Let’s get right to it! Here are the brands I’ve looked into thus far, based on requests from my group page, and brands I personally use and/or have tried.
At a glance, here’s who landed where:
APPROVED OPTIONS
Dr. Bronners
LuSa Organics
Mama Suds
Poofy Organics
Tangie
SO-SO OPTIONS
Attitude
Biokleen
Blueland
Ecos Free & Clear
Ecover
Natural Grocers
Sonett Organic
NOT RECOMMENDED OPTIONS
Azure Standard
Better Life
Grove Co
Koala Eco
Melaleuca
Molly’s Suds
Mrs. Myers
Rosey by Thrive
Seventh Generation
Truly Free
Let’s look at the ingredient labels and my notes with details on why I put them where I did. First, a couple of notes:
Liquid products need a preservative. Dish soap bars are awesome because they don’t need a preservative AND you reduce plastic waste via the container they come in! They take a bit of adjusting to. But like with anything new, in a short amount of time it’ll feel normal to be using a bar for your dish needs vs a liquid option.
I chose the unscented option whenever it exists, that would be the base formula for the brand. If that’s not safe, the others won’t be either. It shouldn’t be a surprise that the dish soaps land in the same lists as the overall company ratings in my master list, for the most part. All the approved dish soaps are from approved brands on my master list.
APPROVED: You can feel good about these choices both for your health, and that of the planet.
Dr. Bronners- Many, many people use this product as an all-purpose soap (they dub it an 18-in-1 soap), including for their dishes. I just have never been able to get into it myself. The ingredients are fabulous. I just don’t think it performs well as a dish soap. And I’ve revisited it many times over the years. It leaves a serious film behind and my dishes don’t feel clean. But ingredients are great and if it might work for you. If you buy a bottle and don’t love it for dishes, you can use it for your other soap needs such as personal care. It is your basic castile soap.
Ingredients : Water, Organic Coconut Oil,** Potassium Hydroxide,**Organic Palm Kernel Oil,**Organic Olive Oil,** Mentha Arvensis, Organic Hemp Seed Oil,** Organic Jojoba Wax, Citric Acid, Tocopherol, Limonene. $16.99/32oz bottle w/ refill cartons available.
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LuSa Organics- This brand is local to me in WI and I offered Rachel’s products for many years via my buying club. Her business has evolved to include many products, but bar soaps have always been her specialty, and I love that she offers a dish soap bar! It has great ingredients so it’s an easy choice to put it on this portion of my list. However, when I tried it I didn’t love the performance, it left a film on my dishes. That being said, results vary by water type (I have hard well water w/ no softener) so I really hope you’ll give it a try! If it doesn’t work for your dishes as you’d like, you can use it for a regular bar soap too.
Ingredients: Saponified oils of *coconut and *olive; sea salt, french green clay, and sweet orange essential oil. 2 sizes and scents (citrus or lemon) 4oz bar= $7.75 or 15oz= $26.75.
Link: https://lusaorganics.com/
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MamaSuds– Another vendor that I offered for many years via my buying club. Of all the dish soap bars I’ve tried over the years, this has been my favorite. I have hard well water, no water softener, and this works very well for me!
Ingredients: Sodium olivate (non-GMO). That’s it, 1 ingredient, saponified olive oil! It’s not organic however. 8oz bar= $15. 8oz bar= $15.
I do have an Affiliate link for MamaSuds. If you’re going to purchase from here I’d appreciate you using my link so I earn commission from the sale: www.mamasuds.com/ecofriendlymama. Free shipping on orders over $75
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Poofy Organics- as with every other product list I’ve done deep dives on, Poofy is consistently THE best of the best of the best. Other than Dr. Bronners castile soap, this is the ONLY brand on my approved list that is a classic, traditional liquid soap. Poofy uses rosemary extract as a preservative which is sufficient when products are made fresh regularly, and shipped directly to the consumer vs sitting on the shelves in a warehouse for who knows how long before being shipped out. The ingredients are always as minimal as possible while being incredibly effective and as organic as possible. When not possible to be organic, such as decyl polyglucose, they are the highest quality natural ingredients available. Poofy’s dish soap was one of the 1st products of theirs I feel in love with well over a decade ago. It works incredibly well. A little goes a long way. Only downsides is cost, it’s among the more expensive options. I do have a 10% off coupon code that 1st time customers can use: ECOFRIENDLYMAMA10 and I offer an additional 10% rebate on top of that for 1st time orders, then all subsequent orders get 5% back on all orders all the time. If cost isn’t a factor in your choice, and you want THE best of the best of the best for anything on your list, Poofy Organics is the clear choice.
