I’ve written dozens of detailed reviews of sustainable products, so consider this your cheat sheet: Use this page to find my top recommendations and discount codes, all in one place.
Along with making great products that I’ve personally used & recommend to friends, all of these companies have the strongest sustainability credentials you can find in their categories. Most are plastic-free and vegan. Many offer unique designs and refillable packaging that make it easier to waste less.
Note: Many of these are affiliate links. If you click them and place an order (or in some cases, if you use my discount code), I’ll earn a commission. I only ever feature brands I’ve researched, tested, used, and found to be ethically and environmentally sound. So if you plan to order from these companies, clicking through my links first does a lot to support Tilted Map. Thank you! (And most of them save you money, through exclusive discounts these brands have offered Tilted Map readers.)
Other Resource Pages:
- Travel companies I recommend, discounts & travel booking sites
- My favorite blogging & website resources
Plastic-Free Toiletries
The Basics
Bite started out as "just" my favorite brand for plastic-free toothpaste tablets, but now they also make my favorite refillable deodorant, great bar soaps, plastic-free teeth whiteners, and a lot more.
Hoopsy is more than 99% accurate (just like the standard brands) and 99% made out of paper. A brilliant alternative to home pregnancy tests that drowning in plastic packaging!
High-quality toiletry basics that are entirely plastic-free and refillable – from shampoos to dental care.
I’ve tried most of their products, and my favorites are their refillable floss, and refillable hand sanitizer, both of which I've used for years and always come back to, despite testing lots of other brands.
The Canadian company ATTITUDE makes the best plastic-free sunscreen I've tried, along with dozens of other plastic-free skincare, makeup and personal care products.
Not everything they make is plastic-free, but they do have a lot of great options that are hard to find elsewhere (eg: sunscreen) and I'm currently testing a couple... dozen of their products!
Review coming soon!
Refillable Skincare
All of the brands below use top-quality, vegan and cruelty-free ingredients, and have made it through many rounds of testing.
Unique, clinical-quality skincare in glass bottles that are actually refillable – reducing CO2 emissions by 99% and plastic waste by 75%. Activist makes several formulas of each product for different skin types, so check out my review for details!
You can test the entire line on your skin with their trial kit, then use the refillable minis for travel, as I do.
This small brand makes the most sustainable skincare products I've ever found – with refillable metal containers and refills in paper. Plus with zero liquids, they're uniquely ideal for travel.
Their solid Vitamin C serum is the cornerstone of my daily routine, and their powdered face wash is also fantastic.
As an alternative to Dew Mighty (especially for my readers in the EU and UK) SBTRCT offers a fantastic range of solid, plastic-free skincare products, in beautifully designed, refillable bamboo packaging. (Including the only plastic-free retinol I've found.)
Rebrand makes the simplest skincare routine I've found – 5 products total (including a lip balm and a face oil), with double-sized refills in aluminum packaging at a significant discount.
If you're looking for a simple, refillable cleanser–serum–moisturizer routine, Rebrand is where I'd recommend starting. I've asked several friends to try these products – everyone likes them!
This brand might seen a bit fluffy at first glance (lots of mermaid puns) but they make a really wide range of excellent products, and they've been steadily increasing the plastic-free options over the past couple of years. (You can now order any liquid product with a pump top, for example, and reuse the one you have.)
I personally love their ECLIPSE Sunscreen and Coconut Charcoal Face Wash Bar.
I've been experimenting with facials (including expensive Hydrafacials), and so far Skin Laundry is the one that's impressed me the most after ONE treatment. My pores and acne have disappeared, the line between my eyebrows is way softer, and my skin looks and feels smooth and fresh.
TWO people at my gym even asked if I was wearing (I'm normally not) the day after my first treatment.
These aren't just relaxing, cucumbers-on-your-eyes facials – they're clinical treatments performed by RNs (registered nurses who know their stuff). Skin Laundry has locations around the US that run promotions to get your 1st facial for $75, but this referral price is the best I've seen!
