I’ve been asked for a Target shopping guide many times, and I’ve finally put one together for you!

I’ve included many of the most-requested categories below, including personal care, skincare, and various home goods. But obviously, Target carries a LOT of different product categories. So if you’re looking for something specific, feel free to comment below and I’ll TRY to find a non-toxic or low-tox option. I do plan on updating this guide from time to time as things change.

Here are the categories covered in this guide:

This guide contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase. As always, we only make recommendations that are genuine.

Does “Target Clean” actually mean anything?

In short: yes and no.

You may have seen the “Target Clean” logo in stores or on Target’s website. It looks like this:

non toxic products at target

These days, many stores have their own “clean” or “eco-friendly” collections (because they know that’s what more people want!).

The problem is that there’s no one specific set of standards that defines something as “clean” or “non-toxic” or “sustainable.”

Everyone is pretty much making their own set of standards. This is true across the board. Target has to make up their own definition of “clean,” just like we have to do here at The Filtery. So does every other toxin expert. So do you. You get what I’m saying.

In general, these “clean” labels do usually mean a product is safer than the conventional counterparts. There are definitely some common toxic chemicals that are banned from almost everyone’s “clean” standards—like phthalates, for example.

But that said, someone else’s version of “clean” may not match with what your or my standards might be.

This makes sense when we consider the sheer number of chemicals used in commerce today, and the fact that most of them have not been thoroughly studied for safety!

There are just so many moving parts, so many chemicals, so much lack of data… That’s why everyone ends up with different version so what “clean” is.

Anyway, with that in mind, let’s take a quick look at what “Target Clean” means to see what their standards are.

There are definitely some pros and cons to the Target Clean label:

Strengths of ‘Target Clean’:

  • They do have a semi-long list of chemicals that products with the “Target Clean” logo have to be formulated without, including:
    • Triclosan & triclocarbon
    • BHT & BHA
    • Parabens
    • Phthalates
    • Formaldehyde-releasers
    • NPEs
    • Certain coal tar ingredients
    • TEA/MEA/DEA
    • Musks
    • Xyelene/Toluene
    • Aluminum (deodorant)
    • Some glycol ethers
    • Some PFAS
    • and more

  • Products are also cruelty-free / not tested on animals (not necessarily vegan though)

Could be better:

  • For most of the categories above, they list out specific ingredients as opposed to whole classes of ingredients. For example, instead of saying ALL phthalates or ALL PFAS are banned, they just list out specific phthalates or PFAS that are banned. This definitely leaves room for toxic chemicals to get through loopholes!

  • One could argue that their list is padded. For example, there are so many different kinds of aluminum listed for ingredients that are banned in deodorant. Being specific is good, but again, might it be better if they just banned all forms of aluminum as one banned ingredient?

  • There are plenty of potentially problematic chemicals that Target Clean does not ban, including:
    • Undisclosed “fragrance“
    • Ethoxylated ingredients/PEGs
    • Isothiazolinone preservatives

  • The Target Clean program is only applicable to Beauty & Personal Care. It would be great if they could expand it to home goods and other product categories.

So, as you can see, Target’s “Clean” label isn’t perfect, but it’s definitely better than nothing.

If you are in a bind or short on time AND you don’t have any specific sensitivities (like eczema, allergies, multiple chemical sensitivity, etc.), then I do believe that choosing anything from the Target Clean collection as a short-term solution is definitely an okay solution and a step in the right direction!

Here are the non-toxic & low-tox products I’d buy from Target

I’ve picked out a bunch of products that I have either personally bought before or I would personally buy from Target.

Keep in mind that these products may not be my #1 choice for products in each category. Most of my favorite non-toxic brands are direct-to-consumer, meaning they’re not available at big box stores like Target.

So, I’ve picked out the best brands & products below that are available at Target, but keep in mind that they still might not be 100% perfect for everyone.

Be aware that some of the products I recommend below do still contain ingredients that may be allergenic for some (such as limonene). So if you have any specific allergies or sensitivities, you’ll still want to check the ingredients.

All of that said, I’m definitely glad to see “clean” (or cleaner) products becoming more mainstream. I love that non-toxic and low-tox products are becoming more accessible and I hope that stores like Target, Walmart, Ulta, etc. continue to expand their “clean” collections.

Personal Care:

Hot Tip: If you’re shopping for personal care products on Target’s website, install the ClearYa extension on your browser! It quickly scans ingredient labels and tells you if there’s anything concerning.

