When it comes to cleaning the house, I shamelessly love to-dos like vacuuming, scrubbing the sink and doing laundry. But there's always one task I put off for as long as possible: cleaning the toilet. And it's not just me — I even have friends who play a game of rock, paper, scissors each week to see who has to take on this bathroom chore.
Delaying the task as I often do inevitably makes the toilet look worse as lime scale and grime continue to accumulate. In an effort to build better habits while simultaneously finding something more effective than my dinky toilet bowl brush and off-brand cleaner, I decided to embark on this journey to find the best toilet bowl cleaners.
Toilets are a bit out of my self-proclaimed cleaning expertise, so I made sure to consult a few experts to learn more about best practices and what to avoid when shining your porcelain throne.
Best for maintenance$3.25$4.48
Best for nooks and crannies$undefined$17.97
What to look for in toilet bowl cleaners
From gels to liquids to dissolving tablets, the options for toilet bowl cleaners on the market are endless. Kellsie Zapata, owner of Zapatas Cleaning Service, and Jennifer Rodriguez, chief hygiene officer of Pro Housekeepers, agree that liquid formulas work best for deep cleaning.
“I like to use liquid cleaners for the main clean and recommend gel stamps to clients who want the toilet to stay fresher longer without much effort in between,” notes Zapata.
When it comes to specific ingredients, Rodriguez says you should look for “disinfectants like hydrogen peroxide, citric acid or bleach to break down stains and kill germs effectively.”
Best overall toilet bowl cleaner
Ease of use score: 5/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 5/5 | Cleaning duration score: 5/5 | Overall average score: 5/5
I must admit: I had my suspicions about this particular kit at first because of the low price point and everything it came with (for most toilet bowl cleaners, you have to buy the brush and caddy separately). There was no way it could be that effective...right? Wrong! After trying it out, I found myself thoroughly impressed.
I can not stress enough how incredibly easy this was to use. All of the disposable cleaning pads sit in the base of the holder, the wand sits in a separate spot (no cross-contamination here) and there's a lid to protect the unused cleaning pads from getting germs on them.
The pads are made with a sponge-like material that I personally believe cleans better than a bristle brush, and in between the folds of the sponge houses a liquid Clorox cleaning agent.
In order to use it, all you need to do is pop a pad onto the wand and get scrubbing — no waiting necessary. The pads worked with the water in the bowl to create an almost-foamy scrub. I found that I could get very deep into the ridges of the toilet without having to worry about a bottle touching the rim or how gross the brush would potentially be after.
It took me all of 3 minutes to thoroughly clean my toilet, and the best part was that pad was easily released from the wand with a push of a lever directly into the trash can.
To me, it seems like they took all the best elements of multiple toilet cleaners to create this perfect one.
Other toilet bowl cleaners to try, tested by the author
Best budget-friendly toilet bowl cleaner:
Ease of use score: 4/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 4.25/5 | Cleaning duration score: 4/5 | Overall average score: 4.08/5
When you think of toilet bowl cleaners, you probably picture this one from Lysol. It's a cleaning classic, so I decided to see how well it worked against my made-up grime of peanut butter and coffee grounds.
The nozzle is a little hard to open — you have to squeeze and twist simultaneously in child lock-type design. Once opened, turn the bottle upside down to get under your toilet seat, squeeze and watch as the liquid runs down the bowl. I then grabbed my trusty bristle brush and got to scrubbing.
Since the liquid runs down quickly, you have to work fast and scrub hard. It was able to remove peanut butter and coffee grounds, which I used for my fake bathroom mess.
While it worked for my controlled messes, I think if you were dealing with more lime scale or intense discoloration, you'd probably want to either grab something stronger or prepare to do multiple rounds of this cleaner.
Best for upkeep:
Ease of use score: 3.5/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 3.5/5 | Cleaning duration score: 4.5/5 | Overall average score: 3.83/5
These gel stamps were recommended by Rodriguez for toilet upkeep in between big cleans. You stamp the gel (using force on the push lever) on the side of your bowl so that water runs through it every time you flush.
These stamps have six in each pack and the brand says each stamp lasts about 12 days, which, so far, I have found to be true. They also have a sharp, clean scent to them, which can be pretty strong if you are sensitive to cleaning smells.
I haven't noticed any rings or buildup since using this product. However, in my opinion, changing the stamp every 12 days does seem like a nuisance if you are also cleaning your bowl once a week. It's better for those months where you have a packed schedule and cleaning your toilet bowl isn't high on your list of priorities.
It's important to note that these don't really get rid of stains the way a traditional toilet bowl cleaner does. I used them more as maintenance in between deep cleaning, the way Zapata recommended, to keep buildup from occurring. Since putting them in my toilet bowl, I haven't noticed any new stains or rings forming.
Best for simple stains:
Ease of use score: 4/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 3.25/5 | Cleaning duration score: 4/5 | Overall rating: 3.75/5
The tilted nozzle on this bottle came in handy when angling it to get up under the rim of the toilet. The top had a similar twist-and-squeeze structure to the Lysol one. I wish the liquid had a color to it because it was a little hard to tell where all the liquid touched in the toilet versus the water.
Because the liquid comes out fast, you also have to work fast with the brush. With my toilet brush, I scrubbed the areas that were most dirty like under the rim and along the water line. I found that it did a good job of cleaning off the peanut butter and coffee stains, but I am not sure how it would hold up on thicker grime.
