Healthy Home Advocates
5 Best Laundry Detergents to Avoid Harsh Chemicals
Most traditional laundry detergents are packed with harsh chemicals — including dyes, optical brighteners, parabens, and preservatives that can irritate your skin and harm your health. With so many options containing dyes and harsh chemicals, finding the right detergent can be tricky. Since your clothes are in close contact with your skin, it’s important to choose detergents that are both effective and gentle.
We tested a variety of laundry detergents, focusing on their ingredients and cleaning performance. Our goal was to find options that are gentle on skin and deliver strong cleaning power while producing less waste and minimizing environmental impact.
After rigorous research, we’ve compiled a list of the top 5 laundry detergents that meet our high standards for cleanliness and effectiveness.
TL;DR: Earth Breeze Eco Sheets came in #1 for their impressive cleaning power and eco-friendly cardboard packaging. We use Earth Breeze in our own homes and highly recommend it for anyone looking to make a safer, more sustainable choice for laundry care.
Made without parabens, phthalates, dyes, phosphates, optical brighteners, or preservatives, Earth Breeze Eco Sheets impressed us the most, quickly becoming our #1 choice for laundry detergent.
Earth Breeze Eco Sheets are easy to use — they’re lightweight, dissolve quickly, and don’t leave any mess behind. Plus, they come in eco-friendly cardboard packaging, so there’s no plastic waste. Made without dyes or parabens, they’re gentle on your skin and the environment while still offering impressive cleaning power. They effectively tackle stains and odors without fading colors or weakening fabrics, leaving your clothes fresh, soft, and vibrant. That’s why Earth Breeze Eco Sheets are our #1 choice.
With more than 40,000 5-star reviews, it’s no wonder they’re the internet’s best-selling laundry detergent sheet!
Available in both Fragrance Free and Fresh Scent, we love both options, but our favorite is the Fresh Scent for its light, refreshing smell. This is the detergent we use at home, and it’s why Earth Breeze has secured the #1 spot on our list.
UPDATE:
Earth Breeze is currently offering its internet’s best-selling Eco Sheets for 40% off.
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Cleancult Liquid Laundry Detergent earned our #2 spot. While Earth Breeze is a convenient detergent sheet, Cleancult comes in a liquid form. You use just half an ounce per load, and one 32 oz carton can handle up to 64 loads. Our testing showed that Cleancult provides decent cleaning power while maintaining a commitment to cleaner ingredients because it contains no phthalates, phosphates, dyes, or parabens.
We’re impressed with the paper carton packaging. It uses 90% less plastic compared to traditional liquid detergent bottles, making it a more sustainable option. However, liquid detergents can be less convenient to measure accurately and can sometimes leave residue in the washer compared to pre-measured detergent sheets.
The combination of effective cleaning power, skin-friendly ingredients, and eco-friendly packaging earned Cleancult our #2 spot.
Method Free & Clear landed in 3rd place. This liquid detergent is fragrance-free and hypoallergenic, which is great for sensitive skin.
We appreciate that Method’s plastic bottles are made from mostly recycled plastic, but once they’re used up, those bottles typically end up in the landfill.
While we appreciated the fragrance-free formula, Method Free & Clear didn’t stand out in terms of environmental impact, placing it below our top picks.
All Free & Clear Mighty Pacs landed in 4th place. While All is a household name for laundry detergent, their pods come in heavy plastic packaging. Plastic detergent containers often end up in landfills, and the weight leads to more CO2 emissions during transportation. Liquid detergents can easily be overused, which means wasted detergent, extra costs, and a negative impact on the environment.
That said, we appreciated that these pods are fragrance-free and clean well. Based on thousands of Amazon reviews, we’re not the only ones.
Great concept, but unfortunately, the dosing cap is messy and difficult to use. On the positive side, we appreciate that their aluminum containers are recyclable, which is a big plus for the environment. However, this detergent is pricey for a small amount, which makes it hard to justify.
In summary:
#1 Earth Breeze Eco Sheets | Buy it Here
#2 Cleancult | Buy it Here
#3 Method | Buy it Here
#4 All Free & Clear Mighty Pacs | Buy it Here
#5 Grove | Buy it Here