The 7 Best Hardwood Floor Cleaners, According to Cleaning Lab Tests
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Whether your home has mostly hardwood floors or a few rooms where wood peeks out, scuff marks from shoes, furniture and your furry friends' nails are likely to happen, along with built-up dirt and dust between the planks. Thankfully, cleaning and caring for a wood floor is easy with the right mop or vacuum cleaner designed for hardwood floors and a wood-safe liquid cleaner.
When testing hardwood floor cleaners in the Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab, our experts track how well each product removes simulated stains as well as additional factors like ease of application and dry time. We’ve found that the best cleaners are those specifically formulated for hard, surface-finished or polyurethane-treated floors. These cleaners have ingredients to dissolve dirt and grime without damaging the coating or dulling the shine.
Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner Spray
Pros
- Dissolves tough soil
- EPA Safer Choice-certified
- Dries quickly
Cons
- Requires a separate mop
Form: Spray | Size: 32 oz | Requires diluting: No
Bona has a top-tier reputation when it comes to cleaning wood floors. It began as (and still is) a professional wood floor refinishing company, so it knows how to safely clean wood. And in our testing, Bona's Hardwood Floor Cleaner cut through our sticky test soil and erased shoe scuffs faster than all the other products we tested.
You do have to use a microfiber pad mop to get the job done, but there's no need to dilute the product, so it's a fairly simple process overall. Just lightly mist a 3-foot section of floor at a time and go over the area with said mop. Bona's formula evaporates quickly, so there's no need for extra dry buffing before you move on to clean the next section of the floor — important for the overall longevity of your flooring.
We also like that the formula is EPA Safer Choice-certified, which means it's made with ingredients proven safer for both humans and the environment — great for households with kids and pets.
Pros
- Erases scuff marks
- A little goes a long way
- Can be used on more than floors
Cons
- Some users don't like the scent
Form: Liquid | Size: 32 oz | Requires diluting: Yes
Murphy Oil Soap is a time-tested wood cleaner that's been around for generations. Our cleaning pros love its versatility — it not only tackles grime on hardwood floors, but also cleans wood cabinets, furniture and more. It needs to be diluted in water in a bucket, so the concentrated formula will last you a long time, making it a great overall value.
In our tests, this wood cleaner did a nice job erasing scuff marks with just a few swipes. It was also impressive at removing sticky soil, though it did take a little more scrubbing than Bona to banish the residue completely. It's worth noting that the scent may be overwhelming to anyone with sensitivities — while the signature fragrance has many fans among our testers, a small percentage said they didn't like it.
Weiman Hardwood Floor Cleaner
Pros
- EPA Safer Choice-certified
- Left behind no streaks in Lab tests
- Made with plant-based ingredients
Cons
- Scented
Form: Liquid | Size: 32 oz | Requires diluting: No
A Good Housekeeping Seal-holder, the Weiman Hardwood Floor Cleaner can be safely used on laminate floors, engineered hardwood, vinyl and finished hardwood. The cleaner is formulated with plant-based ingredients and GH Cleaning Lab analysts appreciate that it is EPA Safer Choice-certified.
In Lab tests, it successfully removed stains and dirt from our wood test floor panels. Even more, it dried quickly and didn't leave behind any streaks. You don't have to mix or dilute the liquid cleaner to use and it's compatible with refillable spray mops.
Note that this wood cleaner has a fresh citrus scent, which some online reviewers said smells great, but other users may prefer an unscented formula.
Swiffer PowerMop Wood Mop Kit
Pros
- Cleaning solution dried quickly without streaks
- Mop head holds onto dirt
- Doesn't overly wet wood floors
- Mop headlights help you see the surface you are cleaning
Cons
- Non-refillable cleaning cartridge
- Will need to replace mop pads and batteries
Form: Spray mop with disposable pads and cleaner cartridge | Size: 2 pads | Requires diluting: No
Swiffer's WetJet Wood Mop Kit, a Good Housekeeping Seal-holder, has everything you need to clean your wood floors, including a battery-operated PowerMop, two mop pads, and a lemon-scented cleaning solution.
