Laundry detergent with a scent that lasts

Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent has the best record for a scent that lasts: 39 of 39 shoppers said clothes came out smelling good and stayed that way. Method Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent comes next at 35 of 39, ahead of Seventh Generation Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent at 26 of 33. Tide Pods Original has the weakest record here at 23 of 39.

  • 357 store reviews counted
  • Target shoppers
  • Oct 2023 to Oct 2026

Updated . How we count

Did the scent last? What shoppers said
  1. Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent 39 said either way
  2. Method Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent 39 said either way
  3. Seventh Generation Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent 33 said either way
  4. Tide Original Liquid Detergent 39 said either way
  5. Persil Oxi Liquid Detergent 34 said either way
  6. Tide Pods Free & Gentle 8 said either way
  7. Tide Pods Original 39 said either way

Share of shoppers who stated an outcome for scent. Ranked by the lower bound of a 90% confidence interval, so a product needs both a good share and enough reports to rank high.

Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent Best record Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent 39 of 39 say the scent lasts See price & reviews on Amazon
What stands out

A scent that's too strong is its own complaint. It shows up in 38% of Tide Pods Original reviews and 18% of Persil Oxi reviews, while Gain drew no complaints in the reviews we counted.

The ranking, product by product

Praise and complaints are the points shoppers repeat most, shown as a share of each product's counted store reviews.

1 Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent

Gain

Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent

Best for a scent that sticks around

39/39 say the scent lasts

Every shopper who weighed in said clothes kept the Moonlight Breeze scent (39 of 39), and no complaints turned up in the reviews we counted. Gain's own site agrees at 9 of 9, which we show but don't count.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 46%
  • Good value 10%
  • Gentle on clothes 5%
  • Removes odors 5%

What shoppers complain about

No repeated complaints yet.

Where shoppers said it
  • Target 39 of 39
  • Brand site 9 of 9 shown, not counted
2 Method Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent

Method

Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent

35/39 say the scent lasts

The Ginger Mango scent won over 35 of 39 shoppers, who said it lingered on their clothes. Price is the main gripe, at 8% of reviews.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 40%
  • Good value 18%
  • No skin reaction 8%

What shoppers complain about

  • Too expensive 8%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 35 of 39
  • Brand site 8 of 9 shown, not counted
3 Seventh Generation Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent

Seventh Generation

Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent

26/33 say the scent lasts

26 of 33 shoppers said the Fresh Lavender scent lasted on their clothes. 8% of reviews say odors stayed in after washing, and 8% say it doesn't clean well.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 41%
  • No skin reaction 18%
  • Good value 15%
  • Gentle on clothes 5%

What shoppers complain about

  • Odor stays 8%
  • Doesn't clean well 8%
  • Skin reaction or itch 8%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 26 of 33
  • Brand site 4 of 5 shown, not counted
4 Tide Original Liquid Detergent

Tide

Original Liquid Detergent

29/39 say the scent lasts

A large group weighed in on the Original scent (39), and 29 of 39 said it lasted. 10% of reviews find it too strong.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 49%
  • Good value 18%

What shoppers complain about

  • Scent too strong 10%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 29 of 39
  • Brand site 7 of 10 shown, not counted
5

Persil

Oxi Liquid Detergent

25/34 say the scent lasts

Cleaning power is the headline here, with 60% of reviews saying it cleans well. 25 of 34 said the scent lasted, and 10% say it got odors out.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 60%
  • Removes odors 10%
  • Good value 10%
  • No skin reaction 5%

What shoppers complain about

  • Scent too strong 18%
  • Odor stays 5%
  • Skin reaction or itch 5%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 25 of 34
  • Brand site 2 of 3 shown, not counted
6 Tide Pods Free & Gentle

Tide

Pods Free & Gentle

7/8 say the scent lasts

Few shoppers talked about scent with these Free & Gentle pods (8), and 7 of 8 said clothes came out smelling fresh. 62% of reviews say the pods clean well.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 63%
  • No skin reaction 33%
  • Removes odors 8%
  • Gentle on clothes 8%
  • Good value 5%

What shoppers complain about

  • Too expensive 5%
  • Leaves residue 5%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 7 of 8
  • Brand site 5 of 5 shown, not counted
7

Tide

Pods Original

23/39 say the scent lasts

These pods have the weakest record here at 23 of 39, and reviews copied from Tide's site are split too at 5 of 10, which we show but don't count. 42% still say the pods clean well.

What shoppers praise

  • Cleans well 43%

What shoppers complain about

  • Scent too strong 38%
Where shoppers said it
  • Target 23 of 39
  • Brand site 5 of 10 shown, not counted

Share of 40 store reviews that mention each point. A full bar is 50%.

Where these numbers come from

The 7 products ranked here carry 35,253 reviews at Target. We read the newest reviews of each product (up to a thousand per listing), kept the ones that talk about scent, and counted up to 40 per product, posted between Oct 2023 and Oct 2026.

A review counts only when the reviewer used the product themselves. We drop reviews written in exchange for a free product or a sweepstakes entry (0 on this page), and products that are no longer sold.

Target also shows reviews first posted on brands' own websites. We show them on product cards but never count them, because brand-site reviews run more positive than store reviews of the same products.

Because we searched for the problem, people who had it are overrepresented. Compare products with each other rather than reading a share as your own odds.

We count what shoppers report. Nothing here is safety advice: use heaters, fans and other appliances as the maker's manual says.

Amazon buttons appear only on products that most shoppers here say fix the problem (at least 60%, with enough reviews to trust it). Everything else gets no buy link.

An AI model labels each review against a fixed list of points, and we spot-check the labels before publishing. We publish counts, never the reviews themselves.

Read the full method

Product pages we read

  1. Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent Target (39 reviews counted)
  2. Method Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent Target (40 reviews counted)
  3. Seventh Generation Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent Target (39 reviews counted)
  4. Tide Original Liquid Detergent Target (39 reviews counted)
  5. Persil Oxi Liquid Detergent Target (40 reviews counted)
  6. Tide Pods Free & Gentle Target (40 reviews counted)
  7. Tide Pods Original Target (40 reviews counted)

Questions buyers ask

Which laundry detergent scent lasts the longest?

Gain Moonlight Breeze Liquid Detergent has the best record (39 of 39). Method Ginger Mango Laundry Detergent (35 of 39) and Seventh Generation Fresh Lavender Laundry Detergent (26 of 33) come next.

Do Tide Pods make clothes smell good?

The Original pods split shoppers: 23 of 39 said the scent lasted, and 38% of reviews call it too strong. Tide Original Liquid Detergent did better at 29 of 39.

Is the Gain Moonlight Breeze scent too strong?

Not for the shoppers we counted. None of its reviews call the scent too strong, and 39 of 39 said it lasted. If you'd rather keep scent light, 7 of 8 shoppers said Tide Pods Free & Gentle left clothes smelling fresh, from a smaller group.

How can I make my laundry smell good longer?

Follow the dose on the label and move clothes out of the washer soon after the cycle ends. Clothes that sit damp can turn musty no matter which detergent you use.

Related problems

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HiveTried earns a commission when you buy through the "See price & reviews on Amazon" buttons. It never changes the ranking: the order comes from buyer reports only, and a product gets an Amazon button only when buyers here say it works.