The best sponges

Scrubbing dirty dishes and surfaces is less of a pain with the right sponge. We tested several sponges to find the best ones.
Scrub Daddy’s innovative sponge is our top pick because it’s effective, has good scrubbing power, and dries fast to avoid mold and mildew.

You know you’re not even fooling yourself anymore when you say that you’re just letting the dishes soak in the sink. Really, the sink has become a sort of purgatory for your dirty pots, pans, bowls, utensils, and everything else in your kitchen. And we get it – doing the dishes isn’t exactly anyone’s idea of a good time. But with the right sponge, you may be able to take some of the pain out of this particularly nasty chore.

When it comes to picking the best sponge for your cleaning needs, you’ll want to ask yourself a few questions. First, how much scrubbing do you regularly find yourself doing? Unless you consist on a diet of oil-less soups, it’s likely that a lot of your dirty dishes are pretty dirty, what with grease, cheese, and a layer of something else to contend with.

You should also consider how long your sponge will last. While you’ll definitely need to replace your sponge on the regular to prevent bacteria build-up and odors, you also don’t want a sponge that falls apart every other use – especially if you’re doing some heavy scrubbing.

Then, ask yourself how dry your skin is. It may not seem like the most obvious consideration, but if you have sensitive skin or cracked hands, you probably don’t want to be dunking your hands in soapy water for several minutes a time or handling a sponge bare-handed. To that end, you may consider a sponge that is attached to a stick, or a scrubber or some sort.

Also important is the absorbency and rinsability of a sponge. While you’ll want your cleaning device to soak up suds and water, you also want to ensure that when you’re done cleaning, you can actually clean your sponge. Nothing’s worse than a sponge that just moves grease from your dishes to itself.

Finally, you may want to keep the eco-friendliness of a sponge in mind. After all, if you're going through several packs of sponges a year, you may be leaving behind a bigger eco-footprint than you realize. Luckily, there are some biodegradable options on the market for the environmentally conscious among us.

Here are the best sponges:

The best overall: Scrub Daddy
The best soap-free: Nano Sponge
The best no-scratch: O-Cedar Multi-Use Scrunge Scrub Sponge
The best all-natural: Natural Sea Sponge
The best sanitary: Kuhn Rikon Stay Clean Silicone Scrubber

Updated 8/21/2020. We updated prices and links.

The best overall

The Scrub Daddy is a favorite of kitchen experts everywhere, and with its quick drying time and hygienic qualities, it'll soon become a favorite of yours, too.

The Scrub Daddy is shaped like a smiling face, and at the risk of sounding cheesy, I daresay that it'll have you smiling, too. Perhaps the most unique and useful aspect of the sponge is its "Just Add Water" feature.

If you dunk the Scrub Daddy in cold water, it'll firm up and become ideal for tougher, more stuck-on messes. If you really want it to tackle sticky situations, you can dunk it in ice water or stick it in the refrigerator for a bit. On the other hand, if you submerge the Scrub Daddy in warm water, you'll find that you're left with a "soft and compressible scrubber," which can produce a nice lather or access difficult to reach corners of, say, a casserole dish.

And while the Scrub Daddy does wonders for cleaning pots, pans, and everything in between, it doesn't result in any scratches. I'm particularly persnickety about my All Clad accessories, and I found that even the most forceful use of the Scrub Daddy on these pans did not destroy their appearances. Plus, when I was done cleaning, the sponge dried out quickly so that I could use it again after my next meal.

Whether you're cleaning up stuck-on potatoes from a baking tray or looking to create a rich lather to coax away the oil from your frying pan, the Scrub Daddy is a good thing to have in your kitchen.

Pros: Great scrubbing capabilities, quick drying time, easy to hold onto thanks to the face-shaped design

Cons: The Scrub Daddy isn't the longest lasting sponge, but they generally come in multi-packs

The best soap-free

Foto: Source: Life Miracle

If you're trying to cut down on the use of chemicals in your kitchen, the Nano Sponge is the way to go.

The Nano Sponge claims to "lift dirt, grease, and grime like a magnet," and most impressive of all, does so without needing a whole lot of help from detergent. It's all thanks to the sponge's proprietary Nanolon fiber, which purports to clean just about any surface using just water.

When I put this claim to the test, I found it to be quite true. The Nano Sponge really did wipe down my kitchen counters and greasy pots without the need for soap, but to be perfectly honest, the thought of putting a dish away without having it touch detergent at all is still a little strange to me.

Regardless, the Nano Sponge lives up to its hype. There are two sides to the sponge: one is meant for scrubbing, while the other performs more of a liquid absorption and wiping function. The best part, however, is that the Nano Sponge does not trap odors like many other sponges do.

Even though the sponge is meant to clean a wide range of surfaces (yes, even beyond your kitchen), I found that even after multiple uses, this handy cleaning helper didn't begin to stink like many others do. In fact, Nano Sponge promises that its product will stay odor-free and fresh for 30 days, or you'll get your money back.

The Nano Sponge is also quite large. Oversized at 6 by 4 inches, they cover quite a large surface area, so you can clean your counters or your large pots or pans with ease.

Pros: No smell, no chemicals needed, large surface area makes cleaning bigger messes a breeze

Cons: The softer, white side of the sponge begins looking a bit dirty quite quickly

The best no-scratch

Foto: Source: O-Cedar

The O-Cedar sponge is recommended for Teflon coated cookware from Teflon expert DuPont, so you should have no qualms scrubbing your pots and pans with it.

