Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products for Workplaces: How to Choose

The best eco-friendly cleaning products for a workplace carry an independent ecolabel you can check (in Australia, usually GECA), have a safety data sheet that backs up the marketing, and come as concentrates you can dose accurately. Most offices and light commercial sites need only a short list: a neutral detergent, a glass cleaner, a floor cleaner and a bathroom cleaner, plus a disinfectant used only where it is needed.

This guide covers how to choose those products, how to test a “green” or “non-toxic” claim, where you still need a disinfectant, and the methods that matter as much as the bottle. If you are assessing a cleaning contractor or writing sustainability into a contract, read our buyer’s guide to sustainable commercial cleaning instead.

This is general guidance for workplaces choosing products or reviewing what their cleaner uses. It doesn’t recommend specific brands.

Start with the method, not the bottle

Green cleaning means reducing harm to people and the environment while keeping the hygiene standard the site needs. The quickest wins often involve no product change at all.

• Use less product. Over-dosing wastes product and adds to what goes down the drain. Follow the label dilution and use a dispenser or measuring system for concentrates.
• Use microfibre. Reusable microfibre cloths and mop pads pick up dust and dirt well and replace disposable wipes and paper towel for most routine tasks. Launder them rather than throwing them out.
• Colour-code cloths and mops. Keep separate colours for bathrooms, kitchens and general areas so cleaning does not move contamination around.
• Damp-mop rather than flood. It uses less water and chemical and reduces slip risk.
• Clean on a schedule that matches use. High-touch points and bathrooms need frequent attention; low-use areas may not. Matching frequency to use saves product, water and labour. Our article on the importance of a clean workspace covers workplace hygiene priorities.

Which eco-friendly cleaning products does a workplace need?

A workplace rarely needs a cupboard full of products. A typical office or light commercial site can work with:

What an ecolabel tells you

In Australia, the main independent ecolabel for cleaning products is Good Environmental Choice Australia (GECA). GECA says its certified products follow ISO 14024 best practice and are independently assessed. Its current cleaning products standard covers commercial and home cleaners, including floor, general surface, dishwashing, laundry and specialist industrial products. It:

• prohibits a list of substances and chemical classes
• sets aerobic and anaerobic biodegradability criteria
• requires all packaging to be 100% recycled material or readily recyclable and compostable
• does not allow vague, unsubstantiated claims such as “natural”.

You can check whether a specific product holds a current GECA licence on GECA’s website. Some imported products carry overseas ecolabels instead; check those with the issuing body in the same way.

What the safety data sheet tells you

A green product can still be a hazardous chemical. Under the model work health and safety laws, manufacturers and importers must prepare a safety data sheet (SDS) for each hazardous chemical and review it at least every five years. A workplace that uses or stores hazardous chemicals must keep the current SDSs in a hazardous chemicals register that is readily accessible to workers and emergency services (with limited exceptions, such as consumer products used in household quantities and ways).

Before switching products, compare the SDSs. They tell you the hazard classification, required personal protective equipment, first aid and safe storage, which is far more useful than front-of-pack wording.

How to check a “green” or “non-toxic” claim

“Non-toxic”, “natural”, “chemical-free” and “eco-friendly” have no fixed legal definition on a cleaning product label. The ACCC’s eight principles for environmental claims say businesses should make accurate claims, have evidence for them, avoid broad and unqualified claims, explain any conditions, use clear language and not use images that give the wrong impression.

A quick test you can apply:

1. Is there a named, checkable certification? A GECA licence (or recognised equivalent) is better than a leaf on the label.
2. Does the SDS match the marketing? A “non-toxic” product with hazard statements on its SDS deserves a second look.
3. Is the claim specific? “Readily biodegradable surfactants” or “100% recycled packaging” can be checked. “Kind to the planet” cannot.
4. Does it say what it is for? A product that claims to clean everything, kill everything and harm nothing is promising a lot.

Green cleaning and disinfection

This is where most green cleaning advice goes wrong. A plant-based cleaner is not automatically a disinfectant, and a disinfectant is not automatically harmful.

In Australia, disinfectants must meet the Therapeutic Goods Order for disinfectants (TGO 104), which sets performance and labelling requirements. Specific claims, such as killing viruses or fungi, must be supported by the relevant tests, and a household-grade disinfectant must not be labelled as hospital grade.

For a workplace, the practical rules are:

• Clean first. Disinfectant works on a clean surface; it is not a substitute for removing dirt.
• Disinfect where it is needed, such as bathrooms, shared kitchen touchpoints, during illness outbreaks, or where sector rules require it (healthcare, aged care, childcare, food businesses). Routine disinfection of every surface every day adds chemical load without necessarily adding benefit for a low-risk office.
• Choose by label claim, then follow the label’s dilution and contact time. The greenest disinfectant is the one used only where needed, at the right strength.
• Ingredients don’t make a disinfectant. Vinegar, citrus or essential oils in a product don’t make it a disinfectant. Judge anything sold as a “natural disinfectant” on its label claims, which under TGO 104 must be supported by testing.

For more on the difference, see cleaning vs sanitising.

Can you make your own green cleaning products for work?

You can, but it rarely makes sense. Home recipes (vinegar, bicarb, citrus) are popular. In a workplace they create problems: there is no label, no SDS, no consistent strength, no guarantee they suit the surface, and no evidence for any disinfection claim. Mixing products can also create hazards; never combine cleaning products unless the label tells you to. For workplaces, use commercially supplied products with labels and SDSs, and choose certified ones where practical.

Putting green cleaning into practice

1. List what you use now and collect the SDSs.
2. Cut the range to the products you actually need.
3. Replace like for like with certified products where suitable versions exist.
4. Set dilution and dispensing so products are used at the right strength.
5. Switch to reusable microfibre and colour-coded equipment.
6. Decide where disinfection is needed and document it.
7. Train staff or cleaners in the products, dilution, PPE and storage.
8. Dispose of wash water properly. NSW EPA guidance is that the stormwater drain is just for rain: chemicals don’t belong there, so use a dedicated washdown area that doesn’t drain to stormwater.
9. Review periodically – check stock use, waste and cleaning results.

If your cleaning is outsourced, most of these steps belong in the contractor’s scope of works.

Frequently asked questions

Are eco-friendly cleaning products as effective as conventional ones?

For routine cleaning of desks, floors, glass and benches, many certified detergents and surface cleaners do the job well, provided they are used at the right dilution with good equipment such as microfibre. Disinfection is a separate question. If a task needs a disinfectant, choose one whose label claims suit the task, whether or not it is marketed as green.

What does “non-toxic” mean on a cleaning product?

It has no single regulated meaning on a cleaning product label. Check the safety data sheet for hazard statements, and look for an independent certification rather than relying on the word.

What are the best eco-friendly cleaning products in Australia?

There is no single best brand for every workplace. Shortlist products that hold a current GECA licence (or a recognised equivalent), check their safety data sheets, and choose concentrates where your site can dilute them accurately. Then trial them on your own surfaces before switching the whole site.

Is your cleaning contracted out?

If a contractor cleans your site, the products they bring are part of what you are buying, so ask for the product list and SDSs at quote stage. Our guide to sustainable commercial cleaning lists the questions to put to a provider.

B&K Services provides commercial cleaning across Sydney, Wollongong and the Illawarra, and Nowra and the Shoalhaven, with eco-friendly practices and responsible waste management as standard. To talk about your site, contact us or call 1300 136 954 to book a free site walk-through.