We tried Blueland’s very eco-friendly Facial Cleanser for a month, and here’s what we thought…

The Top Line: A GREAT BUY. We love Blueland’s commitment to zero plastic and it stays consistent with their Facial Cleanser— no plastic in packaging, reusable bottle, no harsh ingredients (sulfate, paraben and phtalate free) and hypoallergenic. We also loved the scent and experience — it foamed up from a powder into a creamy gel-like consistency. The ingredients are hydrating, with plant-based Oat, Kaolin Clay and Vitamin E. It is a great everyday use facial cleanser and reduces our use of plastic bottles. Pricing-wise very reasonable when compared to other standard options. The powder format also reduces carbon footprint from shipping — liquid is just so much heavier. Our only flag is that there are a couple of ingredients to read up more on if you have sensitive skin (though it appears Blueland has had the product reviewed by a dermatologist and 3rd party lab tested to show it is non-irritating.

The Breakdown:

• Cost & Products: $29.16 for 4 pouches every 3 months (if you subscribe), or $32.40 if you make a one-time purchase of 4 pouches.

• How ‘Clean’ Is This? No harsh chemicals, harmful ingredients, VOCs or plastic packaging.

• Packaging: The starter kit comes with a forever bottle that you can refill. Refill pouches are compostable.

• Purchasing & Shipping: We purchased on the Blueland website.

• What’s Your Impact? Depending on your use level, the average person will likely use 3-4 bottles of facial cleanser a year. The powder refills also save on carbon footprint, as liquid is just so much heavier to ship.

The Experience

Context: We like having a ‘basic’ facial cleanser to be our go-to, and may vary it up with at-home peels or masks on certain nights. Cerave has been our go-to for some time, but we were excited to see Blueland came out with refillable facial cleanser.

• Combining the powder to make the body wash was incredible — it becomes this creamy soap that really feels luxurious! Not what we were expecting when we added the powder to water.

• We love the feel of the soap on our skin, feels nourishing and hydrating

• We are excited to send less bottles to the landfill (because even if it is ‘recyclable’, we know that the almost no bottles end up actually being recycled 😞

• We love that the refill pouches are compostable

The Cost

We compared the cost of Blueland’s Facial Cleanser refills compared with other drugstore and luxury face cleaner brands, including Fresh, Paula’s Choice, Cerave, Philosophy, TULA, Glossier and First Aid Beauty.

Money Report: Blueland’s Facial Cleanser is VERY cost effective when compared to other popular brands, we love to see it!

The Good:

✔ Forever bottle means it’s refillable and you can do away with plastic bottles in landfill

✔ Made with plant-based and planet-friendly ingredients such as Oat, Kaolin Clay and Vitamin E

✔ EPA Safer Choice, Cradle to Cradle Certified™, Leaping Bunny (cruelty-free)

✔ No harsh ingredients – made without sulfates, parabens, or phthalates

✔ Hypoallergenic, vegan, gluten-free, soy and nut-free

Things to consider:

✗ Includes Acacia Senegal Gum, which scores a 3 by EWG (‘moderate’ for Allergies & Immunotoxicity)

✗ Includes Tocopheryl Acetate, which scores a 2-3 by EWG (‘moderate’ for Allergies & Immunotoxicity)

Our Recommendation: A GREAT BUY. We love Blueland’s commitment to zero plastic and it stays consistent with their Facial Cleanser— no plastic in packaging, reusable bottle, no harsh ingredients (sulfate, paraben and phtalate free) and hypoallergenic. We also loved the scent and experience — it foamed up from a powder into a creamy gel-like consistency. The ingredients are hydrating, with plant-based Oat, Kaolin Clay and Vitamin E. It is a great everyday use facial cleanser and reduces our use of plastic bottles. Pricing-wise very reasonable when compared to other standard options. The powder format also reduces carbon footprint from shipping — liquid is just so much heavier. Our only flag is that there are a couple of ingredients to read up more on if you have sensitive skin (though it appears Blueland has had the product reviewed by a dermatologist and 3rd party lab tested to show it is non-irritating.

We're on a mission to reduce our personal carbon footprint with small, hopefully easy, changes in our home to fight against climate change. This means we're looking for products that may be all natural, ideally zero waste, reusable or compostable -- while still being affordable!