructions
- Refrigerator shelves, drawers, seals and exterior
- Dishwasher exterior, accessible seals and manufacturer-approved filter care
- Small appliances and the counters beneath them
- Backsplash, countertops, sink and faucet
- Light switches, handles and other high-touch surfaces
- Garbage and recycling bins
- Baseboards, toe kicks, corners and kitchen floors
The exact scope matters. At Now It’s Clean, our Toronto house cleaning includes kitchen details such as the top of the fridge, microwave interior and exterior, cabinet exteriors, appliance exteriors, accessible areas behind and under items.
What You Need Before Deep Cleaning Your Kitchen
A deep clean does not need a shelf full of products. It needs a small suitable tools that can handle most kitchen cleaning jobs:
- Microfibre cloths, separated by cleaning zone
- Non-scratch sponges and a soft detail brush
- Dish soap or a surface-compatible degreaser
- A household cleaner suitable for the material being cleaned
- Glass cleaner only where the manufacturer or finish allows it
- Vacuum with a crevice tool or a broom and dustpan
- Mop and floor cleaner appropriate for the flooring
- Rubber gloves
- Garbage and recycling bags
- Clean, dry towels for final wiping and drying
Natural ingredients are not automatically safe for every finish. Vinegar is acidic; abrasives can dull or scratch; excess water can swell wood or seep into seams. If a countertop, cabinet finish or appliance manual gives specific care instructions, those instructions outrank a generic cleaning hack.
Kitchen Cleaning Safety Comes First
Never mix household cleaning products to make a stronger cleaner. Health Canada advises against mixing household chemicals. Certain combinations, including bleach with acidic or ammonia-based products, can produce dangerous gases. Follow the product label and keep the area ventilated as directed.
Also remember that cleaning and sanitizing are not the same thing. Cleaning removes dirt and residue. Sanitizing is a separate step used when appropriate. For food-contact surfaces, follow the product instructions carefully.
The Now It’s Clean Top-to-Bottom Kitchen Cleaning Checklist
A useful checklist explains why the order matters, not just what to clean. We remove dry debris first, clean high before low, treat grease before polish, and leave floors until the very end.
1. Clear the Kitchen First
Put away the clean dishes, remove paperwork and unrelated items. Empty the sink and take out the garbage. Clear as much counter space as you can.
- Does the interior of the oven need cleaning or only the exterior?
- Are cabinet interiors part of the job?
- Is the refrigerator being cleaned inside?
- Are there delicate stone, wood or specialty finishes?
- Which areas have grease buildup versus ordinary dust?
This quick inspection keeps a kitchen deep clean from turning into an unfocused all-day project.
2. Protect Food and Separate Cleaning Areas
Put exposed food away before using cleaning products. Use separate cloths for counters and food-preparation surfaces. Keep clothes used on bins, floors and other dirty areas away from those surfaces. If you are sanitizing a food-contact surface, clean it first and then use the appropriate sanitizer according to the product instructions.
3. Dust and Vacuum High Areas First
Start where gravity starts. Remove dust and cobwebs from accessible cabinet tops, the top of the refrigerator, light fixtures and upper trim. Dry removal matters because wetting a layer of dust and grease together can turn it into a stubborn film. Once the loose debris is gone, move on to the surfaces that need deeper cleaning.
4. Clean Kitchen Cabinets and Handles
Cabinet fronts collect grease, fingerprints and cooking vapour, particularly around the stove. Start with the finish, not the stain.
- Dust or wipe away loose debris.
- Apply cleaner to a cloth
- Focus on handles, edges and grease-prone areas.
- Gently remove grease and residue.
- Wipe away residue as directed and dry the surface.
If interiors are included, empty one section at a time, vacuum crumbs, clean with a compatible method, let it dry, then return the contents. At Now It’s Clean, inside-cabinet cleaning is an add-on confirmed at booking rather than assumed.
5. Deep Clean the Refrigerator
Treat refrigerator cleaning as both a cleaning task and a food-management task. Start with one section at a time so food is not left out unnecessarily.
- Discard expired or spoiled items.
- Follow the appliance manual before removing shelves and drawers.
- Wash removable parts according to manufacturer directions.
- Wipe interior walls, shelf supports, drawer areas and door seals.
- Dry components before putting food back.
- Clean the exterior, handle and top of the refrigerator.
Do not move a heavy refrigerator unless it can be done safely without damaging the appliance or floor. If you’re still unsure on how to perfectly clean it, check out our guide for the refrigerator cleaning process.
