Best air fresheners: Quick menu
1. Best air fresheners list
2. What to consider
3. FAQs
4. How we test
Searching for the best air fresheners for your space? Between your furry friends running amuck, pan-searing weekly salmon dinners, and accumulating garbage in your trash can, a little extra feast for the nose is definitely welcome.
Our edit of aromas is perfect for those who appreciate a large selection of scents — fruity, fresh, etc. — and diverse offerings, such as non-toxic air purifying bags or air freshener sprays.
Home fragrances are a great addition to your spring cleaning, so why not use this as an excuse to stock up? We've tested these products in our homes, to assess their throw, longevity, and odor-busting powers.
The best air fresheners to tackle bad odors
Why you can trust Real Homes Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
The 22 best air fresheners
The prices in this guide were correct at the time of publishing.
Type: Room spray
Price: $6.99 for 4 fl. oz
+ Easy-to-use spray nozzle
+ Fresh, neutral scent
- Keep away from children and pets
With over 1,000 reviews, this Target-exclusive room spray (created in collaboration with Chip and Joanna Gaines) is the perfect product to create a coastal ambiance, wherever you live. Over 89% of Target shoppers would recommend it, and some say it smells like a fancy hotel or spa resort. And, according to multiple reviewers, it smells like the infamous Baccarat Rouge 540 perfume.
Type: Spray
Price: From $18
+ Same scent used in W Hotels
+ Two sizes to choose from
+ Attractive glass spray bottle
+ Great for gifting
Turn your space into a citrus-kissed haven with this uplifting W Hotels Room Spray. Its signature room scent releases a fresh and aromatic fragrance of lemon blossoms, green tea and laurel leaves to amplify your mood, without having to pay for an overnight stay.
Type: Spray
Price: $56
+ Endorsed by celebrities
+ Pleasant floral scent
- Expensive
Everyone from Oprah, Usher, Eva Mendes, Mila Kunis, Khloe Kardashian, Missy Elliott, and Pink loves this fresh garden scent. . Essentially, if you want to know what people with nice-smelling homes do: it's obvious. They buy this celebrity-endorsed spritz full of intoxicating gardenia and white exotic florals. It looks and smells like a perfume so you'll want to have this glass bottle on display, rather than being hidden away in your cleaning cupboard.
Type: Non-aerosol spray
Price: $36.98 for three bottles
+ Organic
+ 100% active ingredients
+ No water or propellants
+ 360-degree nozzle
Want to make your home smell like an orange grove, without toxic chemicals? This odor-eliminating non-aerosol spray destroys foul odors on contact and is made using 100% USDA-certified organic ingredients. What's more, the formula is Prop 65, VOC, and CARB compliant so you can fill the air with a clean, refreshing scent, naturally. If you're after a more calming smell, the lavender eucalyptus option is a must-have.
Type: Aerosol
Price: $23.33
+ 100% natural
+ A little goes a long way
- Can't be sprayed around babies
Made with no synthetic chemicals but from a unique blend of 100% pure and natural essential oils, this herbaceous air freshener has been a firm favorite of mine for years. One spray in every corner of a room will immediately banish various household smells and refresh a space, no matter its size. With notes of tea tree, peppermint, and eucalyptus, it's also great for stomping out cooking smells, just be aware that a little goes a very long way. Don't spray it in a room with pets or children inside either as it's powerful.
Type: Spray
Price: $5.49
+ Made with essential oils
+ Cruelty-free
+ Recyclable bottle
+ 7 scents
Anyone who's eco-conscious will love this hardworking spray since it's non-aerosol, all-natural, and scented using essential oils. I'm not usually a fan of lavender, so this one surprised me. I actually really liked it for refreshing my upholstery. The scent is light, fresh, and inviting, just like all of the fragrances from Mrs. Meyer's. There are so many other ways to use this spray, too.
Type: Candle
Price: $58
+ Suitable for small and medium-sized rooms
+ Around 60 hours of burn time
+ Fragrance gradually released and persistent
- Expensive
Air fresheners traditionally come in aerosol or spray form, but this Diptyque candle is great at deodorizing kitchen spaces. While we love the smell of home cooking, it can be overwhelming if you live in an open-plan space. Burn this wax light to replace the scent of fried and aromatic food with a bouquet of basil, mint, and tomato leaves.
Type: Essential oil diffuser
Price: $66
+ Luxury
+ 3 modes
+ Inconspicuous
+ Great for bathrooms
- Expensive
- Compatible only with Neom essential oils
It's actually wild how many people ask me about this little thing. Whether it's by your toilet or desk, it's an easy way to make your home smell nice. The compact essential oil diffuser doesn't need to be plugged in, and it comes in a range of colors. It doesn't require water either. Instead, oil vaporizes directly from the bottle and scents the air. You can pick from three intensities, too, so you won't overdo it in a tiny room.
