If you’re like me, you’ve stumbled upon Grove Collaborative ads all across the internet and social media. Have you wondered what it is and what it’s all about? Me too!!!
What got me interested in Grove Collaborative
Reason #1: It was the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic, and I was cleaning like a mad woman. Every surface, every door knob, I mean everything, all day long.
The stores were running out of cleaning products, and I was wanting to make sure we had enough to get us by for a while.
Reason #2: I also was home a lot and I really wanted to limit my trips to the store.
It was during this time that I remembered all those ads I’d seen about Grove Collaborative. I decided it was time to check into it.
As I began to surf their site I got excited because I saw some great products I’d tried before and loved, and some I’d always wanted to try but hadn’t yet.
They were offering a great deal for new subscribers, so I decided now was the time!
**DISCLOSURE: This post may contain ads or affiliate links. If you buy from a link on this post, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.**
Grove Collaborative is an online company that “makes it easier to find healthier home essentials.” Their company standards are:
- Non-toxic
- Ingredient transparency
- Plant-based formulas
- 100% cruelty-free
- Ethical supply chains
- Sustainable materials
Don’t you just love that? I know I do!
Reason #3: I have a two year old, and I’m constantly worried about fumes from cleaning products I use around the house. I don’t want his little toddler lungs taking in harmful chemicals.
I was ready to give it a go!
What products should I buy from Grove Collaborative?
It’s not easy to say exactly what products to buy and what not to buy.
Some of the products you may be able to find at your local Target, some you may have never seen in a store before so you’d have to find it online.
Some of the products you can only buy from Grove’s website because they are made by Grove Collaborative themselves!
I think it’ll be most effective to give you a review of everything I’ve personally tried.
That way when you go to check out the products on their site, you’ll have a first hand account of someone’s experience with that particular product.
If you’d rather skip down to the pros and cons, go ahead and scroll down!
Method Antibac All Purpose Cleaner
I really like the All Purpose Method Spray Cleaners but I’d never seen the Antibac kind in local stores.
If you’re cleaning like crazy right now and want something that’s antibacterial, and you’re getting bored with the same old cleaning smells, these are awesome. They smell amazing and they offer different scents for you to choose from! I tried and loved the Wildflower, Citron and Bamboo.
I will say, these don’t work very well on stubborn grease and grime on your stove. I have to reach for a stronger cleaner for that, usually a bleach cleaner because my stove is white. But for every other surface, door handle, random floor spills, these are great!
Grove Collaborative Glass Cleaner Concentrate in Orange Rosemary Scent + Glass Spray Bottle
The Grove Collaborative Glass Cleaner Concentrate is awesome. If you want a break from the vinegary scent of most glass cleaners, this is the ticket! It smells amazing and it leaves no streaks!
It’s also great to have the beautiful glass spray bottle. It’s very high quality and the gripping sleeve on it is great at preventing it from sliding around on your countertop. You can fill and refill the bottle over and over again.
Mrs. Meyers Clean Day Hand Soap in Basil Scent
I’d never tried Mrs. Meyers soaps but I’d always seen them in stores.
I have to say this hand soap is one of the best I’ve ever used. Very good quality, it leaves no trace of dirt or grease on your hands and smells awesome.
The Basil scent is very fresh and it’s great if you have a man in the home who doesn’t want his hands to smell like flowers! The scent is very strong so if you like strongly scented soaps, this is a great one for you.
Grove Collaborative Shower Spray in Orange Rosemary Scent + Glass Spray Bottle
I’d never tried a shower spray before so I thought I’d give it a go.
I’m honestly not impressed with it, but it may just be that shower sprays aren’t for me. You’re supposed to spray it after every shower and it prevents soap scum from building up in it. Kind of a preventative measure.
Well most of the time I forget to spray it after my shower because I’m just not thinking about cleaning it right after I get out of it. I’m trying to hurry and get dressed and get on with my day.
I do still use it, but usually it’s right before I clean it so clearly I’m not using it properly. Haha! But it does smell good!
Method Foaming Hand Soap in Sweet Water Scent
I’m a huge fan of the Method Foaming Hand Soaps because they don’t strip your hands dry. This is probably one of two brands of soap that doesn’t dry my hands out. There are certain soaps I steer completely away from for this very reason. I won’t buy them even if they’re 5 cents! Okay maybe I might, but my hands would totally suffer, blegh.
They also smell amazing, they have a good strong scent. The foam is beautifully soft and it doesn’t feel watered down. These are really good, you’ll love them I’m sure!
Grove Collaborative Hand Sanitizer Spray in Lavender Scent
Like most of us these days, I’m constantly cleaning my hands. Whether washing them or using a hand sanitizer, it’s constant!
