The 4 Best Dishwasher Detergents of 2025

Dishwasher detergents come as pods, powders, tablets, or liquids. In addition to differing in how convenient they are to use, these assorted types of detergents vary in their cleaning features and strengths. Here’s an overview:

Pods

Dishwasher pods (also called packs) are single-dose detergents typically made of powder detergent encased in a water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol (PVA/PVOH) film. Some pods, such as our top pick and runner-up pick, contain additional liquid cleaning agents (in separate chambers) that release when the PVA/PVOH film dissolves. This design keeps liquid and powder separate until they are dispensed, allowing detergent boosters (which operate best in liquid form) to combine with powder detergent during a dishwasher’s cycle, thereby enhancing their effectiveness.

Pods are also neat, convenient, and easy to use. Their PVA/PVOH film prevents direct contact with their detergents — a plus for those with sensitivities. But they’re typically more expensive than other detergent types.

Powders

Though powder detergents lack some of the advantages of pods with liquid detergent boosters, the granulated enzymes in powder detergent still provide plenty of cleaning power. Detergent in powder form also allows you to easily adjust how much product you use. This can be helpful if you have an older dishwasher that’s equipped with a prerinse drawer (where you could add more detergent) or a less-effective machine that’s not quite powerful enough to handle a stronger detergent (which might leave detergent residue on your dishes). Powders are typically the most economical option. But they often come in larger boxes, which can be heavy and hard to pour from precisely.

Tablets or tabs

Compared with powders, layered, single-dose tablets of powder detergent dissolve more slowly, and this extends how long they can clean. We found that most tablets cleaned better than powders (but not as well as pods with liquid detergent boosters). Some tablets, such as the Finish tablets we like, are individually wrapped; this keeps them dry, but it isn’t ideal if you’re attempting to reduce waste. Others, like the Miele UltraTabs All in 1 (designed to be used with Miele dishwashers), have a water-soluble wrapping.

Liquids

Often called gels, liquid detergents performed the worst in our tests and are generally not the best cleaners. Unlike with pods, powders, and tablets, with liquid detergent, a large portion washes away early on in a cycle. In addition, the cleaning agents are diluted during the process of manufacturing gel detergents, and key stain-removal components, such as bleach, often can’t be used with other ingredients in a liquid solution. (Liquid detergent formulas contain either bleach or enzymes, but not both, and that leads to much-less-effective cleaning.) If you use a liquid detergent, and you think you need a new dishwasher because its cleaning isn’t up to par, try a powder or a pod before you replace your machine.

If you simply prefer a gel detergent, despite the tradeoffs, we found little difference among brands. So we advise opting for the one with the best price you can find, the one that works best in your machine, or one with a scent you prefer.

Since 2023, we’ve tested over 30 detergents commonly found in grocery and big-box stores, as well as those from generic brands and newer boutique companies. I also mixed up a batch of DIY detergent (yes, it’s a thing) using washing soda, citric acid, boric acid, and kosher salt. (Spoiler: It didn’t work.)

Here’s how we evaluated the detergents:

Cleaning performance

To assess detergents, we used the most challenging soils we encountered during our dishwasher testing, including baked-on egg, peanut butter, oatmeal, chocolate syrup, rice, and tomato sauce.

For each test load, we coated four dinner plates, four salad plates, and two bowls with a variety of foods, and then we microwaved them for five minutes to set the stains. We also replicated a burned-on pasta-and-cheese casserole, and we included lipstick-stained stemware, drinking glasses coated with tomato juice, coffee-stained mugs, and dirty utensils.

Using the same dishwasher (the Bosch SHX65CM5N in 2024 and the now-discontinued Miele G5006SCUSS in 2023) for consistency, we ran the dishes through two one-hour cycles with each detergent. Shorter dishwasher cycles are designed for fresher stains, not for baked-on foods; using such a cycle helped us gauge how much work the detergent did versus how much the dishwasher did.

We then tested the high performers in multiple express cycles (of around 60 minutes), using five other dishwashers, including the Maytag MDB8959SKZ (our runner-up), the KitchenAid KDTF324PPA, and the Café CDT 888 (our pick for those who want a dishwasher with lots of customization and organization).

Scent

We evaluated the scent of each detergent, taking special note when a smell was too strong, odd, or outright unpleasant.

Some of the stronger-scented detergents left an acrid stench after a cycle was run. Conversely, some unscented detergents struggled to counteract the lingering odors of scummy dishwasher filters — though this is more likely due to less-effective formulations.