7 Eco-friendly Toilet Paper Brands for a Clean Tushy & Planet
With so many things now having more sustainable alternatives, why is it that so many of us haven’t thought about the toilet paper we use?
This guide will start off with a list of the best eco-friendly toilet paper brands (including a few of my personal favorites) and explore the health and environmental impacts of regular toilet paper.
Pin this list of toilet paper brands for later
Between formaldehyde, PFAs, and bleach, it’s important to know what you’re wiping your butt with!
I switched to bamboo toilet paper five years ago and it’s on of my favorite low waste swaps!
This post does contain some affiliate links which means The Honest Consumer may receive a commission if you decided to purchase. Our commission is at no additional expense to you!
I’ve tried multiple brands and am excited to share them with you! We also recently added a bidet to our bathroom, so I’ll share my thoughts on that too!
7 Best Eco-friendly Toilet Papers for a Clean Butt & Planet
Let's explore some better alternatives including bamboo toilet paper brands, recycled toilet paper, and bidets!
Here are 7 of the best sustainable toilet paper brands including one alternative allowing you to reduce the amount of toilet paper you use! Keep reading for my thoughts on bidets too!
Who Gives a Crap Bathroom Tissue Made from Recycled Materials
Price Range: $38+
As the name suggests, Who Gives a Crap is done with the taboo surrounding our bathroom habits — and what standard toilet paper is made of.
Their eco-friendly options are all backed up with an in-depth knowledge of what their consumer wants and how damaging standard products can be. Offering toilet paper made either from bamboo or from recycled paper, they’ve left the choice entirely up to you.
Their recycled bath tissue made from recycled paper, is Biodegradable, and is 2 ply. Their bamboo toilet paper is a cushy 3 ply, made with 100% renewable and sustainable bamboo, and biodegradable. Both options offer carbon neutral shipping.
Why I Love This Brand: I’ve had Who Gives a Crap toilet paper in my bathroom and it works great! I also love the fun packaging, creative name, and that my purchase gives back.
Reel's Bamboo Toilet Paper
Price Range: $36-$70 but use the code HONEST25 for 25% off your first order
Reel is a Black owned company on a mission to change the paper industry, one toilet roll at a time. For their toilet paper, they use 100% bamboo.
It’s 3 ply for extra softness, and contains no dyes, inks or BPA. Even the packaging is plastic free, and you can get it delivered right to your door with a handy subscription service.
Use the discount code HONEST25 for 25% your first order from Reel!
They’ve even partnered with One Tree Planted, so that the deforestation caused by conventional toilet paper can be reversed.
I personally am a subscriber to Reel and have really enjoyed their toilet paper. Their toilet paper is one of the best alternatives I've found.
Why I Love This Brand: I've tried a couple brands and Reel seems to have a high quality product, is soft and durable, and is a good deal when it comes to price. Reel's toilet paper can be purchased for $36-$70 a box depending on the quantity of rolls.
Use the discount code HONEST25 for 25% your first order from Reel!
Hello Tushy's Sustainable Bathroom Solutions
Price Range: $24-$69
Hello Tushy is creating sustainable bathroom solutions! Their bamboo toilet paper is made with 100% unbleached, silky-strong bamboo fibers.
The rolls come in plastic-free packaging and feature a three-ply tissue. Hello Tushy's toilet paper can be purchased for $69+ for 36 rolls or in an 8 pack for $24.
Along with their toilet paper rolls, they also offer paper towels, bidets and more. Read on to learn my thoughts on their bidets!
Why I Recommend This Brand: We’ve had Tushy products in our house through out the years! I think it’s great that they offer a 8-pack of bamboo toilet paper at a lower price. This is a great way for curious consumers to try this zero waste swap without having to commit to buying toilet paper in bulk.
Bampoo's Plastic-Free Toilet Paper
Price Range: $28-$60
Bampoo is a tree free, chemical free, plastic free, biodegradable toilet paper brand working to save the Earth one poop at a time. Bampoo partners with an FTC bamboo farm which grows bamboo organically without chemicals, dyes, or pesticides.
The Bampoo toilet paper is made ethically in China by a partnering factory who has been in the toilet paper business for over twenty years.