Type: Solid
Price: $74
+ 3-month lifespan
+ Eco-friendly & plastic-free
+ Range of scents
- Not the strongest
- Can't control
- Spendy
If you're a fan of Diptyque's other scents, then this would make the perfect air freshener for your home according to reviewers who really love it. Where to put it? In your bathroom! Though the French word for berries is baies, it has more of a floral than a fruity scent. This Diptyque Baies Scented Oval, in particular, smells of roses and blackcurrant. It's encased in ceramic, which is ideal for hanging in smaller rooms, as the fragrance slowly emits over time. Word has it that Megan Markle and LeBron James are fans of the Baies scent too!
Type: Beads
Price: $6.50
+ 100% recyclable with TerraCycle
+ Range of scents
- Can't control
- Short lifespan of 30 days
Reviewers say it's great to keep in a closet, locker, or any room that tends to get a little smelly. It's also not overpowering and has more of a generic "clean house" scent. The beads knock out nasty odors for about a month rather than mask them. It's better for the environment than a spray and subtly releases fragrance as you do your day-to-day activities. The beads dissolve over time, and when the jar is empty, you can recycle it.
Type: Plug-in
Price: $44.99
+ Control from your phone
+ You can create a schedule
+ Built-in light
+ Holds two fragrances
- Wastes a plug socket
We're still getting around to testing the highly-rated Pura air freshener, but we've only heard good things. It plugs into any available wall socket and fragrances your home with essential oils. It's super easy to use and you can store two different fragrances in there at one time. Connect it to your phone to control it from far away and use the app to create a scent schedule, too. Fragrance intensity can be adjusted based on the size of the room it's inside.
Type: Cordless essential oil diffuser
Price: $11.99
+ Automatic
+ Easy to hide
+ Cord-free
+ Range of scents available
+ 45 days longevity
- Not the best looking
This budget-friendly Airwick Essential Mist Kit is simple to use. Place it anywhere and it'll ooze scent on its own. It turns essential oils into a mist, so you get a decent number of scent options to choose from. It has three settings and you can switch your scent with the seasons. Buy the diffuser once and the refills again and again.
Type: Plug refills
Price: $13.58
+ Pack of three
+ Well-known scent
+ 150 days last time
- Doesn't come with the plug
A bestseller for a reason, if you're a big Gain fan then let this air freshener be the one you choose. These refills work with a Febreze plug (like the one above from Target) and they smell just like your favorite Gain detergent. Included in this bestselling pack are three refills, all of which last for up to 150 days in your home. This is Walmart's bestselling air freshener, and reviewers love the familiar scent.
Type: Plug
Price: $3.29
+ Affordable
+ Easy to use
+ Great for entryways
- Doesn't include a scent
This plug-in air freshener makes scenting your home a breeze, and it lasts for up to 50 days before needing to be replaced. Simply plug it in a high-traffic area such as an entryway or a large living room, and it does the work for you. This is the highest-rated air freshener on Target's site, and not only is it budget-friendly, but it's also easy to use. It even has an indicator to let you know when it needs to be refilled. Reviewers love it and claim that it's an essential buy that's nice and strong.
Type: Solid
Price: $1.24
+ Scent level is adjustable
+ Lots of scents
+ Budget-friendly
- Packaging isn't eco-friendly
This solid air freshener from Glade has 57,000+ 4.3-star reviews behind it on Amazon. It's the highest-rated air freshener that you can buy on the site, and all you need to do is open it up and let it do its thing. It's not the best looking, but you can nest it behind a bookcase, place it atop your wardrobe, or hide it in a bathroom corner. It comes in a range of scents from fresh to floral, and it's super budget-friendly.
Type: Spray
Price: $9.99
+ Great for disguising odors
+ Lots of scents
+ Handbag friendly
- Small bottle
- Only for use in the toilet
This little bottle is a lifesaver. What it lacks in size it makes up for in power. You've probably seen it before; it's the one you spray into the bowl before you go. Available in plenty of scents and in a pretty-looking bottle, your guests will thank you later. If you've got a windowless bathroom like me, then it's perfect as it doesn't clog the air like other air fresheners.
