Like every baby product on the market, there are tens and hundreds of options to choose from. You search through products trying to find the best bottles for your baby, but did you know you should take just as much care in choosing the best baby bottle soap?
The soap you use to wash your baby bottles and pacifiers is important because some harmful ingredients can linger. Since you use these bottles to feed your baby, it’s best to use safe and natural ingredients when possible in case of ingestion. I hope I can simplify this process for you, and after reading this you find the best baby bottle soap for you and your family!
Best Baby Bottle Soap
The criteria to look for when choosing the best baby bottle soaps include: cuts through milk residue for clean baby bottles, natural ingredients with no harsh chemicals, and preferably not harsh on sensitive skin.
Anything that goes in your baby’s mouth should be as natural and safe as possible (while you can before they start eating dirt! haha).
Some of these soaps are also classified as regular dish soap. This is totally okay as long as it meets the criteria listed above.
- Best Multi-Purpose Bottle Soap: Dr. Bronner’s Pure Castile Liquid Soap
- Most Loved by Moms: Dapple Baby Bottle and Dish Soap
- Best Foaming Bottle Soap: Babyganics Foaming Dish and Bottle Soap
- Best Packaging and Organic Ingredients: Elysium Natural Baby Bottle Liquid Dish Soap
- Best for Breastmilk Residue Build Up: Medela Quick Clean Breastmilk Removal Soap
- Best Plant-Based Ingredients Bottle Soap: Mongdies Eco-Friendly Liquid Soap
- Best Eco-Friendly Bottle Soap: Attitude Baby Dish Soap
- Best Value: Better Life Natural Dish Soap
All of these baby bottle soaps are incredible options to choose from, but hopefully this will help you narrow down your choice!
1. Dr. Bronner’s Pure Castile Liquid Soap
Dr. Bronner’s Castile soap is an amazing option for many different reasons. It’s very affordable and highly concentrated so the tiniest bit goes a long way. It’s multi-purpose for MANY different functions: washing baby’s bottles and breast pump parts, dishes, laundry, mopping, cleaning your home, washing pets, and more! (Gentle enough to bathe your baby as well!)
Ingredients list: Water, Saponified Organic Coconut & Organic Olive Oils (w/ Retained Glycerin), Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Citric Acid, Vitamin E.
- Made with organic oils and fair trade ingredients
- Fully biodegradable
- Natural, vegan ingredients
- Cruelty-free – never tested on animals
- No harsh ingredients
- Fragrance-free for babies
- 3x more concentrated than most liquid soaps
- Packaged in 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles
- Most versatile
2. Dapple Baby Bottle and Dish Soap
Specifically formulated for baby’s bottles, pacifiers, nipples, breast pump components and also can be used for dishes! Removes odor and residue left behind by breast milk and formula.
Ingredients list: Purified Water, Alkyl Polyglucoside, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Sodium Hydroxide, Baking Soda, Tetrasodium Iminodisuccinate, Citric Acid, Benzisothiazolinone.
- Hypoallergenic and fragrance-free
- Pediatrician and dermatologist tested
- No harsh chemicals
- Popular option loved by many parents
3. Puracy Dish Soap
Puracy is a great choice because it’s multi-purpose and has really clean ingredients! It’s great for cutting through milk residue, grease on dishes, and is soft on your hands! It’s also extremely concentrated, requiring only a teaspoon to wash a full sink of dishes/bottles.
Ingredients list: Purified Water, Lauryl/Myristyl Glucoside, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Lauramine Oxide, Sodium Chloride, Vegetable Glycerin, Benzisothiazolinone, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Natural Fragrance, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Himalayan Pink Sea Salt, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera)
Derived from coconuts and plant based preservatives. Smells great with a natural green tea and lime scent that’s not too overpowering.
- Naturally derived
- Hypoallergenic
- Vegan
- Gluten-free
- Biodegradable
- Certified cruelty-free
- Made in the USA
4. Babyganics Foaming Dish and Bottle Soap
Babyganics created a foaming soap made with no harsh chemicals that easily removes dried milk, food, grease, and gunk. This product is also dermatologist tested so it’s safe on skin!
Ingredients list: Water, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Lauramine Oxide, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Glycerin, Methylisothiazolinone.
- Made with plant derived ingredients
- Instant foam leaves no stuck-on residue
- Works great for breast pump accessories
- Non-allergenic and non-irritating to skin
- Dermatologist tested
5. Elysium Natural Baby Bottle Liquid Dish Soap
Elysium prides themselves on being an antibacterial dish soap with organic ingredients. The soap bottle is 100% recyclable and ecological and contains an effective pump dispenser.
Ingredients list: Water, Alkyl Polyglucosides, Decal Glucosides, Glycerin, Phenethyl Alcohol, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Parfum, Cocoglucoside, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium Hydroxide.
Elysium has responded to customers stating these ingredients listed are water, apple vinegar, citrus peel extract, corn extract, pineapple extract, coconut extract, glycerine, and mint extract. And that the parfum comes from the spearmint essential oil.
- Vegan and free from harsh chemicals
- Natural antibacterial soap
- 100% recyclable bottle
- Cruelty-free – never tested on animals
- Cuts through milk residue and grease
6. Baby ECOS Bottle and Dish Wash Free and Clear
Created by Earth Friendly products, this bottle soap is U.S. EPA Safer Choice Certified and made with plant-derived natural products.
