My grandma swears by a simple stain-removing bar. I compared it with my favorite spray stain remover and found the cheaper one was more effective. (2024)

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When I went away to college, I bought a strain remover that worked so well it went with me everywhere I moved. A few years later, my grandmother introduced me to her favorite remedy for spots.

As someone who is constantly spilling food or splashing drinks on my clothes, I knew I needed a top-of-the-line stain remover in case of emergencies. Once I discovered Grandma's Secret Spot Remover, I was hooked.

A few years later, I moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, and found myself without a stain remover because I lost it during the move. My mom reminded me of Fels-Naptha, a detergent bar and stain remover by Purex that my grandmother introduced to us. It got a chocolate stain out for me right away, but I was curious if it was any better than my favorite.

The Fels-Naptha soap bar is available for $1.20 at Walmart, while Grandma's Secret Spot Remover and Laundry Spray cost $5.94 at the same store. I decided to compare the two products on some of the most common stains in a head-to-head battle.

I decided to try the spot removers on three stains I encounter the most: olive oil, concealer, and grass.

Both the Fels-Naptha bar and Grandma's spot remover work on a wide range of stains, so I wanted to put them to the test against my unavoidable summer stains. I also liked that each stain was different from the others — the olive oil was greasy, the concealer had pigment, and the grass was mixed with dirt.

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Because I don't wear a lot of white, I bought a pack of gray T-shirts for my experiment.

I labeled each collar so I would remember which shirt was assigned to each product. I accidentally switched them and had to re-label anyway, but in the end, each shirt was still dedicated to one stain remover.

After applying even stains to each shirt, I let them sit for 24 hours so they could really set. I sometimes discover spots on my clothes days after I stain them, so I wanted to see which was better for tough smudges.

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The instructions on the back of the Grandma's Secret Spot Remover bottle were very simple.

Under a list of all the stains that Grandma's Spot Remover works on, I found a few lines of direction on the back of the product.

I didn't need to worry about my shirt's "colorfastness" (a piece of dyed clothing's resistance to fading), so I skipped to the next step. I tried to spray as evenly as I could on each stain, but the first thing I noticed was that the nozzle sprayed everywhere. I knew it would come out in the wash, but it was annoying to clean up my floors later.

The bottle then instructed me to work the product in "thoroughly" before washing as usual, so I rubbed it in with the nozzle and my fingers until I could see the stains start to lift.

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This is what the first shirt looked like after I rubbed the product into all three stains.

Grandma's Secret Spot Remover needed to sit on each stain for five to 10 minutes, so I let the product work its magic while I moved on to the other shirt.

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The Fels-Naptha instructions were even simpler than the Grandma's Spot Remover directions — but they required a trip to the sink.

The Fels-Naptha directions said to wet the stain before rubbing the bright yellow bar in, so I ran each stain under the faucet for a few seconds.

Because it's a solid bar of soap, I had to put in a little more elbow grease to make sure the water activated the product. Things went smoothly for the concealer and grass stains, but I hit a snag when I got to the olive oil — because I wet the area, I could no longer see where the grease stain was. The best I could do was guess and apply the bar to the whole area.

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There weren't as many splash stains on this shirt, but there was still a lot of water all over.

The Fels-Naptha bar sat on each stain for a minute before both shirts took a trip to the washing machine.

After washing the shirts for 40 minutes, I put them in the dryer on a gentle cycle for another 40 minutes.

Upon close inspection, I realized the Fels-Naptha shirt came out completely clean.

I was definitely shocked when I saw how great the results were from the stain removal bar. I didn't think I'd be able to wear either shirt after my test, but I was able to fold this one up and put it away for future use.

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At first, I thought the Grandma's spray come out clean, too. Once I compared photos, I realized the olive oil left a large stain in the bottom left corner.

The instructions on the bottle say you can rinse thoroughly and repeat if necessary, so I knew the second shirt wasn't a total loss. The grass stain and concealer pigment came out without a hitch, even after sitting on the cotton material for so long.

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After seeing the results of my experiment, I realized I liked the Fels-Naptha bar a little bit more.

Ultimately, I liked the Fels-Naptha bar better for my most frequent stains. Although it required a little more work, it got all of them out on the first try. It's also a multi-use product — it can be shaved down and used as a laundry booster — and the packaging is more sustainable. The lower price was also a huge benefit for me.

I still love Grandma's Spot Remover. It also comes in a mini version that you can squeeze out, so it's easier to travel with if I'm going on a trip or headed to a special event.

I'll continue to compare the two on the myriad of stains I'm sure I'll encounter in my life, but for now, my grandma can claim victory.