Type: Bags
Price: $38.95 for four
+ Chemical free
+ Works on its own
- Can't control them
- Unfragranced
This air-purifying bag is great for asthma or allergy sufferers since it's void of artificial chemicals. The Moso bags are unscented and filled with bamboo charcoal, which absorbs odors and pollutants. They work wonders in small spaces — musty closets, pet areas, or powder rooms. In large rooms, you'll need more than one bag to tackle lingering odors. Each pouch lasts up to two years, but they need to be "rejuvenated" once a month by placing them in the sun for a couple of hours.
Type: Diffuser
Price: Was $58.96, Now $29.97 (save $28.99) at Below 60°
+ Natural
+ Sleek design
- Pricey
- Scents are currently limited
Hey now, hey now: there's a Hilary Duff collab piquing our interest. Allow us to introduce you to Below 60°, a collection of natural air fragrance devices that have hit the scene and intend to keep your space filled with the "cleanest, purest, freshest air." The three scents available at the time of its debut include Mint Disco on Ice, If Citrus Were a Feeling, and Vanilla Buys a Timeshare in Paradise. More fragrances will drop in 2024. You'll be pleased to know you can adjust the fragrances from high to low, depending on your needs.
Type: Oil-based
Price: $14.99
+ Air-powered
+ Lasts up to 45 days
+ Odor-eliminating
+ No dyes
+ Doesn't contain dyes, phthalates, or formaldehyde
- Limited edition fragrance
- Runs down quickly if you click it daily
Anyone averse to scented droplets being sprayed into the air will enjoy this oil-based, battery, and spray-free formula from Febreeze. Its watermelon smell permeates much more square footage than you'd imagine, packing a lot of punch for such a small air freshener. Real Homes editor Punteha van Terheyden has one in her family bathroom upstairs and can smell it as soon as she hits the stairs from the ground floor. The watermelon smell is refreshing, works well for bathrooms and the device itself is easy to use.
Type: Spray
Price: $26.18 for two
+ Made without artificial colors, parabens, animal-derived ingredients and formaldehyde
+ Made with essential oils
- Not for people with sensitive skin
- Plastic bottle
No one wants an under-sink cupboard full to the brim of cleaning products. So what if we told you this air freshener also acts as a pre-iron treatment for textiles and a post-laundry spritz for your linens? Amazon customers say the pear blossom scent is pleasant and long-lasting. But, if you don't care for fruity-floral scents, try the sea salt and neroli option.
Type: Spray
Price: $8.95
+ Ideal for teen rooms or sweet fragrance love
+ Concentrated formula means only a few squirts needed
- Made with propellants, alcohol, and synthetic fragrance
- Strong chemical smell
- Not suitable for people with respiratory issues
- Buyers say it isn't long-lasting
If you want your home to smell like a treat-laden bakery, pop this into your basket. It's the #1 rated air freshener on Bath & Body Works and fills any room with incredible fragrance for up to two hours. Keep this on hand for when last-minute guests swing by to infuse the air with the smell of fresh strawberries, golden shortcake, and whipped cream.
Type: Spray
Price: $45 for 3.4 oz/100 ml
+ A little goes a long way
+ Five scents to choose from
- Expensive
Make your home smell like Courteney Cox's with the help of Homecourt room deodorant. This clinically tested fragrance uses Zinc Ricinoleate to naturally trap and absorb odor molecules, yeast ferments to break down malodors, and charcoal to purify the air. Not only do all five scents smell amazing, but it also gets brownie points for its 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) bottle and reusable pump. Buy direct, or via Amazon.
Type: Aerosol spray
Price: $12
+ 100% pure, vegan, and cruelty-free
+ Free from synthetic fragrance, sulfates, parabens, formaldehyde, phthalates, and mineral oil.
+ Packaging is 100% recyclable, reusable, or biodegradable using plant-based ink.
If you've put off buying an air freshener because they are a bit of an eyesore — consider this chic can. Made for minimalist schemes, this calming mix of lavender and Vanilla essential oils will make your space smell gentle and inviting. Buy this if you want your home to smell like warm blankets and home baking. .
Type: Gel
Price: $22.49 for two 15-ounce pots
+ EPA Safer Choice Certified
+ Each jar lasts 30-60 days
+ Plant-based ingredients
+ Suitable to use in pet homes
+ Refills available
- Some say it smells medicinal
Created with real, natural ingredients this non-hazardous gel eliminates odor at the source. This herbaceous clove, lime, cedar, pine, and anise-based formula can be used in the kitchen, bathroom, or near your pet's litter box to get rid of the smell of garbage or poop.
