Where to Buy Citric Acid In The UK For Cleaning

Wondering where to buy citric acid for cleaning or bath bomb-making? Here are my top places in the UK for picking up this staple green cleaning supply.

As a naturally occurring acid, found in a variety of fruits and vegetables, citric acid is an environmentally friendly cleaning powerhouse.

It’s used in many natural cleaning applications. Citric acid is particularly amazing at descaling limescale. Use it to naturally descale your kettle, dishwasher, washing machine, or iron. It’s also incredibly effective at removing limescale from your toilet naturally.

Citric acid’s powers don’t stop there. My citric acid cleaning spray is great at tackling grease, soap scum and hard water deposits. It’s also a key ingredient when it comes to making bath bombs.

However, you might be wondering where to buy citric acid for making all of these natural products. Let me help you out. Here are my top places in the UK to seek out this wonder ingredient.

Where To Buy Citric Acid In the UK For Cleaning & Bath Bomb Making

Citric acid is a common ingredient in home brewing and in Asian cuisine. This means if you have a homebrew shop or an Asian supermarket near you, then you may be able to pick it up locally. Alternatively, you can try the home baking aisle of any large supermarkets near you, or any local hardware shops.

If you’re not having much luck finding this ingredient locally, then here are my favourite places online where you can buy citric acid for cleaning, descaling, and bath bomb making.

As someone who frequently uses citric acid for cleaning, my top tip is that if you are in doubt about how often you are going to use citric acid, opt for a smaller amount. You can then work out how quickly you use it, and if it would be more economical for you to buy a bigger pot next time around:

• Ethical Superstore
• &Keep
• Big Green Smile
• Etsy
• Amazon

Ethical Superstore

Ethical Superstore sells a 250 g plastic-free box of citric acid for just £2.29. It is a limited selection, and probably best for general cleaning rather than making bath bombs in bulk.

I tend to add a box to my basket if I am buying other ethical or sustainable goods. Ethical Superstore also sells other green cleaning ingredients, such as bulk bicarbonate of soda and liquid castile soap for cleaning. This makes it a useful place to pick up all the eco-cleaning supplies you need, in one place.

&Keep

Like Ethical Superstore, plastic-free retailer &Keep has limited options when it comes to buying citric acid. However, if you are shopping here for other plastic-free and ethical goods, and just need a small amount for general eco-friendly cleaning purposes then I wouldn’t overlook it.

The citric acid available at &Keep is plastic-free. And unlike the boxes of citric acid that you can buy, this comes in resealable packaging. What’s more, the bag is home-compostable once you have used it all up. It comes in a 750 g size and costs £6.95.

Big Green Smile

Big Green Smile sells a host of green cleaning products, and supplies to make your own cleaning products. As such, citric acid is widely available to buy here. Find it in 500 g sizes in plastic-free cardboard boxes or paper bags, from just £2.60. And if you need larger quantities, you can buy citric acid in up to 1 kg sizes for less than £12.

Do bear in mind that Big Green Smile has a minimum order of £34.95. This means its best to wait until you need to buy other eco-cleaning or health and beauty products before placing an order here.

Etsy

Whilst Etsy is the go-to place for items made by crafters, many people forget that it’s also a great place to pick up crafting and cleaning supplies. As such, you can pick up citric acid on Etsy. I’ve found it here in sizes ranging from 100 g to 3 kg. Here prices start from £2.50 up to £12.99 for 3 kg package sizes. Many sellers also offer free postage.

I would say Etsy works out better value for money if you need to buy larger amounts of citric acid for making bath bombs in bulk. If you need smaller amounts for general green cleaning, there are better value options available elsewhere.

Amazon

Whilst I try to avoid Amazon on the grounds of tax avoidance, human rights issues, and environmental issues, I understand that not everyone is able to.

If Amazon is the most accessible option for you, then Amazon does sell citric acid. Here you can buy citric acid for cleaning in container sizes ranging from 250 grams for small-scale usage, up to a whopping 25 kg, and every size in between.

Whilst it would be unlikely you would need anything above 500 g for cleaning purposes, the larger volumes would be suitable if you were looking to make bath bombs on a commercial scale.

How To Store Citric Acid

Citric acid has a long lifespan. When stored in a cool, dry place, then unopened it should last for around five years. Once opened, it should last for around three years. If the citric acid you buy comes in a cardboard box, I recommend decanting this into a labelled airtight jar to help prolong its lifespan.

More Useful Citric Acid Resources

If you are looking for more information on citric acid, including how to use it and the safety concerns to consider, then I’m here to help. I’ve written a post on almost everything you need to know about citric acid, that might be useful reading.