Ethique
Quick verdict: Ethique took the shampoo bar from a health food store curiosity to something you can buy in a supermarket, and it did it from Christchurch, New Zealand. The packaging composts at home, a bar costs $14, and the cruelty-free certification is current. Three honest caveats now. It’s owned by a US private equity firm, the B Corp certification it built much of its name on no longer appears in B Lab’s directory, and solid bars suit some hair and water types considerably better than others. Our rating: 3.3 out of 5.
Who they are
Brianne West started Ethique in 2012, making solid beauty bars in her university flat with the argument that shipping water around the world in plastic bottles was a strange thing for an industry to do. It became one of New Zealand’s first B Corps, in 2015. That listing is no longer in B Lab’s directory, which we get into below.
The ownership has changed since. A majority stake is held by Bansk Group, a private investment firm running roughly $1.5 billion across consumer brands, whose portfolio includes amika, Eva NYC and BYOMA. Its chairman, Bart Becht, is the former chief executive of Reckitt Benckiser. West exited in 2024. There’s nothing in Bansk’s holdings that conflicts with what Ethique sells, so this is a disclosure and a half-point on ownership rather than a reason to leave the brand out.
What they get right
The format does most of the work here, and the numbers behind it hold up.
- Leaping Bunny certified since 2015. That one’s independently audited, still current, and it covers the whole range.
- The packaging composts at home. Not “recyclable in theory,” not a plastic tub with a leaf on it. A cardboard box that breaks down in a garden bin.
- A bar lasts around 80 washes, which the company puts at roughly three bottles of liquid shampoo. At $14, that’s the rare plastic-free swap that costs less than the thing it replaces rather than more.
- No water in the formula, which is the actual environmental argument. Liquid shampoo is mostly water, and shipping it is most of the carbon.
Worth adding that the range is wide for a bar brand: shampoo, conditioner, body, face, and deodorant, with 11 shampoo bars alone covering different hair types.
Where they fall short
Bars are an adjustment, and the brand’s marketing is cheerier about this than your first two weeks will be. In hard water, solid shampoo can leave hair feeling coated and heavy, and that’s the single most common reason people give up. Fine hair and very long hair both tend to struggle more than short or thick hair. Some people never get on with the format at all, and no amount of technique fixes it.
There’s a certification gap, and this is the part we’d want a friend to know. Ethique built much of its reputation on being one of New Zealand’s earliest B Corps. We checked B Lab’s directory in August 2026 and Ethique isn’t in it. Nothing public explains that, and the company’s own B Corp page is still live, still citing a ranking from 2015. So we’ve stopped counting it.
What’s left is Leaping Bunny, which is audited and current, but only speaks to animal testing. Nothing certifies the ingredients, and there’s no organic or ingredient-level mark to sit alongside it. That’s what separates Ethique from a brand like Dr. Bronner’s on criterion 1, and it’s why the rating came down to 3.3.
Transparency lands mid-table. Ingredients are listed and the impact claims are published, but there’s no supplier list and no third-party audit of the plastic-bottles-saved figure the brand leads with.
What they sell, and what it costs
Shampoo and conditioner bars, body wash bars, face products, and deodorant. Individual bars are $14. Bundles run from about $25 up to $64.
For a plastic-free swap that’s cheap. Most zero-waste replacements ask you to pay more for the privilege, and this one asks you to pay about the same as mid-range bottled shampoo for something lasting roughly three times as long.
Who it’s actually for
Anyone who wants the plastic out of their shower and would rather not spend more to do it, especially if you travel and are tired of decanting liquids. Short to medium hair in a soft water area is where bars perform best.
If your water is hard, try a single bar before committing to a bundle, and expect a transition period. If you’ve already tried bars and hated them, that’s a real answer and this brand won’t change it. Look at Everist for a waterless concentrate that isn’t solid, or a refillable liquid instead.
Deals and discounts
No affiliate program on our side, so nothing here earns us anything. The bundles cut the per-bar price noticeably against buying singles, which is the main saving available.
Frequently asked questions
Are Ethique shampoo bars any good?
For most hair types, yes, with a transition period of a week or two. They clean well and one bar covers around 80 washes. The people who struggle are usually in hard water areas or have fine or very long hair, where bars can leave a coated, heavy feel. It’s worth buying one before a bundle to find out which group you’re in.
Is Ethique actually plastic-free?
The bars themselves need no bottle, and the boxes are cardboard that composts in a home bin rather than requiring industrial facilities. That’s the strongest part of the proposition. The brand’s headline figure for plastic bottles saved is self-reported and hasn’t been externally audited.
Who owns Ethique?
Bansk Group, a US private investment firm managing around $1.5 billion in consumer brands, holds the majority stake. Founder Brianne West started the company in Christchurch in 2012 and left in 2024. The B Corp certification carried through the acquisition and West’s exit, then dropped off B Lab’s directory later.
Is Ethique still a B Corp?
Not as far as B Lab’s own directory shows. We searched it in August 2026 and Ethique doesn’t appear, though its website still runs a B Corp page citing a 2015 ranking. Ethique did certify in 2015 and was one of New Zealand’s earliest B Corps, so the history is real. What we can’t tell you is why it’s gone, because nobody has said. We’d rather report the gap than guess at it. Its Leaping Bunny certification is separate and still current.
Why does my hair feel waxy after using a shampoo bar?
Almost always hard water. Minerals in the water react with the bar and leave a residue that feels like buildup. An occasional rinse with diluted apple cider vinegar clears it, and some people find a different bar in the range suits their water better. If it persists after a few weeks, bars may not suit your setup.