Cleaning Wipes EWG Ingredient Comparison | Scrunchy Living — Scrunchy Living

Cleaning Wipes EWG Ingredient Comparison | Scrunchy Living

You flip over a pack of wipes at the grocery store. The ingredient list is long, the words are unpronounceable, and you just want to know: is this thing actually safe to use around my baby?

TL;DR:
- Clorox Disinfecting Wipes contain one F-rated ingredient (hexoxyethanol) and one D-rated ingredient linked to 1,4-dioxane contamination — the most concerning profile of the four brands compared here.
- "Natural" doesn't automatically mean safe: PlaneAire wipes use six essential oils, four of which are unrated by EWG, meaning their safety is simply unknown.
- Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes are the only EWG Verified® option in this comparison, with all 8 ingredients rated A or B and a 100% cotton substrate that sheds no microplastics.

Key Takeaways

  • EWG Verified® is a higher bar than "natural" or "clean," and only one wipe in this comparison clears it. To earn EWG Verified®, a product must disclose every ingredient, contain no ingredients of concern per EWG's standards, and meet good manufacturing practice requirements. Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes are the only wipe here that qualifies; the other three do not.
  • Clorox Disinfecting Wipes contain 1 F-rated ingredient (hexoxyethanol, linked to respiratory and systemic toxicity) and 1 D-rated ingredient associated with 1,4-dioxane contamination, plus 6 unrated ingredients. If you're currently using Clorox wipes on food-contact surfaces or anywhere a baby's hands land, replacing them is one of the highest-impact swaps in this comparison.
  • The wipe substrate is part of the safety picture, not just the cleaning solution. Viscose, used by both Biom and Clorox, is produced using carbon disulfide (a harsh industrial solvent), and synthetic fibers can shed microplastic particles with each use. A 100% cotton wipe like Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes avoids both concerns: cotton requires no synthetic processing solvents and actually gets stronger when wet, not weaker.

Why Does Any of This Matter?

Wipes are a "leave-on" product. Unlike a floor cleaner you mop and let dry in an empty room, cleaning wipes are used on high-touch surfaces: kitchen counters, restaurant tables, airplane tray tables, and yes, little hands. Whatever residue is left behind gets absorbed through skin contact or ingested when a baby chews on a toy you just wiped down.

For pregnant women and newborns especially, repeated low-level exposure to certain chemicals, even in small amounts, can add up. Researchers refer to this as the "body burden": the cumulative load of synthetic chemicals stored in body tissue at any given time. It's one reason organizations like the EWG recommend reducing exposure to questionable ingredients wherever possible.

What Do EWG Ratings Actually Mean?

The EWG Guide to Healthy Cleaning rates cleaning product ingredients on a scale from A to F, plus a special top-tier designation:

  • EWG VERIFIED® — The best possible rating. The brand met EWG's strictest standards: full ingredient disclosure, no ingredients of concern, and good manufacturing practices. Very few products qualify.
  • A — Lowest concern. Well-studied, no known significant hazards at typical exposure.
  • B — Low concern. Minor or theoretical concerns at high exposures; generally considered safe.
  • C — Moderate concern. Some limited evidence of health concerns; worth being aware of.
  • D — High concern. Associated with significant health hazards. Use with caution.
  • F — Highest concern. Strong evidence of health hazards; EWG recommends avoiding.
  • Not Rated — Insufficient data for EWG to assign a rating. This does not mean safe. It means the safety is unknown.

That last point matters. A product packed with unrated ingredients isn't transparently safe. It's transparently unstudied.

