4 of the Best Clean Face Washes for All Budgets

Looking for the best clean face wash? One that cleanses skin well, without stripping it? Well I’ve tried and tested four of the best clean face washes. They are from a wide range of budgets, from £6.99 to £36. Read on to find out what’s so great about these four clean facial washes, from Laidbare, Antipodes, DAFNAs and PHB Ethical Beauty.

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I’ll start from the most expensive clean facial wash, working my way down to the most affordable. For reference, my skin is combination, with normal to dry cheeks, with lines, and an oily, spot-prone T-zone.

DAFNA Purify Cleanser Review

This luxurious 100% natural cleanser is the most expensive of my round up of the best clean face washes, at £36 for 100ml.

SKIN TYPE: normal and combination skin
PRICE: £36 for 100ml
PRICE PER MILLILITRE: 36p

Dafna Personal Skincare is a luxury Spanish clean beauty brand, with all products free from parabens, unnatural preservatives, silicons, other petroleum derivatives, artificial fragrances and unnecessary additives.

Packaged in a black glass bottle, inside a chic cardboard box, both are easily recycled.

Dafna’s describe it as a “soft lotion-gel cleanser that leaves skin looking clear, glowing and provides feeling of freshness.” It’s 100% natural, and vegan. They say it “removes everyday impurities and unclogs the pores, fights free radicals and the appearance of spots. Reduces hormonal acne.”

My Verdict on Dafna’s Purify Cleanser

I have tried to remove my make-up with this cleanser, and it’s not really up to the task. I swear by oil-based balm cleansers, followed by a micellar water. This cleanser just doesn’t live up to that level of cleansing. It does, however make a great alternative to a micellar water as a second cleanse, leaving skin feeling soft and clean.

I use this cleanser in the morning, and find it’s much better suited to removing last night’s moisturiser and freshening skin. It doesn’t foam up and I find I need a few pumps worth. That said, each pump only dispenses a very small amount, so it’s easy to control how much you use, without wasting it.

It smells gorgeous, but doesn’t leave skin feeling all that clean. However, I think that it because it moisturises skin too, and I must say that my skin has been quite a bit clearer since using it, so I do think the spot-fighting properties work.

My verdict? This is a lovely non-drying product to freshen up skin in the morning, or as a second cleanse. It’s not great for removing make-up and it’s not very affordable.

You can read my full review of Dafna cleanser here, along with a review of their fabulous eye cream and facial spritz.

PHB Ethical Beauty Balance Face Wash Review

Number two in my round up of the best clean face washes is from PHB Ethical Beauty. This gently foaming cleanser is £17 for 100ml. I find I need a few pumps to thoroughly cleanse my skin so it doesn’t last as long as the others in my review.

SKIN TYPE: oily, blemished or acne-prone
PRICE: £17 for 100ml
PRICE PER MILLILITRE: 17p

This cleanser comes from one of my favourite clean beauty brands: PHB Ethical Beauty. Their products are brilliant and they have great eco and ethical credentials, including organic, ingredients, no palm oil, no GMO ingredients, ethical sourcing and they donate 20% or profits to charity.

PHB say: “This foaming face wash gently lifts away dirt, make-up and impurities to refresh, replenish and rebalance your skin.”

It contains antioxidants and antimicrobial lavender oil and astringent salicylic acid to help cleanse decongested skin of excess oils. It also contains geranium, rosemary and tea tree, so as you can imagine, it smells lovely and refreshing.

My Verdict on PHB Ethical Beauty Balance Face Wash

This is a lovely cleanser and leaves skin feeling fresh and clear without feeling tight. Again, I find using a balm cleanser better for removing make-up, so use this in the morning. I originally thought it was a little drying for my combination skin, maybe because it’s winter, and I find that skin does get dryer in the colder months. However, when I stopped using it for a few weeks my skin broke out in lots of little white spots. I started using this cleanser again and they cleared up in a couple of days.

Check out some other PHB reviews here and here.

Antipodes Juliet Skin Brightening Gel Cleanser Review

Next up in my guide to the best clean face washes is a gel cleanser from New Zealand brand Antipodes. This gel cleanser is on the pricey side, at £25 but you do get 200ml, and only need a small amount.

SKIN TYPE: normal and oily skin
PRICE: £25 for 200ml
PRICE PER MILLILITRE: 12p

Antipodes are a certified organic, carbon zero certified business with recyclable or biodegradable packaging. All products are officially approved for vegetarians, and are not tested on animals. 

Packaged in dark recyclable plastic, with Antipodes’ signature green labelling. I assumed it was a glass bottle before it arrived, so was a bit disappointed to find plastic. However, this is probably better from a safety point of view, as you’ll be handling it with wet hands, so it could easily slip and break if it was glass.

This gorgeously-scented natural cleanser contains extracts from the New Zealand superfruit kiwi, hibiscus flower, manuka honey and vinanza grape. Antipodes say these extracts “help reduce and balance oil production, and exfoliate skin leaving it clean, clear and blemish free”.

My Verdict on Antipodes Juliet Skin Brightening Gel Cleanser

I love this cleanser. It cleans skin beautifully, leaving it feeling clean and clear, without any trace of tightness. It’s a pleasure to use and my skin loves it. Although it’s quite expensive, you do get a big bottle and don’t need much of it. So in my opinion, it’s a good investment. It removes make-up reasonably well, but is best used in the morning for me, as I prefer using a cleansing balm and wash cloth.

You can buy Antipodes Juliet Skin Brightening Gel Cleanser for £25 here.

You’ll find a review of more lovely Antipodes skincare products here.

Laidbare DIY! 2-in-1 Cleanser & Toner Review

UPDATE: I can’t find this cleanser anywhere, so I think it has sadly been discontinued.

Last, and most affordable, in my guide to four of the best clean face washes is the Laidbare DIY! 2-in-1 Cleanser & Toner, which is just £6.99 for 125ml, and 99% natural.

SKIN TYPE: all skin types
PRICE: £6.99 for 125ml
PRICE PER MILLILITRE: 6p

It arrives in a plastic squeezy tube.

Laidbare are not a 100% natural brand: their products are between 97 and 100% natural. Any palm oil they use is sustainably produced. Being UK-based helps keep their carbon footprint lower, as they design and formulate products here.

Laidbare say this is “A no nonsense cleanser and toner in one that even removes your eye make-up!” It contains liquorice and aloe vera which have anti-bacterial properties and help tone skin and reduce inflammation. It also has Brazil nut extract which has antioxidant and nourishing properties.

My Verdict on Laidbare DIY! Two in One Cleanser & Toner

I love the scent of this clean face wash, it reminds me of green fruit gums. It foams nicely and leaves skin feeling clean, yet not stripped. It does remove make-up well when teamed with a damp cloth, though it’s too astringent to use on the delicate eye area. I’m using it in the morning, like the other cleansers in this review, but it’s good to know it can be used to remove make-up too.

I think calling it a cleanser and toner is a bit of a gimmick; it’s just a face wash. But it’s a fantastic one, at a great price, and for that reason, it’s my favourite. It does contain nut extracts. So if you need to avoid them, I recommend using the Antipodes face wash.

Pop over to my review of most of the Laidbare product line up – there are some really great products and I particularly rate their eye cream and vitamin C serum.