I bought this one as a treat for myself to keep in my purse. Every time I go to a store I use it after I punch numbers in during transactions or even during my shopping if I just feel the need to.
They really are nice to have when you’re out and about because you just pump one or two sprays and you’re good! You’re not constantly worried about over squeezing gel sanitizer into your hands.
These are very strongly scented so if you’re not into scent these probably aren’t for you. But I love it! It’s a nice boost to your senses when you’re out and about on a busy day.
Walnut + Cellulose Scrubber Sponge
This is actually a pretty good sponge! I use mine for my bathroom sink.
The scrubber side works great at cleaning around my faucets and getting into small creases and crevices. It’s not so harsh that it scrapes or damages, just scrubby enough to snatch the dirt away.
Pros + Cons
The good things
Grove Collaborative carries amazing products
The products Grove carries are all really good products. They’re effective, high quality, not harmful to the environment, just all around great selections. Instead of spending hours hunting the web for these specific types of products, they’ve done the work for you!
One stop shop for cleaning products
It’s really convenient to get all your household products in one fell swoop each month depending on your needs. No running from store to store to get this product from here and that product from there. It’s nice and convenient.
Carry more than cleaning products
Did you know Grove carries more than just cleaning and household products? The have an entirely different side of their site that offers clean, sustainable, cruelty free beauty products. These are high quality prestige products you wouldn’t find in your local drugstores.
Become a VIP member to receive a monthly order and get free shipping… or not!
If you’d like to receive an order every month, it’s super easy! Just become a VIP member by paying a one time fee, you’ll receive your order every month with free shipping! Just know that this is optional, and also know that they let you try this out for FREE for 60 days. If you’d rather just order as needed you totally can! There is a fee for shipping when you choose to forgo the VIP membership after 6o days, but it’s only a flat rate of 4.99 which is actually really good.
Easy to cancel your VIP subscription
They make it super easy to cancel your subscription if you need to, or even temporarily put your account on hold. When you sign up, you’re automatically enrolled into the subscription program on a 60 day trial, and you’ll receive orders every month. They will fill your cart for you if you don’t physically choose your items yourself, and they’ll send you your orders automatically (and yes, charge your card that’s on file.) If you decide you’d rather not do that, it’s totally fine, there’s no penalty whatsoever.
Environmentally conscious company
Taken from their website: “We exclusively carry products that meet our standards for being non-toxic, effective, sustainable, and cruelty-free. We value safety, transparency, social welfare, and exclusively work with partners who do, too.” Don’t you think that’s amazing? It’s easy to be on board with companies who have these values.
They don’t ship FedEx because their carbon footprint is too high
During the pandemic, our local FedEx store has been so inundated with shipments that their location made the local news from complaints. People weren’t getting their orders, and if they did they received them months later than promised. It was a mess!
I contacted Grove to find out if they ship FedEx before I placed my order because I didn’t want it to get lost in the sauce.
They informed me that they don’t ship FedEx because their carbon footprint is too high. Many of their shipments are flown by air, which causes a high carbon footprint. The try to keep their carbon footprint low, so they choose to use UPS instead.
Needless to say, this was the final push for me to go ahead and place my order.
Free items + deals
I’m constantly getting emails about free items and deals Grove is offering every month. Who doesn’t like free?
Customize your recurring order
It’s great to be able to customize your order depending on your needs for the month or for whenever you order. You can keep it the same, or try something new!
The not so good things
It can be expensive depending on your budget
You need to have a $30 minimum for your order. They do this in order to keep the shipping costs down and also to make sure you get the most for your money. I don’t always know if our budget allows for this every month, so it’s great that I can order when I need to order, as opposed to doing the recurring shipments every month.
You may not like all the products
You may feel pigeon holed if you only like a few of the products they offer. It’s not likely but it’s possible. For every product you may not care for, there are so many more you can try that you may love.
They may be out of your favorites from time to time
Your favorite may very well be everyone else’s favorite, which is great! But not so great when you can’t get you hands on it because everyone else likes your favorites. What’s great is you can sign up to be notified when your favorite product is back in store.
It could take a little longer for you to receive your order
Grove tries to keep their carbon footprint low by using UPS which of course is great! However the shipping option they use includes ground transportation, so this may mean your order may take a few days longer than you’d like. However in my opinion, I felt the shipping time was pretty reasonable. I placed my order on a Saturday, and I received it by Friday!
Conclusion
Full disclosure: I don’t use the subscription service.
Even though I think it’s a great option, right now it’s just not the best option for my family as it doesn’t fit our current financial plan. However I think it’s great for when we’re low on my favorites and I need to re-up on them!
I personally think the subscription service isn’t really worth it, however being able to pick and choose when you’re ready to place a new order is gold!
If you’re ready to try it out, click here!
Check out this article for a few homemaking tips from a new Wife and Mom!
