Gain Vs. Arm & Hammer Essentials

I love Gain laundry detergent for its wonderful scent, which lingers on the clothes for a long time after each wash. Unfortunately, Gain is more expensive than many other detergents, and I am always looking for a product that has a nice scent, gets clothes clean, is environmentally friendly and is more reasonably priced than Gain. For this reason, I decided to try Arm & Hammer Essentials.

How Arm & Hammer Essentials compares to Gain liquid laundry detergent:

Fragrance:

Arm & Hammer Essentials has a pleasant, mild scent. I was not sure what to expect when I tried this laundry detergent. I have trouble choosing detergent because I like the ones that smell extra fresh and clean but I am sensitive to many dyes and perfumes. I was pleased when my clothes came out smelling fresh--but not overly perfumed. Arm & Hammer Essentials also comes in a dye and fragrance free formula.

Many consumers who love Gain love it for the wonderful scent. Gain's fragrance is more appealing to me than Arm & Hammer Essentials' fragrance.

Environmental friendliness:

Arm & Hammer Essentials contains natural surfactants and other environmentally friendly cleaning agents. The liquid detergent is also concentrated so there is less plastic used (as well as less water wasted). Less plastic used means, of course, less plastic to contaminate the environment. The bottle is recyclable as well.

Proctor and Gamble, the manufacturers of Gain, is introducing more eco-friendly packaging as well in its 2X concentrated Ultra line. I've not found Gain in the 2x concentrated Ultra formula in my area yet, but it is supposed to arrive soon. That formula will place Gain on more equal footing as far as environmental concerns go.

Getting clothes clean:

Arm & Hammer Essentials seems to get clothes cleaner than Gain. However, Arm & Hammer seems to be a bit harsher on colored fabrics. Some of my dark colors faded slightly after using the detergent (this could simply be because I used more product than was recommended).

Price:

Arm & Hammer Essentials was over two dollars cheaper than Gain.

Final comments:

I recommend Arm & Hammer Essentials for usual wash loads. This liquid detergent does a great job of cleaning clothes and has a pleasant scent. I love Gain laundry detergent's fragrance; however, I will buy Arm & Hammer Essentials more frequently because of the reasonable price and the eco-friendly formula. I may still use Gain occasionally, but the higher price is enough to keep me from buying it regularly.