When we took the mop for a whirl, our cleaning expert found it easy to use and noted that the mop pad's scrubbing strip easily removed stuck-on stains. The pad also absorbs and holds onto dirt well, and headlights help you see the area you are cleaning.
The cleaning solution dispenses as a fine mist so as not to overly wet wood floors, and it dried quickly (sans streaks) during our evaluations. We also reviewed the formula to confirm it is safe for wood floor finishes.
One caveat to this mop kit is that you'll need extra batteries and pads once those included run out. Plus, the cleaning cartridge isn't refillable, so you will have to buy a new one once it empties as well.
Bona Hardwood Floor Premium Spray Mop
Pros
- Large head for faster cleaning
- Reusable microfiber pad
- Refillable cleaner cartridge
Cons
- Mop pole may be too long for some users
Form: Microfiber spray mop and refillable cleaner cartridge | Size: 34 oz cleaner | Requires diluting: No
Cleaning is a whole lot easier with Bona's all-in-one microfiber spray mop system. It has an oversized head to cover more ground quickly, and it cleans floors with a washable, reusable microfiber pad. We also appreciate that its onboard cleaner cartridge is refillable with Bona formulas for less waste.
In our tests, the mop dispensed a wide, fine spray evenly onto the floor. The long rectangular head maneuvers easily into narrow spaces, and the corners on each side are soft and flexible, so they flip up when you go along walls and baseboards to catch every speck.
Bona offers deep-cleaning and even dusting pads that can also be used with this mop for added versatility. While the pole has a second grip section to make scrubbing easier, it may be a little long for short users and might fall over in storage if not hung from a hook.
RELATED: Best Mops for Hardwood Floors, Tested by Cleaning Pros
Bona PowerPlus Hardwood Floor Deep Cleaner Spray
Pros
- EPA Safer Choice-certified
- Leaves no residue behind
- Dissolves grime and leaves shiny finish
Cons
- Requires a separate mop
Form: Spray | Size: 32 oz | Requires diluting: No
True to form, we're recommending another impressive product from the best-performing wood floor cleaner brand in our tests, Bona. This time, it's the PowerPlus Deep Cleaner Spray designed for wood floors that haven't been wet-cleaned in a while or are in need of deeper cleaning.
Like our top overall pick from Bona, you do need to use a mop with this solution, but the heavy-duty formula performed so well during testing that it earned a previous Good Housekeeping Best Cleaning and Organizing Award. One of our Cleaning Lab experts who used it said afterward, "My wood floors were so clean and shiny after using it that they looked like they had been refinished!"
Certified by the EPA's Safer Choice program, its oxygenated, fast-drying formula penetrates grime and heavy build-up without leaving any trace behind. Plus, when it's time to re-purchase, you can buy this formula in a 128-ounce size to refill the spray bottle and reduce your plastic waste.
How we test hardwood floor cleaners
In the Good Housekeeping Cleaning Lab, we’re continuously testing floor cleaning essentials like vacuum cleaners, carpet cleaners and vacuum mops.
To test hardwood floor cleaners, we evaluate how well they remove a sticky, dried-on gelatin mixture that we paint precisely onto hardwood planks, how quickly and completely they remove the scuff marks we make with a rubber shoe heel, how easy they are to apply and how quickly they dry.
✔️ Number of wood floor cleaners tested: 24
✔️ Number of stains and scuff marks cleaned: 216
We tested how well each product cleaned up messes after an equal amount of passes and how many passes had to be made with each product to completely remove scuff marks and stains. All product labels were reviewed for proper safety and precautionary notices.