Bampoo toilet paper comes in recyclable packaging. This sustainable toilet paper brand also gives back by donating donating 1% of profit from every sale to UNICEF.
Why I Love This Brand: This was actually the first brand of bamboo toilet paper I ever tried and I really enjoyed this chemical-free toilet paper! I would definitely recommend Bampoo. I also love that this is a small business.
Cloud Paper’s Toilet paper made from bamboo
Price Range: $32-$50
Another 100% bamboo toilet paper, Cloud Paper has no dyes, bleaches or BPA in its products. They have Forest Stewardship Council Certification as well, so you know that this product is kind to the environment.
Why I Recommend This Brand: I love that Cloud Paper goes the extra mile to offset their carbon footprint. In addition to this, Cloud Paper partners with Carbon Fund to offset their carbon footprint, plus, they have the highest score possible for a bamboo toilet paper by the NRDC.
Cloud Paper can be purchased on their website or on Amazon.
Seventh Generation Chlorine Free Toilet Paper Made with recycled materials
Price Range: $35+
Seventh Generation offers chlorine free toilet paper made with 100% Recycled Paper, with no added dyes, inks, or fragrances.
Their products are FSC certified and fragrance free.
The Seventh Generation toilet rolls do come in plastic packaging which is something to be aware of. It is #4 plastic film and can be recycled along with other plastic films such as grocery bags.
Why I Recommend This Brand: While Seventh Generation isn’t my favorite toilet paper, I did want to add this brand to the list because it is a more conscious option than conventional toilet paper AND it can easily be found in stores.
Plant Paper's Plant Based Toilet Paper
Price Range: $37-$50
The founders of Plant Paper didn’t just want to provide us with an eco alternative to toilet paper, they wanted to improve on the current product.
That’s why their 100% bamboo PlantPaper is extra thick and soft, with 3 ply and a unique double-sided embossing pattern.
They really have proven that sustainable toilet paper can be luxurious.
Why I Recommend This Brand: My friend has this at her house and loves it! I have used it and it good bamboo toilet paper option!
What Materials Are Used To Make Toilet Paper?
Conventional toilet paper is made using the wood from virgin trees - meaning that trees are cut down solely for the production of toilet paper. In fact, toilet paper production means that a million acres of trees (405,000 hectares) are cut down every year.
Toilet paper is generally made with a ratio of 70% softwood fibers to 30% hardwood. This is what gives it both strength and durability, as well as softness.
In order to change the wood into toilet paper, it goes through a variety of processes. Firstly, the bark is removed and it’s pulped down and mixed with water.
Once it’s pulped, harmful chemicals are used to break down the wood even further into usable fibers. It is at this time that it’s also bleached, as the adhesives used to bind the pulp together into toilet paper will turn yellow over time.
Environmental Impacts Of Toilet Paper
Obviously, the sheer amount of trees being used to make our toilet paper has a massive environmental impact.
While efforts are made to make this more sustainable, the fact remains that it takes years for a tree to grow to maturity, and we are cutting through these at a rate faster than we can replace them.
Think about how much toilet paper your household uses!
Even the more sustainable softwood trees that can take less than 10 years to grow are being cut down at a faster and faster rate, making the industry less sustainable over time.
It’s not just the trees themselves that cause the environmental impact to this industry. Producing a single roll of toilet paper also requires 37 gallons of water and 1.3 KWh of electricity.
Not only is this a massive use of earth's most valuable resource — water, the massive amount of electricity used in the production of just a single roll of toilet paper is sure to have a damaging effect on the environment.
While some toilet paper producers are trying to use renewable energy sources for their electricity, much is still produced by burning fossil fuels.
Some of the chemicals used in the manufacture of toilet paper are also dangerous to the environment.
It is common for chlorine bleaching to be used to bleach the toilet paper, which produces harmful dioxins which causes air and water pollution.
Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) is more commonly used now, but this still releases dangerous chlorine gas into the atmosphere.
Can Toilet Paper be Harmful To Human Health?
While the environmental impact of deforestation is understandable, is there anything inherently dangerous to human health in standard toilet paper?
The answer might surprise you. The manufacture of toilet paper includes a host of chemicals, and those are still in attendance when you’re presented with the finished product.
