This post is all about the top 10 cleaning products you need to know, especially when moving into your first apartment.
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Cleaning is something that you either LOVE or HATE. There is really no in-between. I’m suuuper type A, so cleaning is totally my thing. That’s why I want to share some of my favorite cleaning products that will totally change your life.
All of these cleaning products are lifesavers if you’re moving into your first apartment. These are essentials that you’ll need and probably use frequently. Use this post as a checklist to ensure you get all the cleaning products you need before it’s too late!! We love being prepared 😉.
***DISCLAIMER: I have specifically mentioned products below that fall under each checklist category. These are products I have purchased and really enjoyed/find super useful for my lifestyle. Please do your own research and read into all the reviews (they’re super helpful) prior to purchasing. Happy shopping as always!!
Let’s get into it…
Top 10 Cleaning Products #1: Vacuum
If you can only get one product from this entire list, it MUST be a vacuum. Having a vacuum is more essential than you may think.
Floors are sneaky. You can look at your hardwood floor or carpet and think…
“Oh, it’s clean. I don’t see anything there.”
FALSE. You’ll vacuum and see there’s TONS of dust that you would have never picked up if you didn’t have a vacuum. This is why vacuuming is crucial in your weekly cleaning routine at the minimum. If you’re a neat-freak and type A like me, you’ll probably want to vacuum almost daily. Call me weird, but I find it therapeutic and a break from whatever work I’m doing.
There are so many different vacuums you can buy and they come in all different price points. If I wasn’t on a budget, I’d get the Dyson Cordless Vacuum LOL. However, I am on a budget so I purchased a Shark Vacuum with a cord and it works great! I got it from Costco, but I don’t believe it’s there anymore ☹. They do have it on Amazon though! I’ve linked it here along with a few other budget-friendly options:
My Shark Vacuum: Shark HV322 Rocket Pet Plus Corded Stick Vacuum with LED Headlights
Shark Vacuum (w/ cord) Dupe: Eureka Flash Lightweight Stick Vacuum Cleaner
Shark Cordless Vacuum: Shark IZ362H Anti-Allergen Cordless Lightweight Stick Vacuum
Best for Pet Hair: Hoover ONEPWR Evolve Pet Cordless Small Upright Vacuum Cleaner
Best Overall (price, performance, & cordless!): Tineco A11 Hero Cordless Lightweight Stick Vacuum Cleaner
If you’ve read a few of my other blog posts, you’ll know that I am a HUGE fan of my robot vacuum. I have a Husky, so my robot vacuum is literally a lifesaver because my dog is non-stop shedding basically all days of the year. If one of these is within your budget and would make a huge difference with your specific lifestyle, I’d highly recommend investing in one!!
My Robot Shark Vacuum: Shark RV2001 AI Robot Vacuum
Best for Pet Hair: eufy by Anker, BoostIQ RoboVac 30, Robot Vacuum Cleaner
Best Overall (currently on SALE): iRobot Roomba 694 Robot Vacuum-Wi-Fi Connectivity
Top 10 Cleaning Products #2: Multipurpose Cleaner
I feel like everyone needs a good multipurpose spray in their life. They come in handy for quick cleaning of countertops, desks, or around your bathroom sinks. You can also get these for super cheap!!
The one I have is the Garrison Home Multipurpose Spray in Lemon Verbena. I picked this up at my local HomeGoods for around $5. I liked:
- The price
- The fact that it matched my Garrison Home soap bottle in my kitchen
- The brown/amber colored bottle it came in (matched my overall kitchen aesthetic)
- The smell! (the lemon gives off a very refreshing, clean vibe)
Other great options are:
Best Non-Toxic/Natural Multipurpose Cleaner: Seventh Generation All Purpose Cleaner
Best Smelling: Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day Multi-Surface Cleaner Spray
Best Overall: Mr. Clean: Clean Freak Deep Cleaning Mist
I’m a BIG advocate of functional décor. And having your multipurpose spray on your kitchen countertop is pretty functional. But a lot of the times the bottles they come in are not cute. That is why I have this DÉCOR HACK that uses your multipurpose spray as kitchen décor.
Multipurpose Cleaner Decor Hack Steps:
- Purchase the multipurpose cleaner of your choice
- Purchase these cheap amber colored spray bottles from Amazon (linked here)
- Fill your Amazon bottles with your multipurpose cleaner of choice
- Display on your kitchen counter top next to some paper towels
Super easy, budget-friendly, and can fill up counter space while still being super functional!!
Top 10 Cleaning Products #3: Dish Soap
Dish soap is definitely one of those cleaning items that you’ll need if you plan on doing any cooking/eating in your apartment. You will eventually need to wash your dishes lol. So this is a must.
My Dawn Dish Soap (linked here) is my HOLY GRAIL. Not just for doing dishes, but mostly for getting oil spots out of my clothes. I am sometimes a messy eater and will end up finding small oil spots on my sweatshirts or jackets. The only way they EVER come out is by following these few steps.
How to remove oil spots from clothes using DAWN DISH SAOP:
- Take a pea size of you dish soap
- Rub it into each oil spot on your clothes (really get it in there)
- Let it soak (I usually just throw that piece of clothing into my hamper and leave it there till I do my next load of laundry)
- Throw it into your laundry, however you’d normally clean your clothes
When you take your clothes out of the laundry, the oil spots should be GONE. Honestly, the best use for dish soap if you ask me.