Citrus Punch or Mountain Breeze (smells like jasmine, SO good!). Ingredients: Purified Water, Decyl Polyglucose (non-gmo corn), Organic Vegetable Glycerin (organic sunflower oil, organic flax seed oil, or organic coconut oil), Organic Apple Cider Vinegar, Xanthan Gum. Organic Aloe Vera, Organic Lemon (Citrus Medica Limonum) Essential Oil, Organic Lime (Citrus Aurantifolia) Essential Oil, Organic Orange (Citrus Aurantium dulcis) Essential Oil, rosemary extract. $20/16oz bottle.
My link: https://poofyorganics.com/?ref=ecofriendlyusa
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Tangie- I have not tried this yet but I look forward to with my next order for her laundry bar which is what I’ve used and loved for many years now! I love waste-free solutions, the question just is how well it works as I’ve had mixed results with dish soap bars. I hope you’ll try it and love it. Safe, minimal (though not organic) ingredients! ENTER CODE: ECOFRIENDLYMAMA for 10% off in the Redeem coupon box before checking out.
Ingredients: Coconut Oil, Saponified Sodium Hydroxide, Shea Butter, Olive Oil Pomace, Sea Salt. $10.85/6.8oz bar.
Link: https://tangieco.com/
SO-SO: Not good enough for the best list, not bad enough to say absolutely, positively not.
Attitude- I absolutely LOVE the large refills this brand offers. It’s not made in USA (Canada, which is preferable to another continent at least). Comes in up to a 135oz refill! Sodium coco-sulfate, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate are all so-so ingredients at best, but not bad enough to make this a terrible option either.
5-15% anionic surfactants (Sodium Coco-Sulfate), <5% non-ionic surfactants (Lauryl Glucoside, Myristyl Glucoside, Caprylyl Glucoside). Contains also: Water, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid, Lauramine Oxide, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate, Glycerin, Camellia Sinensis (Tea) Leaf Extract, Sodium Hydroxide.
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Biokleen Free & Clear- Personally, not “clean” enough for me to use, but it’s not bad enough for the NOT recommended list I guess… I choose to avoid many of the ingredients on this list.
Contains: water, sodium lauryl sulfate, decyl glucoside, cocamidopropyl betaine, lauramine oxide, lauryl glucoside, glycerin, phenoxyethanol, sodium chloride, and tocopherol.
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Blueland powder. Refill packs which I like the concept of. Small list of ingredients and definitely not a terrible formula. Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is the biggest concern to me.
Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Glycerin, Sodium Citrate, Calcium Silicate
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Ecos Free & Clear- This is a good example of what irks me about EWG and why you have to dig deeper than the front score. Overall, they give this product an A. Awesome, right? Well, click one page further and you’ll see that almost ½ of the ingredients get a C and are also on my personal list of ones to avoid. In my opinion, it’s all about the ingredients. All the ingredients matter. I think a C is a good overall score for this, and the So-So list is a good spot for it to land.
Water, Sodium Coco-Sulfate, Cocamidopropylamine Oxide, Lauramine Oxide, Phenoxyethanol, Coco Betaine, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Citric Acid.
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Ecover- I’m not positive what’s going on with this brand. I read that possibly they were updating packaging. It’s available via some 3rd party sites, but is getting harder and harder to find. SLS is the most concerning ingredient to me.
Ingredients: Water, sodium lauryl sulfate, lauryl/myristyl glucoside, ethanol, sodium chloride, glycerin, sodium citrate, citric acid.
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Natural Grocers- Cocamidopropyl Betaine is on the list of ingredients I choose to avoid. But overall, this isn’t a terrible choice.
Water, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Chloride, Dimethyl Lauramide Myristamide, Organic Lonicera Japonica (honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Sodium Citrate, Citric Acid.
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Sonett organic– Lack of full disclosure. I can’t recommend it if I don’t know exactly what is in it. The most common fatty alcohol sulfate is Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. Since the list is minimal and the only thing in question is the sulfate I will put it on the So-So list since it is a very minimal ingredient list and the rest of the ingredients aren’t terrible. From EWG: Alkylpolyglucoside C8–16 carries “some concern of acute toxicity to aquatic life. A review of industry studies notes reduced testis and accessory sex gland weight in an animal study. Human patch testing shows that incidence of alkyl glucoside-induced allergic dermatitis is relatively high.”
Ingredients: Aqua, alkylpolyglucoside C8–16, sodium C12–14, fatty alcohol sulphate, alcohol, sodium chloride, sodium citrate.
