The 9 Best-Smelling Laundry Detergents I Tested for 9 Months 2025

Best Smelling Laundry Detergents, at a Glance

And lucky for me (and for anyone else on the hunt for detergent that smells good), there are so many bougie detergent brands on the market. Some, like The Laundress or Laundry Sauce specialize in the detergent space. Others, like Dedcool (a perfume brand) and Brooklinen (linens), are basically product spinoffs. This means that the selection for luxury detergents is pretty vast—but not all quiet luxury detergent is created equal.

I’ve spent the last nine months testing a wide variety of brands, washing my bedsheets, towels, clothing, and, to really put the products to the test, my sweaty gym clothes! These are the brands that stood out from the pack and are now in my weekly rotation if I want to truly freshen up my laundry pile.

How I Tested:

Baseline Detergent Scent: At first sniff, did the formula smell good?

Did the Scent Hold Up? After washing and drying, did my laundry smell good after? Did the scent last?

Did It Actually Clean? Obviously, I want a detergent that actually cleans my laundry, and not just perfumes it.

Was It Easy to Use? Because I’m lazy.

Dedcool

Dedcool x OUAI “Melrose Place”

Buy Now $38

Scent: “Melrose Place” is a rose, bergamot, white musk, and berry fragrance first used in OUAI hair products—but it’s so iconic, it’s become a perfume in its own right (and it comes in other forms like body lotion, body scrub, etc.). It’s fresh and floral, subtly fruity, with notes of cedarwood and lychee.
Value: You get 32 oz, up to 60 washes (according to the packaging), so that’s 63 cents a wash.
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Tin can
Performance: Great

Pros:
Long-lasting scent
Concentrated formula
Vegan, carbon-neutral

Cons:
Expensive
Doesn’t come with measuring cup

Dedcool “Milk”

$35 Buy Now

Scent: A unisex bergamot, white musk, and amber. To me, it smells like “fresh shower.” Like lingering bar soap smell in the bathroom after a steamy shower. It’s nice and subtle.
Value: You get 32 oz, up to 60 washes (according to the packaging), and it’s a bit less expensive than “Melrose Place” (58 cents a wash).
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Tin can
Performance: Great

I tried the Dedcool dryer sheets too, but for me, they don’t disperse much fragrance, nor do they really seem to have much of an effect on the fabric of myself. I’d skip and invest more in the detergent itself for the most bang for your buck.

Pros:
Long-lasting, but subtle scent

Cons:
Expensive for size
Laundry Sauce

Laundry Sauce “French Saffron” (69 Pods)

$69 Buy Now

Scent: French saffron (a Middle Eastern spice), cherry, red currant, strawberries, tonka bean, amber. To me, this smelled super cozy and warm (due to all the spice notes, I think).
Value: $69 for 69 pods or $30 for 30 pods ($1 a wash)
Form: Pod
Packaging: Box
Performance: Great

I also tested the dryer sheets (in “French Saffron”), which only elevated the fragrance and made my laundry feel softer. If you’ve got the budget for it, I’d recommend throwing a box in your cart!

Pros:
Smell is long-lasting
Pods are easy and fuss-free
LS has aesthetics locked down: The box is beautiful and so are the pods. You could easily throw these in a basket or glass bowl and call it laundry room decor.

Cons:
Very pricey
Pod form, which makes it impossible to customize liquid amount. Pods are just generally less econimcal.
Box takes up a lot of space.
The Laundress

The Laundress, Delicate Wash in “Lady”

$30 Buy Now

Scent: “Lady” has notes of rosewood, ylang ylang, and bergamot. To me, it smells like a fifty-fifty blend between a flower bouquet and sprinkle of orange zest—floral, bright and femme without being overpowering.
Value: 15 fl ounces, 31 washes, 97 cents a wash
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Plastic bottle
Performance: Great

The Laundress offers a few different fragranced detergent (the Signature Detergent being their best-seller), but what I thought was most unique about the brand’s offerings were all their formulas by fabric. The Delicate Wash is formulated sans enzyme as to avoid fabric breakdown over time, meaning, you can get your lingerie and silks washed without having to go to the dry cleaner’s.

