My family & I haven’t used bottled laundry detergent in years. When we initially stopped, I was making my own “detergent” out of necessity. More recently I started using a concentrated liquid detergent from Frey. It smelled nice, was still gentle on skin, was cost efficient, and took up much less space.
And then I tried detergent sheets. I tried several different brands including Frey, Grove Co., Earth Breeze, and now Clean People. This post specifically is about my experience with Frey vs. Clean People vs. Earth Breeze, why I made the switch from 1 to the other, and which I like most.
My family and I love the ease of using Frey concentrated detergent, but my guys sometimes use too much which defeats the purpose of an eco-friendly cost effective concentrated detergent. I also love that I can refill the small bottles with Sal Suds if I run out before my next subscription.
But because of the overuse, I decided to try the sheets and they were a hit! And even though the concentrated liquid detergent streamlined my laundry room beautifully, the sheets were even more space saving. LOVE THAT!
The only reason I tried Earth Breeze was cost. I wanted to see if there was a difference in performance due to the cost of Earth Breeze being much lower.
Initially there was not, they cleaned just as well and had a nice light scent. But lately I noticed a couple of things with Earth Breeze that I hadn’t before:
- The sheets were somehow less effective so I had to use more which negates the cost savings.
- When using more, I noticed the sheets or pieces of them would stick to the side of the washer which again negates the savings through wasted detergent.
- Earth Breeze is made in China, which is not as sustainable & eco-friendly as I’d like.
So I decided to try Clean People. Below is a comparison of the 3 brands of laundry sheets I’ve tried.
Breakdown of Laundry Sheets: Clean People vs. Frey vs. Earth Breeze
BRAND | LOAD COUNT | COST | SUBSCRIPTION COST | MADE IN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Clean People | 32 | $15 (47¢ per load) | $14.25 (1, 2, 3, or 4 months) | Canada |
Frey | 60 | $20 (33¢ per load) | $15 (30, 45, or 60 days) | Detroit, MI, USA |
Earth Breeze | 60 | $20 (33¢ per load/66¢ for full sheet) | $12 (1, 2, 3, or 4 months) | China |
*NOTE: all of these brands offer introductory packages that are even less expensive than what I listed here. These are the standard prices not using any promotions at all. They all offer free shipping with no minimum as well.
*NOTE 2: Clean People’s other detergents are made in San Francisco, CA, USA.
If I had to choose a favorite at this point, it might be Frey by a very small margin. Literally just the (non-subscription) price & the choice of scents. I’ve only tried a few of the scents but the fact that they have so many is impressive, even if I DO tend toward less scent or fragrance free. Also the scents are very subtle so it’s nice to have options.
Speaking of scents, I tried the Fresh Scent from Clean People because that’s the scent I used from Earth Breeze and it’s very light – almost barely there. Clean People Fresh Scent smells great but if you are used to unscented, it can be pretty strong.
Another thing I prefer about Clean People is how easy they are to use. All of the products I’ve tried are meant to be used as half sheets. In other words, the tiny little 32 sheet package of Clean People is actually 64 loads of detergent. Same goes for Earth Breeze & Frey, although they have to be cut or roughly torn in half. Clean People is perforated so they are much easier to tear apart.
All 3 are much smaller than the average laundry detergent but of the 3, CP is definitely the smallest… and the cutest. I don’t even feel the need to tear them in half ahead of time & store them in a nicer container.
I may have to try Molly’s Suds at some point because they too are made in the US (Florida) and very affordable. Shipping does add to the cost of these, so be aware of that.
Conclusion
In the end, I love the space savings and the lack of ingredients in laundry sheets vs traditional detergent. Making my own is always an option since I always have the ingredients on hand, but I tend to use them as detergent boosters most of the time now.
I will continue using the laundry sheets with my homemade laundry detergent as a backup.
