Change Up How You Wash Clothes with Laundry Detergent Sheets (2024)

EC30 detergent swatches, currently only available direct from the brand's website, wowed us. The top overall scorer in our tests by a long shot, these were the only laundry detergent sheets to earn a 'good' rating when it came to removing set-in spaghetti sauce stains. When we compared EC30's reflectance improvement score (how well it restored whiteness to a gray-stained fabric) to that of a leading detergent pack, we found it was almost identical. No other sheet we tested came that close.

EC30 calls for one swatch for small loads and two for bigger ones, which can make deciding what to use for a medium load a bit of a guess; we went with just one, and that worked just fine. This is the most expensive brand we tested, clocking in at almost a dollar per medium load, but that may be in part because these are made in the USA. Setting up a subscription on their site can save you up a bit.

We appreciate the safety precautions prominently featured on the packaging. These swatches are slow to dissolve in both hot and cold water, but we didn't find any chunks of the detergent swatch in the washing machine after the cleaning cycle ended, so they do dissolve eventually — just not as quickly as some others.

Cost per medium load: $0.97 | Made in: U.S.A.

"We included these in our previous Cleaning and Organizing Awards," says Carolyn Forté, Home Care & Cleaning Lab executive director. "We tested them again last year and they did a very good job removing stains like spaghetti sauce, chocolate syrup, mustard, grass, coffee and even ink." The detergent in the sheets is powered by enzymes, just like in many regular liquid detergents. This brand gets a lot of love on Reddit and is simple to use, with one sheet being appropriate for one medium load of laundry.

These are lavender and vanilla scented; there's also a magnolia and lily scent and a fragrance-free version. These less-pricey detergent sheets are made overseas, and when you buy from Amazon you get a pack of two boxes, which is enough to do more than 100 loads of laundry.

Cost per medium load: $0.21 | Made in: China

At press time these were the best-selling laundry detergent sheets on Amazon. Earth Breeze Eco Sheets have more than 54,000 five-star reviews on Amazon and more than 36,000 five-star reviews on Walmart.com, so consumers have really put them through their paces and come out loving them. One sheet washes one medium load, and each box contains 30 sheets. The label touts you can wash up to 60 loads, but that is assuming you're only washing small loads which call for half a sheet. Our Lab experts count medium loads as the most realistic for households, so we say this actually handles 30 loads. That makes Earth Breeze mid-priced — cheaper than our best overall pick but more expensive than our best value option.

In our stain removal test, we found that Earth Breeze performed well on stains like cola, chocolate syrup and wine but struggled with some tougher stains like blood, ink and lipstick. In online reviews, people say these are good for everyday laundry but if your clothing is stained, you should consider using an additional stain remover. Most online reviewers say they were excited to discover this trending, easy-to-find brand. For many, using Eco Sheets was their first experience with ditching big jugs of liquid soap.

Cost per medium load: $0.45 | Made in: China

Brand loyalists and consumers who are unsure of all the new names in the detergent sheet space might gravitate to this familiar-looking package from Arm & Hammer, a brand we trust and recommend for its baby laundry detergent. Amazon reviewers have given Arm & Hammer Power Sheets a 4.5-star average rating across more than 8,000 reviews. They like the fresh scent and how well the sheets compare to the brand's traditional liquid.

The box includes enough sheets for 50 medium loads, but the brand lists 100 loads on the label assuming that you will tear each sheet in half and only run small loads (which seems unlikely in most households). Even still, this box has a relatively low cost per load, even if you use a whole sheet every time.

Cost per medium load: $0.30 | Made in: China

This unscented, hypoallergenic formula is a great choice for those with sensitive skin and others who prefer to avoid fragrance. We also like it for travel because it won't have your whole suitcase smelling like detergent, and the package is a slim, easy-to-pack envelope. There are directions on the back for hand-washing in a sink too, making it even more travel-friendly. Beyond sheets are USDA Certified Biobased, a certification for products derived from plants and other renewable materials.

These earned the sixth-highest overall score in our Lab tests, dissolving in water in less than a minute. The sheets worked especially well for removing gravy, coffee and egg from our test fabric but had little luck on spaghetti sauce and lipstick stains. Pre-stained fabric swatches showed a 6.8% improvement in reflectance after being washed with this detergent — better than most of our tested laundry sheets.

Related: How to Hand-Wash Clothes in Your Sink

Cost per medium load: $0.31 | Made in: Canada

Scent is subjective of course, but we think these are the best-smelling laundry detergent sheets we tested, with a lavender and thyme fragrance. (If that's not your thing, there's an unscented option too.) In our tests, these sheets dissolved completely in less than one minute and improved the reflectance of a fabric swatch almost as well as other brands that cost twice as much. Usage is simply one sheet per medium load.

There were some stains in particular that most of these sheets struggled with. The average tea stain removal score for all detergent sheets was just 2.6 out of a possible 5. But Grove Co.'s sheets were one of only four that earned a 'very good' score for tea stain removal. Other stains the product performed well on were ketchup and crayon, though it was no match for grass stains where it earned one of the lowest scores in our tests.

Signing up for a subscription through the Grove Co. site earns some savings, but if you already frequently order from Amazon you may prefer to add the two-pack to your cart. These sheets are made overseas, but Grove Co. has a U.S. headquarters and is a Certified B Corp, meaning it meets accountability standards for its social and environmental impact.

Cost per medium load: $0.47 | Made in: China

While Clearalif's laundry detergent sheets struggled in our stain removal test, especially with crayon and lipstick stains, they made up for it with the second-best reflectance improvement score and for having the fastest dissolving time (at less than 20 seconds). The stains that Clearalif performed best on were food stains like chocolate, ketchup and cola. The brand earned the third-highest overall spot in our evaluations.

