Best Laundry Detergent UK 2026 (Cost Per Wash Compared)
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| # | Product | Pack | Price | Cost per use | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 Persil Non-Bio Liquid Detergent 95 Wash |
95 washes | £12.85 | 13.5p per wash | Check |
| 2 |
 Ariel All-in-1 Pods Original 100 Capsules |
100 pods | £18.03 | 18p per wash | Check |
| 3 |
 Bold All-in-1 Pods Lavender & Camomile 57 Capsules |
80 pods | £20.48 | 35.9p per wash | Check |
| 4 |
 Daz Powder Original 90 Wash |
90 washes | £17.97 | 20p per wash | Check |
| 5 |
 Surcare Non-Bio Liquid Detergent Wash |
50 washes (750ml) | £15.30 | 30.6p per wash | Check |
Prices last checked: 19/05/2026
In a typical UK household, laundry detergent is something you buy on autopilot, the same bottle, the same brand, off the same shelf at Tesco. We did the mathss properly, with cost-per-wash worked out from real Amazon UK prices, and the gap between cheapest and most expensive in this guide comes out to about 22p per load. Across a year of washing, call it 250 loads for a family of four, that’s roughly £55 your are missing out on.
This guide covers five laundry detergents we’ve used or genuinely considered for our own households. We refresh prices regularly and show the date we last checked under the comparison table. When a supermarket undercuts Amazon, which happens, we say so.
Our top picks reviewed
Persil Non-Bio Liquid Detergent 95 Wash
Pros
- Lowest cost per wash in our table
- Trusted brand with consistent results
- Effective on stains without bio enzymes
- Suitable for sensitive skin
Cons
- Big bottle, awkward to store
- Some find the scent strong
- Plastic packaging
Persil Non-Bio’s 95-wash bottle is the cheapest per wash on this guide at 13.5p, sold on Amazon UK as a 2-pack at £25.70 (£12.85 per bottle) which is what the per-wash mathss is built on. The non-bio version cleans reliably on cotton and synthetics, the formula is gentle enough for daily use on sensitive skin, and the 2-pack lasts a 4-person household roughly ten months.
The trade-off is on heavy stains. Without bio enzymes you’ll need a pre-treat or a Vanish booster for grass, blood, or grease. For a fortnightly cycle of school uniforms, towels, and bedding it does the job without much hoopla.
The practical complaints are the bottle and the buying format. Each 4.55L bottle is awkward to store and the wide neck makes it easy to pour out too much each time, and the 2-pack means you’ll have two of them on the shelf at once. Even so, it is worth it for the per-wash cost.
Ariel All-in-1 Pods Original 100 Capsules
Pros
- No measuring, convenient
- Strong on tough stains (bio enzymes)
- Single-dose packaging keeps detergent fresh
Cons
- More expensive per wash than liquids
- Pods can be a choking hazard near children
- Not suitable for skin sensitivities
Ariel pods come second on cost at 18p per pod, between Persil’s bulk pricing and Daz Powder. People think they are generally the expensive option, but the 100-pod box at current Amazon UK pricing actually beats every option on this list except Persil on a per-load basis.
What you’re buying beyond cost is convenience and stain performance. The bio formula tackles grass stains, food, and grease far better than non-bio liquid, and the dosed-pod format removes the over-pouring problem entirely. If your household goes through a lot of kids’ clothes, sports kit, or anything with visible stains, this is the pick for you.
The argument against pods is child safety. In a household with under-5s the pods are bright, squishy, and look like sweets. Amazon’s listing notes this; but we wanted to underline it.
Bold All-in-1 Pods Lavender & Camomile 57 Capsules
Pros
- Cheaper per pod than Ariel
- Lavender & camomile scent is mild, not overpowering
- Built-in fabric conditioner
Cons
- Bio formula, not for sensitive skin
- Less effective on heavy stains than Ariel
Bold All-in-1 Pods are the most expensive option on this list at 35.9p per pod, partly because the version we’re rating is the smaller 57-pod box. You’re paying for the built-in fabric softener and the Lavender and Camomile scent, one of the few we’ve found that smells genuinely subtle on dried fabric rather than the chemical tang some pods leave.
