Keeping your toilets in pristine condition may not be your top goal, but it is an important consideration if you’re trying to maintain a clean bathroom and ultimately, a clean household. It doesn’t matter how clean you keep the rest of your bathroom, if your toilet is dirty, then it’s not really clean. And we know that it’s not always easy making the toilet as clean as you want it to be on a day-to-day basis.

Fortunately, there are a variety of toilet bowl cleaners that can be used to not only get the toilet clean in the first place but also keeps it clean, too. We’ve reviewed ten of the best toilet cleaners and sorted the good ones from the not so good ones. Then we decided to write a little guide that gives some tips on keeping your toilet crystal clean.

Best Toilet Bowl Cleaners – Reviews

10Green Works Toilet Cleaner

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need a bunch of harsh chemicals to maintain a clean toilet, and few products prove this point better than this one. It’s manufactured using natural ingredients and is not only safe for all septic systems but contains no bleach in its formulation. It has a fragrance that’s derived from plant oils and is powerful enough to power through everything from hard water stains to mineral deposits and even rust. This product formula is never tested on animals and uses packaging that uses post-consumer recycled materials whenever it can. All of which makes it a great choice for people looking to go green with their cleaning regimen.

9Clorox Automatic Bowl Cleaner

Clorox doesn’t believe that you should always have to be working on your toilet to keep it clean, which is why they created these remarkable tablets. This product cleans the toilet with every single flush, so the homeowner doesn’t have to spend more time than needed keeping their toilets clean. And it not only cleans but it also sanitizes, too. Using the power of bleach, it kills up to 99.9% of the bacteria that may be living inside your toilet bowl. This makes the toilet not only superficially clean but makes it truly clean. With a fresh clean scent, this product can clean your toilet for up to 3-months.

8Seventh Generation Cleaner

Using a plant-based formula that enables it to maintain a 97% USDA Certified Biobased Product Rating, this toilet bowl cleaner is the green product choice for many people. It’s made without any dyes or fragrances and doesn’t contain chlorine or ammonia. This product is completely biodegradable and is safe for all septic systems. It has also been certified cruelty-free by the Leaping Bunny Organization, so consumers can rest assured that no animals were harmed to test the effectiveness of this product. And all of this adds up to make this a product that is a great cleaner for responsible households.

7Mrs. Meyers Clean Day

Mrs. Meyers Clean Day Bowl Cleaner might not be a product that’s a household name, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have the power to really get your toilet clean. This product is manufactured using 98% naturally-derived ingredients and this makes it not only biodegradable but also environmentally responsible. Environmental safety isn’t the only reason to buy this product, however. This product should be bought because it leaves toilets clean and fresh smelling, and does all of this without using chlorine or solvents. It’s a toilet cleaner that gets the job done right, so you can not only feel good about using a natural product but also feel good about your toilet being as clean as it can be.

6Home Care Lab The Works

If you need a product that not only cleans the toilet but also disinfects it and deodorizes it, then this is a cleaner that should get some attention. It has a special formula that can cut through all kinds of tough stains. It can eliminate rust, and hard water stains, all the things that can make a toilet look really dirty. And it also kills 99.9% of all household bacteria, so the toilet just doesn’t look clean, but it is actually clean. Since this powerful formula is contained in a specially shaped bottle, the consumer can also rest assured that they can reach even hard-to-reach stains, so the whole toilet is clean.

5Frosch Lemon Toilet Cleaner

People who believe that you have to sacrifice cleaning power in order to remain environmentally responsible has evidently never tried this product. That’s because this product is formulated using all-natural lemon extracts so that it’s not only an extremely powerful toilet bowl cleaner but is also very environmentally friendly. This German made product has an EU Ecolabel Certification, is never tested on animals and is a 100% vegan toilet cleaner. Yet it’s capable of removing dirt, soap scum, urine scale, hard water stains and all types of grime. And now since it’s available in the U.S., just about anyone can enjoy Germany’s Most Trusted Cleaning Brand as voted by Reader’s Digest for many years.

4Lysol Bleach Free Bowl Cleaner

Most people believe that your toilet cleaner has to have bleach in it in order for it to disinfect, but that’s not necessarily the case as this product shows. It can not only disinfect the toilet by killing up to 99.9% of viruses and bacteria that may exist in its bowl but can also cut through dirt and grime. It accomplishes this task by harnessing the power of hydrogen peroxide, so the user doesn’t have to use gloves when cleaning their toilet. This product can clean not only the bowl but can be used to clean the outside of it as well, and it leaves the entire toilet smelling fresh and clean.

3Lysol Lime & Rust Remover

Limescale and rust can leave unsightly rings in your toilet bowl and can be hard to eliminate with conventional toilet cleaners. Fortunately, this product has a great formula that can deal with this problem. It easily powers through rust, and limescale quickly and leaves the bowl smelling fresh and clean. It’s packed in an angled bottle that makes it easy to reach the inaccessible parts of the toilet, especially under the rim. And it has the power to disinfect and kill up to 99.9% of all of the viruses and bacteria that may exist in the toilet with 10x the cleaning power of other cleaners.

2Lysol Clean & Fresh Cleaner

This powerful formula not only has the chemical composition to power through tough stains, but it’s also a clinging gel that stays on the dirt until it eliminates it. It’s capable of powering through even the toughest of stains including dirt, grime and soap scum messes that may exist within the bowl. Packaged in an angled bottle, this formula can be used to reach even inaccessible areas of the toilet bowl, so the user can be confident when they use it. And this product not only cleans but also disinfects and deodorizes with the ability to kill 99.9% of all bacteria and a nice country inspired scent.

