Renting Equipment

• The most cost-effective way to get your couches steam cleaned is to rent a steam cleaner and purchase steam-cleaning solution. Many grocery store chains have steam cleaner rental services and charge a daily rate between $20 and $40. You can also rent attachments as well as the machine for an extra fee. In addition to the cost of renting the equipment, you will need to purchase steam cleaning fluid, which ranges from $4 to $8 a bottle. You shouldn't need more than one bottle to steam clean a sofa.
  
  

Hiring a Service

• If you don't have the time or energy to rent steam cleaning equipment and need your sofa cleaned in a hurry, you may want to hire a steam cleaning service. Depending on your location, steam cleaning from a national chain may cost between $60 and $90 for a single sofa. If you have more than one couch to be cleaned, you can count on paying $30 to $40 per additional sofa.
  
  

Purchasing Equipment

• Purchasing a steam cleaner is the most expensive way to steam clean your sofa. Steam cleaners are generally quite expensive, with medium-duty steam cleaners starting around $150, and heavy-duty steam cleaners (like the kind you might rent) going for $250 to $300. Light-duty steam cleaners will not work on a couch, as they are meant to clean thin upholstery. Steam cleaners can be easily purchased from home improvement stores like Home Depot and Lowe's as well as big box retailers like Walmart and Target.
  
  

Considerations

• Deciding which method to use will depend on your budget and how often you want to clean your sofa. If you only want to clean the couch once and want to keep things as cheap as possible, renting a steam cleaner will be the best option. Hiring a service is also a good option if you only want to clean the couch once, and don't mind paying a little extra to save time and effort. However, if you want to clean your sofa regularly, then it will be more cost-effective to purchase a steam cleaner. Though it will be more money up front, after the third or fourth steam clean, the cost of the steam cleaner will be less than the rental/service fees you would have paid otherwise.