The Best Detergent for Hand-Washing Clothes

Staff writer Andrea Barnes covers large cleaning appliances, including washing machines and dryers and dishwashers. She also wrote our guides to dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent, and stain removers, and she provides tips for getting the most out of your dishwasher and laundry appliances.

For this guide, we did the following:

• We spoke with a variety of sources, including a retired chemical engineer and a textile and detergent expert. We also interviewed the fabric-care teams at Clorox, Procter & Gamble, and Dirty Labs, including the scientist who formulated the Dirty Labs’s hand-wash detergent.
• We spoke with professionals who work regularly with fine textiles, including a laundry expert and an assistant wardrobe supervisor on Broadway, the latter of whom told us all about removing cosmetics from silk garments backstage.
• We read multiple research papers on how enzymes can damage specific textiles, and how to prevent that.
• We spent time at the library of the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York, researching fabric care and reading many books on the subject.
• We scoured vintage stores for dozens of vintage linens and some hand-knit garments, all of which needed some TLC.

Any garment that is too delicate or special to throw in the washing machine—even pieces that are dry-clean only—may benefit from a dedicated hand-wash detergent. In general, items that are made from natural fibers such as silk and wool, are handmade or hand-knit, or include embellishments like lace or beading are great candidates. Hand-wash detergents can be either no-rinse or require rinsing.
If you own many fine-fabric pieces that require minimal handling, such as lace, cashmere, or embroidered items, a no-rinse detergent could save you a lot of time and effort in hand-washing them. No-rinse detergents are designed to evaporate from fabric after being gently pressed out, rather than wrung. This no-rinse approach may also help your garments in the long run, as rough handling and wringing, especially when the piece is wet, can ruin a wool sweater or silk item. Water destabilizes the chemical structure of protein fibers; no-rinse detergents can help protect those delicate fibers by limiting the amount of contact that the fabric has with water.

If you own a lot of wool and cashmere garments, you may want to consider a hand-wash detergent. In addition to being sensitive to heat, wool is sensitive to agitation: Felt is made by heating and agitating wool until its fibers fuse together. This process is called “felting” or “fulling,” and it’s what happens when, for example, a wool sweater accidentally ends up in the dryer.

If you take loads of your clothing for dry cleaning, you may want to think about hand-washing instead. You can hand-wash most dry-clean-only clothing at home, with a few exceptions, including structured pieces such as blazers and items trimmed with suede or leather. Laundry expert Patric Richardson, who told us that he wears fine fabrics almost exclusively, maintained that he has not sent a dry-clean-only item to the dry cleaners in more than 20 years.

While a hand-wash detergent for delicates can be beneficial, it isn’t a requirement. Though you can potentially ruin any delicate garment by carelessly tossing it into the washer, our extensive testing of washing machines has shown repeatedly that most gentle cycles handle the majority of fabrics well. Remember, though, that items with fraying threads, loosely woven textiles, or otherwise irreplaceable delicates should be treated by hand.

And when it comes to laundry detergent, most modern formulas are also likely to be gentle enough for use on your delicates, most of the time. Protease enzymes, which digest protein fibers and have the potential to damage pure wool or silk, are found in some laundry detergents, but most are now designed to target body soils without degrading clothing fibers, explained Sammy Wang, a member of Procter & Gamble’s fabric care team. (Our top laundry detergent pick, Tide Ultra Oxi Powder Laundry Detergent, contains no protease.) If you’re just hand-washing delicate pieces, including lingerie, or washing machine-safe items on the delicate cycle, a regular detergent will probably work fine—especially if you wash said items in a mesh garment bag, which offers an extra layer of protection.

Detergents and soaps made for hand-washing laundry come in a variety of formulas. We tested 14 different contenders, evaluating them on the following factors:

Ingredients: We paid more attention to the ingredients that a hand-wash detergent did not contain. Most hand-wash detergents do not contain enzymes, which are large biological molecules that are designed to attack different soils but can also damage delicate fibers. Sometimes referred to as laundry soaps or delicate wash, hand-wash detergents often contain a combination of gentler surfactants and glycerin, though all formulas vary. (We use the term “detergent” throughout this guide.)

If a formula we considered did contain enzymes, we confirmed that it lacked protease. (Although our experts said that modern protease enzymes are formulated to attract soils, not fibers, that may not be the case for every protease enzymatic formula.) We also made sure to choose formulas without optical brighteners, bleach alternatives, or polymers, all of which can damage delicate fabrics. This was easy: Hand-wash soaps and detergents usually don’t contain such ingredients.