1Method Antibacterial Toilet Cleaner

Method Toilet Bowl Cleaner is unlike any cleaner that your likely to have ever seen before. This non-toxic and biodegradable formula is derived from natural ingredients and is capable of easily powering through dirt, grease, and grime. It uses the natural power of a pure citric acid to eliminate up to 99.9% of all household germs and can even kill viruses such as the rhinovirus, Staphylococcus aureus, and the influenza flu virus. And since this product has never been tested on animals and is packaged in 100% recycled bottles, it’s not only a powerful cleaner but also an environmentally one as well.

Can’t Find What You’re Looking For? Check these suggestions:


How to Thoroughly Clean Your Toilet

Nothing is more indicative of good cleaning habits more than a clean toilet bowl. When you walk into a bath and see a pristine toilet, then you just know that the rest of the bathroom is really clean. That’s probably why so many people spend so much time trying to keep their toilet looking and smelling its best. Of course, that’s not always easy to do, especially if you have a busy lifestyle.

Having said that, we wanted to do more than just off you our recommendations for the best toilet bowl cleaners currently available. While these products go a long way to getting your toilet in good condition, they are only a tool and as you may well know a tool is only as good as how you use it. Which is why we’ve decided to give you some tips which will help you keep your toilet looking its best.

Pay Attention to Your Toilet

I dare say that most people just squirt some toilet bowl cleaner into their toilet, scrub it out with a brush and consider their job done. While that may help to keep some of the more conspicuous dirt and grime out of your toilet, it doesn’t address problems that may be lurking out of sight. There may be a big mess developing underneath the rim of your toilet, right at this moment. A mess that’s not only disgusting but may also affect how well your toilet flushes.

What am I talking about? I’m talking about hard water scale that may be developing underneath the rim of your toilet. This scale can not only build up over time and prevent your toilet from properly flushing, but it can also trap bacteria, feces, and urine in a crust that’s hard to remove and honestly, just smells bad. And once this scale fully forms it’s hard to remove. I’ve seen people have to use a chisel to remove old limescale that had built up in their toilet bowl. Therefore, you should check this area of the toilet on a regular basis to remove it before it becomes a problem.

Another area that may be developing some problems is around the base of the toilet. Not only can urine build up in this area from inattentive men who may be using the toilet, but the caulking around the toilet can also become bad and start to collect dirt and grime. Since grout is porous, it also stains easily. A thorough inspection and cleaning will quickly solve both of these problems.

Use a Good Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Up above are our recommendations for toilet bowl cleaners and while we’ve rated them from number ten to number one, we’re actually fairly confident in all of these products. But they only work if they’re used, so be sure to use them at least once a week for best results.

Deal With Hard Water Stains

As I mentioned earlier, hard water stains can not only make the toilet look bad, but they can also make the toilet smell bad and can cause the toilet not to function well. Limescale can trap urine, feces, and bacteria in a disgusting plague that’s almost impossible to remove once it has set. Therefore, it’s important to stay on top of it to prevent these problems from arising in the first place.

One way to deal with this problem is to use a good toilet cleaner that’s specially formulated for hard water problems like Lysol Lime & Rust Remover. Using this type of product with a regular toilet brush can prevent hard water stains from developing in the first place and goes a long way in keeping your toilet clean.

If you have an advanced case of hard water stains, however, your toilet cleaner may need a little bit of help. In these instances, I recommend using a paste of Borax and vinegar and applying it to the hard water stain in question. Allow this solution to sit for a few minutes and then use a porcelain pumice cleaning stone to really remove the scale. You can then flush the toilet and follow up with a good commercial toilet cleaning product to make the toilet smell fresh.

Removing Mold

If your toilet isn’t flushed as much as it should be, or if you live in a humid area, then you may develop mold on your toilet. This mold not only makes the toilet look bad to you and to any of your guests who may see it, but some forms of molds may actually pose a health risk. Therefore, it’s important to remove this mold as quickly as possible.

In most cases, using a toilet bowl cleaner that contains bleach and a toilet bowl brush should take care of the problem. However, if you need a little bit of extra cleaning power, then just mix a gallon of water with a cup of bleach and use it to clean your toilet. This should take care of the problem quite easily.

Wipe Down the Outside of the Toilet

The final thing that you should do to keep your toilet clean is to wipe down the exterior of it with a cleaning product and using either a sponge or a pumice cleaning stone. Some cleaning products are suitable for the outside of the toilet, and some aren’t, so always be sure to read the directions before you begin cleaning. If you can’t use your toilet bowl cleaner on the outside of your toilet, you can always use a solution of water and bleach. Viola, you’ve just cleaned your toilet!

Toilet Bowl Cleaning Dos & Don’ts

  • Do Wear Gloves While Cleaning the Toilet
  • Do Use a Scrub Brush or a Porcelain Pumice Cleaning Stone
  • Do Flush the toilet Before Cleaning It
  • Do Buy a High-Quality Toilet Cleaner
  • Do Clean Your Toilet on a Regular Basis
  • Do Flush on a Regular Basis
  • Do Read Your Product’s Instructions
  • Do Ready Your Product’s Safety Instructions
  • Don’t Mix Toilet Cleaning Products
  • Don’t Mix Ammonia with Bleach
  • Don’t Neglect Your Toilet
  • Don’t Forget to Wipe off the Toilet Exterior
  • Don’t Use Your Toilet Cleaning Sponge for Other Purposes
  • Don’t Leave Cleaning Products Where Children Can Reach Them