Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day products are not strictly non-toxic. They’re free from some of the harshest cleaning chemicals, but they contain synthetic fragrance components, preservatives, and other ingredients that raise legitimate health concerns, particularly for people with allergies, asthma, or chemical sensitivities. The brand sits in a middle ground: better than conventional cleaners in some ways, but not as clean as the garden-on-the-label branding suggests.
What Mrs. Meyer’s Leaves Out
The company states its products are made without ammonia, chlorine, parabens, phthalates, formaldehyde, artificial colorants, phosphates, or petroleum distillates. That’s a meaningful list. Ammonia and chlorine are two of the most common respiratory irritants in household cleaners, and phthalates are hormone-disrupting chemicals found in many fragranced products. By excluding these, Mrs. Meyer’s does avoid several of the worst offenders in conventional cleaning.
But “free from the worst stuff” is not the same as non-toxic.
What’s Still in the Bottle
The ingredients that draw the most scrutiny are the fragrance components and preservatives. Mrs. Meyer’s uses a blend of natural and synthetic fragrance chemicals that varies by scent. The Lavender Multi-Surface Cleaner, for example, contains linalool (a plant-derived compound that gives lavender its smell) and methylisothiazolinone, a synthetic preservative known to cause skin reactions in sensitive individuals. The Mint scent is mostly natural but still includes amyl cinnamal (a synthetic fragrance ingredient) and benzyl alcohol.
Several of these fragrance ingredients are classified as allergens. Limonene and linalool, both plant-derived, can trigger contact dermatitis in some people. This doesn’t make them dangerous for everyone, but it’s worth knowing if you or someone in your household has fragrance sensitivities or eczema. The company also withholds some exact ingredient concentrations as trade secrets, which makes a full safety assessment difficult for consumers.
How Safety Ratings Break Down
The Environmental Working Group, which scores household products on a scale from A (safest) to F (most hazardous), gives Mrs. Meyer’s a wide range of grades depending on the product. Some items do reasonably well: laundry pacs, dryer sheets, toilet bowl cleaners, and surface scrubs mostly earn B grades.
But many of the brand’s most popular products score poorly. The dish soaps, glass cleaners, countertop sprays, all-purpose cleaners, laundry detergents, and fabric softeners all receive D grades across nearly every scent. That puts them in the lower half of EWG’s safety spectrum, roughly on par with many conventional cleaners the brand positions itself against. If you’re buying Mrs. Meyer’s specifically because you assume it’s safer, those D-rated products may not be delivering the benefit you’re paying a premium for.
Respiratory Concerns With Spray Products
Spray cleaners in general pose more risk than their liquid counterparts because you breathe in tiny droplets as you use them. Ingredients that are perfectly fine sitting on a countertop can irritate your airways when aerosolized. Fragrances, volatile organic solvents, and surfactants can all trigger coughing, sore throat, or a runny nose, especially in a small or poorly ventilated room.
People with asthma or other respiratory conditions are particularly vulnerable. Spraying any fragranced cleaner, including Mrs. Meyer’s countertop sprays and glass cleaners, in an enclosed bathroom or kitchen without good airflow increases the chance of irritation. If you react to strong scents, the heavy fragrance load in these products could be a problem regardless of whether the individual ingredients are plant-derived or synthetic.
Safety Around Pets
Mrs. Meyer’s avoids several of the ingredients most dangerous to cats and dogs: ammonia, chlorine bleach, formaldehyde, and isopropyl alcohol are all absent from their formulations. That puts it ahead of many conventional cleaners on pet safety. However, essential oils and fragrance compounds like limonene can be irritating to pets, particularly cats, who lack certain liver enzymes needed to process these compounds. If your cat walks across a freshly cleaned surface and grooms its paws, even small amounts of residue could cause mild irritation.
The practical risk is low with normal use and proper drying time, but if pet safety is your primary concern, unscented cleaners are a safer bet than any heavily fragranced product.
The Greenwashing Question
Mrs. Meyer’s has faced legal scrutiny over its marketing. Lawsuits have alleged that the brand uses synthetic ingredients while advertising in a way that leads consumers to believe they’re buying all-natural, environmentally friendly products. The garden-themed packaging, essential oil callouts, and phrases like “rooted in goodness” create an impression of purity that the ingredient lists don’t fully support.
To be fair, the company doesn’t explicitly claim its products are “non-toxic” or “all-natural” on its labels. The branding is more suggestive than declarative. But that suggestion is clearly effective, which is why so many people end up searching whether the products are actually as safe as they feel.
How It Compares to Truly Low-Toxicity Options
Mrs. Meyer’s occupies a specific tier in the cleaning product market. It’s generally a step up from conventional brands like Lysol or Windex, which often contain ammonia, chlorine, or harsh solvents. But it falls short of brands that earn consistent A grades from EWG or carry certifications like EPA Safer Choice, which requires every ingredient to meet strict safety thresholds.
If your goal is to reduce chemical exposure in your home, Mrs. Meyer’s laundry pacs, surface scrubs, and toilet bowl cleaners are reasonable choices based on their safety ratings. The dish soaps, countertop sprays, glass cleaners, and laundry detergents are harder to justify at a premium price point when their safety profiles are comparable to much cheaper conventional options. For the lowest toxicity risk, look for unscented products with EWG A ratings or EPA Safer Choice certification, and skip spray formats when a liquid applied to a cloth will do the same job.