Reusable Personal Care Items
I've tested a lot of plastic-free razors, and the Leaf is the only one that won me over. The pivoting-head design means it feels a lot like using a cartridge razor – but without the plastic. (And it costs much less in the long run! The recyclable steel refill blades are just a few cents each.)
Save 10% with the code KETTI10 .
This plastic-reducing travel hack is much more than an "as seen on Shark Tank" gimmick: This is the bottle I use to purify my own tap water everywhere I go. (I used it in Mexico for two weeks and in El Salvador – no problems, and I didn't buy any plastic water bottles!)
This Danish company is the original inventor of the reusable Q-tip (LastSwab), and designs lots of other brilliant replacements for throw-away items. My favorites are their washable replacements for cotton pads and tissue boxes.
Use tiltedmap10off to save 10%.
Better Toilet Paper
Did you know most toilet paper is made with trees cut down from natural forests? (And packaged in plastic.) What a waste! Here are two much better options, both of which I’ve tested:
Reel uses bamboo to make really great toilet paper with 100% plastic-free packaging, and no dyes, perfumes or other irritants.
Bamboo is a much more sustainable alternative to cutting down trees for TP and paper towels, which they also make, and much softer than recycled paper.
Check out my review (and comparison with Who Gives A Crap) for sustainability info and other details.
They call it, "Toilet paper that builds toilets," because of the investments this company makes in sanitation in developing countries, but it's also "toilet paper that saves forests."
Who Gives A Crap makes both bamboo and recycled paper TP options. Recycled is the most sustainable, but either is far better than the forest paper we buy at the store.
Better Shampoo – Bars & More
Want more? I’ve reviewed many other shampoo bars!
Everist makes travel-friendly, concentrated shampoo, conditioner & body wash. (If you're not a fan of shampoo bars, these are the answer.)
All of their products come in recyclable aluminum tubes or tins, and last waaaay longer than you'd expect by looking at them.
Unique shampoo and conditioner bars made with rice water – a natural ingredient that's been used in Asia for centuries to increase shine, promote growth and strengthen hair.
Plus they smell great and are particularly beautiful – great for gifting!
If you’ve tried other shampoo & conditioner bars and never liked them, TRY THESE BEFORE GIVING UP! The Earthling Co. has won me over – and won over more of my friends than all the other bars I made them try.
They lather fantastically, smell great (with lots of scents), and nothing makes my hair look better.
A new brand of shampoo bars and other plastic-free toiletries that I'm loving. (With more formulas for different hair & skin types than any other I've tried.) My favorites are their travel-friendly shampoo + body combo bar, and their body cream bar (which comes in a beautiful, refillable bamboo box).
A small company in Pennsylvania that makes more hair, skin, body, and face care products that I've seen from any other small eco brand!
Bug balm? Got it.
Face oil, lip butter, deodorant, candles? Got 'em all.
Shampoo bars? Got 10 kinds!
Soap bars? Dozens of scents!
Everything is hand-made and vegan, and their packaging is minimal and thoughtfully sourced. (Either paper, glass, or recycled plastic that's also recyclable.)
Review coming soon.
Are you addicted to top-shelf shampoo and don't see how a bar could possibly do your hair justice? Well that's pretty much Dip's mission.
They're a brand that I'm pretty excited about, and I have to say – after a few uses, I think their bars make my hair shinier and bouncier than any other. I also love the beautiful, subtle, expensive-smelling scents. Highly worth a try. Review coming soon.
Plastic-Free Makeup
Multi-use, 100% plastic-free make-up "balmies" (think of them as crayons) and more, made by a Latina-owned small company in Oregon.
Personally, I love the balmies for eyeshadow, highlighter and cheek color, but find them a little dry for lip color. But their newer Tinted Dew sticks are now the perfect solution for lips and cheeks – color and hydration! Along with their Shape Stick (for a light bit of contouring) they're the only makeup item I actually use every day.
A small, family business making sustainable, vegan beauty products in durable (and pretty!) cardboard packaging. Their moisturizing concealer comes in tons of shades and is my go-to. (You can also order sample sizes – plastic-free, of course, – to get the right shade before committing.) Their blush is great, too!
