DIY Liquid Laundry Detergent Recipe (No Soap)

Learn how to make a DIY liquid laundry detergent without soap. This easy recipe works well in hard water, cleans effectively, and avoids heavy fragrances.

I used to make soap-based laundry “detergents,” and they can work… especially if you have soft water.

But over time, I realized they aren’t the best option for most people.

If you have hard water, soap can react with minerals like calcium and magnesium, leaving a residue on your clothes. That buildup can trap dirt, make fabrics feel stiff, and leave everything looking a bit dull over time.

That’s why I switched to making a simple surfactant-based detergent instead.

It cleans more effectively, works well in any water type, and is still inexpensive and easy to make at home.

If working with surfactants sounds intimidating, don’t worry. This is one of those recipes that’s actually very simple once you try it, and it gives you much more control over what goes into your laundry.

If you prefer to see the process, here’s the video:

The problem with soap-based laundry detergents

Soap doesn’t just clean. It also reacts with minerals in hard water.

When it comes into contact with calcium and magnesium, it forms a residue known as soap scum. Over time, that residue can build up on fabrics, trapping dirt and making clothes look dull or feel less clean.

This isn’t always noticeable right away, especially in soft water. But in areas with hard water, like where we live in Spain, the difference becomes much more obvious over time.

That’s one of the main reasons I moved away from soap-based laundry detergents and started using surfactant-based formulas instead.

Some people try “stripping” their clothes to remove buildup, but it’s usually easier to avoid the problem in the first place.

But that doesn’t mean soap is completely off the table. There are still times when it can be useful.

Why make your own Laundry detergent?

One of the biggest advantages of making your own detergent is the cost. Most store-bought detergents, especially “natural” ones, are surprisingly expensive for what they are. They’re mostly water with a small amount of surfactants, which are relatively inexpensive when you buy them yourself.

Making your own also gives you full control over the ingredients. Many commercial detergents use strong synthetic fragrances that can be overwhelming or irritating. I’m quite sensitive to those scents, so I usually keep my detergent unscented.

If I do want to add fragrance, I prefer to scent my laundry separately using wool dryer balls or sachets. It gives a lighter, more natural scent without being overpowering.

Another benefit is that you can tailor the recipe to your needs, avoiding any ingredients that don’t work well for you or your family.

Ingredients

This detergent is made with a simple blend of surfactants, along with water, salt, and a preservative.

The main surfactants I use are sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), coco betaine, and decyl glucoside. Together, they give a good balance of cleaning power and mildness.

Salt is used to thicken the mixture.

To keep the detergent stable over time, you can either add a preservative or adjust the pH. I’ll explain both options below so you can choose what works best for you.

About sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)

Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) is a surfactant that’s very effective at removing grease and dirt, which is exactly what we want in a laundry detergent.

It does have a bit of a negative reputation, especially in personal care products. It can be irritating on the skin for some people, which is why I don’t usually use it in things like shampoos or toothpaste.

You may have also seen claims that SLS is linked to cancer. From what I’ve found, there isn’t solid evidence supporting that. Reviews of the available research have not shown SLS to be carcinogenic, and much of the concern online seems to come from misunderstandings or misinterpretations of how it behaves. If you’re interested in looking into it further, you can read a published review on SLS safety and toxicity and also see how Lisa Bronner from Dr. Bronner’s addresses common concerns about SLS.

That said, laundry detergent is different from personal care products. It isn’t a leave-on product and gets rinsed out completely, so using a stronger surfactant here makes sense. In this context, SLS works very well and helps get clothes thoroughly clean.

While it isn’t the most “natural” ingredient, it is biodegradable and widely used in cleaning products. I tend to prioritize safety and effectiveness over whether something is completely natural.

If you prefer to avoid SLS, you can experiment with other surfactants. Just keep in mind that gentler surfactants usually need to be used in higher amounts or combined carefully to get similar cleaning power. If you’re new to working with surfactants, you can learn more about how they work and how to combine them in my guide to natural surfactants.

This recipe uses a blend of surfactants to balance cleaning power with mildness, making it effective without being overly harsh.

How to make a DIY liquid laundry detergent

Making this detergent is actually very simple once you have your ingredients ready.

