Products · Cleaning & laundry · Branch Basics

Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance Free

A fragrance-free, PVA-free dishwasher tablet that EWG lists as Verified. Eleven ingredients, one a synthetic polymer, although the page says “no plastic”. About 39 cents a tablet, no independent cleaning test, and a paid influencer program.

Best for People who want a dishwasher tablet with an EWG Verified listing and no film wrapper, and who accept the price and some marketing that runs ahead of the label.

Our rating: Fair (3.2 of 5)
Price range: Premium
Verified marks: EWG Verified
Size: 38 tablets in a pouch; a 2-pack is $29

approx. $15 for 38 tablets

See it on Branch Basics’s site → (opens in a new tab)

We are not affiliated with Branch Basics. This link goes to the maker’s own page, with no tracking code. How we're funded.

Also sold at Target ($14.99 for 38 tablets), Amazon ($23.67 for 60 tablets) .

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How we evaluated it

How it scores Our rating, metric by metric Fair, 3.2 of 5

Ingredients 35% of the rating 4 of 5

Eleven named ingredients with no fragrance, dye, preservative or PVA film, but one is a synthetic polymer, the surfactant is manufactured, the enzymes carry no allergen note and the “plant-based binder” the page mentions is not named.
Cleans well 20% of the rating 2 of 5

We found no independent cleaning test, and the 4.8 stars from 2,395 reviews are on the maker’s own page.
Independent testing 15% of the rating 3 of 5

EWG lists it as Verified, a label review the maker pays for, while MADE SAFE does not list these tablets and we found no lab test of the finished tablet.
Trust 10% of the rating 3 of 5

The page says the tablets “contain no plastic” and are made of “plant and mineral based natural ingredients” though the label lists a synthetic polymer, its Amazon listing calls them MADE SAFE Certified though MADE SAFE does not list them, and the maker offers influencers 5% to 20% commission, but we found no recall or lawsuit.
Value 20% of the rating 3 of 5

About 39 cents a tablet ($15 for 38, $29 for 76, about 36 cents on subscription) is in the same band as Blueland and Dirty Labs, and Consumer Reports found dishwasher detergents run from 7 to 57 cents a load.

The rating, 3.2 of 5, is the weighted average of these scores. See how we rank cleaning & laundry and our standard.

Where to buy Stores and the prices we saw 2 stores

Target (opens in a new tab) approx. $14.99 for 38 tablets. The same 38-count fragrance-free pouch at the maker’s price, shown in stock on 2026-11-03 with no separate seller named. Branch Basics lists Target on its where-to-buy page.
Amazon (opens in a new tab) approx. $23.67 for 60 tablets. Sold by BranchBasics, the brand’s own seller account. Amazon lists only 60-tablet and 120-tablet packs, not the 38-count pouch; $23.67 for 60 is about 39 cents a tablet, the same as the maker’s 38 for $15.

Prices as we saw them on October 23, 2026. They change often. These links carry no tracking code and earn us nothing.

What’s in it Every ingredient, in label order 11 ingredients

Sodium carbonate
Sodium percarbonate
Citric acid
Sodium citrate
Poly (itaconic acid-co-AMPS) sodium salt
Sodium gluconate
Protease
Sodium metasilicate
Amylase
Sodium lauryl sulfoacetate
Potassium caprylate

Who tested it What each test found, and who paid for it 1 test

Paid certification EWG Verified December 20, 2024

EWG’s Guide to Healthy Cleaning lists “Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance Free” as EWG Verified with ingredient disclosure rated good; data last updated December 20, 2024, with 11 ingredients matching the maker’s page. EWG reviews the label and the maker pays to be verified. We read this on 2026-10-22; EWG’s site was behind a human check on 2026-10-23. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Who paid, and why it matters

Independent The tester took no money from the maker for it: a consumer group, a journalist, a university or a regulator.
Paid certification An outside lab or certifier tested or listed it, and the maker paid for that.
Maker’s own test A lab report or certificate of analysis the maker commissioned and published.