NOT RECOMMENDED:
As I mentioned above, liquid products need a preservative. There are a couple preservatives that automatically land a product/brand on my NOT recommended list when I see them on any label. If you choose just a couple ingredients to become educated on and choose to avoid, I urge it to be these: benzisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone. In EWG’s cleaning database they get a C or D and in EWG’s Skin Deep a 6 or7. Those are really, really concerning scores. A 7 is so rare to see in the products I’m looking at these days. Concerns include (from EWG Skin Deep): Methylisothiazolinone is a widely used preservative; has been associated with allergic reactions. Lab studies on the brain cells of mammals also suggest that methylisothiazolinone may be neurotoxic. It is a skin sensitizer and irritant. One or more in vitro tests on mammalian cells demonstrate neurotoxicity. From EWG’s Cleaning Database: Evidence of acute aquatic toxicity; skin irritation/allergies/damage; developmental/endocrine/reproductive effects.
In addition for my concerns with the effect products I’m using could potentially have on my body, I’m also concerned with environmental impacts. Any product that lists “acute aquatic toxicity” is a huge NO for me. The companies who use these ingredients justify it by stating that the concentration is a very small amount. Dose does matter. However, it just so happens that the brands using these ingredients are HUGE name brands that are used by millions of consumers each & every day (Seventh Generation, Mrs. Myers, etc). So when millions of people are using products every single day and the ingredients are terrible for the environment, there is no justification in my opinion. These 2 ingredients are an absolute NO on any product label I come across. Whenever I hear from someone who has issues with eczema/psoriasis type symptoms on their hands my 1st question is what are they using for dish soap? If it’s something that contains these preservatives, it’s a huge red flag that the soap is causing their issues.
A new to me ingredient with some pretty serious concerns: Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine- Several brands I originally thought would be on my So-So list ended up on not recommended due to this ingredient. Feel free to do a deep dive on it yourself and if you’re comfy with it, some of these brands might be more in the so-so arena. From EWG cleaning database: I’m not familiar with this ingredient so clicked a bit deeper in EWG and this is what they say about it: causes severe skin and eye burns, Known to cause cancer, Probably carcinogenic to humans, Reasonably Anticipated To Be Human Carcinogen. Ummm, what?! That’s not even something I can say is so-so, that’s a NO! This is a really good read on the ingredient and I’ve always trusted Stephanie’s opinion greatly. Is Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine Safe? – Bubble and Bee Organic I encourage you to do your own deep dive on this ingredient and if you’re okay with it, there are a few brands on my not recommended list that would be more so-so than terrible.
I do not recommend these brands, or at the very least urge you to do your own research before selecting them:
Azure Standard- Contains both the absolutely, positively NO preservatives, and the rest is so-so at best too. The greenwashing this brand is doing is highly irritating. They state the following on their website and I 100% disagree with their claim: “You might look at the ingredient list and see a lot of unfamiliar names that sound, well, different than you’re used to. We’ve harnessed the best in science in these products with formulas made from plant derivatives that truly work to get the grime and gunk out, without harming your health or the planet. Scientific names aren’t always easy to read, but they’re accurate for what’s actually in the bottle so you can research them yourself. We’re confident you’ll agree with the eco-conscious chemists who made the formulations for us… these are highly effective, yet entirely environmentally-friendly, ingredients.”
Ingredients: water, lauramine oxide, lauryl decyl glucoside, sodium coco-sulfate, isopropylidene glycerol, carboxymethyl inulin, sodium citrate, glycerin, benzisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, phenoxyethanol, sodium polyitaconate, citric acid.
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Better Life- their site is defunct, redirected to Amazon. Not recomended unless you find a formula that doesn’t contain Methylisothiazolinone and Benzisothiazolinone. If you do, please let me know.
Ingredients: Water, Lauramine Oxide, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Coco Glucoside, Sodium Chloride, Methylisothiazolinone, Benzisothiazolinone
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Grove Co- Nope. Contains both Methylisothiazolinone and Benzisothiazolinone.
Water, sodium lauryl sulfate,* lauramine oxide,* glycerin,* caprylyl/capryl glucoside,* coco-glucoside,* natural origin fragrance,* citric acid,* benzisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, sodium chloride.
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Koala Eco: Ingredients: Made in USA w/ Australian EO’s. Unfortunately, the label is too vague to give a definitive opinion. Anything other than EO’s isn’t listing full disclosure, which sadly cleaning products are allowed to do (be vague). Since I can’t recommend it with confidence, all I can do is not recommend it…..
