There are numerous car carpet cleaners on the market, so it can be difficult to know where to begin. That’s where we come in. Our reviews team has done the research for you and selected the five best carpet cleaners created by well-known car care companies that will make your car look like you just got it professionally cleaned.
In this article:
Best Overall: CarGuys Premium Super Cleaner
We’ve named CarGuys Premium Super Cleaner as the best overall carpet cleaner because of its versatility and effectiveness. This product can clean a majority of surfaces on the inside or outside of your vehicle, which means you don’t have to purchase several products to clean different parts of your car.
Thousands of Amazon customers have praised this product’s effectiveness, saying that it easily cleaned their vehicle with just the provided towel, no scrubbing brush needed. The company is so confident that it will produce results, it offers a full refund anytime for any reason.
- Available in 18-ounce or 128-ounce bottles
- Reusable towel included
- Designed to clean most interior and exterior car surfaces except glass and instrument panel screens
This product received an Amazon rating of 4.6 stars out of 5 stars with over 4,500 customer reviews, which is 0.2 stars higher than the Amazon average for the car carpet cleaners we reviewed.
Customers loved this product because it easily cleaned years of built-up grime on carpet, leather, and plastics. Some even mentioned using the cleaner on dining room chairs and stainless steel appliances. Complaints included the small size of the bottle, especially considering this solution is meant to be for deep cleaning, so a lot of the product will be used at once. Customers also said that it can leave behind a residue, and that the chemicals in the product are so strong that it’s probably safest to wear gloves when using it.
Longest Lasting: Chemical Guys Lightning Fast Carpet and Upholstery Stain Extractor
Of all the carpet cleaners we reviewed, Chemical Guys Lightning Fast Carpet and Upholstery Stain Extractor is the only one that requires dilution. While this means you’ll need a bucket and extra spray bottle to create the diluted mixture, it’s generally a more cost-effective option because of how long one bottle will last.
This is also the only carpet cleaner that was advertised as being able to clean more than just your vehicle. If you have pets or children that stain carpets in both your home and car, this product can help keep both carpets clean.
- Available in 16-ounce or 128-ounce bottles
- Dilution ratio: 20 ounces of water to 1 ounce of product
- Designed to clean carpets, upholstery, sneakers, fabrics, sofas, and more
Chemical Guys’ car carpet cleaner received 4.5 stars out of 5 on Amazon from 659 customer reviews, which is higher than the Amazon average for carpet cleaners of 4.4 stars. Its rating increased to 4.8 stars after including customer reviews from other ecommerce companies, which puts it 0.3 stars above the overall average for car carpet cleaners in this review across several ecommerce websites.
Most Amazon customers said this product worked well for light stains, but in order to reach the deeper stains, they had to use a vacuum to suck it up. Some reviews said not to follow the dilution ratio because that watered it down too much and that it worked better straight from the bottle. Other customers said that the reason they probably recommend to dilute it is because when you don’t, it suds a lot, so it seems like there’s a trade-off. Either you dilute it, which makes it less effective, or you don’t dilute it and deal with excessive suds.
Best Value: Turtle Wax T-422R1 Power Out! Carpet & Mats Cleaner
Turtle Wax’s product has everything you want in a carpet cleaner, all at a price below $ 5. It cleans the carpets and rubber mats of your vehicle while simultaneously eliminating the odors of those spills and stains.
It comes with a brush cap so that you can scrub those hard-to-reach stains. Its ingredients even include silicone that acts as a shield to prevent future carpet stains, meaning you won’t have to get on your hands and knees to clean your car floor any time soon.
- Available in individual 18-ounce bottles or a 6 pack of 18-ounce bottles
- Detachable brush cap included
- Silicone shield to repel dirt
- Designed to clean carpet and rubber mats
- Eliminates odors
This product received 4.3 stars out of 5 from more than 200 Amazon customers. This is lower than the Amazon average of 4.4 stars for car carpet cleaners, but its rating increased to 4.6 stars after including reviews from other ecommerce retailers. This puts the product 0.1 stars above the overall average.
For the price, customers were impressed with its results. They said it works best for spot treating because it requires a lot of scrubbing, and if you were to use it on the entire carpet, your arms would get tired. Some customers said that their bottle didn’t come with the cap brush, making it difficult to scrub stains. Others complained about how easily the brush cap comes off while you’re trying to scrub spots.
#4 Blue Coral DC22 Upholstery Cleaner Dri-Clean Plus with Odor Eliminator
Blue Coral’s carpet cleaner is similar to Turtle Wax’s product in that it removes stains and eliminates odors at the same time. For older stains, use the brush cap to penetrate deeper into the fabric and loosen up the particles.
This product only comes in one size of 22.8 fluid ounces, but this is larger than the comparable sizes of the other carpet cleaners reviewed, which are between 16 and 22 ounces.