A certification is a floor, not a verdict: it checks what its program checks and nothing else. We weigh tests by someone with no stake in the result most.

What people ask Worries raised online and elsewhere, and what we found 4 questions

Is “no plastic” and “microplastic-free” true?: The tablets have no PVA film, which the page says in so many words. PVA is the water-soluble plastic around most pods. A modelling study estimated that most of it ends up in the environment through sludge or water (Rolsky and Kelkar, PMID 34205161 (opens in a new tab); it measured no health effect). When a petition led by Blueland asked EPA to require PVA testing, EPA denied it in 2023 (opens in a new tab), saying the petition did not show the existing data were insufficient. So the evidence of harm from PVA is unsettled in both directions. These tablets lack it. But the label does list poly(itaconic acid-co-AMPS) sodium salt, a synthetic water-soluble polymer used as a water softener, and the page says the tablets “contain no plastic or fillers”. We found no study of that polymer’s fate, so the claim is looser than it sounds.
Can dishwasher detergent damage your gut?: A 2023 lab study found that rinse aid from professional dishwashers damaged gut-cell barriers because of alcohol ethoxylates that stayed on washed dishes (Ogulur et al., PMID 36464527 (opens in a new tab)). It used cell cultures and organoids, not people. These tablets list no alcohol ethoxylate and no rinse aid.
Do influencers get paid to promote it?: Yes. Branch Basics’ affiliate program (opens in a new tab) gives creators a 15% code for their audience and pays commission of 5% to 20% by tier. Mamavation offers readers a 15% code on Branch Basics, and its laundry post (opens in a new tab) says it contains affiliate links.
Are the enzymes a problem?: The label lists protease and amylase and the page gives no allergen note. ECOS flags amylase as an EU-listed respiratory sensitizer on its own gel page. We found no study of consumer harm from detergent enzymes. All four dishwasher products here contain enzymes.

Why we chose it What put it on our list 4 points

EWG’s own directory lists “Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance Free” as EWG Verified, with ingredient disclosure rated good. EWG’s data was last updated December 20, 2024.
The 11 ingredients on Branch Basics’ page match the 11 in EWG’s listing, so the listing appears to cover today’s formula.
Branch Basics says each tablet is PVA-free, so there is no film wrapper to dissolve.
Price is clear: $15 for 38 tablets, or $29 for two bags, about 38 to 39 cents a tablet.

Trade-offs What to weigh before you buy 4 points

It costs about 39 cents a load before any discount.
The pouch is plastic. Branch Basics says the formula is biodegradable but the packaging is not.
The label includes manufactured ingredients as well as minerals: a polymer (poly(itaconic acid-co-AMPS) sodium salt) and sodium lauryl sulfoacetate. It also includes sodium percarbonate, an oxygen bleach, and sodium metasilicate, an alkaline builder.
EWG Verified is the only independent mark we confirmed. EPA’s Safer Choice table has no Branch Basics rows, and MADE SAFE’s Branch Basics page lists four products, not these tablets.

What to know Details worth knowing first

For the questions that matter when you choose a cleaner, see our guide to common cleaning products: is there fragrance, and is every ingredient listed? These tablets answer both on the label and in EWG’s directory, which lists them as EWG Verified.

Branch Basics also says each tablet is PVA-free, so there is no dissolving film around it, and that is true of the label. The page goes further, though, saying the tablets “contain no plastic”, while the label includes a synthetic water-soluble polymer. We read that as marketing running a little ahead of the label.

The costs are price, plastic packaging and proof. At about 39 cents a tablet it is a premium price, the pouch is not biodegradable, and we found no independent cleaning test. A budget gel with an EPA listing sits at the other end of the range.

