Most people don’t think about the expiration date on their bar of soap until finding an old bar of soap in the back of their bathroom cabinet. Does soap expire? If so, is it safe to use after its expiry date? To answer this question, we researched the information and came up with our response based on science.
In this post you'll find:
Does soap expire?
Soap does expire. However, it is usually safe to use after its expiry date. It might not be as effective and may not lather as much as it usually would.
The shelf life of most bars of soap is two to three years. However, if the soap is made from natural ingredients, it will likely expire much quicker, within around one year, and show signs of spoilage like a change in fragrance, color, or texture.
Is it safe to use expired soap?
It is safe to use soap a few months after its expiry date. However, I wouldn’t use soap years after its expiry date. I also wouldn’t use a soap that contains natural ingredients that have expired because you are more likely to develop skin rashes or irritation.
How do you know if soap is expired?
You can usually tell if your soap is expired based on the expiration date.
If you don’t know the expiry date of the soap, then there are a few different signs that you can look out for:
Loss of scent
Expired soap might not smell as fresh, indicating whether or not it has gone bad. This does not necessarily mean that the product is dangerous to use, but you might want to consider throwing away your bar of soap.
Similarly, the detergent in an expired bar of soap might not be as powerful, so it can’t break up dirt and germs as well as it used to. This means it doesn’t get rid of all dirt and germs.
Change of state
The clearest sign that soap has expired is usually when it’s changed state – change of texture or color.
If this happens, then it is best to stop using the product. This may not mean that the product is unsafe (especially if it smells and looks bad), but often one of its ingredients will be depleted or useless by this point.
Lack of lather
One good way to figure out whether your bar of soap has expired is by seeing if it still lathers well. If the soap doesn’t foam up well, then it’s probably expired, and you won’t want to use it because it’s probably lost some of its effectiveness against dirt and sweat.
Signs of rot
If there are signs of mold on the soap, then it’s definitely expired. Often natural soaps that contain essential oils will rot quicker than regular store-bought soaps.
Look at corners and edges where moisture can collect to see if they have a sticky or greenish appearance (which indicates rot). Also, look for orange spots, which signify that the oils within the soap have gone rancid. You may also notice an unpleasant odor coming from around these spots.
What happens when you use expired soap?
Depending on how long the soap has been expired and whether it’s natural or not, you will notice different things.
If you use a bar of soap a few months after the expiration date, you won’t likely experience anything unusual. It may not have such a strong fragrant smell anymore and may not lather as well as it’s meant to.
If you use a bar of soap a few years after the expiration date, you run the risk of it irritating your skin.
Serious indications that you shouldn’t be using expired soap are change of state, such as change of color or texture, as well as signs of rot.
FAQs
Does liquid soap have an expiration date?
Liquid soap does expire.
Most liquid soaps dont have an expiry date printed on them. However, the shelf life is typically 2-3 years.
Is it safe to use expired handwash?
Often, it is safe to use expired handwash.
Depending on how long has passed since the expiry date, it is likely to not be as effective anymore at lathering and killing germs.
When using any expired product, you always risk having an allergic reaction, developing a rash, or causing irritation.
Does body wash expire?
Yes, body wash does expire.
To learn if it’s still safe to use after its expiration date, read our post on it here.
Final thoughts
Soap does expire. If it’s regular soap and is a few months after its expiration date, then it’s most likely safe to use. However, it may not lather as well, have such a strong smell, or be very effective at killing germs. Never use soap that is years after its expiration date.
With natural soap, you always want to stick to the expiration dates because it’s much more likely to grow bacteria, mold and go bad. Using expired natural soap will more than likely cause skin irritation.
You should always throw away any bar of soap that has changed texture, color, or contains mold.
We hope that this post has answered your question about the expiration date and the safety of using expired soap.
If you have any more questions, please comment below, and we will be happy to answer them!