I also liked not having to worry about a chemical-like smell from this formula. It has a peppermint scent so it smells very fresh, especially after flushing.
Best-smelling toilet bowl cleaner:
Ease of use score: 4/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 3.5/5 | Cleaning duration: 3/5 | Overall average score: 3.5/5
If you tend to opt for a "cleaner" formula for your cleaning supplies, you're probably already familiar with Mrs. Meyer's.
Similar to the other liquid formulas, this bottle had a twist-and-squeeze situation. And like the Better Life toilet bowl cleaner, this formula is also clear, so I wish it had more of a tint to help keep track of where the formula lands in the bowl. I just made sure to use a decent amount of it (a couple squeezes worth). I spread it around the bowl with both the bottle nozzle and my toilet cleaning brush, then let it sit for about 5 minutes before scrubbing.
I found that it did a good job of getting rid of surface stains on the inside of the bowl. The liquid was also a little bit thicker than other formulas, so I noticed that it stuck to more areas of the toilet bowl instead of just running down into the water. This allowed me to scrub the soiled areas with more formula.
What I loved the most about this toilet bowl cleaner was not just the scent, but how long it kept my toilet smelling clean after using it. The scent lasted for around a day or so and is pretty light so it was not too overpowering in small spaces like a bathroom.
Best eco-friendly toilet bowl cleaner:
Ease of use score: 3/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 3.5/5 | Cleaning duration score: 4/5 | Overall average score: 3.5/5
While these tablets are fragile and some came cracked, I liked how many came in this pack. If you're cleaning your toilet once a week, this container has enough tablets to keep you covered for at least three months.
The tablets were noticeably smaller than some of the other ones I tested, but they foamed up nicely and took away the peanut butter and coffee stains easily. It took about a minute for them to foam up after being dropped in the toilet bowl and the foam was not overpowering; for lack of better words, it was similar to the foam on a Guinness. After a minute or so, I used a toilet brush to scrub the foam and get a deeper clean.
I opted for the fresh lemon and cedar scent for these tablets, and loved the smell of it. Similar to Mrs. Meyer's, I found that the scent lingered beyond the immediate cleaning and lasted for a couple of hours after cleaning.
Best for hard-to-reach places:
Ease of use score: 3.5/5 | Cleaning efficiency score: 3.25/5 | Cleaning duration score: 3.5/5 | Overall average score: 3.42/5
If you’re on #CleanTok (the cleaning community on TikTok) and you’re anything like me, you’ve watched dozens upon dozens of cleaning videos featuring the Pink Stuff’s products.
This foaming cleanser promises a deep clean, so I put it to the test. I followed the directions on the packaging: put the tablet in the toilet and leave it alone for 10 minutes. When I came back, it looked like my toilet was about to overflow with bright pink foam which made me a bit nervous at first.
But around minute 6, the foam started to die down, and by the time the 10 minutes were up, it was at a level low enough for me to scrub without fear. The peanut butter in the toilet bowl seemed like it almost turned into a liquid, so it first just spread around a bit and there was still some debris left behind after the initial flush. However, after the next flush, both the peanut butter and coffee remnants had fully disappeared.
I liked this cleaner because I felt like the entire bowl got a deep clean since it was filled to the top with cleaning foam in areas I typically wouldn’t be able to reach with a brush.
How we tested toilet bowl cleaners
I, Annie Shigo, tested 10 toilet bowl cleaners on three toilets in my mom's house. We made sure to purposefully not clean any of the toilets for a couple of weeks to be able to test the products on the more intense grime.
I also used peanut butter and instant coffee grounds to simulate stains similar to lime scale or those unpleasant rings that form around toilet bowls.
For the actual toilet cleaning, I made sure to read each product's instructions carefully and, after putting the peanut butter and coffee mixture in the toilet, I followed each product's directions perfectly. For the liquid and tablet cleaners that didn't come with a brush, I used a standard toilet cleaner brush.
For non-liquid formulas like the Scrubbing Bubbles gel stamps, I observed the cleanliness levels over two weeks to keep track of how well it was working.
I rated the toilet bowl cleaners based on three key factors, using a scale of 1 through 5 (1 being the worst, 5 being the best):
- Ease of use: How easy were the directions to follow? Did you have to touch the toilet a lot or was it hands-free?
- Cleaning efficiency: How much of the peanut butter and coffee did the cleaner get off? Did it leave anything behind? Does it work on lasting rings or stains or does it only work on surface stains? Did you have to use the product multiple times to work?
- Time: Did it take a while to work? Did it do what it said it would in the time it said on the directions? How long did it take to clean the toilet bowl completely?
Why trust Shop TODAY
Annie Shigo is an editorial assistant who started reviewing and testing products to write about in 2023 in the beauty, tech, fashion and cleaning space. She has tested several other types of products for Shop TODAY's Ranked series, including steam mops and stain removers.
Meet the experts
At Shop TODAY, our reporters interview a range of qualified sources and experts to capture a wide scope of perspectives on a given topic. We also make sure that all expert guidance and recommendations are made independently and with no undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
- Jennifer Rodriguez is the chief hygiene officer at Pro Housekeepers.
- Jessica Ek is the Associate Vice President of Strategic Communications at The American Cleaning Institute.
- Kellsie Zapata is the owner of Zapata's Cleaning Service.