A full line of vegan, cruelty free makeup, with lots of refillable options!
While most brands with such strong sustainability credentials have smaller lines, Elate makes just about everything you could need: Eco-friendly tools (like makeup brushes), refillable makeup palettes (beautifully made out of bamboo), lip, cheek and eye colors, as well as foundation.
Sustainable Vitamins
I’ve spent a long time looking for vitamins that don’t come in plastic, and when it comes to multivitamins, this small Colorado company is in a very small group of winners. NO MORE PLASTIC VITAMIN BOTTLES! Their multivitamins are formulated for a vegan diet, and they launched a kids' version in 2023.
Discount: Save 50% on your first month with the code KETTI50
This small UK company is the only one I've found that can send me the specific vitamins I want, sustainably produced, in glass bottles with refills packaged in compostable packets. They're fantastic.
(They deliver to the US quickly, with no shipping charge for subscriptions. Refills come in a package the size of an envelope.)
Discount: I don't earn a commission from Wild Nutrition, but I can offer you my "Refer A Friend" link – you save £15, I get £15 off my next order. (If the link doesn't work, you can click "been referred by a friend?" at checkout, and enter my name – Ketti Wilhelm.)
This Australian company makes lots of high-quality formulas of vegan-friendly vitamins – from collagen, to Omega-3, to essential multis for kids and adults (including gummies).
Most come in glass bottles, and every time I check back on their website, they've added more in compostable packets. (Meaning less waste & lower shipping weight, AKA lower CO2 emissions.)
Sustainable Clothing Brands
These are just a couple of favorites that I have discount codes for – check out my sustainable clothing brand guide for many more, plus what makes them better. (So you know what to look for!)
Unbound Merino makes my favorite packable travel clothes. They don't wrinkle at all (one of the virtues of good quality merino wool), and they stay un-smelly for days and even weeks between washes.
Plus, their designs are elegant and stylish (no logos), and easy to mix in with your wardrobe.
Knix is one of many brands I've reviewed that makes comfortable, washable period underwear – designed to absorb your flow, replacing panty-liners and even tampons. They also make cute, comfortable wireless bras and loungewear, and have the widest selection of patterns and colors I've found.
Hands-down, the best sustainable underwear brand I've tried (and I've tried a lot). The quality of their garments is outstanding – you can tell by the thickness of the fabric, and the way their seams are neatly sewn and lie flat. Plus, they're soft, comfortable and use entirely organic cotton.
Sustainable Products for Home & Pets
Home & Kitchen & Food
Do you live somewhere (like an apartment) where composting isn't really feasible? This countertop composter is a super easy way to eliminate food waste (turning it into healthy soil for a garden or potted plants) and prevents the climate impact of food decomposing in landfills.
- Very easy to use
- Creates nutrients for your garden
- Dishwasher safe compost bucket
- Diverts food from landfills, reducing climate impact!
- Works with food (including meat & cheese), bioplastics & packaging
- Fast – food scraps to dirt in a few hours
- It cut my garbage in HALF (literally)
- ... which saves time and $$
- Smells yeasty when running. (Pro or con? You decide)
- Requires electricity (a net "con" only if your power source is coal!)
- $$ to get started (similar to alternatives)
- Doesn't break down bioplastics as quickly as I'd hoped
Misfits Market lets you order mostly organic groceries – that would otherwise go to waste – at a discount.
How it works: 1.) You sign up for 100% customizable, weekly deliveries of everything you’d find in a normal grocery story.
2.) They send you good food with superficial “flaws” that often cause it to be thrown away at the store.
3.) You spend less on groceries, while keeping food out of landfills.
One of my favorites of the many organic Napa Valley wineries I've visited, Clif Family Winery is true to it's name – a small, family-owned winery with outstanding sustainability practices. (Including being certified organic, bee-friendly, and a certified B Corp.)
