13 Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents 2024: DedCool, Glamorous Wash, Snif

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You’ve heard it here: along with that one upholstery cleaner “Cleantok” goes nuts for and the Pink Stuff paste, designer detergents are officially the it home cleaning item. Long gone are the days when doing your laundry meant limiting yourself to the oversaturated, chemical-y fragrances from popular detergents (not everything has to smell like Febreeze and florals!). Unless you love feeling like sticking your nose into a spring meadow, today’s detergents are far more luxurious, almost scented closer to a spritz of perfume than a waft of generic chemicals.

At A Glance: The Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents

The best-smelling laundry detergents will not only clean your garments (that’s still their main purpose, after all), but gently perfume your fabrics for a scent that’s not-too-overpowering, but will actually last. Nothing beats that “fresh” smell of just-washed clothes straight out of the machine, but these detergents take it one step forward, elevating your load with collaborations from designer perfume brands (think Capri Blue, or Maison Francis Kurkdjian, the creator behind TikTok’s favorite perfume).

Whether you want to start actively looking forward to laundry day (it’s the little things), or you just want to smell as luxurious as your clothes feel when you put them on, we’ve rounded up the best-smelling laundry detergents money can buy. Who knows? Someone might even think you just lit up a Le Labo Santal candle in their vicinity.

In This Article

What Are the Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents?

Buying Guide: How We Chose the Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents

What Are the Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents?

We searched for the best-smelling laundry detergents online, we evaluated the brands based on ingredients, fragrance type and strength, overall quality, price, along with getting well-rated user reviews. Here are our top picks.

1. Tyler Candle Co. Diva Glamorous Wash

The #divawash detergent hype is real on TikTok, and we can say that the of rich and warm scent of Glamorous Wash‘s finest laundry liquid Diva has our stamp of approval. Upon first whiff, it seems like the major scent notes would clash (fruity, floral, and amber?), but we love the invigoratingly fragrant flowery base that combines with a warm and spicy finish. Scented like stepping into the lobby of an expensive hotel, you can set your perfumes and lotions aside when using this one — it packs a powerful punch, and a little goes a long way here. That being said, it’s still remains gentle enough to use on delicate, specialty fabrics, and cleans effectively.

2. Laundry Sauce Laundry Detergent Pods

Laundry Sauce is elevating laundry day by combining its powerful stain-removing formula with luxury fragrance-inspired scents in a pint-sized package. It’s like if the perfume counter at your favorite boutique merged with your neighborhood dry cleaner — all in a pod. There are four scents to choose from but we’re partial to “Italian Bergamot” which is reminiscent of breezy summer days on the Italian Riviera. We can’t wait to throw on our sheets and be enveloped in our clothes after they’ve been put through a laundry cycle. Unlike cheaper fragrances which are often overpowering and can — literally — cause us to turn up our noses, Laundry Sauce offers fresh scents that are distinctive yet unpretentious. It’s an easy upgrade from generic drugstore detergent and a way to up your laundry game to more grown-up fare.

3. Maison Francis Kurkdjian Aqua Universalis Detergent

Maison Francis Kurkdjian, better know for the TikTok-famous perfume, Baccarat Rouge, has a sophisticated detergent that plays off their popular summery fragrance with a warm bergamot and Calabria base combined with delicate touches of jasmine, lemon, and Moroccan. It’s a crisp and classic fragrance that reminds us of line-dried laundry, just with a muskiness that will linger long after it’s out of the dryer. While the detergent carries a lofty $55 price tag, the formula is specially-concentrated (you can also grab the linen care set that targets light and dark colors), which the brand says can even refresh even the most delicate fabrics like silk and linen. Like a fancy candle, this bottle is worthy of adding to your ‘self-care’ budget.

4. Method Liquid Laundry Detergent

If you lean in close…well, you won’t exactly hear the ocean waves, but this herbaceous detergent from Method Liquid is scented like a fresh morning stroll along a misty beach. The zing of the sage notes elevate the classic masculine “water” scent to a really refined level, but won’t wash away your entire savings with the tide. Besides having some fresh fragrances, Method’s detergents also do a great job of reviving dulled whites and colors, and its hypoallergenic formula is also clutch for sensitive skin (unlike with some other scented detergents). For a bottle that promises to get you through 66 loads of laundry, this detergent’s value can’t be beat.

5. Dropps Stain & Odor Detergent Pods

If the Tide pod fiasco of the 2010s taught us anything, it’s that there’s something so playful about fresh laundry pods — but this pick is also better for the environment. Dropps’ eco-friendly laundry option uses 100% plastic-free packaging, plus the pods themselves are free of excess water, artificial dyes and colors that don’t clean your clothing. Like a little “drop” of luxury, their Lavender Eucalyptus scented pods leave a crisp, relaxing fragrance that feels like a portal to the spa just opened up in your laundry room.