What to consider when buying an air freshener
An air freshener is designed for daily use, whether to mask bathroom odors or to give your sofa a spritz after you've watched an entire season of something on Netflix. With this in mind, I've only featured solutions on this list that won't be super harmful if ingested. Here are some things to think about when choosing a new air freshener for your space:
1. Which type of air freshener do you want?
There are lots of air freshener types to choose from. Spray, aerosol, and solid are the most popular. Candles, reed diffusers, and essential oils differ slightly and aren't as powerful but can help make a home smell nice, too.
2. How often will it need to be replaced?
Sprays and aerosols are different, as this will depend on how often you use them, but solid air fresheners and essential oil diffusers usually come with a lifespan. Keep this in mind when choosing so you're not overspending or over-replacing.
3. Are you able to control it?
This one's a biggie! Because we've all been in a situation where someone is coming over and you or a roomie decided to microwave something pretty pungent. You'll need a plug-in you can turn on (or spray) to work instantly. So while air purifying bags, solid air fresheners, and fragrance spheres are great, they're more for background use.
4. What does it smell like?
Don't go against the seasons. Much like you would with any other home fragrance, match it to the time of the year. Go floral in spring and warm in colder months. No one wants a cinnamon-scented entryway in the middle of July. But in December? I'd be all over that.
Types of air fresheners
There's no one-size-fits-all when it comes to air fresheners. In fact, this will hugely depend on where you want to use your new air freshener, and whether you want something that you can control — or if you'd rather have an automatic air freshener.
Here are the main types of air fresheners:
- Spray air fresheners are great for use anywhere, especially on fabrics and upholstery. You can control how much scent they emit, and when they work. Opt for a mist for a lighter fragrance.
- Plug-in air fresheners are automatic so you don't need even need to think about if your home smells nice. Just choose your fragrance and plug it into a socket. Nowadays, some products are smart and can work with app configuration.
- Diffuser air fresheners also work on their own, with no need for a human to press go. These can sit atop a table or cabinet, hidden or on display. Essential oil diffusers are different and you will need to turn them on.
- Gel air fresheners tend to be compact, and you just need to display them up high on a surface so that they emit scent.
- Solid air fresheners might need to be hung, or they will need to be placed away from things to ooze fragrance.
How we test air fresheners
FYI: The majority of air fresheners in this guide have been tested by a member of the Real Homes team. We've given the picks we love a rating out of five, and the ones we haven't reviewed (without a star rating), we've included purely based on their customer reviews. For the air fresheners we've tested, we're always sure to use them until they are at least half empty, meaning several weeks of testing.
FAQs
Which air fresheners are most effective?
From experience with testing home fragrances, we would always say that a spray is the most effective type of home fragrance. A spray is great if you want an instant odor eliminator or an instant fragrance boost. Other air freshener types such as solids, gels, or plug-ins are great for subtly fragrancing your home all day long.
What's making my home smell bad?
Carpets are the worst culprits for spreading those nasty smells, but curtains and upholstery are close behind. The best way to tackle them (other than introducing air fresheners) is to pay them a visit while armed with an amazing vacuum cleaner or market-leading upholstery cleaner. This will help out your air freshener's effectiveness, too.
Find out more in our guide to cleaning a carpet.
Where to shop for air fresheners
Thinking about stocking up? We've rounded up a few places where you can add fragrant, non-toxic, and long-lasting air fresheners to your cart.
As well as the obvious retailer and direct-to-consumer brands, did you know that you can also buy air fresheners from hotel brands like Marriott? Their Attune home mini diffuser scent is currently 20% off and has the exact same top notes of apple and grapefruit mixed with jasmine, rose, and cedar you'll be familiar with if you've stayed the night.
- Amazon air fresheners
- Bath & Body Works air fresheners
- Bed Bath & Beyond air fresheners
- Home Depot air fresheners
- Homesick air fresheners
- Kohl's air fresheners
- Lowe's air fresheners
- Neal's Yard air fresheners
- P. F Candle Co. air fresheners
- Target air fresheners
- Walmart air fresheners
- Wayfair air fresheners
- Yankee air fresheners
Looking for other ways to keep your home smelling fresh (and perhaps fruity or woodsy)? Fortunately, our edits of the best candles and the best reed diffusers, as well as our guide on where to buy essential oils, will take care of any stench your abode might be unpleasantly experiencing.
Just an FYI, if you're looking to get rid of pet odor in a small space, check the ingredients first. You might be wondering if diffusers are bad for dogs (spoiler alert: it depends on what you put in it). We've also asked experts if air fresheners are toxic.
Also, if you're thinking about foregoing fragrance and using plants to purify the air over the holiday season, just know that some Christmas plants are toxic to pets. And, even outside of the season, it's worth knowing that some plants are toxic for cats.