Though the packaging says each box can handle 160 loads, the brand defines them as small loads of about 2 pounds of clothing. We calculated the cost per load using 80 loads per box to better reflect real-world use. Even so, this detergent sheet is a great price, matching our best value pick at only 21 cents per medium load. We would have preferred a more specific ingredient list; it only lists a general description of the ingredient (like surfactant) and not what the ingredient actually is.

Related: How to Remove Sweat Stains from White Shirts

Cost per medium load: $0.21 | Made in: China

Norwex's laundry detergent strips earned the second-best overall score in our Lab tests. They showed an almost 8% reflectance improvement on fabric stained gray and dissolved in just under a minute in cold water. The fresh blossom scent is light and pleasant, though it does not last long on washed clothing. The sheets performed well on many of the less stubborn food stains like ketchup, wine, mud, chocolate syrup and grape juice but struggled to improve tea and lipstick stains. (Not uncommon with most laundry detergent sheets.)

The product is USDA Certified Biobased and each sheet comes in a paper envelope that is easy to tuck into luggage for traveling. The label on these strips is the most thorough of the brands we tested with instructions in English, Spanish and French. There are clear dosage instructions for small, medium and heavily soiled loads too.

Cost per medium load: $0.89 | Made in: Canada

Because there is more to laundry detergents than how well they remove common stains, we also test each sheet's ability to restore the whiteness to a standard gray-stained fabric. We call this reflectance improvement. The reflectance of a fabric is the measure of the amount of light that is reflected off that fabric — the whiter the fabric, the better the reflectance. For each laundry detergent sheet, four pre-stained swatches are washed in a 6-pound load. Using a DigiEye color imaging system, we calculate the average reflectance improvement achieved with each sheet.

One final performance test is then done to record the time it takes each sheet to dissolve in 2 liters of agitated water. For our ease-of-use tests, detergent sheet instructions are evaluated for proper safety precautions, clear dosage information and a comprehensive ingredients list.

A laundry detergent is no good unless it cleans your clothes. Which detergent sheets are best at cleaning isn’t something you can learn standing in the laundry aisle of your local store, but there are things you can be on the lookout for to make sure you are buying something high-quality.

✔️ Ingredients: Most laundry detergents clean with surfactants and stain-fighting enzyme ingredients in the formula. Some common chemical names to look for include linear alkylate sulfonate or any other ingredient with sulfate or sulfonate in the name, and enzymes like amylase, lipase and protease.

✔️ Price: You might be tempted to just look at the price of a pack of laundry detergent sheets, but it’s the price per load that is more important. The laundry detergent sheets we tested ranged in price from about 20 cents per regular load to 1 dollar per load. Other forms of laundry detergents we’ve tested, including liquid, are significantly cheaper per wash, but they come with other compromises, like heavy jugs that require more storage space. While, on this list, the priciest detergent sheet earned the top spot, price is not always a reliable indicator of performance.

✔️ Packaging: Laundry detergent sheets are touted as better for the environment than plastic jugs of laundry detergent. This is likely true for sheets that are packaged in recyclable, paper envelopes and boxes. Be wary of eco-friendly claims from brands that package their sheets in plastic or don’t have information on their website about how they are working to minimize their company’s environmental footprint. Where detergent sheets are manufactured is also something to consider, as some countries have more lax environmental protection laws. Shipping products overseas can have a bigger environmental impact than those made domestically.

✔️ Sweeping environmental claims: A lot of consumer products make big claims about how eco-friendly, zero-plastic and free of insert-common-cleaning-ingredient-here they are. This is something to be cautious of as even the Federal Trade Commission has taken notice of these greenwashing claims. “Eco-friendly” is an especially tricky term as it could mean almost anything, and many brands use this term on their products to appear greener than they really are. There are two simple ways to make sure that the brand you are thinking of buying is actually working to minimize its negative impact on the environment: Peruse a brand’s website for more information on where and how their products are made, and check the label for any federally regulated certifications like the USDA Certified Biobased Product label.

Most of the brands we tested have easy-to-follow instructions on the label and can be used in both front- and top-load machines. Place a sheet or sheets right inside the washing machine drum, not in the tray for liquid detergent, then place your dirty laundry on top and run your usual cleaning cycle. Always follow the directions on the package of the brand you are using for best results.

Unfortunately, we found some brands' instructions to be quite tricky when figuring out the dosage for small or large loads, but we didn’t run into any over-sudsing issues when we tested in the Lab.

Don't handle laundry detergent sheets with wet hands, as they'll begin to dissolve. They'll also become mushy messes if stored in a wet, humid area. Like any cleaning product, always be sure to keep these out of sight and reach of children and pets. Some brands tout "natural" or "biodegradable" ingredients but detergent sheets are not non-toxic. Note that some brands print an expiration date on their label.

Experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute test thousands of consumer products each year in our headquarters in New York City, as we have for more than a hundred years. Our Lab experts rate cleaning appliances such as the Best Washing Machines and award products for their efforts to be eco-friendly with our Sustainable Innovation Awards.

This article was written by former Reviews Analyst Jodhaira Rodriguez. She led our test of laundry detergent sheets, spending more than 96 hours running washers and dryers and a dozen more hours staining, analyzing and rating the 24 laundry detergent sheets considered for this story. The most recent update was written by Contributing Writer Jessica Hartshorn, a journalist and former editor at Parents magazine.