The Four Wipes We Compared

For this comparison, four all-purpose wipe products were evaluated using EWG's Skin Deep and Guide to Healthy Cleaning databases:

  1. Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes — EWG Verified®, 100% cotton substrate, 8 ingredients
  2. Biom All Purpose Wipes — Not EWG Verified, viscose substrate, 7 ingredients
  3. PlaneAire Surface Wipes — Not EWG Verified, cellulose substrate, 11 ingredients
  4. Clorox Disinfecting Wipes — Not EWG Verified, viscose substrate, 11 ingredients

Ingredient Safety at a Glance

Ingredient Safety Comparison

Scrunchy Biom PlaneAire Clorox
Substrate 100% Cotton Viscose Cellulose Viscose
EWG Verified ✓ EWG VERIFIED Not Verified Not Verified Not Verified
Rating A — Lowest concern 4 2 1 2
Rating B — Low concern 3 0 0 0
Rating C — Moderate concern 1 4 6 1
Rating D — High concern 0 0 0 1
Rating F — Highest concern 0 0 0 1
Not Rated — Unverified/unknown 0 1 4 6
Total Ingredients 8 (all A–C) 7 (1 unrated) 11 (4 unrated) 11 (6 unrated + D + F)

Ratings sourced from EWG's Skin Deep & Guide to Healthy Cleaning databases.

Why "Not Rated" Isn't the Same as Safe

When an ingredient shows up as "Not Rated" in EWG's databases, it means there simply isn't enough peer-reviewed safety data for EWG to evaluate it. Clorox has six unrated ingredients. PlaneAire has four. That's not a clean bill of health. It's a gap in the data.

What this means for your family: Six unknown ingredients on one product label means six chances that you're exposing your family to something that hasn't been studied enough to know whether it's harmful.

A Closer Look at the Most Concerning Ingredients

Hexoxyethanol (F-Rated): The One to Watch For

Hexoxyethanol in Clorox wipes carries EWG's worst rating: F. It's associated with respiratory toxicity, systemic toxicity, and skin and eye irritation. This is the single most serious ingredient flag across all four wipes compared here. For pregnant women, whose respiratory systems are already under increased demand, and for households with newborns, avoiding products with F-rated ingredients is a reasonable and low-effort protective step.

What this means for your family: An F-rated ingredient is EWG's signal to avoid the product, especially in a home with infants or during pregnancy.

C12-14 Alcohols Ethoxylated (D-Rated): The 1,4-Dioxane Link

Also found in Clorox wipes, C12-14 Alcohols Ethoxylated carries a D rating and is flagged for contamination concern with 1,4-dioxane, a probable human carcinogen. 1,4-dioxane (a synthetic chemical byproduct associated with cancer risk in animal studies) isn't something added intentionally during manufacturing. It's a byproduct of a chemical process, which is exactly why it can be so easy to miss on a label: it's not required to be listed as an ingredient in cleaning products. The FDA has documented 1,4-dioxane contamination concerns in consumer products and has been working with manufacturers to reduce levels, but it remains a known risk with ethoxylated ingredients.

What this means for your family: Even if 1,4-dioxane doesn't appear on the label, products containing ethoxylated ingredients can carry trace contamination. That's an invisible risk worth avoiding.

Quaternary Ammonium Compounds: What the Research Shows

Clorox wipes contain quaternary ammonium compounds, commonly called "quats," which are the active disinfecting agents. Quats aren't rated by EWG, but they're not without concern. Peer-reviewed research on quaternary ammonium compounds has associated quat exposure with occupational asthma, skin sensitization, and reproductive concerns. EWG's summary on quats notes that these compounds can linger on surfaces after use, meaning the exposure doesn't end when you put the wipe in the trash.

SCRUNCHY MOM TIP: If you need a product that disinfects (not just cleans), look for EPA-registered disinfectants with lower-concern active ingredients. For general everyday cleaning — countertops, table surfaces, spills — a non-disinfecting wipe like Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes is often all you actually need.

Synthetic Fragrance: The Catch-All Ingredient

Clorox's "Fresh Scent" wipes list "synthetic fragrance" as an ingredient. The word "fragrance" on any cleaning or personal care product label is legally permitted to represent a blend of dozens to hundreds of undisclosed chemicals, including known endocrine disruptors (chemicals that can interfere with your hormones) and allergens. EWG flags synthetic fragrance as a potential allergen and hormone disruptor. None of the individual chemicals hiding under that single word need to be disclosed.

