Eco-Friendly Products That Really Work
Reusable and “green” products are more relevant and essential than ever. During the recent supply line struggles and product shortages, sustainable choices met practical needs and proved invaluable to have around.
Fortunately, these smart products are a great idea no matter what options are available at the store! Learn more below about which of these eco-friendly products stood out the most and earned the most 5-star ratings!
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Eco-Friendly Products That Work
Smartly designed products can make your job easier and be better for the environment. Check out the variety of ways to be more green and work with eco-friendly products!
Reusable Products for the Home
There are many places in our modern homes that use a lot of single-use products. This may seem like the easy solution, but it creates additional waste for our landfills, plus the repeat purchases will cost you more in the long run versus making an investment in a one-time, reusable option.
Take a look at the lists below to see if these long-life products could work well in your household.
Sustainable Kitchen and Dining Products
There are many ways to reduce waste by using reusable kitchen products. The products below are a collection of my favorites — some have been especially handy during the paper-product shortages at the grocery stores!).
Washable Cloth Napkins
These upgrades to paper napkins are eco-friendly, and the washable cloth napkins also add an element of style to your meals that a paper napkin just can’t do.
For a fun bonus, there are many online tutorials on cool napkin folding to dress up your table (a great project for kids!).
Reusable Kitchen Towels
While traditional paper towels are convenient and can seem essential, these eco-friendly washable Swedish Dishcloths can do the job just as well. Click to learn more about these popular dishcloths, which have over 42,000 5-star reviews!
Reusable Water Bottles
Ensure you always stay hydrated with this highly-rated Stainless Steel Insulated Water Bottle. Available in a wide range of sizes and colors, these bottles are perfect for staying hydrated and reducing waste! Click to find your ideal match.
Enjoy Pure Water from Home with a Countertop Distiller
Get clean, distilled water with a Stainless Countertop Water Distiller and reduce the need to purchase plastic bottles of water from the store.
Soda and Seltzer Makers
Enjoy the convenience of making your favorite fizzy drinks at home with the SodaStream Terra Sparkling Water Maker. This smart product reduces the need to purchase and lug heavy drinks home from the store, and it also reduces waste from single-use bottles.
Fans of the Bubly brand will be excited to know they can purchase their favorite Bubly flavor drops for seltzer makers!
Stainless Steel Insulated Tumbler
The popular YETI Ramber 20 oz Reusable Thermos has 125,000+ 5-star reviews and is available in over 40 eye-catching colors! These highly-rated tumblers are more eco-friendly than disposable cups and keep hot drinks hot and iced drinks cold.
Stainless Steel Reusable Straws
Plastic straws contribute heavily to pollution, and other disposable straws have their drawbacks too. Consider switching to Reusable Stainless Steel Straws for an affordable, durable, highly-rated, and eco-friendly alternative!
Reusable Non-Stick Baking Mats
These food-safe reusable silicone non-stick baking mats will keep your food from sticking when it cooks and can be reused again and again. They also allow easy cleanup and eliminate the need for parchment paper and/or foil in some dishes.
Coffee Makers with Reusable Filters
Coffee is one of the world’s most popular drinks and how millions of people start their day. No matter how you enjoy your brew, these coffee-making methods can help you create less waste.
Reusable Coffee Filters
For standard drip coffee makers, choose a long-lasting, reusable coffee filter and eliminate the need for a disposable paper filter with each pot of coffee that you brew. As a bonus, the metal filters allow more of the coffee’s oils to pass through into the brew (versus paper filters), enhancing the flavor of your coffee.
French Press Coffee Maker
One of the best ways to start the day is with freshly brewed French Press Coffee. This double-insulated stainless steel French Press Coffee Maker comes in 2 sizes and can also be used for brewing tea, hot chocolate, and keeping frothed milk hot.
Pour-Over Coffee Maker with Permanent Filter
Savor your daily coffee in the Bodum Pour Over Coffee Maker, made from high-heat borosilicate glass carafe that won’t alter or impair flavors or aromas. Additionally, the permanent stainless steel filter doesn’t trap oils and reduces paper filter waste.
Percolator Coffee Maker
This Presto Stainless-Steel Electric Coffee Percolator is a standalone electric model that makes fresh coffee without paper filters!
Espresso Maker
For a small but mighty dose of concentrated coffee, make yourself a hot espresso at home anytime. This popular Bialetti Stovetop Espresso Maker has over 60,000 5-star ratings and is available in different sizes and colors to help you achieve the perfect cup!
Patented Deluxe Cold Brew Coffee Maker
Eco-friendly fans of cold-brewed coffee will love the Takeya Patented Deluxe Cold Brew Coffee Maker, which features a fine-mesh reusable filter.
