When shopping for laundry detergent, avoid ingredients like phosphates, sulfates and synthetic fragrances. Our favorite laundry detergents are certified by USDA Biopreferred, EWG, EPA Safer Choice, and Leaping Bunny or PETA. When it comes to form, we love plastic-free detergent sheets and tablets best, though pods, powder and concentrated liquid are also better than conventional liquid detergent. 

Ingredients

Phosphates

Phosphates, like trisodium phosphate, create that luscious lathering effect. Phosphates can also cause eutrophication, which is the mineral over-enrichment of bodies of water. This can be a natural process that develops in aquatic ecosystems, but it can also indicate nutrient imbalances due to pollution. While it might sound beautiful, algal bloom – a result of eutrophication – can be harmful to aquatic life and can contaminate drinking sources. Phosphate eutrophication can cause deoxygenation of water, which can threaten marine life and submerged plants, like reeds. This can cause an indirect effect on the habitat and food source of bird species.

Sulfates 

Sulfates are a kind of surfactant, which is used to clean and create the foam we know and love. Sodium lauryl sulfate, also known as SLS, is an emulsifying cleaning agent sometimes found in detergent. It’s used to break down and wash away the dirt and grime that water can’t get rid of on its own. It also happens to be a highly toxic threat to aquatic life, from algae, to frogs, to fish. Although there is some debate on sulfates, the World Health Organization (WHO) unequivocally states that SLS “...is toxic to aquatic organisms. It is strongly advised not to let the chemical enter into the environment.” 

Synthetic Fragrances

The most elusive ingredient of all might be fragrances. That’s because fragrances are protected from disclosure. While “fragrance” might appear to be one ingredient on the label, that word could potentially comprise hundreds of chemical compounds just for one scent! It’s not the scent that worries us, but phthalates, which enable fragrances to become soluble. They are known endocrine disruptors in both humans and aquatic life and can even lower the production of testosterone. Studies have found that prenatal exposure to phthalates can decrease mental and motor development in children.

Forms

Conventional Liquid Detergent

Liquid detergent is the most popular detergent on the market and can be the most affordable option, but it’s very watered down and therefore requires a ton of fuel to ship around. Liquid detergent is usually packaged in PET plastic or HDPE plastic bottles that, at scale, contribute to about 2.6 million tons of PET and HDPE landfill waste every year. While PET and HDPE plastics are the most widely recycled, they must be cleaned beforehand.

If you’ve ever tried to clean a bottle of sudsy laundry detergent, you know how much water that can require. Moreover, only about 9% of plastics actually end up recycled, so we can’t say for sure that it’s even worth it to waste a bunch of water rinsing these out. For all of these reasons, none of our recommendations fall under this category.

Concentrated Liquid Detergent

Concentrated liquid detergent is the same concept as conventional liquid detergent, but it is more efficiently formulated. Since a concentrated formula can contain two to three times the number of loads per bottle, it requires much less plastic, water, and shipping fuel compared to conventional liquid detergent.

Powder Detergent

Powder detergent is usually sold in cardboard boxes, which can be highly recyclable, but not if they’re lined with a thin coat of plastic. Curbside recycling won’t accept paper waste that has plastic attached to it, like coffee cups, and if you’re not careful, trying to recycle this type of waste can result in damages to recycling machinery. However, powder detergent is lighter than liquid, which means that it creates fewer emissions during transport, and cardboard boxes require less energy and plastic use in their production. Overall it’s a good alternative to liquid. 

Detergent Pods

Pods have become a popular choice for detergent because of their convenience, but they are typically packaged in a water-soluble plastic, known as polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Even though water should break down the PVA encasing, research has found that not all of the material breaks down, and that 7,000 tons of PVA end up passing through wastewater treatments and into our oceans each year. Since PVA can absorb antibiotics and heavy metals, it ends up carrying them across the ocean, which marine life can then eat and get sick from. Not to mention that tiny particles of plastic that end up in our waterways known as microplastics can further disrupt marine life digestion. If you’re looking for convenience, try laundry detergent tablets or sheets instead of pods to eliminate the need for PVA and other plastics. 

Detergent Tablets

Detergent tablets are conveniently portioned like pods, but we love that they don’t have the PVA casing that pods require. Choose those that come in cardboard packaging, but make sure you don’t recycle that cardboard if it is coated in plastic.

Detergent Sheets

Detergent sheets are a new liquid-less option that seems really promising. This new type of detergent has its ingredients packed into a sheet that dissolves in water. It is super light to ship, requiring less fuel. Since they’re liquid-less, they use less water and usually no plastic packaging.

Soap Nuts

Soap nuts are dried soapberries used in lieu of detergent. They are a great option from an environmental standpoint but have received mixed reviews on their ability to remove stains. If you try them, let us know what you think!

Fun Fact

More than 30 billion loads of laundry are done in North America annually.

Certifications

Here are some certifications to look for when shopping this category.

‍