Cleaning product statistics span household labor, spending, reported exposures, respiratory-health associations and measured indoor-air emissions. The figures below distinguish U.S. national estimates from poison-center reports, observational studies, controlled experiments and small residential monitoring campaigns.
Key Cleaning Product Statistics
The most broadly useful figures are:
- In 2024, 80.4% of Americans age 15 and older participated in household activities on an average day.
- In 2024, people age 15 and older averaged 2.01 hours per day in household activities in the United States.
- In 2024, 37.0% of Americans age 15 and older did housework on an average day, averaging 0.62 hours across the population.
- In 2024, housework participants averaged 1.68 hours on days they did housework in the United States.
- In 2023, housekeeping supplies accounted for 1.1% of average consumer-unit expenditures in the United States.
- In 2023, average annual housekeeping-supplies spending was $929 per consumer unit in the United States.
- In the 2020 EPA Chemical Data Reporting universe, cleaning and furnishing care products involved 685 chemicals, 243 sites and 1,955 reports.
- U.S. poison centers recorded 180,493 household-cleaning-product exposures in 2010.
- In 2010, laundry detergents accounted for 8,685 reported household-cleaner exposures, or 4.8%.
- From 1990 to 2006, emergency-department visits for children exposed to household cleaning products fell 46% in the United States.
- In a 2018 French adult cohort, 62% reported weekly use of at least one household disinfectant or cleaning product.
- In a 2018 French cross-sectional analysis, almost-daily disinfecting-wipe use was associated with uncontrolled asthma at OR 3.51.
- In a 10-country European longitudinal study, 42% of 3,503 asthma-free participants used cleaning sprays at least weekly.
- In that study, weekly spray use was associated with incident asthma symptoms or medication at RR 1.49.
- A 21-week study of two occupied homes found post-cleaning concentration enhancements for about 60% of measured VOCs and 80% of measured SVOCs.
- A U.S. chamber study of 30 cleaning products quantified 530 unique VOCs.
- In that chamber study, total VOC concentration ranged from below detection to 18,708 micrograms per cubic meter.
- In simulated bathroom cleaning, mean TVOC exposure was 1,210 ppb for a quaternary-ammonium-compound product.
- In the same simulation, 13 of 22 home-care aides had peak chlorine exposures above the OSHA 1-ppm ceiling while using the bleach-based product.
Contents
- Household cleaning time and chores
- Cleaning product spending and market footprint
- Exposure and poisoning statistics
- Asthma and respiratory-health data
- Indoor-air emissions after cleaning
- Conventional, green and disinfecting comparisons
Household Cleaning Time and Chore Statistics
The American Time Use Survey measures primary activities in diary data, so its household-activity figures describe the time context in which cleaning products may be used rather than product use itself. In 2024, 80.4% of the U.S. civilian population age 15 and older engaged in household activities on an average day, and the population average was 2.01 hours per day. American Time Use Survey, 2024 A01 results
Housework is narrower than all household activities, but it still includes more than cleaning products. The 2024 measures were:
| Measure | 2024 U.S. result | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Housework participation | 37.0% | Age 15+ on an average day |
| Average time across the population | 0.62 hours/day | Age 15+ |
| Average among housework participants | 1.68 hours/participant-day | Participants only |
| Food preparation and cleanup participation | 63.1% | Age 15+ on an average day |
| Food preparation and cleanup time | 1.06 hours/day | Across the population |
Participation also varied by sex and employment status. Women’s household-activity participation was 86.6%, compared with 73.9% for men; on participation days, women averaged 2.71 hours and men 2.26 hours.
Adults living with children under 18 who were not employed averaged 2.9 hours of household activities, versus 1.8 hours for employed adults. American Time Use Survey, 2024 A01 results
The diary-day pattern was modestly different across activity groups. Housework participation was 41% on weekend days and 36% on weekdays, while food preparation and cleanup participation was 64% on weekdays and 62% on weekend days.
These are diary-day comparisons, not counts of cleaning-product applications. American Time Use Survey, 2024 A01 results
Cleaning Product Spending Statistics and Market Footprint
BLS consumer-expenditure categories provide a household-spending view, but housekeeping supplies include more than cleaning chemicals. The category represented 1.1% of average consumer-unit expenditures in 2023, compared with 1.4% in 2020 and 1.2% in 2021.
| Year | Housekeeping-supplies share | Average annual spending per consumer unit |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1.4% | $818 |
| 2021 | 1.2% | $573 |
| 2022 | 1.1% | $470 |
| 2023 | 1.1% | $929 |
These are reported BLS consumer-unit averages and nominal expenditure shares, not an inflation-adjusted cleaning-product market-growth series. Consumer expenditures in 2023
Broader household categories add context but should not be relabeled as cleaning products. Household operations accounted for 2.6% of spending in 2023, up from 2.4% in 2020, while household furnishings and equipment represented 3.2% in 2023 versus 4.0% in 2021. Consumer expenditures in 2023
EPA’s 2020 Chemical Data Reporting counts show the scale of regulated reporting rather than retail sales. Cleaning and furnishing care products were associated with 685 chemicals, 243 sites and 1,955 reports; laundry and dishwashing products had 536 chemicals, 166 sites and 1,799 reports, while air-care products had 390 chemicals, 44 sites and 1,377 reports. EPA Commercial and/or Consumer Use Data
The same CDR table recorded 94 consumer chemicals, 6 sites and 692 reports for odor agents in cleaning and furnishing care products, and 139 chemicals, 5 sites and 815 reports for odor agents in laundry and dishwashing products. These use/function counts are not unique retail-product counts. EPA Commercial and/or Consumer Use Data
Household Cleaning Product Exposure and Poisoning Statistics
Poison-center and emergency-department figures capture reported cases, not every exposure in the population. U.S. poison centers recorded 180,493 household-cleaning-product exposures in 2010, including 8,685 laundry-detergent exposures, or 4.8%; laundry detergents represented 5.7% of reported household-cleaner exposures in 2000. CDC, Health Hazards Associated with Laundry Detergent Pods
The longer ED trend also has a defined scope. Visits for children exposed to household cleaning products fell 46% from 1990 to 2006 in a NEISS trend analysis, and all detergent exposures accounted for 7.2% of children’s household-cleaner exposure ED visits during that period. CDC, Health Hazards Associated with Laundry Detergent Pods
International pod and capsule studies illustrate why product form and geography matter:
- In a U.K. poison-center study, 96% of laundry-pod exposures occurred in children age 5 or younger, and ingestion was the route in 80% of cases in that child group.