What we checked Each claim, and how sure we are of it 10 checks

How Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance Free measures up against our cleaning & laundry criteria
What we checked	What we found
Full ingredient disclosure Maker’s claim	Eleven ingredients on the product page, named but without CAS numbers on the page we read. EWG’s listing shows the same 11 under its own names. The page also mentions a “plant-based binder” without naming it.
Independent mark: EWG Verified Verified	EWG’s Guide to Healthy Cleaning shows the product with the EWG Verified mark and “Ingredient disclosure: good”. Data last updated December 20, 2024. We read this on 2026-10-22 and could not reopen EWG’s page on 2026-10-23.
Independent mark: MADE SAFE Not verified	MADE SAFE’s Branch Basics page lists The Concentrate, Oxygen Boost, Hand Soap (Fragrance Free) and Beeswax Candle. The tablets are not among them, although the maker’s Amazon listing for its 60-tablet pack calls them MADE SAFE Certified.
Independent mark: EPA Safer Choice Not verified	No Branch Basics rows in EPA’s Safer Choice products table (queried 2026-10-23).
Fragrance-free Maker’s claim	The product name and label say fragrance free, and no fragrance is listed. EWG’s Verified mark requires full disclosure including fragrance.
“No plastic” claim Maker’s claim	No PVA film, as the page says. The label lists a synthetic water-soluble polymer, so “contain no plastic or fillers” is looser than the label.
Independent cleaning test Not verified	None found. The page shows customer reviews and before-and-after photos, which are the maker’s own.
Concentrates and refills Maker’s claim	Plain tablets, one per load, with no film wrapper, in a plastic pouch. There is no refill; the maker says the packaging is not biodegradable.
PFAS Maker’s claim	No fluorinated ingredient on the label. We found no independent PFAS test of this product.
Honest germ claims Maker’s claim	No germ-killing claim on the page.

What the labels mean

Verified We opened an independent record that confirms it: a certifier’s listing, a regulator’s list or a lab report. It is linked under Sources.
Maker’s claim The maker says so on its own page or label. We read it but found no independent record.
Not verified We looked and could not confirm it, or the maker does not say. Treat it as unknown.

Sources Where our facts come from 10 sources

Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets product page. Maker’s page. Price, count, ingredients and “no plastic” wording as seen 2026-10-23. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, 60 count, Amazon listing. Maker’s page. Sold by Branch Basics. Its bullet points call the tablets EWG Verified, MadeSafe Certified and Leaping Bunny Certified. It is a 60-tablet pack, not the 38-tablet pouch priced here. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Branch Basics affiliate program. Maker’s page. 15% audience code and 5% to 20% commission by tier. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
EWG Guide to Healthy Cleaning: Branch Basics Dishwasher Tablets, Fragrance Free. Certifier or regulator listing. Carries the EWG Verified mark. EWG’s site blocks automated fetches. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
MADE SAFE directory: Branch Basics products. Certifier or regulator listing. Shows which Branch Basics products are certified. These tablets are not listed. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Rolsky and Kelkar 2021: Degradation of polyvinyl alcohol in US wastewater treatment plants. Test report. Int J Environ Res Public Health. A model built on a consumer survey and a literature review; it estimates where PVA from pods ends up and measures no health effect. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
EPA, Federal Register: Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA); TSCA Section 21 Petition for Rulemaking; Denial of Requested Rulemaking. Certifier or regulator listing. April 27, 2023. EPA’s reasons for denying a petition, led by Blueland, to require PVA testing. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Ogulur et al. 2023: Gut epithelial barrier damage caused by dishwasher detergents and rinse aids. Test report. J Allergy Clin Immunol. A cell-culture and organoid study; the damaging component was alcohol ethoxylates in rinse aid. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Mamavation: Safest Green Laundry Detergents for Sensitive Skin 2024. Independent source. Lists Branch Basics products with a 15% reader code and says the post has affiliate links. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Consumer Reports: Best Dishwasher Detergents. Test report. Updated May 8, 2026. Nearly 30 detergents tested, from 7 to 57 cents a load. Names no Branch Basics product on the free text. Open ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Alternatives Other options to compare 2 options

ECOS Dishwasher Gel, Free & Clear A budget gel at about $8 for 40 fl oz, with an EPA Safer Choice listing but no load count and no independent cleaning test.
Blueland Dishwasher Detergent Tablets, Fragrance-Free Plastic-free tablets at about 28 to 35 cents each, with a formula that changed after its EWG review.

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