Ingredients: Aqua (purified water), sodium polyglucosides (made from renewable sugars), citrus reticulata (mandarin essential oil), backhousia citriodora (lemon myrtle essential oil), cocamine oxides (made from renewable coconut oils), plant-based biodegradable solubiliser, benzoic acid (antimicrobial), xanthan gum (made from renewable sugars), ethylhexylglycerin (from coconut oil), citric acid (pH adjuster).
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Melaleuca- At the top of the worst greenwashing brands of all time. I’ve never seen a single product that comes close to getting a recommendation on even my So-So list.
Ingredients: Plant-derived cleaning agents (sodium lauryl ether sulfate, sodium coco-sulfate, cocamidopropyl betaine, lauramine oxide), biodegradable cleaner (meroxapol 252), plant-derived antioxidant (alpha-tocopherol), naturally derived pH adjuster (citric acid), naturally derived viscosity control (magnesium chloride), plant-derived colors (Melia azadirachta leaf extract, Melia azadirachta flower extract, Corallina officinalis extract, beta-carotene, Coccinia indica fruit extract, Solanum melongena [eggplant] fruit extract, Aloe barbadensis flower extract, Ocimum sanctum leaf extract,
Ocimum basilicum [basil] flower/leaf extract, Curcuma longa [turmeric] root extract), fragrance containing
essential oils and extracts (fragrance), for freshness (methylisothiazolinone, benzisothiazolinone), water (aqua). Contains fragrance allergens.
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Molly’s Suds- I originally had this on my So-So list. Nothing in it stood out as especially terrible. It doesn’t have the 2 preservatives I mention above, which automatically land brands on this portion of the list. However, after digging into the ingredients further, I cannot recommend this product. Propanediol (a preservative) gets a C from the EWG cleaning database, as does the Cocamidopropylamine Oxide and the Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine (as I mention above, if you do a deep dive on this ingredient and decide you’re comfy with it, I would feel this is so-so instead of an absolute no).
Ingredients: Water,Lauryl Glucoside, Cocamidopropylamine Oxide, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Lauyl Lactyl Lactate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Citric Acid, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Propanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Natural Fragrance.
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Mrs. Myers- sooooo many scents to choose from. They all sound lovely. Too bad the ingredients make it a definite NO in my opinion. Somehow this brand is able to convince many in the “green” crowd that it’s a better choice. I wholeheartedly disagree.
Ingredients: Water; Sodium Lauryl Sulfate; Lauryl Glucoside; Lauramine Oxide; Polysorbate 20; [Fragrance: (Citronellal, Geraniol, Hexyl Cinnamal, Linalool); Rosa Damascena Flower Oil; Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Sweet Orange) Peel Oil]; Glycerin; Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice; Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate; Citric Acid; Methylisothiazolinone; Benzisothiazolinone; Sodium Chloride
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Rosey by Thrive- Placed here due to Sodium Coco Sulfate, Cocamidopropylamine Oxide, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine and Propanediol.
Ingredients: Water, Sodium Coco-Sulfate, Cocamidopropylamine Oxide, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Chloride, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Naturally Derived Fragrance, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Propanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Citric Acid, Linalool, Geraniol.
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Seventh Generation Free & Clear– Not surprising as this brand is on my NOT recommended list overall. One of the biggest greenwashers on the market, in my opinion. They convince consumers there products are a healthier alternative, but the ingredients speak otherwise.
Ingredients: water, sodium lauryl sulfate (plant-derived cleaning agent), lauramine oxide (plant-based cleaning agent, glycerin (plant-derived foam stabilizer, decyl glucoside (plant-derived cleaning agent, magnesium chloride (mineral-based viscosity modifier, citric acid (plant-derived pH adjuster), benzisothiazolinone (synthetic preservative), methylisothiazolinone (synthetic preservative).
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Truly Free- Small packs of concentrate that you add water to make your own. I like the concept. I have no personal experience with this brand but someone whose opinion I trust does and she said this, do what you want with the warning: I personally don’t like how truly free does business, I’ve had trouble with them and don’t trust them nor their ingredient). Like with Molly’s Suds, I was going to put this brand on my So-So list but there is too much concerning data on the ingredients Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine for me to be comfy recommending it.
Ingredients: Deionized Water, Cocamide MIPA, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Glycerin, Limonene (Citrus), Linalool, Sweet Basil Extract, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium C14-C16 Olefin Sulfonate, Sodium Chloride
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And that’s it for now. Curious what my thoughts are on a brand not on this list? Email me and I’ll take a look and add it: ecofriendlymamausa@gmail.com
You might also be interested in checking out my laundry recommendations here.
Eco-Friendly Mama: Safe product recommendations with a focus on organic and Made in USA! 