The Substrate Question: Does the Wipe Material Matter?

Cotton vs. Viscose vs. Cellulose

The wipe material you're actually touching matters, not just what's soaked into it.

Viscose (used by both Biom and Clorox) is a semi-synthetic fiber derived from wood pulp, but the manufacturing process typically involves carbon disulfide, a harsh industrial solvent. Viscose is also weaker when wet, which can affect how effectively it cleans.

Cellulose (used by PlaneAire) is wood-pulp based and designed to disintegrate, which sounds appealing for flushability, but can require processing binders to hold together during use.

100% cotton (used by Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes) is the most straightforward option. Cotton gets stronger when wet, requires no synthetic processing solvents, and doesn't shed microplastics. Synthetic fibers like viscose and some cellulose blends can release microplastic or microfiber particles with each use, which end up on your surfaces, in the air, and in your body. Research on microplastic health effects is growing, and precautionary reduction is a reasonable approach.

If you only do one thing from this section, do this: Check the substrate listed on your current wipes. If it says viscose, it was processed with industrial solvents and may shed microfibers. Switching to a 100% cotton option is a simple, one-time change with no ongoing effort required.

Good Brands to Buy

When it comes to cleaning wipes that hold up to scrutiny, here's where to start, from best to "scrunchy middle ground."

  • Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes — The only EWG Verified® wipe in this comparison. 100% cotton, quats-free, fragrance-free, dye-free, alcohol-free, and individually wrapped. Not food-contact certified — rinse surfaces before food contact. Start here.

  • Attitude Unscented Cleaning Wipes — EWG Verified brand with a strong track record for transparency. A solid alternative for families who want third-party verification.

  • Honest Company Multi-Surface Wipes — A widely available option committed to a "no" list of high-concern ingredients. Not EWG Verified, but more transparent than conventional brands.

If you're on a tight budget and can't yet switch all your wipes, start by replacing the ones used most often on food-contact surfaces and anywhere babies put their hands. Don't stress yet about every single wipe in the house. Progress over perfection.

FAQ

Q: Are Clorox wipes safe to use around a baby?

Based on EWG's rating system, Clorox Disinfecting Wipes contain one F-rated ingredient (hexoxyethanol), one D-rated ingredient associated with 1,4-dioxane contamination, and six unrated ingredients. Residue can remain on surfaces that infants touch and mouth, so choosing a wipe with a cleaner ingredient profile, especially an EWG Verified® option, is a straightforward way to reduce unnecessary chemical exposure in a baby's environment.

Q: Is "natural" or "plant-based" the same as EWG Verified?

No. "Natural" and "plant-based" are unregulated marketing terms — any brand can use them. EWG Verified® requires full ingredient disclosure, no ingredients of concern per EWG's standards, and good manufacturing practices. PlaneAire wipes, for example, use six plant-derived essential oils. Four of those oils aren't rated by EWG at all, and essential oils are known skin sensitizers, particularly for pregnant women and newborns. Natural origin doesn't automatically equal safety, especially at cleaning-product concentrations.

Q: Are essential oil-based wipes safe during pregnancy?

Essential oils can be skin sensitizers and aren't uniformly studied for safety at cleaning product concentrations. During pregnancy, the skin is more sensitive, and certain essential oils, including oregano, thyme, and peppermint in higher concentrations, have been flagged in some contexts for use caution. If you're pregnant or using wipes around a newborn, choosing a fragrance-free and essential oil-free option (like an EWG Verified® wipe) reduces one category of exposure entirely.

From Scrunchy Living: Scrunchy All-Purpose Wipes are the only EWG Verified® wipe in this comparison: 100% cotton, quats-free, fragrance-free, and individually wrapped. Rinse surfaces before food contact. Want personalized non-toxic swaps for your family? Try ScrunchyAI free for 14 days →

About the Author
Jenn Smith, RN BSN, is a registered nurse, mom, and co-founder of Scrunchy Living. She writes evidence-based guides to non-toxic living, pregnancy-safe products, and clean home practices for modern families.

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