Refillable K-Cups
Save money, reduce waste, and customize your morning beverage with any brand of ground coffee you like with a Reusable K Cup Coffee Filter Set!
Sustainable Bathroom Products
These bathroom ideas can help you reduce paper waste from one-time-use items in your bathroom without sacrificing comfort or cleanliness.
Self-Cleaning Non-Electric Bidet
Many cultures already prefer a bidet over toilet paper for its superior cleaning ability, but it’s also a great way to be less affected by any toilet paper shortages. This popular Non-Electric Bidet Attachment has over 90,000 reviews and features adjustable water pressure and a self-cleaning nozzle.
Additionally, if you have the space and someone to do the installation work, you could consider a standalone bidet.
Reusable Swab Cleaners
This set of reusable swab sticks includes different tip styles and a bamboo carrying case. The versatile swabs are made of bamboo silicone and can be sanitized and reused over and over again!
Mini Product Spatulas
This Set of 3 Mini Silicone Spatulas helps you get the last bit of expensive product from the hard-to-reach areas at the bottom of the bottle. Eliminate waste and save money by refilling less often, too!
Foaming Soap Dispensers
Enjoy stretching concentrated liquid soaps into rich handfuls of foam with the OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Foaming Soap Dispenser. This popular dispenser features a non-slip base and has over 10,000 5-star reviews!
Eco-Friendly Household Items
These additional items can be used in many areas of your and will help eliminate the need to go to the store as often to replace single-use items like paper towels and duster mop refills. These products are an investment in quality, simplicity, and less time at the store to purchase replacements.
Reusable Microfiber Cleaning Cloths
A set of highly rated Reusable Microfiber Cleaning Cloths is excellent at grabbing dust and helping to curb dust around the house.
Reusable Sweeper Duster Mop Refills
Instead of purchasing single-use disposable duster refills, try a Swiffer-compatible Reusable Heavy Duty Mop Pad made from microfiber that can be rewashed and reused hundreds of times!
Reusable Dryer Balls
Eliminate the need for disposable dryer sheets and liquid softener with a set of Reusable Wool Dryer Balls that reduce wrinkles and static cling and save drying time.
Personal Eco-Friendly Products
These products are great ways to make a one-time purchase for things that you formerly needed to repurchase often. Consider these eco-friendly options instead of your usual personal products.
Vikings Blade Double Edge Safety Razors
Not only do Vikings Blade Double Edge Safety Razors provide a fantastic, clean shave, but they will also save money over disposable razors. In addition, a quality safety razor will provide one of the most comfortable shaves, plus a pack of refill blades will likely last for many years.
Reusable Microfiber Facial Cloths
These Fast-Drying Reusable Microfiber Facial Cloths are incredibly effective at removing heavy makeup from the eyes and face. TIP: For best results, saturate the washcloths with a lot of water.
Leakproof Period Underwear
Sanitary products can be quite pricey, so learning about money-saving and eco-friendly alternatives to disposable products is great. A pair of Washable Period Panties absorb fluids and can be washed and reused to save on this recurring monthly expense.
Reusable Silicone Menstrual Cups
Reusable Silicone Menstrual Cups are an innovative way to manage your menstrual flow without using disposable products. These BPA-free silicone cups can be washed and reused for up to 5 years, making them also a smart investment that can save money.
Reusable Cloth Pads
A set of Reusable Cloth Panty Liners and Sanitary Pads offer an affordable and eco-friendly option to single-use disposable options.
More Ways to Be Eco-Friendly
In addition to the smart products above, you can find new earth-friendly solutions to lots of household challenges.
Eco-Friendly Smart Devices
Small investments in smart devices can make big impacts over time. Consider these additional ways to update and find what is eco-friendly products.
Smart Thermostats with Remote Access
Install the highly-rated Sensi Smart Thermostat and save energy with features like flexible scheduling, remote access, and usage reports. These remote-controlled features ensure your home is always in the right zone.
Smart Light Bulbs
Light your daily routines with Philips Hue Smart Light Bulbs with White and Color Ambiance that feature millions of customizable colors and dynamic light effects.
Highly-Rated Smart Plug
Control the power on almost any device with this Amazon Smart Plug with over 450,000 5-star reviews! Set up routines to automate everyday tasks or control at any time via the Alexa app.
Backup Power Sources
These items can literally provide life-saving power during emergencies and reduce the need to go to the store for disposable batteries. Be sure to have at least one alternative method of powering your devices should you ever need it!
Rechargeable Batteries
It’s important to have power for our devices when and where we need it, but dead batteries can harm the environment. Switch to the convenience of Highly-rated Rechargeable Performance Batteries, which have a shelf life of up to 5 years and 500 recharges.
