Rinso vs PURO: Why We Chose a Premium Biodegradable Detergent

Quick answer (verified September 2026): Rinso Matic Liquid is a standard-strength detergent built on LAS and SLES, with added fragrance. PURO Premium is a low-foam concentrate that needs 50 to 70% less per load than regular detergents. Its manufacturer states it is biodegradable, phosphate-free and made with plant-derived surfactants. Easy Day Laundry uses PURO on every order at no extra charge.

Walk into most laundry shops in Bali and you'll see the same detergent by the machines. It's Rinso, Indonesia's best-known detergent brand, sold at Indomaret and most warungs. The smell is distinctive, and for most people it gets the cleaning done.

In this article, we break down Rinso versus PURO, the biodegradable detergent we chose at Easy Day Laundry. We cover what's in each bottle and how the difference shows up in your clothes over months. We also cover what it means for the water around Bali, and why we pay more for PURO.

What's in Rinso Matic Liquid?

Unilever sells a version of Rinso Matic Liquid made for machine washing and laundry services. It's the one laundry shops buy by the jerry can. Its safety data sheet lists two main cleaning agents.

Sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (LAS) makes up 5 to 6.6% of the liquid. It's the most common detergent surfactant in the world. It is made from petroleum and it lifts dirt and oil well.

Sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) makes up 1 to 3%. It's a sulfate surfactant that adds cleaning power and foam. You'll find it in many shampoos too.

Rinso markets Matic Liquid with extra fragrance, designed to stay on the fabric after washing.

To be fair to Rinso, it works. It removes stains, it's easy to buy, and it's suitable for a standard machine wash. Our reasons for choosing something else come from washing large volumes of other people's clothes every day. Over time, we watched how fabric held up and asked ourselves a question. How do we keep the clothes you send us in their best condition, across thousands of items a day? So we went looking for a better detergent, and found PURO.

What's in PURO Premium?

PURO Premium is a concentrated liquid from Puro Chem Indo, an Indonesian manufacturer. It's more concentrated than a standard liquid like Rinso, so each load needs less. The manufacturer says you use 50 to 70% less than regular detergents. Less detergent in the drum means less to rinse out of your clothes. It also means less flows into Bali's water after every load. Fewer plastic jerry cans get thrown away too. It works in top-loaders and front-loaders.

According to the manufacturer, PURO is:

• Made with plant-derived surfactants, often from coconut or palm fatty alcohols, in place of petroleum sulfates
• Phosphate-free, with a biodegradable formula designed for laundry wastewater
• Low-foam, so clothes need fewer rinses and each load uses less water
• Free of PFAS and phthalates

PURO also states that its formula has strong anti-redeposition, which stops dirt settling back onto fabric. It also says the formula is anti-shrink and doesn't change colours. The version we use is low-fragrance.

Rinso vs PURO side by side

Rinso details from the Rinso Matic Liquid safety data sheet and rinso.com. PURO details as stated by the manufacturer.

For most washing, either will get your clothes clean. Our machines run all day, so we chose the plant-based one with fewer rinses and less fragrance.

How detergent shows up in your clothes after months of washing

The difference builds up over many washes, because each cycle leaves a little behind in the fabric.

Residue builds up in cotton. Detergent that isn't fully rinsed out stays in the fibres. Over time, towels get stiff and absorb less water, and white T-shirts feel rough. We noticed this through feedback from our regular villa clients. Some told us that towels washed at other laundries felt rougher. A low-foam formula rinses out in fewer cycles, so less is left behind each time.

Whites go grey through redeposition. During a wash, dirt floats in the water. If the detergent can't hold it there, some settles back onto the fabric. We compared Rinso and PURO in our own machines. After many washes, the whites washed with Rinso had a slight grey cast. The ones washed with PURO didn't. PURO's anti-redeposition formula is designed to prevent this. If you want to keep your whites bright, that difference adds up over time.

Detergent isn't the only cause of grey whites. Washing whites together with colours dulls them, whatever detergent you use. That's why we always recommend separating whites and colours. Our whites and colours guide explains how.

Fragrance sits against your skin. Fragrance is one of the most common causes of contact skin allergy. A detergent made to smell strong leaves more of that scent in the fabric. In Bali, you sweat into your clothes all day, so that scent stays against your skin for hours.

There's a trade-off here, and we're open about it. Some clients tell us their clothes smell less strongly after a PURO wash than after other laundries. That comes from the low-fragrance formula. If you like a strong "fresh laundry" scent, you'll notice the difference. If fragrance irritates your skin, a low-fragrance wash leaves less of it in your clothes.

We wash delicates separately in cool water with the same detergent. Our delicate care page covers how. We also back every order with the Care Promise. That gives us a direct reason to protect your fabric.

Why most Bali laundry shops use Rinso

Rinso is the brand people know. It's on almost every supermarket shelf, and many customers link its scent with clean laundry. It also generally costs less than PURO, which matters to a shop. Most laundries charge by the kilo on thin margins. Detergent is one of the first costs they keep low.

What you don't see is where the water goes. Much of Bali has no central wastewater treatment. Rinse water from laundries often reaches rice fields and rivers. We try to do our part for Bali's environment. PURO's phosphate-free, biodegradable formula means our rinse water adds less pollution to those rice fields and rivers. The full groundwater story is in why we use eco-friendly detergent.

What this means when you send us your laundry

Every wash, dry, iron and fold order goes through PURO detergent and softener as the default. You don't pay a green surcharge for it, and we're committed to keeping it that way. We keep our prices competitive, going by weight tier from Rp 40,000 for up to 3 kg.

More on our products in are your products eco-friendly? and on our sustainability page.

Book a pickup or drop off at any of our shops.

Methodology: Rinso ingredients come from Unilever Indonesia's safety data sheet for Rinso Matic Speciality Liquid Detergent for Machine Wash and Laundry Services (version 1.0, August 2019) and Rinso's product pages at rinso.com. PURO ingredients are as stated by the manufacturer, Puro Chem Indo, and its official product listings. We compare the liquid most Bali laundry shops use, not Rinso's powder range. The whites comparison comes from our own side-by-side washing, not a lab test. We re-check both products quarterly.

About the author: The Easy Day Laundry team has been washing, ironing and folding for visitors, expats and villas across Canggu, Seminyak and Pererenan since 2024. We chose our detergent after comparing ingredient lists and washing with both side by side.