It’s a bio formula, not suitable if anyone in the household has skin sensitivities, and the cleaning performance on heavy stains is a step below Ariel. For ordinary loads you won’t notice the difference. For pet-related disasters, you might.
If you specifically like the scent and the softener-in, Bold is the buy. Otherwise Ariel does the same job cheaper.
Daz Powder Original 90 Wash
Pros
- Excellent value
- Powder works well in hard-water areas
- Strong cleaning on whites
- Long shelf life
Cons
- Powder is messier to dose
- Less convenient than pods or liquids
- Bleach content can fade darks over time
Daz Original Powder is one of two products in this guide we recommend specifically for hard-water households. Powder formulas perform better in hard water than liquids: they include water-softening agents that liquid detergents have less room for, and Daz in particular has had decades of refinement on this point.
At 20p per wash it sits third-cheapest on this list, just above Ariel. The downsides are practical: powder is messier to dose, the bag takes up shelf space, and the bleach content gradually fades dark fabrics if you use it for everything.
Surcare Non-Bio Liquid Detergent Wash
Pros
- Dermatologically tested
- No dyes, no enzymes, no fragrance
- Recommended by Allergy UK
- Gentle on babies' clothes
Cons
- Smaller pack. Less bulk discount
- Not as effective on heavy stains as bio
- Limited stock in some retailers
Surcare is the outlier. At 30.6p per wash it’s the second-most-expensive option here, only undercut by Bold. The reason it’s in the ranking is that for some households it’s the only one that works.
Surcare’s pitch is no enzymes, no fragrance, no dyes, no optical brighteners, just the basic cleaning agents. Dermatologists recommend it for eczema-prone children, people with chemical sensitivities, and anyone who’s been told by a GP to wash with hypoallergenic detergent. It carries the Allergy UK seal of approval, which is a real third-party certification rather than a marketing label.
What we’d buy ourselves
If we were stocking a household from scratch, with no specific sensitivities to work around, we’d buy two products: Persil Non-Bio 95 Wash for the bulk of everyday loads (towels, bedding, coloureds), and Daz Powder for whites and hard-water performance.
If sensitivities are a factor, swap the Persil for Surcare. Our best non-bio detergent guide has a fuller shortlist, including Ecover Zero as a cheaper alternative for mild sensitivity plus an eco preference.
If you’d rather use pods, Ariel at 18p per pod is the cheapest by a wide margin. Bold smells nicer but costs nearly double per pod.
How we pick value
Cost per wash is the unit that matters here: pack price divided by the number of washes Amazon’s own listing claims for that pack. We use Amazon UK’s headline pack count (95, 100, 80, and so on) rather than re-deriving from grams of detergent, because that’s the number the buyer is actually paying for. Subscribe & Save prices are checked alongside the standard price; we use the standard for the headline figure.
Prices on this page are re-verified regularly and dated under the comparison table. Nothing on this guide is a paid placement.
Is bulk detergent on Amazon actually cheaper than the supermarket?
Sometimes, and not always by as much as the Amazon page would suggest. On Subscribe & Save the Amazon price is typically about 12% cheaper than the equivalent unit cost at Tesco. Without Subscribe & Save, the gap narrows to roughly 5%.
How do bio and non-bio detergents differ?
Bio detergents include enzymes that break down protein-based stains (food, blood, grass) more effectively at lower temperatures. Non-bio omits the enzymes, gentler on sensitive skin but less effective on heavy stains.
Are pods worth the extra cost?
On this guide Ariel pods come out at 18p per wash, more expensive than Persil Non-Bio at 13.5p but cheaper than Daz Powder, Surcare, and Bold. “Pods cost more” holds in some comparisons and not others; check the per-wash figure for the amount you’re actually buying.
Does Subscribe & Save actually save money?
Yes, but check the price displayed in your Subscribe & Save dashboard against the regular product page before each delivery. Amazon occasionally raises the base price after your first delivery.
How often do these prices change?
Amazon UK prices for household consumables typically move every 2 to 4 weeks. We re-check prices on this page regularly and display the date each was last verified beneath the comparison table.