What to look for when shopping for the best hardwood floor cleaner
✔️ Type: Hardwood floor cleaners come in various forms like sprays, concentrated liquids and spray mops. In the Cleaning Lab, we found that all the wood floor cleaners we tested removed at least some stains and scuffs, regardless of how they were dispensed. The most convenient ones to use are sprays and spray mops since the cleaner is applied directly to floors with no diluting necessary. They also topped our performance and ease-of-use tests.
✔️ Versatility: Some wood floor cleaners also double as wood furniture cleaners, like our best value pick, Murphy Oil Soap, making it perfect for homes with lots of wood furniture, woodwork and hardwood floors.
✔️ Scent: You'll likely clean most (or all) of your home's rooms with these hardwood floor cleaners, so choose a product with a fragrance you enjoy enough to smell all through the house.
How do I keep my hardwood floors clean and shiny?
The best way to maintain the vibrancy of wood floors is to leave your shoes at the door, vacuum regularly to remove abrasive dirt and dust (with a straight suction vacuum or with the rotating brush turned off to prevent scratching), clean up spills promptly and keep your pets' nails trimmed.
Use a light application of one of our recommended products and work in small 3-foot square sections to avoid overwetting the floor. Make sure the area you’ve just cleaned dries promptly before moving on to the next section, as too much moisture left on wood for too long can be damaging.
For quick touch-ups, clean in the direction of the wood planks. For deeper cleaning, clean both with and across the planks to nab dirt trapped in the crevices. Only damp-clean floors when they need it, depending on how much traffic they get. There’s no need to overwash them; in fact, doing so can do more harm than good.
What should you not use to clean a wood floor?
You may have read that wood floors should only be cleaned with vinegar — we don’t recommend it. Vinegar may clean the surface, but it's acidic and can dull the finish over time.
Steam mops should also never be used on hardwood floors, even sealed ones. Excessive water and humidity can penetrate and warp the hardwood flooring. Solid wood flooring is easily affected by factors like humidity, water and extreme temperature changes.
Also avoid abrasive cleaners, waxes, oils, furniture sprays and products containing ammonia to prevent damage to the finish and floor.
Why trust Good Housekeeping?
Carolyn Forté, the Good Housekeeping Institute's Home Care & Cleaning Lab executive director, has a B.A. in Family & Consumer Sciences from Queens College, City University of New York, and is a consumer products expert. She has been testing, speaking and writing about appliances, textiles and cleaning products at Good Housekeeping for 40+ years. Carolyn has hardwood floors throughout her home and plenty of experience cleaning them.
Contributing Writer Alice Garbarini Hurley has written about home, food and style for more than 40 years at Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, Coastal Living and more. As a girl, she helped her mother out with holiday prep by polishing the wood floors in their 1950s home using a can of Butcher's Wax (a.k.a. Bowling Alley Wax) and an electric buffing machine with rotating brushes, a method likely not recommended today. It was hard work, but Alice now wishes she had coaxed her daughters to help out with cleaning the wood floors in their old house.
Carolyn Forté brings more than 40 years of experience as a consumer products expert to her role as executive director of the Good Housekeeping Institute's Home Care and Cleaning Lab. Using deep analytical testing and writing expertise in appliances, cleaning, textiles and organizational products, she produces cleaning and home care advice for GH, has authored numerous books and bookazines for the brand and partners with the American Cleaning Institute to co-produce the Discover Cleaning Summits. She holds a bachelor's degree in family and consumer sciences from Queens College, City University of New York.
Alice Garbarini Hurley has been a lifestyle and consumer writer since a pizza parlor taste test for the Dumont High School Periscope. She wrote about prom dresses and mascara at Seventeen, then about everything that matters at Good Housekeeping as a senior lifestyle writer for 10 years and as a GH freelancer for 10 more. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Coastal Living and InStyle. She has published essays and has blogged at Truth and Beauty since 2010. Writing keeps Alice calm and focused while raising a teenage girl. She loves bluebells and daffodils, Cape Cod, accessories, cream in her coffee and reading cookbooks cover to cover.
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