Top 10 Cleaning Products #4: Carpet Spot Cleaner
When I found the Folex Instant Carpet Spot Remover (linked here), it changed my LIFE. Hands down the best spot cleaner for carpets!! I’ve even used it on my couch and it got out my dog’s vomit. AMAZING and works wonders.
It’s also safe to use around children and pets, which is perfect for my dog (he’s honestly the only reason I need this because I’ve used it on both his pee and vomit lol).
I’ve mostly used this cleaning product on my rug in my living room. My dog has had a few accidents there and my rug is a light beige color. So I was a bit worried about the stain and then the possibility of the Folex changing the color of the rug. However, none of that happened and it removed the stains beautifully!
This is definitely a must to have in your cleaning arsenal because you never know when you’ll need it!!
Top 10 Cleaning Products #5: Stainless Steel Cleaner
You might not think you need a stainless steel cleaner, but it is definitely something to get if you have a lot of stainless steel appliances throughout your apartment. A lot of apartments nowadays have stainless steel sinks, refrigerators, microwaves, and stoves. And you’re most likely using them on a daily basis.
If you’re anything like me and all those fingerprints on your stainless steel appliances bother you (they’re honestly inevitable since you’re probably using them constantly lol), this Weiman Stainless Steel Cleaner & Polish (linked here) will change your life. It makes all your stainless steel appliances look super clean and sleek. It also protects your stainless steel surfaces and repels dust and dirt for the future!!
For extra shine and absolutely no streaks, I use a microfiber cloth with this Weiman cleaner and it works like a charm! The microfiber cloths I used are linked below.
Top 10 Cleaning Prodcuts #6: Sponges
This one is another essential if you plan on cooking/eating at all in your apartment. Very similar to #3 (the dish soap), you will eventually need to wash your dishes lol. Which is why you need to have some sponges on hand and ready to go.
You’ve probably heard this a million times, but the best sponges out there that get the job done are Scrub Daddy Sponges (linked here). They’re perfect for not only washing your dishes, but cleaning your sinks, bathroom countertops, or even your shower. They’re scratch-free and temperature-controlled, which is already wayyy better than your average sponge.
I always have my cleaning cabinet stocked with some of these!!
Top 10 Cleaning Products #7: Microfiber Clothes
No matter what cleaning you’re doing throughout your apartment, you need to have some microfiber cloths because they will definitely come in handy. I absolutely love that they’re reusable (so you don’t feel like you’re going through rolls of paper towels) and they’re super gentle. And they’re CHEAP. I got this Amazon Basics Microfiber Cleaning Cloths 24-pack for only $13 (linked here)! Enough said about these. Get them.
Top 10 Cleaning Products #8: Mop
Along with vacuuming your floors consistently, mopping your floors is another essential. It picks up any excess dust or dirt that your vacuum may have missed and just leaves your apartment smelling and looking extra clean. You really don’t know how dirty your floors are until you mop them with a white cloth!
If you’re on “clean-tok” at all, you probably already know about this mop. The O-Cedar EasyWring Microfiber Spin Mop (linked here). It is AMAZING and does wonders for the price. It has a 4.7/5 star rating with over 100,000 reviews. That is how good it is.
Features that I love and makes the O-CEADAR MOP standout:
- Hand-free wringing – honestly saves so much time (never use one that you have to wring yourself!!)
- Microfiber cloth – it’s machine washable and I love the fact that it’s white because I’m weird and like seeing it turn gray/black after mopping (I know that its working lol)
- Bang for your buck – the microfiber cloth lasts 3 months, so even better for the price!
- Can be used either wet (with just water or an additional mop solution) or dry
Top 10 Cleaning Products #9: Glass Cleaner
Everyone needs a good glass cleaner for mirrors and windows. Especially if you’re like me and get toothpaste all over your bathroom mirror when brushing your teeth.
Windex used to be my go too, but I tried the Sprayway Ammonia Free Glass Cleaner (linked here) out as it was highly recommended by so many people! I get the hype. This one totally leaves no streaks and leaves all your mirrors and windows extra shiny.
Definitely try this one out if you’re currently using Windex. I would love to hear some of yall’s thoughts and comparisons.
Top 10 Cleaning Products #10: Toilet Cleaner (Solution, Brush, Plunger)
This one can totally slip your mind and by the time you remember you need one, it’s too late 👀. Not much to say about this one, other than it’s essential and you NEED this in your apartment.
I love this quick and easy set from Amazon. It’s called the MR.SIGA Toilet Plunger and Bowl Brush Combo for Bathroom Cleaning (linked here). It gives you both the brush and the plunger and is a nice neutral/plain black color that can pair with several décor styles (so it won’t necessarily ruin your apartment bathroom aesthetic lol). All you need to pick up is some solution of your liking (I prefer the Lysol or Clorox one) and you’re good to go. Better to be prepared with this one!!
If you’ve made it all the way to the end…
I hope you found this list helpful and found some new products you might want to try out when moving into your first apartment. Check out my previous blog post, 5 Best Sectional Couches for Your Small Apartment, for more of my content. Happy cleaning everyone ❤️.
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