Our best stain remover for clothes completely removed red wine, curry and coffee stains in one wash

Score: 81/100

Also: best for coffee stains and best for ink stains

‘This product puts other stain removers to shame,’ one of our panellists said of this spray-on pre-treatment, while another added: ’It’s the best stain remover I have ever tried – 10 out of 10’. In fact, every single one of our home testers was impressed with its ability to shift even the most stubborn, ancient stains in just one or two washes.

In the lab, it removed fresh stains such as red wine, lipstick, biro and mud effortlessly. It performed well on dried-on stains, too, including wine, coffee, baby food, makeup, blood and cooked beef fat. Just note that it was consistently more effective on cotton than polycotton.

It’s simple to use – the targeted foam spray is accurate and clings well to fabric, plus you only need to wait up to five minutes before washing the item as normal. You should wear gloves when using this strong formula, especially as the nozzle has a tendency to drip.

Score: 80/100

Also: best for red wine stains and best for makeup stains

This clever stain remover comes with a mini scrubbing brush on the applicator, which allows you to work the product in while agitating the fabric fibres. ‘I loved the brush head – I could see the stain starting to melt away after the 10-minute wait time,’ one panellist enthused.

In the lab, it performed particularly well on cooked beef fat stains, as well as tricky sweat marks, coffee and tomato purée. As a pre-treatment on fresh stains, it excelled, leaving tea and biro completely gone and most other stains (including wine, curry and lipstick) with just a small trace remaining.

While the brush head is a useful bonus, the liquid continues flowing as you work, which can lead to waste and leave the bottle a little sticky. We measured minimal colour fading, though, so we wouldn’t worry about this causing damage.

Score: 80/100

Lidl’s affordable stain powder stood out for its ability to retain and restore bright whites, which was reflected both in our lab results and comments from several panellists. ‘The product is good for freshening up white fabric and making it look like new,’ one user commented, while another said it was ‘effective at getting my whites looking whiter’.

In our lab tests, it put in an excellent performance on coffee, tomato purée and baby food stains, while wine, curry, tea, blood and beef fat also cleaned up well. It struggled more with grass, mud and especially sebum – so it may be less effective on sweat stains and grubby pillowcases.

To use this stain powder, all you need to do is put a scoop or two in the drawer of your washing machine. Just note that unlike some other powders, it’s not designed for use as a quick pre-treatment in paste form – just a pre-soak, which can take several hours. Overall, it’s a well-priced supermarket pick for perking up dull whites.

Score: 79/100

This is another inexpensive supermarket powder that’s great for restoring your whites. ‘I used it on white bedding and towels, which made them come out bright and fresh looking,’ one panellist said. We didn’t detect any dulling or greying in our lab tests, either.

Asda’s oxy powder scored similarly to Lidl’s, above, achieving its highest scores when removing tomato purée, baby food and blood from cotton fabric. Its performance was still strong on other stains like wine, curry and beef fat, too. Like Lidl’s oxy powder, it struggled more with grass, mud and sebum stains – though Asda managed a better job on the latter.

This product can’t be used as a targeted pre-treatment (only a long pre-soak) and testers found the tub-style packaging slightly difficult to open the first time. But overall, this is another strong pick for keeping whites white.

Score: 79/100

This stain remover powder claims to shift stains even in a short 30-minute wash, which was backed up by some of our panel feedback. “Very effective at removing oil stains from clothing in a quick wash cycle,” said one, while another said the powder “removed everyday stains effectively and left clothes smelling fresh”. This product also promises “intense freshness against odours”, and while most panellists enjoyed the “clean, pleasant” fragrance, some found it overwhelming. That will come down to personal preference, though.

Our experts found it a good everyday performer that works particularly well as a pre-treatment on fresh stains, shifting red wine, tea, coffee, curry and mud effectively. Its performance was less strong on dried-in marks, while at-home testers found they had to soak and repeat a few times to shift older stains.

Overall, it’s a good stain remover if you usually run quick wash cycles – but otherwise, Vanish Gold is the better value option from this brand.

Score: 77/100

Our lab tests showed this non-bio oxy powder is great at removing stains from cotton, lifting even tricky substances such as sweat, makeup, grass and mud well. It was less impressive on polycotton, working well on food and drink stains but struggling with some others.

This powder doesn’t come with a scoop (you have to measure it with your own teaspoon) and we did have some issues with the packaging, which testers noted was quite flimsy and could be prone to tipping over.

Nevertheless, our panel testers felt it removed everyday stains effectively, saying they were “impressed with the stain removal”, while the “lovely fresh fragrance” was popular, too. We also like that you can use this versatile powder as a targeted pre-treatment, pre-soak or a washing machine powder. A good pick if you need to avoid enzyme cleaners.

Score: 75/100

Also: best for curry stains

This oxy powder, which comes in a low-waste pouch, is a standout performer on blood stains and excellent on food and drink stains like baby food, curry and coffee. ‘Easy to use and it worked very well at removing coffee stains from a white tablecloth,’ one of our at-home testers told us.

While it was weaker on grass, mud, makeup and sebum, many stain removers struggle with these. Just note that we measured noticeable fading on dark-coloured cottons, though our cotton whites stayed bright.

While we appreciate that the recyclable pouch cuts down on plastic waste, it’s quite flimsy and the lack of scoop means you have to use your own tablespoon, which we found somewhat inaccurate. As one tester suggested, it would be great for refilling an old tub. A reliable stain remover overall, especially for blood and fresh food accidents, with some limitations.

Score: 75/100

This handy stain pen is a lifesaver for the accident-prone. ‘It’s actually quite powerful when dealing with the basic stains, such as curry and sauces,’ one panellist told us, while another said it ‘worked really well on small food stains on a white cotton dress and T-shirts’.

To dispense, simply press the nib down on the stain and gently rub it in. You then just have to dab it with a damp cloth, though some users said that washing the product afterwards produced even better results.

While most panellists found the pen effective on fresh stains, they didn’t think it worked on tougher, dried-in marks – something that was reflected in our lab results – so it’s best saved for tackling accidents on the go. A brilliant little product for slipping into your bag on white shirt days.