By Zach Pozniak, VP of Operations at Jeeves of Belgravia New York and fourth-generation dry cleaner · @jeeves_ny
Last reviewed October 2026 · lab-tested for my August 2025 review · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Tide Odor Refresh liquid is out of stock on Amazon, so its links go to the pods version; the score is for the liquid I tested.
Quick answer: Foca powder ↗ scored 56.9 in my lab test and costs about 10 cents a load, half the 20-cent average, which makes it one of the most inexpensive detergents on the market. I recommend it, and it was one of my three best value products of 2025.
Two things to know first. It is really weak in cold water, so wash warm or hot. And it is full of perfume, so if you have sensitive skin you will probably have a tough time with it.
| Product | Foca powdered laundry detergent ↗, reviewed August 2025 |
|---|---|
| Performance score | 56.9 |
| Measured against | Tide Hygienic Pods ↗ at 100, washing with water alone at 1 |
| Cost per load | About 10 cents, against a 20-cent average |
| What is in it | Surfactants, enzymes, water softeners and bleach |
| Water temperature | Really weak in cold water; use warm or hot |
| Ingredient safety | A ton of perfume, so a hard product for sensitive skin |
| My verdict | I recommend Foca ↗. Its performance and price are pretty unbeatable. |
Foca ↗ surprised me in the best way possible. It scored 56.9, and when I reviewed it in August 2025 that put it in my top 10. I have tested more detergents since then and several have landed above it, so the score is the number to go by, more than the rank.
The reason it cleans this well for the money is what is in the bag: a powerful mixture of surfactants, enzymes, water softeners and bleach.
Every detergent goes through the same lab test, built on the AISE industry-standard method. White cotton swatches get 18 different stains across five categories, they are washed at cold, warm and hot water temperatures, and a spectrometer reads each stain before and after the wash. The difference becomes a percentage of stain removed, which is scaled into the score. I do not judge stains by eye.
Washing with water alone scores 1. Tide Hygienic Pods ↗ score 100, and my whole board is built around that number. The highest score I have given is Ariel 2X powder ↗ at 102.4. So 56.9 is a middle-of-the-board result, and at 10 cents a load it is a very good one.
The caveat that goes with every score I publish applies here: this is purely performance. Price, formulation, ingredient safety and packaging belong in your decision too, and with Foca ↗ the low price is the main reason to buy it and the perfume is the main reason not to.
Cold water. Foca ↗ is really weak in cold water. That is common for most powder detergents, so I would really recommend using higher wash temperatures with it. My washing temperature guide covers which loads can take warm or hot water.
Perfume. On ingredient safety, it has a ton of perfume in it, and people with sensitive skin will probably have a tough time with it. If that is you, start with my tested free and clear picks instead.
In my 2025 award show Foca was one of my three best value products, alongside the Kirkland liquid and Ariel 2X powder ↗. In the long version of that video I also pointed to it as an example of the midfield, the big middle of my board: still a good performer and really inexpensive, and probably a great choice for a lot of people. Sitting in the middle does not necessarily make a detergent bad, and Foca ↗ was the example I gave.
Against Ariel 2X powder. This is the comparison to make if you are shopping for a cheap powder. Ariel 2X powder ↗ scored 102.4, the highest score I have given, at about 7 cents a load. Like Foca ↗, it is heavily perfumed, and I have called it heavy and messy to use. If perfume does not bother you, Ariel scored far higher for less money per load. My Ariel 2X review has the details.
Against Kirkland. The Kirkland liquid scored 80.0 and the Kirkland pods 97.4, both at 15 cents a load, and the liquid comes in a free and clear version. It costs a little more than Foca ↗ and cleans better. It is a Costco product. My Kirkland review covers both.
Every product I have scored is in my tested laundry detergent rankings.
You want solid cleaning for about 10 cents a load, you wash warm or hot, and perfume does not bother you.
You wash mostly in cold water, or you have sensitive skin. For sensitive skin, a free and clear detergent such as Tide Odor Refresh ↗ at 96.9 is the safer place to start.
Yes, for the price. Foca ↗ powder scored 56.9 in my lab test, against Tide Hygienic Pods ↗ at 100 and washing with water alone at 1, and it costs about 10 cents a load. I recommend it and named it one of my three best value products of 2025. It needs warm or hot water, and it is full of perfume.
About 10 cents a load when I reviewed it, half the 20-cent average. That makes it one of the most inexpensive detergents on the market.
Not well. Foca ↗ is really weak in cold water, which is common for most powder detergents. Use warm or hot water with it.
Probably not. It has a ton of perfume in it, and people with sensitive skin will probably have a tough time with it. A free and clear detergent is the better choice.
No. Ariel 2X powder ↗ scored 102.4 against Foca ↗'s 56.9, and it costs about 7 cents a load against Foca's 10. Both are heavily perfumed powders. Both were among my best value products of 2025.
A mixture of surfactants, enzymes, water softeners and bleach. That combination is why it cleans as well as it does for the price.
Foca powder ↗ scored 56.9 at about 10 cents a load, and I recommend it: its performance and price are pretty unbeatable. Wash it warm or hot, because it is weak in cold water, and skip it if perfume bothers your skin. Plus, it has a cute little seal on the logo.
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Zach Pozniak is VP of Operations and co-owner of Jeeves of Belgravia New York, the Madison Avenue dry cleaner serving New York since 1979, and the fourth generation of his family in the trade. Zach posts garment care techniques as @jeeves_ny on TikTok to over 900,000 followers, and his book The Laundry Book, co-written with his father Jerry Pozniak, was featured on Good Morning America in October 2024. Jeeves NY's clients include the Metropolitan Opera, the Met Museum, and FIT, and the business has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and New York Magazine.