Portable Battery Chargers
This slim Portable Power Charger Bank is a highly rated (more than 80,000 5-star reviews) choice for fast charging on the go.
Portable Solar Charging Panel
If you live in an environment with a lot of sunlight, a Portable Solar Panel can offer a great off-the-grid charging option for your devices.
For more solar-powered innovations, solar-powered cars are becoming more mainstream, while a solar-powered roof for your home (to take your house completely off-grid).
Fire-Powered Generators
These fire-powered generators first made big news when used in urban areas like NYC during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. The versatile BioLite Campstove 2+ is a wood-burning camp stove that provides heat for cooking or warmth, PLUS it generates electricity to charge your devices!
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What other products or ideas is your family using to be more eco-conscious and/or eliminate the need for trips to the store?
Wow! This is an awesome article!
Seriously more than ever, we need materials that are eco-friendly and can replace items we buy everyday. Especially now that we have restrictions on movement and little or no income coming in!
The list of products you have provided here are just great! I am just hearing about the “period pantie”, “reusable cloth pads” and “period cups”! These are wonderful products. Thanks so much for this list.
Hi, those feminine products really are a great alternative to the expensive disposables that have been the only option for so long. It’s too bad they aren’t sold in shelves at most stores because they are often highly rated products!
Hello there thanks for this review. It was really helpful. I think I am one of those people who usually go for single used products rather than reusable ones. This has caused me a lot of cash and the painful thing is that most of these products do not last me up to a week. Having read this post I think I know exactly how to cut my expenses.
It’s understandable that sometimes these disposable products are a convenient and easy choice, but sometimes the sustainable choice is also an upgrade (cloth napkins, glass straws for hot and cold drinks, french press coffee, etc), so it’s a win-win scenario to choose the sustainable product.
Hello there! This is an amazing article you’ve got, I’ve learnt a lot from this. Especially at this time where everywhere is locked down, reusable products are the best as it will save you the stress of thinking of where to buy new ones and it’s also economical.
Thanks for sharing this, it’s useful!
I’m very happy to hear that you’ve found it useful and maybe found some new sustainable product ideas.
Wait… So I can buy reusable pads? Why has no one told me about this before? I am going to need to try that! Buying those things every month and going through four a day is so annoying.
In general, I try to throw as little away as possible, and I’m even more careful now with the lockdown. I’m a big fan of cloth napkins in particular, not just because they’re eco friendly, but because they clean better anyway.
Any tips about washing reusable straws? I like them in theory, but in reality, they kind of gross me out.
Hi Shanna, As far as cleaning the reusable straws, I like to use clear glass straws that are fairly wide and wash them with my utensils in the dishwasher. Since they are clear, a quick visual inspection can make sure that they are clean inside and out. So far, so good.
In times like this where there is restriction of movements due to the lockdown issued as precautions for the current covid 19 pandemic, we need products that will reduce or totally eliminate trips to the store. you have given quite a number of items here and this is so informative. thank you very much.
You are most welcome!
This article is handy especially in this time. I am impressed by the research you made. You covered pretty much every thing in almost all aspects of life. With this article there is saving both the money in the long run and the environment. This is very very wise especially in this time.
Thanks Micheal! I am glad to hear that you found it to be useful!
When I saw that Toilet Paper picture my interest was peaked. I could hardly wait to see what sustainable solutions you proposed for that application. You didn’t disappoint! I already knew that a bidet was one option. But what if there wasn’t space for one. Were there alternatives? I was happy to find out there were.
I liked how you drove home so many instances where we create waste by using disposal materials. Not just paper. We use plastic straws and wash them for reuse. In older generations washable cloth napkins, kitchen towels were the norm. This pandemic will have positive outcomes if all of us learned how to use sustainable products.
Overall, this was a great lesson in how to create less waste products. Providing easy links to purchase these products was a plus.
Thanks for writing this awesome article.
Edwin
Thanks so much Edwin, I am happy to hear that you enjoyed the article!
Some excellent suggestions and tips for keeping us all on the straight and narrow as far as cutting down waste and moving mor towards sustainable living is concerned. I particularly like the fact that you link to ‘not having to go to the store’, effectively reinforcing the sustainment issue more, by an encouragement to conserve energy, and I guess you are most concerned about fossil fuels.
Great initiative I have shared with my environment conscious twenty something children.
Thanks
Hamish
Thanks for sharing Hamish! It’s always been a great idea to use more sustainable products, but it’s never been more of a necessity than right now. Hopefully the product shortages will not last much longer, but it will be a nice benefit if we come out of the pandemic with some habits that are better for the planet!
A great and very detailed list of products we can shop once and avoid going over and over to the mall.
