Costco Dish Detergent Earns Top Marks From Consumer Reports

Members of Costco have one more thing to add to their list of reasons to shop at the warehouse giant.

Costco’s Kirkland Signature Platinum Performance UltraShine pacs were among the dishwasher detergents that received top marks in recent tests by Consumer Reports.

CR says the Costco detergent earned “excellent” ratings in two tests: food removal and film resistance. Plus, at just 9 cents for each dose, it is a bargain. Taken together, those strengths were enough for the detergent to claim CR Best Buy status, which is given to products that perform well for a low price.

Notably, CR says the Kirkland Signature Platinum Performance UltraShine formula “clearly outperformed” Kirkland Signature Premium, the other Costco store-brand dishwasher detergent.

Costco detergent was not alone in earning top honors. Overall, CR tested 23 dishwasher detergents from eight brands and highlighted seven of the top performers. Those seven — in alphabetical order — are:

• Cascade ActionPacs with Dawn
• Cascade Free & Clear ActionPacs
• Cascade Gel with Dawn
• Finish Powerball Quantum
• Great Value Dishwasher Gel (Walmart)
• Kirkland Signature Platinum Performance UltraShine (Costco)
• Member’s Mark Ultimate Clean Dishwasher Pacs (Sam’s Club)

As part of its testing, CR looked at premeasured packs and gels. It did not include powder dishwasher detergents in the testing, as sales of that type of formulation have been falling.

As Consumer Reports concludes, when it comes to dishwasher detergents, price doesn’t always dictate performance:

“The best formulas from popular brands like Finish and Cascade do a fantastic job removing food and resisting residue in Consumer Reports’ tough lab tests. But so do plenty of store-brand detergents, which cost much less per dose.”

That fact is important to note because CR says prices of detergents in the survey range from 5 cents to 43 cents per load.

To get the full Consumer Reports ratings — with all 23 detergents — log into your CR account, or if you aren’t a member, check for access at your local library.