You've definitely seen a variation of the O-Cedar sponge, what with its double-sided functionality and recognizable ripple design. And there's a reason that this sponge is so ubiquitous - it works. The patented scrubber sponge is actually endorsed by Teflon itself, so you know that it is decidedly safe to use on your non-stick pans.

Moreover, thanks to the rippled surface, you're better equipped to collect grease and grime and rinse it away than your traditional flat sponges. Perhaps more saliently, you won't have to work quite as hard to break up those stuck-on food particles.

While the O-Cedar is certainly tough enough to take on your stove or your oven, it's also gentle enough to take care of your delicate china. The other side of the sponge looks more like your standard cellulose sponge, though because of how thick it is, it'll last quite a bit longer than its competitors.

But perhaps the best thing about the O-Cedar is that after you're done cleaning your dishes and various surfaces, it's really easy to clean the sponge itself. While plenty of other sponges manage to grab onto grease, they also tend to hold onto it. This isn't the case with this tool, which also means that it doesn't hang onto odors either.

O-Cedar sponges claim to be up to 20% hardier than their competitors, and as previously mentioned, purport to be odor resistant up to two months. While I haven't had my O-Cedar for quite so long, thus far, I'm not wrinkling my nose every time I do my dishes.

Pros: Teflon-endorsed no-scratch capability, supreme durability, great price point

Cons: Some customers have noted that the scrubbing side of the sponge is tough on hands

The best all-natural

Foto: Source: The Natural

If you're looking to cut man-made materials out of your life where possible, the Natural Sea Sponge is a great place to start.

If you're looking to do right by the planet, you'll want to take a close look at the Natural Sea Sponge. As its name suggests, this sponge is, in fact, a real sea sponge harvested from the bottom of the ocean. Yes, it was an animal at one point. No, it's no longer alive. But because it is 100% natural and organic, it's very eco-friendly and completely biodegradable.

The Natural Sea Sponge is probably best suited for jobs that involve mopping up a lot of water or any other liquid. If you've spilled your bottle of wine or need to soak up all the leftover juice in a pot, this is the way to go. Because sponges themselves are adapted to encourage the maximal efficiency of water flow while they're alive, it comes as little surprise that when they die, they are just as absorbent.

While you may think that these sea sponges are best suited for your shower or washing your car or your windows, I've found that they certainly have their place in the kitchen, too. Sure, they're probably not going to be your go-to sponges for scrubbing away stubborn remnants of your dinner, but because they're so absorbent, they're excellent for working up a full lather to get your dishes to really sparkle.

Seeing as people have been using sea sponges for more than 2,000 years for a wide range of purposes, I'm sure that you'll be able to find a place in your home for the Natural Sea Sponge, too.

This particular brand collects is sponges from the Floridian coast, and don't worry - sea sponges are not endangered animals. When you buy a Natural Sea Sponge, you may be a bit intimidated by its large size. But fret not! You can simply turn that one large sponge into several smaller ones by taking a pair of scissors to it. Really, it's just more bang for your buck.

Happy buyers have pointed out that the Natural Sea Sponge will last you for years, and further noted that they don't retain odor like many other sponges might.

Pros: 100% eco-friendly and biodegradable, can be cut into multiple pieces for greater value, incredible absorbency

Cons: Because these guys are totally natural, they're not necessarily harsh enough to do serious cleaning on stuck-on food for your dishes

The best sanitary

Foto: Source: Amazon

Made out of silicone, Kuhn Rikon's silicone sponges are non-porous, which means they don't stink, dry quickly, and are a whole lot less gross than traditional options.

Even if you constantly nuke your sponges in the microwave or throw them in the dishwasher for a quick spin, there's still something a little ... gross about them. And if you're a germaphobe, rather than using cellulose sponges, you'll probably want to take a look at the non-porous Kuhn Rikon silicone sponges instead.

They don't feel anything like the sponges that you're accustomed to, nor do they hold onto and disseminate germs like traditional options do. Rather, these silicone sponges are designed to be used for a long time. Silicone, after all, is much hardier than cellulose, and because it's not being constantly inundated with germs, you don't have to worry about the health risks associated with keeping them in your kitchen for several months on end.

If ever a sponge can make cleaning fun, the Kuhn Rikon can do it. The sponge takes some getting used to because it has supremely soft bristles, and is extremely flexible. Honestly, it may feel like you're holding a bowl of jelly.

And because of this wiggliness, you'll want to be careful when soaping the sponge up for its cleaning purposes. If you use too much soap, it'll be hard to hang onto the Kuhn Rikon. That said, I didn't have a ton of trouble getting a decent clean with this silicone sponge.

If you're accustomed to a traditional sponge (which I assume you are), this will take some getting used to, but once you've familiarized yourself enough with the feel and the abilities of the Kuhn Rikon, it's a much less smelly and germy way to take care of your dirty dishes.

These sponges are also great for a number of other purposes around the house, like scrubbing potatoes, picking up lint, or even cleaning your makeup brushes. And because you can just throw this sponge in the dishwasher to get it clean, you can technically use the same sponge for all these purposes (though you might as well just buy a few).

Pros: Super sanitary, silicone has a strange but oddly comfortable texture, practically odorless, long lasting

Cons: Some customers have noted issues with using the Kuhn Rikon in a traditional dishwashing setting, but have found other effective applications of the sponge

Check out our other cleaning buying guides

Foto: Source: Amazon

The best sponges