Natural always sounds better ... but is there really a benefit to using natural soaps over conventional soaps? The short answer is usually yes! In general, natural soaps don’t contain the artificial, super-harsh ingredients lurking in the mass-produced soaps you might find from big companies. Instead, they use natural ingredients, base oils (like coconut oil, avocado oil, and shea butter), essential oils, and plant extracts to provide you with a satisfying clean.
Plus, if you use natural bar soaps you're not only getting the best ingredients for your hair, body, and face but also helping the environment by reducing your plastic waste. Bottles of body wash and shampoo are full of plastic and are contributing to our plastic pollution crisis. With bar soaps, it's possible to have good hygiene without all of the plastic. Sounds amazing, right?
The top ingredients to avoid when it comes to bar soaps aren't always easy to find in an ingredient list because they tend to go by specific product or chemical names. Typically, artificial fragrances, parabens, sodium sulfates, and triclosan are the worst ingredients in bar soap to date. But, instead of scouring soap ingredient labels at the store, make life easy and take a look at the best bar soaps that we've gathered together in one list for you below.
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An all-natural moisturizing bar soap that washes away germs and hydrates skin, leaving skin clean, soft, and silky.
This Peach Volumizing Shampoo & Conditioner Bar Set is formulated for fine, flat hair to invigorate the scalp and bring volume and fullness to lifeless strands.
Get ready for healthier, fuller-looking hair that is good for you and the planet. This plastic-free bar set is also formulated with ingredients like hibiscus oil that will give your hair …
Naturally derived, mineral-based exfoliants like volcanic pumice give this method Men's Exfoliating Bar Soap its magic. Activated carbon detoxifies impurities while shea butter ensures your skin feels smooth, even with everyday scrubbing. Men — and the people who love them — will appreciate this ocean-inspired scented lather that leaves a body …
You trust Mrs. Meyer’s products to clean your home, now trust them when it comes to your personal hygiene. This Mrs. Meyer's Bar Soap is paraben-free, cruelty-free, and made from 98-percent naturally derived ingredients, including a 100-percent pure vegetable base. Plus, it’s available in the garden-inspired scents you know and love from Mrs. …
Don’t leave your skin high and dry—get a glow-ready complexion with this grapefruit-scented Peach Hydrating Facial Cleansing Bar for dry and normal skin that uses super-hydrator hyaluronic acid to replenish and revive dry skin.
Skin types: Dry and normal
Scent: “Sipping-something-on-a-patio” Grapefruit
Also formulated with an …
Studies have found that smelling good can significantly improve mood (no surprise there), so embrace a clean slate for your scent with this Yes To Natural Man Charcoal Bar Soap. It'll help you ditch even the smelliest of stenches, but it’s also made with activated charcoal to absorb dirt and oil from your skin and remove dead skin cells, too. Plus, …
This Peach Strengthening Shampoo & Conditioner Bar Set is plastic-free and formulated for damaged hair to support scalp health and improve hair strength by reducing breakage and split ends.
Hair types: Damaged and split-end prone
Scent: “Toes-in-the-water” Honeydew Melon
Looking for strong, healthy hair that is good for you and the planet? …
Say no to boring, conventional bar soap and hello to a moisturizing, naturally derived alternative that's still easy on the wallet. This little bar packs a big punch with cleaning and hydrating powers channeled from one of Mother Earth’s most useful fruits — the coconut. From the flesh to the husk, almost all aspects of the coconut get their time …
The dynamic duo of plastic-free skincare, this Peach Moisturizing Hand & Body Bar + Soap Saver Bag Set comes with the Peach Bar Soap for Hand & Body made with passionfruit seed oil, as well as the Peach Soap Saver Bag made from 100% cotton.
Scent: “Summer-every-day” Raspberry
The Peach Moisturizing Bar Soap for Hand & Body features a coconut …
Whether you say “to-may-to” or “to-mah-to,” there’s one thing we all agree on — this Yes To Tomatoes Detoxifying Charcoal Clear Skin Bar Soap is strong enough to detoxify, while still being soft enough to use on delicate skin. It’s paraben-free, sulfate-free, triclosan-free, nut-free, and soy-free, leaving you worry-free with every use.
