Six eco laundry detergents, tested

We washed the same set of stained cotton swatches at 30 °C and 40 °C, ten times each, across six detergents sold as environmentally preferable.

The short version

Strips and sheets performed adequately at 40 °C and poorly on grease at 30 °C. Two liquid concentrates matched a conventional benchmark at both temperatures.

Ingredients worth knowing

Optical brighteners make fabric look cleaner without cleaning it. Enzymes do the actual work and are generally well suited to low temperatures.

Packaging

Cardboard boxes are lighter to ship, but several strip products arrive in plastic-lined sleeves. We weighed each package and note it in the scores.