Ingredients list: Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Coco Sulfate (coconut-derived), Cocamidopropylamine Oxide, Phenoxyethnaol, Methylisothiazolinone.
- Specifically designed for baby’s bottles, dishes, utensils, and even breast pump accessories
- Hypoallergenic and fragrance-free
- No harmful residues – natural and non-toxic
- Never tested on animals
- Manufactured in carbon neutral facilities (great for the Earth!)
7. Mongdies Eco-Friendly Liquid Soap
This recommended bottle soap is one of the more expensive options on this list, but that’s because it’s ingredients are incredibly pure! It’s so safe it can even be used to clean your fruits and vegetables.
It would be a great multi-purpose soap which would make up for the cost! You could use it for baby’s bottles, breast pump accessories, nipples, pacifiers, your fruits and veggies, and even baby’s toys!
Ingredients list: Deep Ocean Water, Lauryl Glucoside, Coco-Glucoside, Lauramide Oxide, Sorbito, Glycerin, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Benzoate, Brassica Campestris Flower Extract, Thymus Quinquecostatus Extract, Lonicera Japonica Flower Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Extract, Camellia Japonica Extract.
Includes coconut surfactants and natural eucalyptus extract to help clean bottles and protect your skin!
- Contains moisturizing ingredients of EWG green level
- Certified safe detergent – safe enough to use on fruits and vegetables
- Multi-use cleaner
- Cuts through grease and milk film
8. Medela Quick Clean Breastmilk Removal Soap
This Medela soap is specifically formulated to remove breast milk residue from pump parts, bottles, nipples, nursing apparel and more.
Ingredients list: Medela does not have the ingredients listed for this product. I would typically steer clear from a product like that, but Medela is a highly-trusted brand and advertises this product as being clinically tested under physician supervision. If you’re still not comfortable with this, there are many other great, safe options to choose from in this list.
- Hypoallergenic and fragrance-free
- Removes stubborn breastmilk residue build up
- Removes breastmilk stains from bottles and clothes!
- No scrub formula
- Perfect for breast pump accessories
9. Attitude Baby Dish Soap
This plant and mineral based dish soap effectively removes formula and breast milk residue and is environmental friendly. Attitude specifically formulated their soap to clean breast milk and formula residues from baby bottles, pacifiers, sippy cups, and breast pump components.
Ingredients list: Sodium Coco-Sulfate, Lauryl Glucoside, Water, Glycerin, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride.
- Hypoallergenic and fragrance-free
- Reduced environmental impact
- Climate Pledge Friendly and ECOLOGO certified
- Vegan and cruelty-free – never tested on animals
- Eliminates odors and milk residue
- Very affordable
10. Better Life Natural Dish Soap
Better Life Dish Soap is natural, hypoallergenic, and soft on your hands! It contains vitamin E and aloe to keep your hands moisturized as well as cut through milk residue on your bottles and bottle parts.
Ingredients list: Purified Water, Lauryl Glucoside, Decyl Glucoside, Disodium Cocoglucoside Citrate, Tocopherol (vitamin E), Potassium Cocoate, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Vegetable Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract.
All ingredients are derived from plants and safe around kids, pets, and the planet! They are very transparent on their website about where they source their ingredients from!
- Non-toxic and biodegradable
- Fragrance-free
- Cruelty-free – never tested on animals
- Made in the USA with solar energy
- Kind to water and marine life
- Perfect for baby bottles and dishes
The Ingredients You Don’t Want in Your Baby’s Bottle Soap
All bottle soaps included in this list are free from these harmful ingredients!
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)
You will see many companies advertising now that their products are SLS and SLES free. This is because these surfactants can cause endocrine disruption, skin irritation, and organ system toxicity.
Sodium laurel sulfate helps soap products create a nice lather but is not very safe so should be avoided.
Harsh Chemicals
- Parabens
- Phthalates and BPA (used in the plastic container)
- Triclosan (antibacterial chemical)
- Benzalkonium chloride (antibacterial chemical)
- Formaldehyde
- Ammonia
These harsh ingredients can cause many different toxicity issues such as – endocrine disruptions, organ system toxicity, cancer, developmental issues, and immune system sensitivities.
Synthetic Fragrances
Synthetic fragrances may make the process of washing bottles more pleasing, but your baby doesn’t really need to smell honeysuckle while drinking their bottle. They also can cause endocrine disruption and skin irritation.
Fragrances from essential oils and fruit oils are safe to be used in baby bottle soap.
The Best Way to Wash Your Baby’s Bottles
The best way to clean your baby’s bottles is by hand washing.
The CDC recommends using a clean basin or container that is used only for washing baby feeding items like bottles, pacifiers, and breast pump parts. Use hot water and baby bottle soap with a clean bottle brush to remove milk film and other residues. Rinse well and leave to air dry!
If you need to dry the bottles quickly, just be sure to use a clean towel designated for your baby’s bottles.
I recommend filling up a clean basin with hot water and a few pumps of your bottle soap of choice. Let the bottles soak for 5-10 minutes (or longer because… mom life!) and then wash.
I hope after reading this you find the best choice for your family! There are so many great options in this list to choose from that are not only safe for your baby, but also for our environment! It can be so overwhelming navigating motherhood and all of the options and opinions that are out there. My dream is to make this journey as easy and joyful as possible for other mama’s out there just doing the best they can for their babies! xo
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- The Best Proven Ways to Increase Your Breastfeeding Milk Supply
- 10 Breastfeeding Must Haves for New Moms