Finally – refillable candles. Non-toxic, vegan, no petroleum based ingredients, really easy to make, and in compostable packaging. Plus they're made by a mother-daughter team in Canada.
What more could you want for a cozy, guilt-free gift (for yourself or someone else)?
Pela is famous for their compostable phone cases in tons of designs – they’ll break down into nothing but dirt within a year, including in the Lomi composter (also made by Pela). They recently added sunglasses, too, which aren’t compostable, but they are made with lower carbon emissions, less water, and less packaging than other brands. I've used all of these products for years and stand by the quality.
Pela is also a B-Corp, certified by Climate Neutral, and a member of 1% For The Planet.
These are my eco-responsible replacement for plastic garbage bags and ZipLocks. While compostable bags won't break down in a landfill, plant-based alternatives reduce demand for petroleum-based plastic, so they're still a worthwhile swap!
(I also use their small bags in my Lomi composter.)
Dogs don’t actually need to eat chicken and beef, but think about this: If US pets were their own country, they'd be the world's 5th largest meat consumer. That's a lot of avoidable CO2 emissions.
Chippin makes dog food and treats with 80% fewer resources than normal brands. Plus, they're plastic-neutral and have carbon-neutral shipping through offsets.
Plastic-Free Cleaning
These laundry strips are one of the simplest plastic-free swaps I’ve found. You get a whole jug’s worth of laundry detergent in an envelope. They WORK, they’re great for travel, and they ship anywhere for free.
Dropps are fantastic for low-waste laundry, dishwasher and fabric softener pods. Their detergents come in lots of scents and lots of varieties, all in plastic-free packaging.
If you're new to Dropps, use the code TILTED25 to save 25%. For all future orders, save 15% with the code TILTED15 .
Blueland makes dehydrated products in tablet form – just add water! They started with cleaning products – think, instead of buying another plastic bottle of Windex, you open a paper packet and drop a tablet into a spray bottle full of water. (Truly zero-waste perfection.)
And now now they also make excellent, sustainable body wash and face wash. Their innovations save me money, time, and mountains of plastic waste.
Best Amazon Alternatives
Independent Online Bookstores
Order both new and used books from a Certified B Corp. Better World Books helps to keep books out of landfills, while funding education and literacy programs around the world.
Bookshop is a Certified B Corp that gives at least 10% of every purchase to indie book stores. It's the best of both worlds – keep local shops in business, and have the convenience of ordering online when we need it.
(Tilted Map has a Bookshop storefront where you can shop my recommended travel, food and sustainability books. Or order anything else you want – supporting indie bookshops and this indie blog!)
You can also do a quick search for books on Bookshop below, or check out book my recommendations for books on food, sustainability & climate solutions, and travel.
Sustainable Marketplaces (Multi-brand Shops)
For any kind of sustainable products – toiletries, yoga pants, tech, you name it – this Colorado-based start-up is my favorite shop. They have the best selection, and the best sustainability credentials compared with other online stores for sustainable products.
Save 10% at Earth Hero with the code TILTEDMAP10
Novica is a great source for artisan-made, Fair Trade items – perfect for browsing sustainable and ethically sourced gift ideas.
(They have everything: Jewelry, home decor, scarves, art, seasonal decorations, natural beauty products, all made by artisans around the world.)
Language Learning Resources
Pimsleur is a premium language learning program and app that teaches by repetition. (Instead of trying to spell and write, you'll learn to listen and speak – the skills you'll actually need for travel.)
I've used Pimsleur for multiple languages so trust me – it's the best way to get started, short of just moving to a foreign country! Trying it free for 7 days is enough to pick up a few words, and recognize a bit of what people are saying when you land.
Learn a language with local TV shows! This is such a unique concept – you can watch real TV series and movies made in the language you're learning. (I used it to watch Brazilian shows before spending a month in Brazil.) It gives you lots of useful features, including the ability to slow down the speed or pause any time and click any word in the subtitle for an explanation.
If Duolingo gamefies language learning, Liñgöpie story-ifies it.
For more travel-related deals and products, check out my Travel Resources Page!