Pros:
Formula is gentle, yet effective
Less expensive than a trip to the dry cleaner’s

Cons:
Expensive
The Laundress doesn’t have a ton of scents to choose from
Scent isn’t the most long-lasting
Tide

Tide, Ultra Oxi Power Pods (32-Count)

$16 Buy Now at target

$19.94 Buy Now On Amazon

Scent: “Original” Tide. The scent is the expected “ultra clean” Tide is known for, but it’s the staying power that stands out to me.
Value: 32-count, 50 cents a wash
Form: Pod
Packaging: Plastic bottle
Performance: Above and beyond

I tested the new Ultra Oxi pods with super stinky laundry: My baby’s poopy onesies and burp cloths—and an extra large load, since these pods are double the size of the originals. My load came out squeaky clean, smelling fresh, and sans stains.

Pros:
Pod form is convenient
Stain-removing abilities are superb
Great for large loads

Cons:
Traditional detergent scent (good, just expected!)
Bulky packaging
Pod form
Wasteful if you only have a small load of laundry
Aembr

Aembr “1989” or “Fjord” Laundry Powder

$35.99 Buy Now On Amazon

Scent: Wood sage and sea salt. This scent used to be called “1989” which I think is supposed to conjure Taylor Swift. I’m not sure how it does, exactly, but the scent is divine. It’s clean, girly, and neutral—not overpowering, but still pretty potent.
Value: 59 scents a wash
Form: Powder
Packaging: Bag
Performance: Great

Pros:
Non-toxic ingredients (I feel comfortable washing my 8-month-old’s clothes with this)
Sustainable packaging
Hypoallergenic (my husband has really sensitive skin, and this doesn’t bother him while a lot of fragranced options do)
Effective

Cons:
Not cheap
Brooklinen

Brooklinen “Dream Clean”

$19 Buy Now

Scent: “Dream Clean” is a mix of citrus, vanilla, and amber, and my favorite of Brooklinen’s lineup of detergents. The vanilla makes it feel less traditional laundry, and the amber gives it a more upscale scent. To me, it’s very calming and cozy—great for bedding IMO (although you can certainly use it on all your laundry and it’ll do the job).
Value: 32 oz, 64 washes, 30 cents a wash
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Plastic bottle
Performance: Great

Pros:
The most affordable luxury detergent
Currently on sale
Packaging is recyclable
Concentrated formula

Cons:
Only two fragrances available
Gain

Gain Powder Laundry Detergent, Original Scent, 172 Oz (Packaging May Vary)
On Sale 36% off

$20.19 Buy Now On Amazon

Scent: Gain “Original Scent.” Full disclosure: I’ve been a Gain girl for the last decade. It’s reliably cleaned my stuff and my dogs’s stuff (and they are SO stinky and gross) for years and years. Gain smells really clean (without being too chemically or pungently floral), the fragrance sticks, it’s extremely effective, and you truly cannot beat the price.
Value: 172 oz, 167 loads, 11 cents a load
Form: Powder
Packaging: Box
Performance: Above and beyond

Pros:
Best value
Longest-lasting product

Cons:
Has traditional detergent fragrance
Bath & Body Works

Bath & Body Works, Lavender Vanilla Liquid Detergent

$20 Buy Now

Scent: Lavender vanilla. It’s truly a half-and-half mix between lavender and vanilla—it’s very creamy and floral. It’s not subtle at all, so you must love a more in-your-face fragrance that will very much remind you of a candle. I think the teen in your life will love this!
Value: 31 cents a wash
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Plastic bottle
Performance: Great

Pros:
Very strong scent
Great if you love Bath & Body Works candles
Really great value

Cons:
May be *too* strong of a scent
Not the most eco-friendly packaging
Healthy Baby

Healthy Baby, Laundry Detergent Concentrate

$30 Buy Now

Scent: Like a spa (rosemary and bergamot). Unlike a lot of other baby products, this doesn’t smell powdery, which is very refreshing! If you want your and your baby’s clothes to have a nice, zen-like fragrance post-wash, this stuff is great.
Value: 38 cents a load
Form: Liquid
Packaging: Plastic bottle
Performance: Pretty good

Pros:
Lovely scent that’s not at all “baby”-ish
Safe for babies (it’s 100 percent plant-based)

Cons:
It may not be strong enough for major poopy blowouts!