What is INSTA 800? The quality standard for cleaning tenders
INSTA 800, or NS-INSTA 800, is the Nordic standard for measuring and documenting cleaning quality on a scale from 0 to 5. It describes how clean a premises actually is after cleaning, not how often or how it is cleaned. As a buyer, you use it to order a measurable result and verify that you receive it.
What exactly is INSTA 800?
NS-INSTA 800 is a common Nordic standard developed by the cleaning industry in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland. It defines a system for assessing and agreeing on the quality of cleaning performed. The core is simple: instead of describing which tasks are to be done, the standard describes how clean a room should be when the job is finished.
That difference makes it useful. A traditional cleaning quote often says "dusting of accessible surfaces twice a week." That doesn't tell you if the surfaces actually get clean, only that someone came by with a cloth. INSTA 800 reverses this: you agree on a quality level, and the supplier chooses the method and frequency to achieve it. Clean more often if needed, less often if sufficient, as long as the result is at the agreed level.
The standard divides impurities into four groups – loose dirt and waste, dust, stains, and surface dirt – and four object groups in the room: floors, walls, fixtures, and ceilings. For each combination, the level indicates how much is permitted.
What do levels 0 to 5 mean?
The levels range from 0 (lowest quality) to 5 (highest). The higher the number, the less dirt is accepted. The table below roughly shows how the levels relate to different types of premises. This is a simplification – it is the combination of impurity type and object group that governs the actual assessment.
| Level | Quality | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Highest | Operating rooms, cleanrooms, laboratories |
| 4 | High | Receptions, customer meeting rooms, healthcare institutions |
| 3 | Good | Open-plan offices, classrooms, common areas |
| 2 | Acceptable | Warehouses, technical rooms, high-traffic stairwells |
| 1 | Low | Seldom-used areas |
| 0 | No requirements | Areas with no cleaning needs |
For most offices, level 3 is a reasonable starting point. The reception area or meeting room where you receive clients can be set to level 4, while a storage room can be at level 2. The point is that you can differentiate: you pay for high quality where it matters, and avoid paying for it where it doesn't.
How is quality controlled?
Control combines visual assessment with objective measurement. A person trained in the standard selects a random sample of rooms – statistically determined based on how many rooms of the same type there are – and assesses each room against the agreed level.
Much of the assessment is visual: the inspector looks for loose dirt, dust, stains, and ingrained grime on floors, fixtures, and walls. Some conditions are measured with equipment, for example, dust quantity with a dry cloth or a special measuring technique. The room is approved or rejected as a whole. If too many rooms fail, the agreed quality has not been delivered.
The practical point for you as a buyer: the control can be performed independently of who did the cleaning, and it provides a number you can discuss. "The meeting room was rejected for the fixtures object group" is concrete feedback. "It didn't feel quite clean" is not.
Is Vaskeladden INSTA 800-certified?
No, and no one can be. This is worth being clear about, as the misunderstanding is common. INSTA 800 is a measurement standard, not a company certification. It says something about the quality of a surface in a room at a given time, not about the company that provided the cleaning.
A cleaning company cannot "be INSTA 800" in the same way a company can be Eco-Lighthouse certified. What the company can do is provide cleaning that is described and controlled according to the standard, and have personnel trained in using it. If a supplier markets itself as "INSTA 800-certified," you should ask for clarification. They probably mean that they work according to the standard – but the wording often reveals how well they actually know it.
For you as a buyer, the right question is not "are you certified?", but "can you deliver at level 3, and how do you document the controls?".
Why require INSTA 800 in a tender?
The biggest benefit is that you can measure whether you are getting what you pay for. A cleaning tender described as quality levels per room type gives you three advantages:
- Comparable quotes. When all bidders respond to the same quality requirements, you are comparing apples to apples. Frequency-based quotes are almost impossible to compare, because "three times a week" from one provider does not mean the same as from another.
- Objective follow-up. You can control the delivery after handover, and disagreements are resolved with a checklist in hand instead of a discussion about gut feelings.
- Right price for the right quality. You can set level 4 in the customer zone and level 2 in the warehouse, and pay accordingly. The supplier optimizes the frequency themselves.
However, it is not free to implement. The standard requires that someone at your end, or a third party, actually carries out the controls, otherwise the requirement is just a sentence in the contract. For a large office building, a school, or a nursing home, it is well worth the effort. For a small shop with regular cleaning twice a week, it is often more machinery than benefit.
If you are considering needs-based cleaning, INSTA 800 fits well with needs-based cleaning in commercial buildings – you agree on the quality, not the hours, and let the supplier manage the frequency.
How to use the standard as a buyer
You don't need to be an expert on NS-INSTA 800 to benefit from it. Here is a practical approach:
- Map your room types. Divide the premises into groups: open-plan offices, meeting rooms, reception, toilets, storage, stairwells. Each group can have its own level.
- Set a level per group. Start with level 3 as standard, raise to 4 where appearance matters, lower to 2 where it doesn't.
- Request control routines in the quote. Who controls, how often, and how are deviations reported? A serious quote will provide concrete answers.
- Agree on what happens upon rejection. Should the supplier rectify without extra cost within a given deadline? Write it down.
- Follow up in operation. Request control reports regularly. A standard you don't follow up on is just paper.
Please note that INSTA 800 governs quality, not price. An unrealistically low hourly rate is still a red flag, regardless of the quality level promised. The cleaning industry has a generalized minimum wage of 236.54 NOK per hour for adults (from June 15, 2025), and if you calculate down to or below that floor, the job is not being performed legally. Always check that the company is listed in the Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority's Renholdsregisteret (Cleaning Register) – it has been illegal and punishable, also for companies, to purchase cleaning from an unauthorized business since July 1, 2018. More on this in our guide on legal cleaning services and the Cleaning Register.
What does it cost to order cleaning according to INSTA 800?
The standard itself does not cost anything extra – it is a way to describe and control the work, not an additional service. You pay for the cleaning, and the control work is normally included in the hourly or monthly price.
The prices here are approximate starting points for 2026, not a binding quote. What the assignment costs depends on size, condition, and accessibility. You will receive the final price in a concrete quote from us – and it is often higher than the lowest estimate. Request a quote for a price that actually applies to your home or premises.
As a market estimate for 2026, regular office cleaning typically ranges from 350 to 600 NOK per hour for commercial clients, depending on area, frequency, and complexity. Larger, fixed contracts are lower per square meter than small, infrequent assignments. Figures well below this range should be investigated further – they are often a sign that the wage floor is not being maintained. We have compiled a more thorough review in the article on what office cleaning costs.
If you are going out for a joint tender for a housing cooperative or condominium, where several parties need to agree on the requirements, INSTA 800 is a good tool precisely because it provides a common language. See how to set up the process in the guide on cleaning for housing cooperatives and condominiums on tender.
Summary
INSTA 800 shifts the focus from "what was done" to "how clean did it get." For you as a buyer of commercial cleaning, it is the simplest way to get a tender you can compare and a delivery you can control. Describe the quality level per room type, request control routines, and follow up on the reports. Then you have done the job the standard was created for – and you avoid the discussion about what "clean enough" actually means.
