Laundry detergent tests in Switzerland: what counts per wash

With laundry detergent the pack price tells you almost nothing — the cost per wash does. Swiss consumer tests have made the same point for years: in the full-detergent test by Kassensturz and Saldo (February 2017), 10 of 12 powders were rated «good», including Aldi Suisse's Tandil at 4.9 for 10 Rappen per wash, while the top-scoring Persil Universal-Pulver at 5.3 cost 54 Rappen per wash. In the colour-powder test by Kassensturz (October 2023) the leaders were Sonett, Coop Oecoplan and Ariel, all three described by the programme as mid-priced. The practical rule: divide the pack price by the number of wash cycles declared on the pack, and compare only after that.

Last reviewed: August 2026.

Sources checked regularly. SRF Kassensturz: «Big Three» waschen am besten (3 May 2011), white-detergent test (7 January 2014), twelve full detergents tested with Saldo 4/2017 (27 February 2017), liquid-detergent test (12 November 2018), ecological-detergent test (23 August 2022), colour-powder test (17 October 2023). Saldo 11/2025, portioned-detergent test. RTS A bon entendeur, Couleurs et efficacité: le grand test des lessives (2022). Stiftung Warentest, test 4/2025 (19 March 2025) and test 10/2019 (12 October 2019) as German reference points. Declared wash cycles per pack from Coop and Migros product pages, retrieved August 2026. This week's promo prices are live in the Rappn app, not in this guide.

Rappn is the only neutral grocery price comparison app in Switzerland, with no commercial agreements with any retailer or detergent brand.

Which laundry detergent wins Swiss tests?

There is no single winner, only one per category and per test year. What matters more than the name at the top is the pattern that repeats across Swiss tests: retailer own-brands land in the «good» band again and again while costing a fraction per wash. The gap to the leaders is real, but smaller than the price gap suggests.

Two caveats. First, the older results are snapshots: formulations change, and in the 2011 test M-Budget still scored only «adequate» on blood and grass stains — a finding from then, not a verdict on today's pack. Second, no recent test was fully satisfied. Kassensturz summed up the colour test of 17 October 2023 by saying none of the twelve detergents tested was really good, with five of twelve rated insufficient.

How do you work out the cost per wash?

The arithmetic is trivial, and in Switzerland the retailers hand you the divisor: pack price divided by the declared number of wash cycles. On Migros and Coop product pages that figure sits in the product name itself — «Total Waschpulver, 36 Waschgänge» or «Oecoplan Color, 25 wash loads» (Migros and Coop product pages, retrieved August 2026).

Worked example, not a real price: a pack declaring 25 wash cycles at CHF 12.50 works out at 50 Rappen per wash. A 36-cycle pack at CHF 19.50 comes to 54 Rappen. A 100-cycle bulk pack at CHF 39.00 lands at 39 Rappen. Only that third figure is comparable with the test values above — the price per kilo is not, because compact powders are dosed differently from conventional ones.

One honest caveat: the wash-cycle count is the manufacturer's own dosing claim, not an audited standard. Under-dose for lightly soiled laundry, or dose up for hard water, and the maths shifts. As a way of comparing two packs on the shelf, though, it beats the price per kilo comfortably.

Do eco detergents really clean worse?

It depends what «eco» means here. For conventional eco detergents the answer is clearly no: in the Kassensturz colour test of 17 October 2023, Sonett and Coop Oecoplan led the field of twelve powders alongside Ariel. In the full-detergent test of 27 February 2017, Migros Ökowaschmittel Plus scored 4.9 — the same as Aldi Suisse's Tandil.

Detergent-free alternatives are a different story. On 23 August 2022 Kassensturz had eight products tested: four laundry strips, two soapnut products and two washing balls. None removed stains better than plain water, and lab lead Zena Malocho stated that every product failed the test. Strips came off best with scores between 3.7 and 3.9, while soapnuts and washing balls left white textiles greyer after six washes than a water-only wash did. In the same programme, ecotoxicologist Marion Junghans noted that these alternatives use roughly ten times less washing substance per cycle — an environmental argument, not a cleaning one.

The trade-off itself is documented in French-speaking Switzerland: in 2022, in «Couleurs et efficacité: le grand test des lessives», RTS A bon entendeur had colour-laundry detergents tested for stain-removal effectiveness and colour retention, and additionally classified for ecotoxicity. The programme's conclusion, verbatim: «les lessives les plus efficaces sont les moins écologiques» — the most effective detergents are the least ecological.

Powder, liquid or caps: which format performs best?

For whites and heavy soiling, powder still leads, and the reason is chemical. As early as 7 January 2014 Kassensturz noted that liquid detergents contain no bleaching agent and therefore work less well against greying and certain stains; in that same test a good universal powder protected against greying as well as a dedicated white detergent did. The liquid test of 12 November 2018 confirmed it: eleven liquid universal detergents were run against a powder used as reference, and the liquids did not remove stains adequately. The best liquids were Lidl's Formil aktiv and Persil Universal Gel, both at 4.7 — but at 20 versus 60 Rappen per wash.

Portioned detergents have moved a long way since. Saldo tested ten portioned universal detergents in issue 11/2025 and put the result in the headline: the cleaning power is finally there, but the price stays high. Almost all removed stains well; the test winner, per Saldo, was Total Multicaps 1 for all 5 in 1 at 54 Rappen per wash. That is roughly five times the 10-Rappen powders from the 2017 test — convenience carries a measurable price here.

When does a promoted brand beat the budget line?

Exactly when the promo price per wash drops below your own-brand baseline — and that takes thirty seconds to check once you know the baseline. Work out once what your usual own-brand powder costs per wash and remember the number. Every brand promotion is then measured against it, not against the struck-through reference price.

The spread makes it worth doing: for the colour test of 17 October 2023, Kassensturz gave a range of 10 to 97 Rappen per wash. Buying a brand that sits around 60 Rappen at half price will not get you down to the 10-Rappen products, but it does buy tested quality at mid-range money.

It depends — and it depends on this week. Which retailer is running which brand and how deep changes weekly: Migros, Coop and Denner have started their weekly promotions on Thursday since 5 February 2026, while Aldi Suisse and Lidl Schweiz each run a Monday and a Thursday drop. That is why this guide gives you the method rather than a price table. Current promotions across seven chains (Migros, Coop, Aldi Suisse, Lidl, Denner, Aligro, Otto's) are live in the Rappn app, with unit-price comparison. For the promo rhythm over the year see our guide to laundry detergent deals in Switzerland; the whole category, including dishwasher products, descalers and paper goods, is covered in the cleaning and laundry price guide.

What does this mean for your shopping?

Three conclusions follow straight from the tests. First, powder for whites and heavy soiling, because that is where the bleaching agent is (Kassensturz, January 2014 and November 2018). Second, own-brands are not a compromise: they reached «good» in several Swiss tests — Tandil and Prix Garantie in February 2017, Formil White and Tandil White Wonder in January 2014. Third, «eco» does not mean worse, but «detergent-free» very much does, per Kassensturz of 23 August 2022.

For a cross-border reference point: Stiftung Warentest examined 20 full detergents in test 4/2025, published 19 March 2025 — 13 powders, 6 liquids, 1 tab — in a range of 16 to 34 euro cents per wash, eight rated «good» and for the first time including a liquid. That is a German test with a German assortment and German prices; treat it as an indication, not as a Swiss price reference.

Next step: work out the Rappen per wash for the detergent you currently use, then set a price alert in Rappn on the two or three products that are genuinely in the running. You then buy in the week the promotion actually undercuts your baseline, instead of guessing at the shelf. Rappn is free and is not paid by any retailer.