6. Clean the Oven Safely
Ovens are where generic advice causes the most trouble. Heating elements, self-clean liners, door gaskets, sensors, coated glass, and removable racks may each need different care.Let the oven cool completely. Remove loose crumbs. Take out racks only if the manual allows it. Use an oven-compatible cleaner and give baked-on residue time to soften before scrubbing. Ovens with heavy carbonized grease can take considerably more time and effort to clean safely. If you would rather leave that job to a professional, you can use our professional oven-cleaning service in Toronto to get the job done.
7. Clean the Stovetop, Burners and Range Hood
Let the cooktop cool first. Remove only the parts designed to come off. Gas grates, induction surfaces and stainless steel require different approaches, so avoid treating every stovetop the same way. The range hood deserves its own pass because airborne cooking grease collects on the exterior and around filters. If the filter is washable, follow manufacturer instructions for removal, cleaning, drying and replacement. If it is a replaceable filter, cleaning it aggressively is not the same as maintaining it correctly.
8. Clean the Microwave and Small Appliances
Microwave splashes hide on the ceiling, door edges and around the turntable. Clean the interior with a suitable method and wipe the handle and controls carefully. For the dishwasher, wipe the exterior, handle and accessible edges. Check the appliance manual before removing filters or running cleaning cycles. This is one of the most common spots where crumbs and grease survive an otherwise good kitchen clean.
9. Degrease the Backsplash and Splash Zones
The backsplash behind the stove often collects more grease than the rest of the kitchen, which we clean. Work in small sections and choose a cleaner that suits the material. Tile, grout, glass and natural stone should not automatically be treated with the same product. If you notice grease on the backsplash, check nearby cabinet handles, the underside of upper cabinets and the range hood as well.
10. Deep Clean the Countertops
A deep-cleaned countertop means the full accessible surface, not a quick wipe around the toaster and coffee maker. Move safely portable items, remove crumbs, clean edges and seams, then return items only after the surface is clean and dry. Natural stone, engineered stone, laminate, butcher block and stainless steel can have different care requirements. Avoid using a hack because it worked on another surface, instead if you’re too busy to clean, check our guide on cleaning tips for busy people to learn from experts.
11. Clean the Sink and Faucet
The sink is best left until many of the dirtier cleaning tasks are finished. Clean the basin, drain area, faucet base and handles using products suitable for the material. Finish the high-touch points: refrigerator handle, oven handle, microwave handle, cabinet pulls, faucet handles, light switches and frequently used appliance controls.
12. Finish With Bins, Baseboards and Floors
Wash or wipe the bin, lid, pedal and the floor beneath it, then allow the bin to dry before adding a fresh liner. Finish by vacuuming or sweeping the floor edges, under toe kicks, around appliance edges, and into corners. Mop with a product suitable for the floor. Hardwood, laminate, vinyl and tile do not all tolerate the same moisture level.
Final Kitchen Inspection Checklist
Before you put everything back, stand at the kitchen entrance and take a final look around the room.
- Are appliance handles free of grease and fingerprints?
- Are stainless-steel and glass surfaces streak-free?
- Are counters free of cleaning residue?
- Are food-contact surfaces ready to use?
- Did you miss the top or side of an appliance?
- Are cabinet handles and light switches clean?
- Are floor edges and corners finished?
- Are all cleaning products safely stored?
- Did you return shelves, racks and appliance parts correctly?
That final inspection catches the small details that separate ‘I cleaned the kitchen’ from a genuine kitchen deep clean. If the home needs a full reset, our one-time deep cleaning guide explains how that one-time deep cleaning service can improve your overall wellbeing and lifestyle.
How Often Should You Deep Clean a Kitchen?
There is no single schedule that works for every household. A family that cooks several times a day may need more frequent cleaning, if you need an expert to regularly clean for you after you’ve cooked you can contact us. Pets, children, frying, heavy cooking and the size of the kitchen can also affect how quickly buildup appears.
Daily or as needed
- Manage spills promptly.
- Wash dishes or load the dishwasher.
- Wipe food-preparation surfaces.
- Rinse and clean the sink after messy prep.
- Sweep visible crumbs.
- Take out waste when required.
Weekly, depending on use
- Clean appliance exteriors and handles.
- Clean the microwave interior.
- Wipe cabinet fronts in high-use areas.
- Check the refrigerator for spills and expired food.
- Mop the floor.
- Clean high-touch points.
Periodically or when buildup appears
- Deep clean the oven.
- Clean the refrigerator interior.
- Degrease the range hood.
- Clean cabinet interiors when needed.
- Clean cabinet tops and high ledges.
- Pull out safely movable countertop items and clean underneath.
- Detail baseboards, toe kicks and floor edges.
For a wider home routine, check our home cleaning checklist for Toronto to divide home maintenance into daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal tasks.
Common Kitchen Deep-Cleaning Mistakes to Avoid
Starting with the floor
Dust and crumbs from cabinets and appliances will end up back on the floor. Finish low surfaces last.
