Every year, you may come up with a list of New Year’s resolutions or goals. They may be something like saving money, losing weight and getting in shape, or even becoming more environmentally friendly. This year, it’s this last one that got me thinking about cleaning products. And this question came to my mind – Are Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products More Expensive?
The answer depends on what kind of eco-friendly cleaning products you are using. And what cleaning products they are compared to price-wise.
I buy and use lots of cleaning products, specifically eco-friendly cleaning products. As I browse Amazon or go to stores like Walmart or Lowe’s, I compare the prices of these products.
And I have noticed there are a variety of eco-friendly cleaning products. Some you can buy as is, some you can buy for other household uses and use to clean with, and some you can make yourself.
Before I discuss this, I want to explain what eco-friendly cleaning products are and their benefits.
What Are Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products?
Eco-friendly or environmentally-friendly refers to preserving the planet’s environment and, as a result, human health. Eco-friendly cleaning products can also be called “Green” cleaning products.
Green or eco-friendly cleaning products usually have one or more of the attributes below:
- Non-toxic or low-toxicity
- Biodegradable
- Uses reduced or recycled packaging
- Low VOC content
- Plant-based or from another renewable source
To learn more about “Green” cleaning products and cleaning, read our article – What Everyone Needs To Know About Green Cleaning
Types of Eco-Friendly Cleaners
As mentioned earlier, there is a variety of eco-friendly cleaning products, and they can come in different forms. Here are some below:
- All-purpose cleaners
- Dish soap
- Laundry soap
- Floor cleaners
- Stone/ Wood cleaners
- Counter cleaners
- Air fresheners
- Microfiber cloths
- Cleaning pacs
- Some sponges
Household Products
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
- Lemon juice
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Rubbing alcohol
- Tea tree oil
- Castile soap
Do-It-Yourself Home Cleaners
DIY cleaners are eco-friendly cleaners you can make yourself from household products, essential oils, and or natural soaps.
There is a large market for eco-friendly commercial cleaning products. We will dive into those next.
Eco-Friendly Commercial Cleaning Products
Over the years, the cleaning industry has put more attention on preserving and saving the environment and the health of people. Due to this, well-known cleaning brands and new brands created cleaning products that were natural and or environmentally friendly. Many of these cleaners contain plant products instead of petroleum or harsh chemicals.
Here are some cleaning brands that sell eco-friendly cleaning products below:
- Seventh Generation
- Miracle II Soap
- Mrs. Meyer’s
- Ecos
- Odoban
- Aqua Chempacs and Cleanpacs
- Ipax Atlantic
- Sustainable Earth by Staples
Green and Eco-Friendly Labels and Certifications
Cleaning product manufacturers can have their cleaning products tested for sustainability, safety, and health, among other standards. If they pass, they can get labels or seals and certifications that show the product is environmentally friendly. Some of them are below:
Government Issued
- Safer choice
- Biobased
- Organic
Nonprofit Organization Issued
- Green Seal
- Cradle to Cradle
- EcoLogo
Read our article – The Rise of Eco-Friendly Cleaning Brands and Their Impact on the Environment to learn more about green and eco-friendly labels and certifications.
What Are the Benefits of Using Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products?
To put it plain and simple, the benefits of using eco-friendly cleaning products are that they help preserve and save the environment and the health of yourself, your family, and your pets.
Avoid Harsh Chemicals
Harsh chemicals in conventional store-bought cleaners can cause breathing and skin problems. These harsh chemicals can also be dangerous if accidentally consumed by children or animals.
Harsh chemicals can also pollute the air and water in the environment.
Eco-friendly cleaning products are generally non-toxic with a low VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) content. They can also be biodegradable and from a renewable resource.
Avoid Waste and Recycled or Minimal Packaging
Using some eco-friendly cleaning products repeatedly helps avoid waste. Other eco-friendly cleaning products use recycled packaging or minimal packaging. Some examples are below:
Microfiber Cloths
Using microfiber cloths instead of paper towels or cotton cleaning rags can help save trees and water and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the use of cleaning products.
Cleaning Pacs
Cleaning pacs use the same plastic bottle repeatedly and avoid extra manufacturing of packaging and plastic bottles and excessive waste and plastic bottles from entering landfills.
But what about the cost of eco-friendly cleaners?
Are Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products More Expensive?
How much is the cost of being environmentally friendly with your cleaning? It depends on the products you are using.
You can use natural household products as cleaners, and they are typically low-priced and very affordable. The most popular natural household products – baking soda and vinegar are usually a few dollars at the most.
If you make DIY home cleaners using household products and essential oils or Castille soap, you will usually pay more money. But they are still affordable and generally come concentrated and will last longer.
But where people usually see a difference in the price of eco-friendly cleaning products is at the store, Amazon, or another online store. When you go to the store, eco-friendly cleaning products are on the same shelf as conventional cleaning products and eco-friendly cleaning products are normally higher priced.
And the comparison isn’t always straightforward. An eco-friendly cleaning product can be the same price as a conventional cleaning product, but the size and volume may be significantly larger than the eco-friendly cleaning product.
Or there may be a package of two or three regular cleaning products for the same price as one eco-friendly cleaning product. So why are eco-friendly cleaning products more expensive?
Why Are Eco-friendly Cleaning Products More Expensive?
The reason eco-friendly cleaning products are more expensive can depend on a few things.
Plant or Biobased Ingredients
Cleaning products made of plant or other biobased ingredients are more expensive to create and manufacture than cleaning products made of synthetic ingredients.
Packaging
Depending on the type of packaging the cleaning products are using, specifically, recycled can cost more than regular packaging.
Certification
Obtaining one of the certifications and labels listed earlier, including becoming green-certified, may incur substantial fees.
Because of these reasons and others, the cost of manufacturing green and eco-friendly cleaning products can be higher than other cleaning products.
So this begs the question, are eco-friendly and green manufactured cleaning products worth the extra money?
Are Green Cleaning Products Worth the Extra Money?
If you want to use household cleaning products or make your own using essential oils or other natural ingredients, you will have peace of mind knowing that they are non-toxic and eco-friendly. The cost will probably be less or around the same as purchasing conventional cleaning products at the store.
If you use eco-friendly and green manufactured cleaning products with the environmentally friendly certification. You will have peace of mind knowing that the ingredients in the product were tested and the packaging is minimal or recyclable.
Eco-friendly manufactured cleaning products aren’t going to pollute the environment or make you, your family, or your pets sick. In my opinion, that’s worth the extra dollar or two.
Conclusion
As I mentioned earlier, eco-friendly cleaning products are cleaning products that benefit and help preserve and save the environment and your health. They can also come in various ways, including natural household products, DIY cleaning products, and manufactured cleaning products you can buy at a store or online.
Natural household products like baking soda and vinegar are great for cleaning and are very low-priced and affordable. DIY eco-friendly cleaning products are also affordable and can consist of natural household products and essential oils or other natural soaps.
Manufactured eco-friendly cleaning products can tend to be more expensive than conventional brand-name commercial cleaning products. The reason for this is their ingredients, packaging, and eco-friendly certifications can be costly.
If you’re interested in learning more about the pricing of eco-friendly cleaning products, take a look at our article – Understanding the Higher Price of Eco-Friendly Products
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