When it comes to washing dishes by hand, you want a detergent that gets the job done. But do you have to pay more to get one that cuts through grease and makes dishes sparkle? Consumer Reports tested to find out.
Store shelves are loaded with all kinds of dishwashing liquids. Which does the best job? Consumer Reports tested 14 to find out.
"We looked at dishwashing liquids from big brands like Dawn, Palmolive, and Joy, and from large retailers," explained Celia Lehrman.
Those included Kirkland Signature from Costco and Earth Essentials from CVS.
The most expensive product tested was The Laundress dish detergent. It costs close to a dollar an ounce!
To test a dishwashing liquid's cleaning power and grease-fighting power, Consumer Reports creates quite a mess.
Testers then poured warm water mixed with dish detergent onto each glass and the scrub machine went to work.
"All of the brands that we tested performed equally well regardless of price. So, really, the best advice from us is just go buy whatever's on sale," said Lehrman.
Kirkland Signature from Costco and Ajax, are among the least expensive dish detergents, at just six cents an ounce.
Instant stain removers are big business, so Consumer Reports tested half a dozen to see which are best at making spills disappear.
The contenders included the top seller, Tide to Go, and ranged in price from two to five dollars.
Testers put the spot cleaners through a tough challenge with hard-to-remove stains like gravy, wine, cola, ketchup, and tea.
And the tests covered five different types of fabric, including cotton and polyester.
"None of the cleaners could completely remove all the stains, but three did better than others," explained Bob Markovich.
These stain removers from CVS, Walgreens, and Tide all tied for the top spot. At just $2.00, the CVS Instant Stain Remover is the best price.
Consumer Reports says the key to getting out any stain is to treat it right away. The best technique is to first circle the stain with the spot remover before attacking it directly. That keeps the stain from spreading.
