10 Dollar Store Cleaning Hacks

Who doesn’t love the dollar store? These frugality emporiums are full of all kinds of things you never knew you needed! While the dollar store won’t always get you the best deal on everything, one area where you can count on the dollar store is cleaning supplies! Read on for 10 dollar store cleaning hacks.

Ready-made supplies at a great price. If you prefer to use ready-made supplies like all purpose cleaner, glass cleaner, or toilet bowl cleaner, the dollar store is your friend. You can get full sized bottles of these products at most dollar stores. You may have to settle for their house brand rather than a name brand product, but you’ll find that the house brand products are generally of comparable quality to higher priced national brands.

Baking soda and vinegar. If you want to steer clear of ready-made products, baking soda and vinegar are your go-to. These items tend to be generally inexpensive, but the dollar store will get you the best price in most cases. You can use baking soda and water to create a scrub, vinegar and water to make window and glass cleaner, and combine vinegar and baking soda to clean drains or work on tough stains. You can also find staples like ammonia and bleach at the dollar store. (Never mix the two, though!)

Spray bottles. You’ll find spray bottles at the dollar store in both the bath and beauty aisle and the home improvement aisle. Choose the size you think you’ll need — or buy several. Use these to hold your homemade cleaning products, or just to decant smaller quantities from bulk containers. The best part is, when the sprayer stops working, you’re only out a buck.

Coffee filters. Coffee filters are one of the most underrated cleaning hacks, period. They’re cheap, they’re biodegradable, and they are perfect for cleaning glass or anything else that you don’t want to scratch or leave streaks on. A pack of 100 coffee filters will last you through many, many cleaning jobs. And if the job is really messy, you won’t have a cloth to wash — just toss the filter and get a new one.

Sponges. Typically you’ll find sponges, with or without nylon scrubbers, in two-packs at the dollar store. At that price, you can afford to discard a sponge that’s been used for a particularly nasty job rather than trying to get it clean. Stock up on sponges next time you’re at the dollar store so you have an assortment handy.

Plastic buckets. Buckets come in handy when you’re mopping or scrubbing the floor, sure. But they are useful for so much more. You can use a bucket anytime you need to have water or a quantity of cleaner handy. And at dollar store prices, you can afford to have multiple buckets with cleaning products stashed in them in strategic spots around the house — one in the kitchen, one in each bathroom, one in the mudroom, and so on.

Microfiber cloths. These have become dollar store staples in the last few years, and lucky for us they have! Microfiber cloths do an amazing job of cleaning almost any surface without leaving lint, streaks, or scratches. And they’re washable, so you can ditch the paper towels for all but the grossest of jobs.

Soap-dispensing scrubbers. Seriously, these things are life changers. Whether you choose a scrub brush or a scrubber sponge, being able to fill the handle with soap and go — rather than squirting new soap every few minutes — really saves time and effort. In addition to having one by the sink for dishes, keep one in your bathroom for scrubbing tile and grout.

Toothbrushes. Speaking of tile, grout, and hard to reach places, a toothbrush can get places an ordinary scrubber can’t. Pick up a brush or two (or a pack) at the dollar store and go to town. Toothbrushes are also excellent for cleaning intricate trim or delicate items with lots of nooks and crannies where dust and gunk can collect.

Broom and dustpans. They may not be the best quality, but dollar store brooms and dustpans are incredibly useful. Pick up a little brush and dustpan set for the messes that don’t warrant pulling out the full size broom — in fact, pick one up for the kitchen and each bathroom in your home. You can also afford to have a separate broom for the garage, porch, or deck at dollar store prices too!