Using one cleaner everywhere
Convenience is not the same as compatibility. The cleaner that works on tile may be wrong for stone, wood or a coated appliance surface.
Mixing cleaning products to make them stronger
Do not create a DIY chemical mix. Follow the Health Canada guidance, especially around bleach, acids and ammonia-based cleaners.
Scrubbing too hard
Grease and baked-on residue often respond better to the right dwell time than to harder scrubbing.
Spraying controls and electrical openings
Where appropriate, spray the cloth instead of the appliance. Keep liquid away from vents, controls and electrical openings.
Assuming every appliance interior is included in a professional clean
Scope should be explicit. Oven interiors, refrigerator interiors and inside-cabinet cleaning may be dedicated tasks or add-ons. Ask before the visit so the quote matches the work.
When Should You Hire a Professional Kitchen Cleaning Service?
DIY cleaning can work well when the buildup is manageable and you have the time to do it properly. Professional kitchen cleaning becomes more practical when grease has spread across several zones, multiple appliances need detailed attention, the kitchen has not had a full reset in a long time, or you would rather hand the job to a trained team.
At Now It’s Clean, we scope the work around the condition of the kitchen and the tasks you actually want completed. The goal is not to use the most products. It is to make sure the right areas are cleaned properly.
Why Toronto Homeowners Choose Now It’s Clean
A professional kitchen deep clean is more than a sequence of chores. It also depends on the standards, scope and people behind the service. Now It’s Clean is a Canadian family-owned cleaning company serving Toronto, North York, Mississauga and communities across the GTA. For customers who want regular upkeep rather than a one-off reset, our maid-service options include weekly, bi-weekly, three-week, one-time and special-occasion cleaning schedules.
Trained, insured, bonded and background-checked
At Now It’s Clean, our professional cleaners are trained, insured, bonded and background-checked. That matters in a kitchen, where the work takes place around appliances and finishes that require careful handling.
WSIB coverage and $2 million liability protection
We also operate with WSIB coverage and $2 million in general liability insurance, adding another layer of professional accountability.
Google Guaranteed and 100% satisfaction guarantee
Now It’s Clean is Google Guaranteed and backs its cleaning with a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee. If something within the agreed cleaning scope is missed, contact us promptly.
What Customers Say About Now It’s Clean
Now It’s Clean has 800+ Google reviews and a 4.9/5 rating. One customer, Bianca Mercuri, wrote, “They did a fantastic job.” For additional customer feedback, Now It’s Clean is rated 4.2/5 on Trustpilot.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is included in a kitchen deep clean?
A deep clean usually goes beyond dishes and visible counters to address grease, cabinet fronts, appliance surfaces, the microwave, backsplash, sink, high-touch points, bins, baseboards and floor edges. Interior appliances and cabinets should be confirmed as part of the booked scope.
2. In what order should I deep clean my kitchen?
Declutter first, protect food, work from high surfaces down, clean cabinets and appliances before counters and sinks, then finish with high-touch points, baseboards and floors. This top-to-bottom order reduces rework.
3. How long does it take to deep clean a kitchen?
There is no reliable universal time. Kitchen size, grease buildup, clutter, appliance interiors, cabinet interiors and material-specific care can change the workload substantially. Inspect the kitchen first instead of relying on a fixed internet estimate.
4. How often should a kitchen be deep cleaned?
Use conditions rather than a rigid calendar. Deep clean when grease, crumbs, food residue or dust has built up beyond routine maintenance. Heavy daily cooking usually creates the need for more frequent detail work.
5. What’s the step-by-step order to deep clean a kitchen?
Declutter, protect food, work from high surfaces down, clean cabinets and appliances before counters and sinks, then finish with high-touch points, baseboards, and floors. This top-to-bottom order reduces rework.
6. Do professional cleaners clean ovens and refrigerators?
It depends on the booked package. Now It’s Clean offers dedicated oven-cleaning options, while refrigerator interiors, cabinet interiors and other detailed tasks should be included in the quote if you want them completed.
7. Is professional kitchen deep cleaning worth it?
It can be when multiple zones have heavy buildup, several appliances need attention, the kitchen needs a complete reset or the time saved matters more to you than doing the work yourself. The value depends on the scope and condition of the kitchen.
Ready to Get the Kitchen Off Your To-Do List?
You now have the full DIY system. Clear the room, protect food, work top to bottom, match products to surfaces, clean appliances carefully, and leave the floor for last.
If the checklist has turned into a full weekend project, Now It’s Clean can handle the wider kitchen and home-cleaning workload across Toronto and the GTA.
Call: (647) 558-0707
Email: info@nowitsclean.ca
Request a free, no-obligation cleaning quote
Now It’s Clean | 783 Lawrence Ave W, Unit #7, North York, ON M6A 1C2