Cleaning ability: The ability to tackle tough stains isn’t the most important characteristic of a hand-wash detergent, as it’s typically better to spot-clean stains on delicate items. Our top stain remover, Amodex Ink & Stain Remover, is safe for silk and cashmere, though you should still test it for colorfastness before use.

To determine whether the hand-wash detergents we tested were better stain removers than water alone, we hand-washed sebum-stained silk swatches according to each detergent’s directions. Most performed similarly, with a few notable exceptions.

Fabric look, feel, and smell before and after a wash: We then gathered a range of garments and textiles, including vintage linens, hand-knit blankets and sweaters, and hand-washable children’s dresses. We took note of the state of each garment before and after washing, documenting that with photos and detailed notes. We paid special attention to how the fabric felt post-washing and whether the detergents left an unpleasant film.

We cleaned a lot of vintage linens from the home of a smoker to assess the odor-removal capabilities of the detergents. One hand-wash detergent barely removed any cigarette odor, while others seemed to remove the stale cigarette fumes easily. Although this test was not formally controlled, we noticed a consistent pattern among specific detergents.

Number of rinses required, if any: For detergents that required rinsing, we documented how long it took to fully rinse items.

Soak is the best detergent for saving time and effort when you're hand-washing delicate fabrics, wool and silk included. The fact that it cleaned fabric just as well as the competition, combined with its no-rinse convenience and reasonable price, makes it stand out. It is available in multiple scents, though we preferred the scent-free version.

Its no-rinse formula makes hand-washing convenient. Unlike hand-washing with traditional detergents, which requires multiple rinses, washing with Soak calls for no rinsing at all. After soaking your item, you simply press out excess water and lay the piece flat to dry. It’s a very easy way to hand-wash delicates.

It’s versatile. Despite being a no-rinse formula, Soak can clean many types of fabrics, including woolens and silks. Many hand-wash formulas are geared toward either woolens or silks specifically.

It comes in six fragrances, as well as a scent-free version. Soak is available in a variety of fragrances plus a scent-free option, a wider range than most detergents we tried. With imaginative names like Lacey and Celebration, however, it can be hard to know what the fragrances actually smell like before buying a bottle.

Its formula is free of known irritants. Soak does not contain methylisothiazolinone (MI) or methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI), two preservatives that are commonly used in detergents and have the potential to irritate skin. People who have detergent sensitivities should feel comfortable using Soak, even though it’s no-rinse.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

It isn’t made for stain removal. Because Soak’s gentle formula lacks stain-busting enzymes, it’s a better choice for minimally soiled delicates that need a quick freshening up. If you have a badly stained garment, consider a different strategy.

It isn’t easy to find. Though Soak is widely available online, most big-box and convenience stores don’t carry it. If you look around, though, you might be able to track it down—we found it at this specialty knitting store in Brooklyn, for example.

When you use it as instructed, a small amount of detergent stays on the garment. Soak's no-rinse formula limits the length of time that you handle a delicate item, but it also means that some residue will remain on your clothing. According to Jacqueline Sava, the founder of Soak, the company tests its detergents at a textile lab in Japan, which found that once Soak is squeezed out and evaporates, less than 5% remains in the fibers—a minuscule amount. Still, if you have sensitive skin, you may want to fully rinse your garment after using Soak, or consider using one of our also-great picks, Dirty Labs Hand Wash & Delicates Detergent, which requires rinsing.

Price per wash: 21¢ (12-ounce bottle)

If you hand-wash a lot of woolen items, the no-rinse Eucalan Delicate Wash is the best choice.
Its formula cleans very well. In our testing, this detergent was the best cleaner of the no-rinse detergents we tested, removing the most sebum from silk and lifting the most funk from cashmere sweaters.

It requires no rinsing. This makes the chore of hand-washing sweaters and other woolen garments less of a, well, chore.

Its formula can help strengthen garments, and it leaves them feeling soft. The Eucalan detergent contains lanolin, a fatty substance produced by sheep that helps make their wool waterproof. The lanolin in this formula can help strengthen woolen fibers against wear and tear, and it also leaves hand-knit items and woolens feeling soft. We soaked a hand-knit blanket in two kinds of no-rinse detergent. The side we washed with Eucalan was noticeably softer after we laid the piece flat to dry. This detergent also left cashmere sweaters strikingly downy and clean.

It’s available in a fragrance-free version. In addition to the scent-free option, Eucalan is available in four scents.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

It isn’t vegan. The lanolin in Eucalan is derived from sheep’s wool.

