The 6 Best Carpet Cleaner Solutions for Pets of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Best Overall

OxiClean Carpet Stain Remover

$17 At Amazon $5 At Walmart $7 At Home Depot

Our Ratings

• Effectiveness
  5/5
• Ease of Use
  5/5
• Value
  5/5
• Scent
  5/5
• Odor Elimination
  5/5

In our lab testing, OxiClean Carpet & Area Rug Stain Remover was our top-performing carpet cleaner in every category we evaluated, from effectiveness to odor elimination. This stain treatment makes it easy to address messes quickly, and its effectiveness is hard to overstate.

During testing, OxiClean was the most effective cleaner against fresh stains and accompanying odors from mud, urine, and simulated pet vomit. It was still effective against set-in stains, but took two treatments before eliminating a stain fully. It has a light, fresh scent that smells clean, and the nozzle on the bottle is easy to adjust, allowing you to efficiently mist a target area.

OxiClean combines sodium percarbonate, sodium carbonate, surfactants, and polymer to remove oils and lift stains. Both sodium percarbonate and sodium carbonate are on the EPA's list of safe chemical ingredients for use in the home. The formula is colorfast, but we recommended testing in a small, discreet part of your rug or carpet to see how the dye reacts.

The instructions are very easy to follow: Simply spray, blot, and vacuum, and most stains and odors will be eliminated within 10 minutes. Once you are done using the cleaner in your home, the areas you treated are safe for pets and kids, though you should never expose either to a spot that is actively undergoing treatment.

_{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: No | Sizes: 24 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: Yes}

Best Enzymatic

Kids 'N' Pets Instant All-Purpose Stain & Odor Remover

$6 At Amazon $6 At Chewy $6 At Walmart

Enzymatic cleaners like Kids 'N' Pets All-Purpose Stain + Odor Remover use the same class of chemicals as your body does for breaking down organic components in food. Since bodily fluids like feces and urine also contain organic proteins, they can be effectively countered by enzymatic cleaners, which break down complex organic molecules into their constituent parts. This makes them especially useful for tackling pet urine, since enzymatic cleaners can break apart uric acid and ensure that the smell is gone for good.

For vomit and urine, full saturation from the spray cleaner paired with hands-on agitation was able to eliminate the stain and associated smells. The spray has a light and fresh scent that dissipates. But while enzymatic cleaners are best at breaking down organic messes, we were surprised to find that Kids 'N' Pets All-Purpose was also great at tackling mud stains—though it did require two treatments to fully remove,

Kids 'N' Pets is never tested on animals and doesn't contain any harsh chemicals. In addition to rugs and carpets, it can be used to clean most water-safe surfaces such as clothing, bedding, and mattresses. The look of the label has been slightly updated since we tested it (it's now blue and yellow without any red), but the product formulation is the same.

_{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: Yes | Sizes: 27, 128 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: No}

Best Scented

Angry Orange Ready-to-Use Citrus Pet Odor Eliminator Spray

$16 At Amazon $20 At Chewy $31 At Walmart

The Angry Orange Pet Odor Eliminator Spray is safe to use on a variety of surfaces where you may encounter a stain and odor left behind by your furry friend, including carpet, hardwood floors, tile, upholstery, car interiors, and more. It is made with real oranges, including the peel, and leaves behind a sweet citrus scent that we found appealing.

As with most cleaners, fresh stains from urine, vomit, and mud were easier to get out, with set-in stains requiring a second pass. Angry Odor was particularly useful for saturating a stain overnight, with a strong scent that overpowered even wolf urine effectively.

We did find, however, that using Angry Orange took a little more elbow grease, since the instructions call for working the cleaner into a lather once it's been sprayed onto a surface. Despite that, we did not find it overly foamy.

_{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: No | Sizes: 2, 24, and 128 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: No}

Best Carpet Shampoo

Nature's Miracle Carpet Shampoo

View On Amazon $15 At Chewy View On PETCO

We found Nature's Miracle Carpet Shampoo to be extremely effective in our testing trial, but the scent of the product, while it was foaming up and getting to work, smelled worse than the stain. Thankfully the unpleasant smell was temporary, while its deep cleaning effectiveness fully and permanently eliminated both fresh and set-in stains. The shampoo can be used on its own (like we did for testing) or with a steam carpet cleaner to clean carpets and upholstery. The formula is color-fast and our test carpet looked as good as new after cleaning, but we always recommend testing in a hidden spot before a full application.

_{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: Yes | Size: 65, 256 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: No}

Best for Fresh Stains

Woolite INSTAclean Permanent Pet Stain Remover

$31 At Amazon $23 At Walmart View On Bissell.com

Our Ratings

• Effectiveness
  4.5/5
• Ease of Use
  5/5
• Value
  5/5
• Scent
  4/5
• Odor Elimination
  5/5

Eradicate fresh stains and odors in under a minute with the Woolite INSTAClean Permanent Pet Stain Remover. This cleaner comes in an easy-to-use spray bottle to quickly saturate messes from pets on rugs and carpets.

During our lab testing, new stains and odors were easy to remove with very little manual agitation needed. For set-in stains, allowing the product to sit for five minutes, as stated in the instructions, brought about the successful removal of the mess. An older, impacted stain from mud was the most challenging stain for this product, but we did see noticeable improvement after two treatments.

The product has a delectable scent that we felt was more manageable than many of the other cleaners we tested, not too sweet or too powerful. Once the cleaner is dry, the surfaces cleaned are safe for kids and pets, and we did not witness any discoloration.

_{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: No | Size: 32 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: Yes}

Best Pre-Treatment

Resolve Ultra Pet Odor and Stain Remover Spray

$10 At Amazon $10 At Walmart

Resolve Ultra Pet Odor and Stain Remover comes in a ready-to-use 32-ounce spray bottle making it easy to saturate pet stains on carpets and rugs. In addition to the visual removal of stains, the spray also eliminates any lingering odor which is very important to curbing a pet's intrigue with the previously soiled spot. 

In our lab testing, urine and vomit stains came out easily and required minimal scrubbing using a microfiber towel. For efficiency, any dirt, debris, or dried-up morsels from the pet stain should be removed before applying Resolve Ultra Pet Odor and Stain Remover. Then the stain should be fully coated and the cleaning solution allowed to sit for a full five minutes. The cleaner foams up as it cleans but that can be reduced after the stain is removed with water and another microfiber towel for cleaning. If a stain goes unnoticed for several hours, a second treatment might be needed.

The product has a strong, clean scent that quickly starts to dissipate. You should also use caution when handling the bottle as the product will irritate the eyes. While it's safe for use on spaces where pets and kids play, we recommend you keep them in another room while cleaning.

^{Safe Around Kids & Pets: Yes | Enzymatic Cleaner: Yes | Size: 32 ounces | EPA Safer Choice Standard: No}