- In a Milan poison-center study covering 2010–2011, 76% of liquid-capsule exposures were symptomatic, compared with 27% of traditional-detergent exposures.
The U.K. and Milan results come from different poison-center systems and cannot be treated as U.S. population incidence rates. CDC, Health Hazards Associated with Laundry Detergent Pods
Cleaning Products, Asthma and Respiratory-Health Data
The French NutriNet-Sante analysis included 37,043 adults with a mean age of 47 years; 75% were women. In the 2018 questionnaire, 62% reported weekly use of at least one household disinfectant or cleaning product. Household Use of Green Cleaning Products, Disinfecting Wipes, and Asthma Control Among Adults
The reported asthma measures are associations from a cross-sectional analysis, not proof of causation. Almost-daily use was associated with uncontrolled asthma at OR 2.81 for irritant products, OR 2.40 for green products, OR 2.69 for sprays and OR 3.51 for disinfecting wipes; the reported confidence intervals were 1.97–4.00, 1.70–3.39, 1.97–3.68 and 2.31–5.33, respectively. Household Use of Green Cleaning Products, Disinfecting Wipes, and Asthma Control Among Adults
A separate longitudinal study followed 3,503 asthma-free participants across 10 European countries. At follow-up, 42% reported using cleaning sprays at least weekly; weekly spray use was associated with incident asthma symptoms or medication at RR 1.49 (95% CI 1.12–1.99) and wheeze at RR 1.39 (95% CI 1.06–1.80).
This was an observational longitudinal estimate, not a randomized exposure. The Use of Household Cleaning Sprays and Adult Asthma
Indoor-Air Emissions and Chemical Measurements After Cleaning
A 21-week observational monitoring campaign in two occupied single-family homes quantified more than 200 VOCs and 52 SVOCs. Post-cleaning concentration enhancements occurred for about 60% of measured VOCs and 80% of measured SVOCs, with some VOCs and lower-volatility SVOCs remaining elevated for more than 5 hours. Influence of Cleaning on Indoor Air Concentrations
Carpet-cleaner use was associated with direct 2-butoxyethanol emission that remained elevated for days in that campaign. These measurements describe two homes and compound-specific persistence, not a health-risk threshold or national exposure prevalence. Influence of Cleaning on Indoor Air Concentrations
A U.S. market chamber study tested 30 products: 14 conventional, 9 green with fragrance and 7 green fragrance-free. It quantified 530 unique VOCs and detected 205 additional VOCs below quantification limits; 193 quantified VOCs were classified as hazardous under either the California DTSC Candidate Chemicals List or the ECHA Classification and Labeling Inventory. Volatile organic compounds emitted by conventional and green cleaning products
Across the chamber products, total VOC concentration ranged from below detection to 18,708 micrograms per cubic meter. Total VOC emission factors ranged from below detection to 38,035 micrograms per gram of product and from below detection to 3,803 micrograms per application.
These are chamber measurements, not household exposure estimates. Volatile organic compounds emitted by conventional and green cleaning products
In a headspace analysis of 10 regular and 13 green cleaners, average total monoterpene concentration was 8.6 mg/L in regular cleaners and 25.0 mg/L in green cleaners. Headspace concentration is not indoor-air exposure, and the green classification was study-defined. Does green mean clean?
Conventional, Green and Disinfecting Product Comparisons
Controlled task studies show why product type, application method and ventilation matter. A simulated bathroom-cleaning experiment produced 169 air-sampling sessions with 22 home-care aides.
| Product used | Mean TVOC exposure |
|---|---|
| Quaternary-ammonium-compound product | 1,210 ppb |
| Bleach-based product | 593 ppb |
| Green product | 498 ppb |
The product categories and task were specific to the simulation, so the means do not establish a universal household safety ranking. Peak chlorine exposure exceeded the OSHA 1-ppm ceiling limit for 13 of 22 aides, or 65%, while they used the bleach-based product; that occupational benchmark is not a household-health threshold. Assessment of home care aides’ respiratory exposure
Separate surface-cleaning experiments measured PM2.5 increases of 0.7–14.5 micrograms per cubic meter and TVOC mixing-ratio increases of 10–104 ppbv, except in thymol experiments. Test-room volumes ranged from 22 to 206 cubic meters, and air-change rates ranged from 0.85 to 9.14 per hour; the study noted that PID sensors do not provide quantitative TVOC measurements. Particulate Matter and Total Volatile Organic Compound Emissions Following Surface Cleaning
Together, these results support careful interpretation: “green,” conventional and disinfecting labels describe study-defined product groups, while measured emissions depend on the product, application, room volume and ventilation. The studies quantify selected conditions and outcomes rather than providing a national estimate of household cleaning-product exposure.