Add the surfactants to your container. The easiest way to do this is to place the container on your scale, tare it, and add each ingredient one at a time, resetting the scale between additions.

Once the surfactants are in, add most of the distilled water and gently stir or swirl to combine everything, trying not to create too much foam.

In a separate small container, dissolve the salt in a portion of the remaining water. Once fully dissolved, add it to the detergent mixture and stir gently. As it incorporates, the mixture will begin to thicken.

Salt is often used to thicken liquid detergents, but it doesn’t just affect the texture. It also changes how the surfactants behave.

A small amount can help improve structure and cleaning, but adding too much can actually reduce both thickness and effectiveness. That’s why it’s best to add salt slowly, mixing well between additions, and stop once you reach the consistency you like.

If you’ve ever had a detergent suddenly thin out again after adding more salt, this is why.

At this point, you can choose how you want to preserve your detergent. You can either add a broad-spectrum preservative or raise the pH of the mixture using a small amount of lye solution. See the notes below for more details on both options.

Do you need a preservative?

Because this recipe contains water, you do need a way to keep it from growing bacteria or mold over time. There are two main ways to do that, and I’ve used both.

Option 1: Use a preservative

You can add a broad-spectrum preservative that works within the pH range of your detergent. This is the simplest option, especially if you prefer not to work with lye. When I first started making my own laundry detergent, this was the method I used!

That said, laundry detergent is usually made in fairly large batches, so using a preservative can get expensive depending on what you choose and where you buy it.

When I first started making this detergent, I used Sharomix 705 because I was able to buy it in large quantities fairly inexpensively here in Europe. It worked well for this type of formula.

One important thing to keep in mind is pH. Before adjusting the pH, this detergent usually falls around a slightly acidic range (mine was around pH 5, but that can vary depending on your ingredients and suppliers). You’ll want to make sure that whatever preservative you choose is effective within the pH range of your final product.

Option 2: Raise the pH

Another option is to raise the pH of the detergent to make it less hospitable to microbial growth.

I actually started doing this after looking at an older bottle of Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds. At the time, the ingredient list included potassium hydroxide. It made me wonder if they were using it to help preserve their detergent, and since I already had it at home from making soap, I decided to give it a try in my recipe.

By raising the pH (generally above around 9), you create an environment where many microbes can’t grow. This is why traditional liquid soaps don’t usually need a preservative.

This is the method I’ve been using for years now. It’s simple, cost-effective, and works well, especially if you already make soap and have lye on hand.

If you choose this method, be sure to handle lye carefully and follow basic safety precautions.

Here’s what that process looks like:

Customizing your homemade laundry detergent

This recipe is pretty flexible, but changing the ingredients can affect how it turns out.

The blend of surfactants I use gives a good balance of cleaning power and mildness. You can experiment with other combinations, but keep in mind that not all surfactants behave the same way. Some clean more gently, while others are stronger and more effective at removing oils and dirt.

If you want to avoid SLS, you’ll probably need to use more surfactants or combine a few different ones to get similar results.

Thickening

You can also adjust the thickness of the detergent. I use salt to thicken it, which works well with this blend of surfactants.

As you add salt, the mixture will usually get thicker at first, but only up to a point. After that, adding more can actually start to thin it out again, so it’s best to add it gradually and stop once you reach the consistency you like.

While small amounts of salt can affect how the surfactants behave, in this recipe it’s mainly being used to adjust thickness rather than improve cleaning.

It also doesn’t need to be very thick to work well. A more liquid version will clean just as effectively, so thickness is mostly about how it feels and dispenses.

If you change the surfactants, keep in mind that not all combinations will thicken with salt, so you may need a different thickener or simply leave it more liquid.

Fragrance

You can leave the detergent unscented or add a small amount of fragrance if you prefer. I usually leave mine unscented and add scent separately, like a couple of drops of essential oil on wool dryer balls or using sachets in the closet. It gives a lighter, more natural scent without being overpowering.

If you do add essential oils or fragrance oils to the detergent, it’s best to use small amounts.

FAQs

Now that you’ve made your own laundry detergent, why not make your own natural fabric softener and wool dryer balls too?

Originally published November 29, 2018. Updated April 2026 with clearer explanations, additional details, and a full video tutorial.