It isn’t the best choice for non-woolen fabrics. Although we loved the feel of woolens washed in Eucalan, the lanolin can attract dirt and grime to non-woolen fabrics. According to Eucalan’s website, the detergent is safe to use on silk, but the residue may be a dealbreaker for some people. You may want to rinse silk items even though this is a no-rinse detergent.

It may be irritating to some people. Eucalan contains the preservative methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI), which is known as a potential skin irritant. If you have detergent sensitivities, you need to rinse this formula well from your clothing or skip it altogether.

Price per wash: 18¢ (16.9-ounce bottle)

For stained or stinky hand-washed items that need some tough love, we found that Dirty Labs Hand Wash & Delicates Detergent cleaned well and treated fabrics gently.

It’s an enzymatic option that’s safe for a variety of fabrics. This Dirty Labs detergent is an enzymatic formula that does not contain any enzymes that could potentially damage pure silk or wool. The formula—which is similar to Dirty Labs Bio Enzyme Laundry Detergent Free & Clear, one of our laundry detergent picks—contains a carefully adjusted amount of glycerin combined with silk- and wool-safe enzymes to make it suitable for hand-washing, according to Patrick Memoli, director of formulation at Dirty Labs. (The Dirty Labs team told us that they are so confident in this detergent, they used it to clean a colleague’s vintage wedding dress before the big day.)

It eradicates odor better than any other hand-wash soap or detergent we tried. If you’re trying to revive a particularly stinky delicate item, this detergent is a good choice. In our informal soak test, this Dirty Labs detergent managed to eradicate stale cigarette smoke from tablecloths and linen napkins in only one hand-wash.

It removes stains well. This Dirty Labs detergent landed among the top performers for stain removal in our testing, removing a large amount of sebum from silk. Its ability to remove sebum makes it an ideal option for delicate items that collect body oil, such as bras and underwear. And the enzymes in this formula are made to clean a soup-splattered scarf or coffee-stained silk blouse, too.

Its packaging is recyclable and convenient. This Dirty Labs detergent comes in a recyclable aluminum bottle, which may be appealing to people wanting to minimize their plastic use. It also comes with a reusable silicone beaker for measuring, which we found convenient to use.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

It is expensive. At 51¢ per wash, this Dirty Labs detergent is one of the most expensive hand-wash detergents we tested.

It isn’t available in a scent. If you prefer to hand-wash your things in a scented detergent or soap, this Dirty Labs detergent isn’t for you. (Soak, our top pick, comes in six different scents, plus a fragrance-free option.)

Price per wash: 51¢ (8.6-ounce bottle)

This is not a comprehensive list of everything we tested for previous iterations of this guide, just what’s still available.

Ecover Wool& Silk Delicate Laundry Detergent has an elegant bottle and cleaned well during our testing, but we found its lingering melon smell to be off-putting.

People sometimes use baby shampoo, specifically Johnson’s Baby Shampoo, for delicates. We found that it offered no clear benefit over formulas designed for washing clothing, but many swear by it for washing hand-knit items.

Kookaburra Wash has lanolin and cleaned just as well as the other hand-wash detergents we tested, but it has a strong scent.

The Laundress Delicate Wash is expensive but cleaned very well. We ultimately decided against making it a pick, however, because we found its scent to be cloying and overly sweet.

Le Blanc Silk & Lingerie Wash has a nice, light, linen-y scent. It is formulated to be rinsed. In our tests, it removed less staining than our rinse-required pick, Dirty Labs Hand Wash & Delicates Detergent.

Lona Scott Cashmere Detergent struggled to remove odors from items we hand-washed.

Orvus Quilt Soap is the commercial version of the detergent that textile conservators use to clean museum pieces. It’s a solid: You have to run it under warm water until it softens and then spoon it out of the jar. Ultimately, it’s more trouble than it's worth.

In our tests, Roux Maison Delicate Laundry Detergent actually had a light citrusy smell, even though it was the fragrance-free version.

Woolite Delicates removed stains very well in testing, and I saw why my mother and grandmother swear by it. Unfortunately, we found the sweet scent to be a bit too much.

Zum Laundry Soap is technically not a hand-wash detergent, but its enzyme-free formula and simple ingredient list make it suitable for hand-washing. Zum removed a respectable amount of stains in our testing, but we wish it had a fragrance-free option.

Leigh Krietsch Boerner wrote a previous version of this guide, which was first published in 2016.

This article was edited by Ingrid Skjong and Courtney Schley.