Blueland Clean Essentials Kit Review 2023 | Eco-Friendly, Zero Waste, Tablet Based Cleaning Products
We tried Blueland’s Clean Essentials Kit. Here’s our review.
The Top Line:
Blueland is a BUY. At an extremely reasonable price-point, high-quality and lightweight refillable bottles, and cleaning solutions that work — its a no-brainer.
*Updated in Sept 2023: We originally purchased this set in 2020, and after 3 years of heavy use, we did experience cracking in 1 of our “forever” bottles. We wrote in to Blueland’s customer care team, and were immediately sent new bottles, which they informed us has been re-designed. We appreciate the prompt and courteous service!
*Updated in Aug 2023: We appreciate that Blueland products are all PVA free — they were one of the first brands to acknowledge this and took care to design their products to exclude the ingredient.
Blueland is all about plastic reduction — there is no plastic in their packaging and thanks to their refill tablets, the average household can go from using 30 single-use plastic bottles of cleaners to 1 “forever” bottle. We are also very excited by the fact that Blueland is as affordable as Lysol — their average cost per oz for Blueland is significantly less expensive than other eco-friendly options out there. Finally, we like that we can buy refills when we need to and are not locked into a subscription.
We break it down for you:
Cost: $39 for the Clean Essentials Kit, $2.20 per tablet refill if you buy in bulk. You can also buy each bottle and refill individually.
Products Included: 3 “forever” cleaning bottles for Multi-Surface, Glass+Mirror, Bathroom, 1 Foaming Hang Soap Bottle, Tablets for each bottle (4 Tablets in total).
Coupons: Purchasing the kit saves you 20%, and shipping is free over $35. We didn’t find any other promo codes available for new customers at this time.
How ‘Clean’ Is This? Blueland products are non-toxic, kid-safe, pet-safe, cruelty-free, hypoallergenic, vegan, gluten-free, pH-balanced. Clear labeling of each product and breakdown of ingredients — all of which are naturally derived or a synthetic that is identical to naturally derived ingredients. Their reusable bottles are 100% BPA-free and non-leaching. They are certified by a number of environmental agencies.
Packaging: Everything was either 100% recyclable or compostable, including the wrappers for the refill tablets.
Purchasing & Shipping: Very easy purchasing experience. They text with shipping updates, which I personally prefer over getting more emails. Shipping is also free if you spend over $35.
Good to Know: Despite this product is all about the refills to save you money and make an impact for the environment, we LOVE that they do not lock you into auto refills.
What’s Your Impact? The biggest impact here is a major reduction in plastic. Blueland estimates that an average household will go through 30 single-use plastic bottles of cleaners a year — by using their refill tablets you’re able to cut plastic completely of your your everyday cleaning.
Blueland’s line of eco-friendly household cleaning essentials brings us one step closer to a zero waste home.
How Well
Did the Products Actually Work?
For context, I have been using predominantly Meyers or Seventh Generation products over the last 5 years. I was particularly interested in seeing how well the tablets dissolved, the scent, and how hard the cleaning solutions worked.
Blueland Multi-Surface Cleaner Review:
- The Tablet: Tablet dissolved pretty quickly (I used hot water).
- The Efficacy: Cleaned every day stains and tougher stains very well. We event tested it on burnt on stains by the stove and it dissolved them easily.
Blueland Glass + Mirror Review:
- The Tablet: Tablet dissolved pretty quickly (I used hot water).
- The Efficacy: We have a lot of mirrors and a glass dining table—so we use a lot of glass cleaner. Happy to report that it worked very well (streak-free!), just as well as Meyer’s brand glass cleaner.
Blueland Bathroom Cleaner Review:
- The Tablet: Tablet dissolved pretty quickly (I used hot water).
- The Efficacy: Pleasant, clean smell. Did not have a heavy chemical smell — which is what you usually get with bathroom cleaners.
Blueland Foaming Hand Soap Review:
- The Tablet: This was the only tablet that did not dissolve entirely (even though I used hot water), I had to shake it for a couple of minutes to get it to completely dissolve. The tablet for hand soap is bigger than the other tablets, so might just be due to size — they could remedy this by either elongating the tablet or breaking it up into two smaller tablets.
- The Efficacy: Produces a thick foam (thicker than the Method Foaming hand wash) which gave it a very pleasant feel. Cleaned my hands well, with a light, clean scent.
1 Year Value
Comparison
We calculated based on Multi-Surface Cleaner only, assuming 10 bottles (16oz each or 160oz in total) for an average household’s use over the course of 1 year.
Blueland Multi-Surface: $0.10 to $0.15 per oz
Their bottles fit 20oz each, so it would only require 4 refill tablets to get to 80oz. We also incorporated a 19% discount for the bottle and first refill tablet, assuming that it is purchased as part of a kit. Average cost of $0.15 per oz for the first year when factoring in cost of bottle, $0.10 per oz thereafter for refills.
Cleancult: $0.43 to $0.45 per oz
High end of range includes cost of bottle included in average cost per oz over the cost of one year.
Grove Collaborative: $0.19 to $0.26 per oz
High end of range includes cost of bottle included in average cost per oz over the cost of one year.
Meyers Multi-Surface Everyday: $0.23 per oz
Seventh Generation All-Purpose: $0.17 to $0.22 per oz
Lysol All-Purpose: $0.09 to $0.15 per oz
What We Liked:
✔ Drastic reduction of plastic—while Cleancult and Grove Collaborative helps to achieve this in their offering as well, Blueland certainly takes the cake with their tiny refill tablets packed in compostable wrappers.
✔ We liked that bottles are clearly marked, and incredibly light-weight.
✔ You’re not locked into a auto-refill subscription.
✔ Most cost effective eco-friendly option out there given their $2 refill tablets.
✔ Packaging is all recyclable or compostable. We especially appreciate the design of the kit box, built to make it extremely easy to break down and recycle.
✔ Light, clean scents.
✔ Non-toxic, kid-safe, pet-safe, cruelty-free, hypoallergenic, vegan, gluten-free, pH-balanced.
What We Didn’t Like:
✗ Hand soap tablet did not easily dissolve—despite using hot water (see photo above). Rest of tablets dissolved very well.
✗ While the bottles are very lightweight and clearly well-designed, we personally preferred the aesthetic design of the Cleancult and Grove Collaborative bottles more. We don’t like how heavy the glass options are though!
✗ No additional options for scent. Not a huge deal for us, but others may want options!
✗ Not Sulfate-free (contains Sodium Lauryl Sulfate). Worth noting that other eco-friendly brands like Meyers and Seventh Generation products also use SLS.
Our Recommendation:
Blueland is a BUY. At an extremely reasonable price-point, high-quality and lightweight refillable bottles, and cleaning solutions that work — it’s a no-brainer.
We're on a mission to reduce our personal carbon footprint with small, hopefully easy, changes in our home to fight against climate change. This means we're looking for products that may be all natural, ideally zero waste, reusable or compostable -- while still being affordable!