Step up your grooming game with method Men's Bar Soap and leave your stinky side behind. Each naturally derived bar of soap is made with plant-based formulas and nature-inspired scents that make your body smell just swell. Quick-lathering and clean-rinsing, it's a no-fuss, no-muss solution to cleaning up your act in an instant. Just later and …
Bring a deeper meaning to your skincare routine with this Peach Exfoliating Bar Soap - Hand & Body. It’s made with pink Himalayan sea salt (a natural exfoliant rich in 80+ trace minerals) to buff dead skin and wash away bacteria.
Scent: “Summer-every-day” Raspberry
Plus, this natural bar soap is made with a base of coconut oil and shea butter …
With SheaMoisture African Black Soap Bar Soap, your skin is in the clear. African black soap is a traditional skin cleanser prized for its natural clarifying properties. Specially formulated with organic shea butter, oats, aloe, palm ash, tamarind extract, tar, and plantain peel, this amazing bar of soap helps soothe skin and clear blemishes. It …
Invigorate your senses — and your skin — with Ursa Major Morning Mojo Bar Soap. This energizing bar soap exfoliates with pumice while it soothes your skin in a rich, creamy lather. The herbaceous aroma is derived from an essential oil blend of rosemary, eucalyptus, and peppermint, leaving behind a crisp scent that gets you ready to tackle the day. …
There's no right answer to this question ... it really depends on what you need from your daily cleansing product. However, there are some benefits to bar soap (especially natural bar soap) that do make it better for you (and the planet).
Bar soap tends to use less energy to create and less plastic to package it. Solving the plastic crisis isn't easy but by switching to bar soap in sustainable packaging you can create less household waste while still smelling great.
The theory that body wash is more hydrating and moisturizing than bar soap can be debunked by natural bar soaps that use the same base oils and essential oils that body wash uses to moisturize skin, such as coconut oil, hazelnut oil, shea butter, and cocoa butter. And any worries about bar soap being less sanitary than body wash or liquid soap are also easy to squash as long as you lather with bar soap for the required 20 seconds to kill germs and you store the bar soap correctly.
If you're currently a body wash fan due to dry skin, try a moisturizing bar soap (we have a couple in our list) to see if it does the trick. Sometimes making the switch is simply as easy as testing out a new product. Or, if you're looking for exfoliating or acne-clearing options, check out bar soaps that include charcoal or seaweed. For those trying to find bar soaps for sensitive skin, look out for soaps that include lavender and colloidal oatmeal.
Most bar soaps, in general, last longer than body washes as long as you store them correctly. Here are a few key facts to remember about how long bar soaps last:
Unfortunately, when people think of bar soap, they usually think of dry skin too. That's because, historically, bar soaps did tend to dry out skin (especially when compared to body wash). Commercial bar soaps still include skin-drying chemicals like sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate (SLES) in their ingredient lists. These sulfates are known to strip skin of its natural oils.
Now, many bar soaps, especially natural bar soaps, use the same hydrating and moisturizing ingredients that body washes use. Base oils like cocoa butter, shea butter, and coconut oil are key parts of moisturizing body soaps so that your skin stays moist and smooth, especially during cold winter months.
If you have sensitive, dry skin, colloidal oatmeal and argan oil are essential bar soap ingredients to help your skin stay calm. To make sure that the bar soap you're choosing has as much moisturizing power as your previous body wash, avoid soaps that have harsh chemicals and choose soaps that are natural, include moisturizing agents, like glycerin, have low PH levels, and feature a clear, easy-to-read ingredient list.
At Grove, we take the guesswork out of which products are good for you and your home. Every product meets strict standards for being nontoxic, effective, sustainable, and cruelty-free. Once you find products you love, we ship to your home on a flexible, monthly schedule.
If you're ready to make the transition to natural cleaning, beauty, and household products, shop Grove Collaborative's natural products for the eco-friendly tools to tackle the job.