In our case, I am a big fan of the led bulbs and my wife has discovered the many benefits of the menstrual cup.
Your list is adding some ideas on our next online shopping list. Stay at home and take care
Thanks Pablo, the LED bulbs are fantastic ways to save money (and time on purchasing and installing new bulbs!).
Hello there,
Thank you so much for your useful post. For the topic, I know more the reuse product and how to reuse the product instead of using only once time. I really like your post as for every product, you explain more detail and the link to consider the products more detail, more review from the product before purchasing. Congratulation for your high quality content.
Best Regards,
Lynh Nguyen
Thank you Lynh!
I have been trying to go out to shop only once a week and I go out with a list we’ve been filling in during the week. But I have noted, as you have also said that there are many things that could be reused. Purchasing things like these can help us reduce our trips to the store.
My main takeaway, cause I’ve got to do shopping tomorrow is buying cleaning cloths and LED light bulbs. Thanks for the suggestions. Useful indeed!
Hi Paolo, those are definitely two very helpful items around the house. The LED bulbs have been great in that they save me time as well (no need to spend the time to research, buy, and replace bulbs every few months — they really do last for years!!).
You couldn’t have said it any better, these days where shops are closed and stock is running out in the left stores its important to make sure we get sustainable products whilst there is still time. One of the most common items already going scarce is toilet paper but I hear in India they have some sustainable replacement they had already in use not sure if it is the bidet model though. Thank you.for sharing
Hi Donny, It’s interesting how some cultures were already using bidets regularly, but others were kind of in the dark about what one even does. It’s too bad it’s taken something so drastic to get us to consider whether our habits and daily practices could be better.
Thanks for your timely article that addresses the situation we all find ourselves in at this time. We live in a time that is defining a new reality. You’ve covered all the bases about how to not only survive but thrive while being confined, as many of us are, to home. It’s important that we remain at home if possible. With so many options to choose from about what can be purchased online, there’s no reason to leave home. Keep up the good work. Take care.
Bob
I definitely agree Bob, it benefits us all if we can stay at home long enough to flatten the curve and buy our scientists and healthcare workers enough time and supplies to help fight the COVID-19 virus.
Thank you for sharing this amazing, wonderful, informative and helpful article about SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS THAT ELIMINATE TRIPS TO THE STORE. l really enjoyed reading your article very much. Honestly speaking for the past 2 months here at WA l have never seen such a beautiful written article with so much helpful information we require in this time of need as there has been products shortages at the stores.This is an amazing thing to see that there are products that can be used and be reused again. Your article has all the alternate solutions we are looking for. I have bookmarked your article so that l can go back and do some shopping. l will share your article with my family and friends. Amazing post.
Wishing you all the success!
Hi Fiona, Thank you so much for visiting the site and for your kind words about the featured collection of sustainable products. I’m blushing over here. 🙂
Thank you for your post. It is a timely and useful article for many. I generally don’t store too much stuff at home and now I used up my toilet paper. I think about the alternatives, but never take the time to do the research.
Here comes your article. I particularly like your idea of Bidet. It is clear that no all culture use toilet paper. Some prefer a bidet over toilet paper for it’s superior job at cleaning. Now it has apparent advantages since you are much less affected by shortages of toilet paper. There are so many choices on Bidet models, which begin with a simple ability to spray clean water and move up to fancier models that include warm water sprays and a warm air dryer.
It is kind of you sharing this useful information with us.
Hi Anthony, I’ve definitely learned a lot about my own usage of single-use items while at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. And I’ve learned a lot about bidets. We have decided to get one that includes warmed water and an air dryer too! However, in order for it to work, we had to first install a power outlet in the room with the toilet. A basic bidet with less features doesn’t require any power, but if you want the extra features, it’s a good thing to keep in mind.
Hi, this is one of the most vibrant discount and reward websites I have come across. It is a good idea to consider and begin to think of ways to adjust to the new way of co-existing. Most household daily consumables items are becoming scarce and the idea of making adequate plans against scarcity by making them re-usable is a great idea. It is also healthy to conserving our environment and saves cost also. Great idea. Cheers
Hi Joseph, Thanks so much for visiting and for checking out the site!
Wow, what an awesome idea!! A lot of this is stuff I would not have really thought of before, but seeing it all together like this really shows you the available possibilities. This is a great time to learn about these things during all of the social distancing regulations.
I like the idea of more reusable items also lessening our carbon footprints from not having to go out as often for small maintenance/household items. Seeing the waste created among society is really sad sometimes, so it is nice to see people still sharing information like this 🙂 Thanks a lot for all the great recommendations!
Hi GabrielGrey, Thanks for considering making a smart swap to some of these great products!