6. L’avant Collective High Performing Laundry Detergent Soap

When you’re looking for a more elevated approach to tackling your toughest laundry loads, we recommend trying out L’avant Collective. Since it’s ultra-concentrated, you’ll need less than you think to achieve dramatic results, but beyond deep cleaning and powerful odor defense, we were most impressed with its luxurious scent. It leaves that signature “fresh linen” fragrance behind that you might be used, but elevates it with crisp, natural notes of geranium, ylang ylang, and bamboo. The scent will also linger for days after they leave the dryer thanks to the enzyme-driven formula (that’ll also help protect colors from fading).

7. Bath & Body Works Fabric Care Sun-Drenched Linen Detergent

We were pleasantly surprised when our favorite mall spot for candle-sniffing Bath & Body Works got into the laundry game in late 2023, with customers able to vote on which of their favorite fragrances would get detergent-ized. We’re just lucky that Sundrenched Linen made the cut, which will leave your clothes smelling like you air-dried them out in the sunshine. While we’ve been nose-overloaded (the precursor to going nose-blind) before when it comes to “powdery linen” scents, this detergent is surprisingly sophisticated, with strong crisp apple notes, and underlying base of soft musk. If that sounds like a lot, you wouldn’t be wrong — but its scent sings like a symphony, and the concentrated formula that’ll get you 60+ washes makes it the whole cleaning package.

8. The Laundress No. 723 Laundry Detergent

Enjoy the indulgent feeling of buying yourself your own bouquet of roses every day with cult-favorite The Laundress’ No. 723 laundry detergent. Everything from your pajama sets to bedding will feel well and truly pampered with a concentrated detergent formula that targets stubborn stains, dirt, and grease. Unlike other detergent scents that feel like an afterthought, this one was crafted by world-class perfumers, featuring the alluring smell of Damask Rose, along with musky notes of geranium, and amber​. We’ve also been using their Delicate Wash (in the “Lady” scent that’s still floral, but with more citrus and musk) for whenever we need a more gentle, concentrated clean, but No. 723 will turn your laundry basket into a fragrant rose garden in bloom.

9. Molly’s Suds Liquid Laundry Detergent 

Like driving by a citrus grove, we can’t get enough of the light, refreshing (essential oil-based!) aroma of Molly’s Suds detergent. While you will want to hold your nose up to your clothes to get a whiff of this scent, the real star here is its clean, powerful formula (free from artificial dyes and harmful chemicals) and stain-removing powers. The ultra-concentrated formula will give your load a thorough plant-based clean, while helping you save some water too. It’s bright, it’s fruity, and it’s sustainable — what more could you need?

10. Snif Old Money Everything Wash

If you want your clothes to give off Kendall Roy energy without having to shell out corporate merger-sized bucks, Snif’s Old Money laundry detergent is bonafide “quiet luxury” staple — without the Roy-sized price tag. The Everything Wash removes dirt and odors, while the Old Money fragrance leaves your laundry smelling like a million bucks with a luxe blend of cardamom, tonka bean, vanilla, sandalwood and musk. With a scent as warm and rich as this one, your laundry will automatically be elevated to VIP status. This isn’t just just a flashy clean, though; this detergent brings the quality with a non-toxic, non-irritating, vegan, cruelty-free, and synthetic dye-free formula.

11. DedCool 01 Taunt Laundry Detergent

This highly-coveted, best-selling fragrance from DedCool has been transformed into a detergent that we can’t get enough of. The vegan and cruelty-free formula is described by the brand as ‘a coming-of-age story’ that ‘smells like daydreaming about your first perfume’. Those vibes are perfectly encapsulated in a sweet yet mature-smelling blend of bergamot, fresh dew, cassis, vanilla and amber. We also love that this warm and sultry-scented detergent is formulated with plant-based and biodegradable ingredients, making it a solid pick for those with sensitive skin, too.

12. Dirty Labs Signature Laundry Detergent

This detergent doesn’t just get earthy on the organic ingredient list, but scent-wise, too. Dirty Labs’ sustainable laundry liquid combines refreshing magnolia with bergamot, and cedar fragrances for a pure, forest-y vibe. Thanks to their advanced enzyme cleaning technology, you’ll also get targeted stain- and odor-fighting power for the fresh-looking and smelling clothes possible.

13. Capri Blue Volcano Laundry Detergent Liquid

Capri Blue (aka the in-store “Anthropologie scent”) has brought the experience of shopping around while taking in wafts of their Capri Blue Volcano candle to their luxe detergent. Like the “excitement and energy of a summer night rendezvous,” you’ll be lured in by notes of tropical fruits, sugared citrus, and exotic mountain greens. It’s noticeably softer and sweeter than typical citrus scents, which brings a nice pop to your laundry without getting too tart. It’s also formulated with essential oils (great for sensitive skin), but is concentrated enough to be remove the toughest stains.

Buying Guide: How We Chose the Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents

We take care in choosing the products we present to our readers. While we review descriptions to showcase modern selections with utility, we also rely on promising customer feedback or first-hand experience with the products and brands ourselves. We considered detergents with scents that are strong enough to linger after washing without being overpowering, powerful enzymes/stain-fighting formulas, price, and features like eco-friendly or non-toxic ingredients. The result is a carefully considered shopping list with you in mind.