The US home laundry market is on track for steady growth, with retail sales forecast to reach $14.9 billion by 2030, up from $13.4 billion in 2025. The US home…
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US Home Laundry Products Market Report 2026
"Laundry routines are evolving toward more personalized, wellness-driven and sensory-led care experiences."
The US home laundry market is on track for steady growth, with retail sales forecast to reach $14.9 billion by 2030, up from $13.4 billion in 2025.
The US home laundry market is contending with higher prices while consumer expectations continue to evolve. In response, shoppers are prioritizing value, but not at the expense of sustainability or wellness. Younger consumers in particular are gravitating toward more innovative and environmentally minded solutions, as concerns around microplastics and product residue heighten interest in gentler fabric care.
At the same time, fragrance is taking on a more central role in laundry routines, shifting from a basic “clean” signal to a more personalized sensory experience.As appliances become more sophisticated, technology is increasingly shaping how consumers think about fabric care, reinforcing and extending product-level innovation.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
Responsibility and appliance use within laundry care
Consumer purchasing patterns for laundry products
Key drivers of laundry product purchase decisions
Factors that simplify or streamline laundry routines
The role of scent in laundry routines and everyday life
Attitudes and behaviors toward laundry care products
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report and market size, Mintel considers home laundry products to include the following:
clothes-washing detergents (also includes fine-washable detergents)
The following may be mentioned in the Report but are excluded from the market size:
fabric softener sheets (also includes dryer bars)
bleach (SHC [sodium hypochlorite] and color-safe)
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
What you need to know
Outlook for home laundry products
Opportunities
Optimize companion products to support detergent use
Treat fabric longevity as the new performance benchmark
Redefine fabric care as wellness for clothes, bodies and the home
THE MARKET
Snapshot – market size and forecast
Rising prices keep routinized categories under pressure
Microplastics are a growing concern for the category
Wellness redefines what “clean” means in laundry
Laundry products must work in low-attention moments
Graph 1: time of day that laundry is typically done, by generation, 2025
Laundry is positioned for sustained growth
Graph 2: total retail sales and forecast of home laundry products, at current prices, 2019-30
Retail sales and forecast of home laundry products
Retail sales and forecast of home laundry products, at inflation-adjusted prices
P&G defends laundry leadership through backend innovation
Henkel is balancing near-term declines with long-term bets in laundry and homecare
Sales of home laundry products by company
Sales of laundry detergent by company
Sales of fabric softener liquid by company
Sales of laundry care, by company
THE CONSUMER
Changing needs in laundry care
Push powders with smarter formulation and design
Graph 3: powder detergent purchase, by age group, 2022-26
Look globally to modernize powder detergents
Longer stain treatment timelines raise the risk of fabric damage
Graph 4: when stains are normally treated, by generation, 2026
Rethinking dryer formats can turn a passive step into purposeful care
Graph 5: use the dryer to freshen clothes, 2026
Shift dryer innovations toward performance and fabric protection
Appliances are increasingly delivering fabric care, reshaping the role of laundry products
Respond to residue anxiety with clearer, lighter solutions
Use reformulation to answer residue and wellness concerns
Make laundry faster for families by standardizing execution, not just shortening cycles
Graph 6: important features to make laundry routines easier, by parental status, 2026
Elevating laundry through fragrance routines
Grow volume by encouraging broader scent repertoires across loads
Graph 7: laundry scent habits and preferences, by age group, 2026
Expand core scents across household and personal care routines
Link between-wash products to scent habits and garment longevity
Graph 8: select laundry scent routine habits, by age and income, 2026
Position laundry scent as a mood-setting element, not a fixed choice
Perfume-grade scent drops introduce modular fragrance to laundry
Anchor scented laundry in functional wellness for ageing consumers
Future-proof laundry with benefits that go beyond cleaning and fragrance
Reinforcing credibility through fabric care education
Use science-backed education to counter misleading laundry hacks
Graph 9: confidence in making laundry product decisions and usage of social media for laundry information, 2026
Social platforms are redefining who laundry expertise comes from
Brands can use creators to simplify complex product design stories
Position machine settings as a value driver, not a source of error
Graph 10: attitudes toward specialty laundry products and laundry machine cycle settings, by age group, 2026
Familiar natural ingredients build confidence in cleaning performance
PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING
A growing share of new launches move beyond traditional fresh-and-clean scents
Graph 11: fragrance component groups in fabric care launches, 2021-26
Tide evo signals a need for brands to challenge legacy detergent formats
Givaudan advances long-lasting fragrance performance in laundry
AI unlocks smarter laundry at every step
When the wash cycle meets the wedding aisle
Robots may be niche, but ease will become more mainstream
APPENDIX
Market definition
The market
Forecast methodology
Forecast methodology – fan chart
Market forecast and prediction intervals
Average annual household spending on home laundry products
Retail sales and forecast of laundry detergent, at current prices
Retail sales and forecast of laundry detergent, at inflation-adjusted prices
Retail sales and forecast of fabric softener liquid, at current prices
Retail sales and forecast of fabric softener liquid, at inflation-adjusted prices
Retail sales and forecast of laundry care products, at current prices
Retail sales and forecast of laundry care products, at inflation-adjusted prices
Laundry detergent continues to drive category outlook
The consumer
Consumer research questions
Consumer research methodology
US generation groups
Consumer questions
Decline in dryer sheet purchases is driven by consumers under 45
Graph 12: dryer sheet purchase, by age group, 2022-26
Fabric softener purchase is declining, especially among 18-34 year olds
Graph 13: fabric softener purchase, by age group, 2022-26
Powders and single-dose detergent sheets are the only products to see increases
Graph 14: change in laundry product purchases, 2022-26
Important attributes to laundry product selection, by product type
Graph 15: important attributes to laundry product selection, by product type, 2026
Important factors to making laundry routines easier
Graph 16: factors that make laundry routines easier, by age, 2026
Fabric care fragrance habits
Graph 17: laundry scent habits and preferences, by age, 2026
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