Bleach in Toilet Paper
In order to get that whiter than white color that is so popular to consumers, the pulp needs to be bleached. This can in turn cause irritation to the skin, and exacerbate pre-existing conditions, such as UTIs or hemorrhoids.
Formaldehyde
This is used to make toilet paper stronger and improve its strength when wet. Yet it is a known skin irritant, and can cause allergic reactions. Not something that you want near your most sensitive parts.
PFAs
PFAS - PFAs, are more commonly known as “forever chemicals” due to the fact that they don’t break down. We are exposed to these on an almost daily basis, and it’s estimated that the majority of us will have PFAs in our bloodstream.
Used to repel water, stains, and as a lubricant, they are used to stop pulp sticking to machines in toilet paper manufacture, and have now been shown to have potential long term impacts on our health. This includes decreased fertility, and links to certain cancers.
These are especially important to be aware of if you're somebody with sensitive skin.
What to Look For in an Eco-Friendly Toilet Paper?
Luckily, there are more and more eco-friendly toilet papers available that are kind to both the environment, and your health. There are two main types of eco-friendly toilet paper that are now readily available.
Recycled Paper
Toilet paper made from recycled paper is much kinder to the environment as it’s not causing trees to be cut down — it’s using paper that may have ended up in a landfill or an incinerator instead.
The majority of paper used in recycled toilet paper products comes from post consumer waste, meaning things like old office supplies.
While it might feel and look a little different from standard toilet paper it’s actually pretty close to the original and is the most eco-friendly option on the market.
It's also reported that recycled toilet paper is less harmful to your septic tank due to the short fibers and less harmful chemicals.
Unfortunately, it is still likely to contain some PFAS and sometimes BPA as well, as they would have appeared in the original paper.
Bamboo
Bamboo is a fast growing grass that is perfect for a range of eco-friendly products — including toilet paper. Due to how fast it grows, it’s seen as a completely sustainable product, unlike the trees used in standard toilet paper.
Bamboo is also incredibly strong. This means that it makes great quality, soft, strong toilet paper, plus you won’t have any of the ‘fluff’ that comes from conventional toilet paper.
Bamboo does still require resources to grow, such as water, and still needs to be processed into the final product, but is much more eco-friendly than the standard alternative.
One of the main things to look out for when shopping for eco-friendly paper is whether it contains dyes or is bleached at all.
Most companies will have this at the forefront of their packaging or website, and they won’t be shy about telling consumers that their product is BPA free.
It’s always good to look out for this, as more and more greenwashing companies make claims of using recycled paper, when this only makes up a fraction of the actual product.
Reduce Your Use of Toilet Paper & Choose a Bidet
Bidets are a great option for using less toilet paper and can be a more sanitary option! I just recently started using a bidet and am so happy with this sustainable swap!
It has for sure reduced the toilet paper use in our household! Here is the bidet attachment we have in our house!
Hello Tushy's Bidet Attachment
Eco-friendly toilet paper isn’t the only alternative available. Many countries around the world use a bidet to clean themselves, and it’s much more eco-friendly than any toilet paper.
Using just 1 pint of water each time, Hello Tushy makes bidet attachments for your existing toilet, so you can feel squeaky clean in no time. Plus, every Tushy sold helps to build clean toilets for around the world.
I've personally been using Hello Tushy's Classic 3.0 Bidet and I love it works! My husband and I were easily able to install the bidet to our regular toilet!
When I use my Tushy Bidet, it leaves me feeling clean and confident knowing I chose a more sustainable option and reduced my use of toilet paper. I really feel like it cleans my tushy better than toilet paper!
Where can I buy these sustainable alternatives?
There are a variety of places you can purchase eco-friendly toilet paper alternatives!
You can purchase from the brands website's directly above.
Consider checking online stores such as the Zero Waste Store or Package Free Shop.
If you're looking for convenience Amazon does sell some of the eco-friendly toilet paper listed above.
Check your local stores such as Target as these stores have been known to carry bamboo toilet paper in stores.
There you have it, hopefully you’ve now learned a little more about how standard toilet paper is made, and why it can be damaging to both the environment, and to our health.
Luckily, there are great alternatives out there.
Hopefully this eco-friendly toilet paper guide helped you find a more sustainable choice.