Skincare:

Shampoo:

Conditioner:

Other hair products:

  • Acure (dry shampoo)
  • For hair styling, Shea Moisture is your best bet. Most of their products include undisclosed fragrance, but they do ban things like sulfates, parabens, mineral oil, phthalates, petrolateum or mineral oil. I haven’t been able to find a better option for hair styling at this time.

Body Wash:

Body Lotion:

Lip Balm / Chapstick:

Deodorant:

  • Native (Lavender & Rose scent only)
  • Dr. Squatch (men’s). Note that their deodorants do contain “naturally derived fragrance” which is not ideal. But it’s the best option for guys’ deodorant that I can find at Target at this time.
  • Cleo + Coco (online only)
  • Earth Mama Organics (online only)

Sunscreen:

I recommend choosing lotion over aerosol spray, no matter what brand you choose. You can read more about the reasons why in my Sunscreen Guide.

Oral Care:

Period Care:

*Cora and Rael are pretty good options for what’s available at Target, but know that they have been found to be contaminated with PFAS in past testing. (Neither brand adds PFAS on purpose.) You can read more about that here.

Hand sanitizer:

Makeup:

Other / Miscellaneous Personal Care:

Home & Garden:

Cleaning Supplies:

This is a tough one because there really aren’t a lot of great cleaning products available at Target. I’ve picked out the best ones below, and added some notes about some of their potentially problematic ingredients.

*These products contain at least one isothiazolinone preservative (such as MIT). These types of preservatives are not problematic for many people, but they can irritate the skin so they may not be a good fit for folks with sensitive skin and eczema.

**This one contains at least one isothiazolinone preservative and at least one ethoxylated ingredient. Ethoxylated ingredients aren’t the worst, but because of the way they are manufactured, they can be contaminated with carcinogens.

Bed & Bath:

No matter which brand you choose, you’ll ideally want to look for both GOTS and OEKO-TEX certifications. Check labels before buying because a lot of brands carry a variety of options.

  • Purity Home (bed sheets)
  • Bare Home (bed sheets)
  • Threshold (bed sheets): organic cotton or TENCEL
  • Anact (my top choice for bath towels, but usually only available online)
  • Madison Park (bath towels)
  • Casaluna (They have a variety of bed & bath products. Most of it is OEKO-TEX certified, but not all of it is natural. So make sure to check the details before buying to make sure you’re getting what you want.)

Cookware / Bakeware:

  • Lodge cast iron (my top choice for cookware)
  • Pyrex glass bakeware
  • Caraway (PFAS-free, but not very durable)
  • GreenPan (same: PFAS-free, but not very durable)

Food Storage:

  • Pyrex (glass)
  • Ello (glass with silicone sleeves, so better for kids/travel/durability)
  • Stasher (silicone; good for Ziploc bag alternatives)

Water bottles & tumblers:

Pest Control / Bug Spray:

  • Murphy’s Naturals (body bug spray & candles)
  • Mighty Mint (pest & weed repellant sprays for around the house & yard)
  • Zevo Sticky Traps for flying insects (The rest of their products aren’t necessarily my favorite, but they’re okay)
  • Yaya Organics (body bug sprays; usually only available online)
  • Arber (For the garden. All of their products are OMRI certified organic, BUT unfortunately they don’t disclose all of their ingredients.)

For bug sprays, I recommend skipping the aerosol sprays if possible and choose pump sprays instead.

Members: check out my deep dive into insect repellents (including best & worst active ingredients, & much more)

Other / Miscellaneous Home Goods:

Babies & Kids:

Baby skincare:

  • Healthybaby (shampoo/body wash, moisturizing creams)
  • Honest (shampoos, lotions, balms, and more)
  • Pipette (lotion, shampoo, body wash)
  • Earth Mama Organics (online only; they have diaper balm, nipple butter, baby lotion, & more)

Diapers & Wipes:

Bottles:

You want to look for glass bottles and 100% silicone nipples. Some brands sell both glass and plastic options, so just make sure to check the details before buying to make sure you’re getting what you want.

Carseats & Strollers:

As I mentioned, I do plan on updating this guide periodically! So if you have any category requests or non-toxic brands that aren’t listed here, let me know in the comments below!

About Abbie

Abbie Davidson is the Creator & Editor of The Filtery. With almost a decade of experience in sustainability, she researches and writes content with the aim of helping people minimize environmental toxins in an in-depth yet accessible way.

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