TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.4*
Why it's great: "Refreshing and invigorating" are popular adjectives used to describe Aveda's Rosemary Mint Bath Bar. Readers say the product's minty formula provides a "tingly" clean feeling. "It really jump-starts my morning," raves one reviewer. Though the bar is pricey, readers agree that "it's worth the money paid, as rosemary and mint are expensive, good stuff." Even readers' significant others love the product, too -- providing one more excuse to drop a little extra cash on this luxe bar.
TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.6*
Why it's great: According to readers, this sweet-scented cleanser from The Body Shop "deep-cleans but deeply hydrates as well." Reviewers find that the almond fragrance is "strong, but soothing" and leaves hands feeling touchably smooth. Reviewers say this soap is great for dry, chapped skin or for those whose job requires a lot of hand-washing. Fans of the moisturizing soap also love that it "does everything it claims" and comes from a "no-mess pump dispenser."
TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.6*
Why it's great: DHC Pure Soap "provides no-nonsense cleaning, removing excess sebum, makeup, dirt, and every type of residue while calming and moisturizing your complexion," one reader describes. "There is no scent or color -- just soft, clean skin left behind." Readers appreciate how squeaky-clean this soap leaves skin, no matter how oily your complexion is or how heavily you apply your makeup. "[It has] a great price, and cleans like it is supposed to," says a satisfied user.
TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.6*
Why it's great: According to readers, this 2014 TotalBeauty.com Readers' Choice Award-winning soap has an organic formula, gently exfoliating texture and "simply yummy" smell. "I keep washing my hands for no reason just so I can smell the scent again," one user gushes. The soap leaves skin feeling soft and refreshed. Users are also fans of the "incredible packaging that you can plant to yield flowering Amaranth."
Another plus? Readers love that the Pangea Organics brand branches from the Pangea Institute, a sustainable non-profit "committed to helping our ... environment."
TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.6*
Why it's great: "I don't feel clean unless I use Tom's," sums up one reviewer. "Tom's makes you feel clean and fresh without any yucky chemicals. This soap is the best -- I won't use anything else!" Users also value the soap's formula, which "helps keep dry skin soft" and doesn't smell too strong or "soapy." The bar also lathers nicely, but doesn't leave scum on the tub after use. "Good for you, good for planet Earth," another user says.
Soap was probably the first beauty item you were ever introduced to. But what defines the soap of the new millennium? Considering its humble beginnings in the Roman bathhouses of 312 B.C. — when soap was made out of goat's tallow, wood ashes and salt — we've come a long way. Now we've got bars that massage, exfoliate, soothe, moisturize and make you smell heavenly (aka, nothing like wood ashes).
First thing's first — when choosing the best soap for you, make sure that the product is suited to your skin type (dry, oily, sensitive, etc.). Then, consult this list to see which reader-approved cleansers blow all other soaps out of the (sudsy) water. See the 20 best soaps now.