- Available in 22.8-ounce bottles
- Brush cap included
- Designed to clean grease, tar, coffee, lipstick, blood, and more
- Eliminates odors
This product was reviewed 764 times on Amazon and received an average rating of 4.2 stars. While this score is below the Amazon average of 4.4 stars, its rating increased to 4.6 after looking at other top ecommerce retailers, putting it 0.1 stars above the overall average.
Most customers said that this product helped turn their carpet back to its original color, but not always on the first try. One treatment makes the stained area look better, but a second or third treatment is needed to completely take out the stain. Other customers commented on how it leaves a watermark if you try to spot treat a stain, which means this product works best when you’re cleaning an entire surface. Customers also complimented the smell of the product, but said that the sprayer didn’t work well.
#5 Armor All Oxi Magic Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner
Armor All is a respected company in the car care industry, known for its products that keep your car looking new and running smoothly. Its carpet cleaner fits with that reputation.
This product is designed to remove stains, even the toughest ones like motor oil. It achieves this through its oxygen-based formula that contains an active ingredient, which creates bubbles to pull the particles to the surface.
- Available in 22-ounce bottles
- Oxygen-based formula
- Designed to clean mud, coffee, soda, ink, grass, motor oil, and more
Armor All’s car carpet cleaner received a score of 4.2 out of 5 stars from more than 300 Amazon customers. This product’s rating followed the same pattern as Blue Coral’s, rising to 4.6 after adding in scores from other ecommerce websites, putting it just above the overall average of 4.5 stars.
Customers agreed that it greatly improved the look of their vehicle, especially considering its price. They said if you follow the instructions and let the liquid sit for a few minutes after spraying, it lifts recent stains. However, for older stains, several treatments and a scrubbing brush were needed to remove them. Some customers complained about the chemical smell it left behind, and others said that the product leaked during shipping.
Buying A Car Carpet Cleaner: Factors to Consider
All car carpet cleaners advertise removing spills and stains, but what sets some products apart is in the details. Before selecting a carpet cleaner for your vehicle, consider these factors.
If your vehicle has built-up grime from years of use, you’ll want a product that’s meant for overall cleaning. These products won’t remove tough stains, but they will clean up light stains or spills that have discolored your car’s surfaces.
If you have just a few hard-to-reach stains, you’ll want a carpet cleaner that’s designed to penetrate the fabric. These carpet cleaners will be better for spot treatments rather than overall cleaning.
A fast dry time also decreases the likelihood that mold and mildew will grow. These spray cleaners will generally dry quicker than professional steam cleaners, but another factor to consider is the effectiveness of the cleaner. A cleaner that works with one treatment is ideal because it means you’re putting less of the product on the fabric, allowing it to dry quicker.
Buying a cleaner that can work on more than one surface saves you money in your wallet and space in your cabinet. Multi-purpose cleaners can be thought of in two ways: ones that clean any surface in your car and ones that clean carpet in your car and your home. The CarGuys cleaner works on virtually every car surface so that you don’t have to buy separate products to clean your fabric floors and leather seats. Chemical Guys advertises its cleaner as multi-purpose in the second way. You can clean the carpet and upholstery in your vehicle and then take the spray inside to clean the fabric in your home.
Car Carpet Cleaner FAQ
- Start by removing everything from your vehicle, including the floor mats.
- Use a vacuum to suck up dirt and debris sitting on top of the carpet.
- Spray your carpet cleaner and allow it to sit for a few minutes. You’ll want to read the instructions of your cleaner to determine how long to wait.
- Use a brush on the damp carpet to loosen particles.
- Reapply the product as needed until the carpet looks clean.
- Some instructions tell you to rinse out the product after you’re done cleaning. You can do this by dampening a towel and wiping the carpet.
- Roll down your windows to air out the smell and quicken the drying process.
- Enjoy your clean car.
The best way to remove stains is to spray a stain remover on the spot. Let the product sit for a few minutes, per the product’s instructions. If it’s a tough stain, you can use a brush to scrub up the particles. If you opt to use a rag, make sure to blot the spot, not rub it, so that the particles transfer to the cloth. Repeat this process until the stain is no longer visible.
Any of the sprays reviewed in this article will act as a shampoo to quickly clean the top layer of your carpet. However, if you would prefer a deeper clean, you can buy a soap-like product. Chemical Guys has a shampoo that received a rating of 4.5 stars across leading ecommerce websites from over 1,000 customer reviews.
There isn’t one carpet cleaner that will work for every person and every car, but our recommendation for the carpet cleaner that will accommodate the most customers is CarGuys Premium Super Cleaner. Not only do customers rave about its effectiveness at cleaning carpets, but it also works on other car surfaces, such as vinyl and leather. This will save you time and money because you won’t have to find products to clean the rest of your vehicle.
