How to Use Castile Soap: Dilutions for 15 Everyday Uses

Liquid castile soap can wash your face, your dishes and your floors, but only if you dilute it. These amounts are based on the dilution guide published by Lisa Bronner of the Dr. Bronner's family. Start with these and adjust.

Personal care

• Face: 2 to 3 drops on wet hands.
• Body: one small squirt on wet hands or a washcloth.
• Foaming hand soap: 1 part soap to 3 parts water in a foaming pump.
• Bath: about 2 tablespoons in a tub.
• Shaving: about 10 drops for the face.

Around the house

• Dishes by hand: pre-dilute 1:10 with water, or add 1 to 2 tablespoons to a sink of water.
• All-purpose spray: 2 tablespoons in 16 oz of water.
• Floors: about 2½ tablespoons in a gallon of hot water.
• Laundry: 2 to 4 tablespoons for an HE washer (about double for a standard machine).
• Toilet: pre-dilute 1:4 in a squirt bottle.
• Fruit and vegetable wash: about ¼ teaspoon in a bowl of water, then rinse well.

Mistakes to avoid

• Do not mix castile soap with vinegar in the same bottle. The acid breaks the soap down into an oily mess. Use them separately, with a rinse in between.
• Keep it out of your eyes. Soap stings.
• Do not use it in a dishwasher. It foams too much.
• Diluted mixes do not keep long. Use them within a couple of weeks.

A note on hair

Castile soap can clean hair, but because it is alkaline, many people find their hair feels coated unless they follow with a diluted acidic rinse. More in shampoo bars vs liquid shampoo.

More uses around the home

• Pet bathing: many owners use diluted castile soap for dogs. Avoid scented versions with essential oils, especially tea tree, and keep it out of eyes. Ask your vet if your pet has skin problems.
• Makeup brushes: a drop of castile soap in warm water, swirl, rinse well and dry bristles down.
• Plant leaves: a very weak soapy water solution is a traditional way to wipe dusty leaves. Test on one leaf first.
• Reusable cloth wipes and microfiber: a small squirt in the wash cycle, with no fabric softener.
• Jewelry: a drop in warm water with a soft brush works for many pieces, but skip porous stones such as pearls and opals.

Setting up a simple castile cleaning kit

1. One bottle of unscented liquid castile concentrate.
2. A 16 oz spray bottle for all-purpose spray (2 tablespoons per 16 oz of water).
3. A foaming pump for hand soap (about 1 part soap to 3 parts water).
4. A squeeze bottle for dishes, pre-diluted about 1:10.
5. A separate spray bottle of vinegar for glass and limescale, used separately from the soap, never mixed.

Label each bottle with its contents and the date you mixed it, and make fresh batches every couple of weeks.

Bar castile soap: what it can and cannot do

Castile bars are great for hands, body and even a spot of hand-washed laundry, but they are not a substitute for liquid concentrate in cleaning recipes. You can grate a bar into hot water to make a basic liquid soap, though the result is often gloopy and less consistent than true liquid castile, which is made with a different alkali.

Why streaks happen (and how to stop them)

Castile soap can leave a film on glass, mirrors and shiny counters, especially in hard water, because soap reacts with minerals. Use less soap, wipe with a clean damp cloth afterward, and use a separate vinegar spray for glass. See hard water and soap scum.

Which castile soap to use

Unscented liquid castile is the most versatile choice for both skin and cleaning.

New to castile? Start with what is castile soap.