Toilet-Bowl Cleaner Buying Guide

To start, our experts concoct a proprietary sticky mixture and dry it onto porcelain plates. We then get to cleaning: For each test, we apply the cleaner (as part of a water-based solution) to a soiled plate and, using a rig, uniformly drag a toilet cleaning brush across the plate for 3 minutes, mimicking scrubbing. For the solid sheet and tablet cleaners, we first dissolve the cleaner in water. 

We measure the results by analyzing the amount of white porcelain visible before and after cleaning. This is calculated by counting pixels in photographs taken during testing and is represented by the bowl-cleaning score in our ratings. We also weigh the plate before and after cleaning to quantify how much solid waste has been removed, represented by the solid-waste-removal score. 

Our testing doesn’t assess a cleaner’s ability to remove stains or limescale buildup. It also doesn’t assess the validity of specific manufacturer claims, such as a cleaner being all-natural, nontoxic, antibacterial, or antiviral. We do include those claims in our ratings chart to help you shop, though. The rating of a cleaner’s smell tends to come down to preference, so that also isn’t incorporated into our scoring.

Traditional liquid and gel options typically come in a nozzle bottle, which makes it easy to apply cleaner around the rim of the bowl. More viscous gel cleaners tend to cling to your toilet’s porcelain surface for longer, potentially giving them more stain- and grime-fighting power. But the sheet and tab cleaners work well, too, according to our testing. These are cleaning agents in a solid, concentrated form that dissolve when dropped in the bowl’s water. From there, you can scrub your toilet, same as usual.

If your home relies on a septic system, it’s best to use cleaning products that don’t disrupt the bacterial biome, which is responsible for breaking down waste. Avoid overusing cleaners that contain harsh chemicals, like bleach or ammonia, says Kathleen Halevah, who tests both toilet bowl cleaners and toilets in CR’s labs. CR’s toilet bowl cleaner ratings display which products are considered septic-safe.