Top 5 Best Car Upholstery Cleaners (2020 Review)

Top 5 Best Car Upholstery Cleaners

Check out our below list for a summary of our results. Keep on reading to learn more about your other options!

What Is Upholstery Cleaner?

No matter how hard we try to avoid it, the interior of virtually any vehicle that is driven regularly will become soiled.

From dirt and grime from our shoes, to dropped and spilled food and drinks, the interior of our vehicles lives a difficult life.

Though much of this debris can be removed with the use of a vacuum cleaner, what remains leads to negative, long-lasting consequences upon interior surfaces.  

With time, these contaminants leave our vehicle’s upholstery covered with a number of stains and discolorations.

These imperfections are often difficult to get rid of, and require a purpose-specific cleaning solution to remove. This is where the use of a quality upholstery cleaner comes into play. 

Specialty upholstery cleaners are made to soak deep into the surface of interior fabrics and coverings to clean cloth and leather upholstery, thereby eliminating stains that other products would miss.

These chemicals are also safe for a variety of interior surfaces. 

What Are The Different Types Of Upholstery Cleaners?

There are two main types of car upholstery cleaner on today’s market, foam, and non-foaming. Though both of these cleaners accomplish the same task in much the same way, they take a slightly different route to achieve noteworthy results and have their own distinct set of advantages.

Foam Cleaners

Foaming upholstery cleaners have become quite popular in recent years, and for good reason.

These interior cleaners can easily be sprayed as needed, vigorously scrubbed into place, and allowed to dry.

Many consumers have noted that foaming cleaners seem to achieve a more consistent clean across a sizable area, than that of non-foaming cleaners, although they are often less concentrated.

Non-Foaming Cleaners

Non-foaming upholstery cleaners are also regularly used by car enthusiasts. These solutions can be applied by spraying them in place as desired, and scrubbing until even coverage is achieved.

Several products of this kind come in a more concentrated form than their foaming counterparts and can be of great help when spot cleaning. 

How Does Upholstery Cleaner Work?

Upholstery cleaner works by attacking stains at their deepest level.

This begins by loosening the offending substance on the surface it is adhered to.

Nearly every upholstery cleaner on the market uses its own proprietary blend of detergents to accomplish this task, and some are naturally better suited to use on one particular material over another.

Leather and vinyl tend to be somewhat easier to clean than cloth seats. In order to remove foreign material from these materials, a dried on substance only needs to be moistened to loosen its bond from upholstery surfaces.

Once the substance in question begins to become pliable, it can be wiped or scrubbed away with an upholstery brush.

On the other hand, cloth seats can be quite stubborn at times to remove stains from.

The cloth becomes stained at a fiber by fiber level, therefore it must be cleaned similarly. When an upholstery cleaner is applied, each individual fiber is shampooed until all traces of a stain have been removed. 

When an upholstery cleaner is applied, the solution permeates the surface in which it is sprayed.

Once the solution soaks adequately into this material, a scrub brush is used to work this compound into the fibers of the car's upholstery.

This process ensures that the cleaning product is evenly distributed, and loosens any contaminants along the way. 

What To Look For In An Upholstery Cleaner

When considering which upholstery cleaner is best suited to your needs, there are several factors that must be taken into consideration.

By carefully studying each one of these factors, you are better equipped to make a wise buying decision.

One such factor worthy of thought is how a particular cleaning solution will interact with the material in which you are attempting to treat. Not all upholstery cleaners are universal in their ability to safely treat all surfaces. 

This can quickly lead to problems in the event of overspray, or if a particular material is misidentified. 

For this reason, it is highly advised to seek only those car upholstery cleaning products that are safe and effective on all surfaces. 

It is also wise to spot test any product that is purchased in a location that is not easily visible.

In the event that a negative reaction is to take place, you will be spared the heartbreak of being forced to stare at an irreparably damaged seat or center console cover.

You should also consider the exact type of interior detailing that you intend to conduct. This can directly influence your choice in interior cleaner.

If your intentions are just to spot treat problem areas, a non-foaming upholstery cleaner is likely your best choice, due to its concentrated formula. 

Alternatively, if widespread detailing is to be done, an easy to apply foam upholstery cleaner is likely the better choice.

The third, and quite possibly most important, point to consider when choosing a quality upholstery cleaner is that of only choosing a product that is sold by a trustworthy manufacturer in the detailing industry. 

Your vehicle’s interior is nothing to gamble on, especially when only a few dollars often separates the cost between high-end products with a reputation for excellence, and second rate products that few have experience with.

A recurring theme within the automotive detailing industry is that four to five brands enjoy the bulk of the market share. 

This is not by coincidence. These brands have stood the test of time by offering nothing but the best products to consumers. 

Best Upholstery Cleaners Reviewed

When seeking to bring your vehicle’s interior up to snuff with the rest of your car’s highly detailed features, only the best upholstery cleaner will do.

Here are our top picks for the best upholstery cleaner to restore your car’s interior to like-new status.