The Rise of #CleanTok

In the ever-evolving landscape of social media trends, a new trend has risen in popularity - #CleanTok. 

Whether you love or loathe cleaning your home, the content emerging on this new TikTok trend has the power to inspire individuals to start tackling their cleaning tasks one at a time. 

Online Carpets wanted to dig deeper into the immense popularity of this trend, analysing the data behind the biggest influences within the online cleaning hacks community, and the most popular types of content they produce.

What is #CleanTok?

#CleanTok is a popular video trend on TikTok, captivating users from across the globe and, quite literally, ‘sweeping’ the nation. Cleaning hacks, organisation tips, and room transformation videos have become staple content styles on #CleanTok, fostering an online community of people encouraging others  to tackle their cleaning tasks, no matter how daunting.

Whether it’s restocking your fridge or removing the most stubborn stains from your carpet, there is something for everyone in this TikTok community.

The most satisfying content on #CleanTok

We can all fall victim to spending endless hours scrolling through satisfying content - especially when it comes to TikTok, and you can usually end up watching videos on topics you would never naturally search for. 

If there's anything the last few years have shown us, it's that we're all spending a lot more time outside. In fact, studies show nearly half of adults in England report spending more time outdoors than before the pandemic. So, it’s hardly surprising that our analysis of #CleanTok found that the most satisfying type of cleaning content on TikTok relates to keeping our outdoor spaces neat and tidy, with gardening and landscaping content garnering 18.7 million views.

As well as gardening and landscaping, there are a few other specific types of content that those in the #CleanTok community clearly find the most satisfying:

ASMR cleaning: ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, and this kind of content has taken the online video world by storm in the last few years. ASMR cleaning videos feature the soothing sounds of cleaning tasks, such as scrubbing, wiping, and spraying. These videos create a sense of calm for viewers, making them popular among those seeking relaxation or stress relief.

Clean with me: ‘Clean with me’ videos typically involve an individual documenting their entire cleaning process. Whether a small task such as cleaning a single item or furnishing, carpet cleaning, or deep-cleaning an entire room. These videos often serve as motivation and inspiration for viewers to tackle their own cleaning tasks.

Clothes cleaning: This style of content focuses specifically on cleaning clothing items. This can include removing stains, organising and decluttering wardrobes, and tips on how to make your laundry processes more effective and streamlined. With the increasing interest in sustainable and eco-friendly practices in everyday life, this content also aids the desire to make clothing last longer and reduce waste.

Cleaning motivation: This type of content is created to inspire individuals to start - or continue - cleaning tasks. For many people, cleaning can be a difficult and time-consuming process, but the presence of these videos aims to show viewers how to enjoy cleaning and pursue it more efficiently.

We also analysed the most popular styles of #CleanTok content available on the platform, to uncover which secondary #CleanTok hashtags have the most view:

Some of the most viewed #CleanTok hashtags include:

#CleaningHacks: Cleaning hacks content has amassed the most views, with a total of 11.8 billion.

#CleanWithMe: Clean with me videos have a total of 9.2 billion views.

#CleaningMotivation: Cleaning motivation videos have a total of 6.2 billion views.

#CleaningASMR: Cleaning ASMR videos have a total of 3.6 billion views.

The biggest influences in the #CleanTok community

In the realm of #CleanTok, our research found few accounts have made as substantial an impact as Catherine Benson, a content creator based in the United States. Catherine has risen to fame through her array of cleaning videos, with an impressive TikTok following of over 12 million users.

Catherine’s content includes a mix of clean with me videos, as well as fridge restocks, cleaning motivation and cooking videos with over 260 million likes.

There are also some other notable influencers in the #CleanTok world, including:

 

Auri - 10.1 million followers: Auri’s TikTok account has become a go-to destination for viewers wanting in-depth cleaning content. Auri’s dedication to maintaining a clean living space is largely shown through her weekly free house cleans, where she visits a home in need and performs a full deep-clean free of charge. Through this, she displays her cleaning tips and tricks and decluttering strategies.

Brogan - 5.6 million followers: Brogan’s TikTok presence as ‘Not The Worst Cleaner’ is an important one as she describes her account as a way to teach ‘the correlation between mental health & cleaning’. Brogan, much like Auri, also provides free house cleans to people in need, drastically improving their quality of life one room at a time.

Cleaning_kaka - 4.2 million followers: The Cleaning_kaka account shows the immense efforts of a team of cleaners, working hard to remove tough stains from various different surfaces and  deep cleaning homes. Their content has risen to popularity with time-lapse videos displaying the before and after of a cleaning process. 

 

Is #CleanTok the way forward for cleaning? 

#CleanTok has undoubtedly inspired millions of people around the world, with countless new cleaning tips and motivation. However, some have questioned the effectiveness of the hacks that have sprouted from the TikTok trend. 

Experts have warned against the immense ‘product overload’ in some of these videos, which can have devastating impacts on the environment and the potential dangerous consequences for the individual filming the content.

‘Product overload’ refers to the act of using numerous cleaning products at the same time, such as filling a bath, sink, or toilet, in an effort to achieve a thorough clean. Scraping your carpets and pouring bleach down your drain are just some of the viral cleaning hacks many experts advise you to avoid.

To aid our investigation into the world of #CleanTok, we spoke to Ann Russell - a cleaner on TikTok with over 2 million followers. Check out what she had to say about the world of #CleanTok below: 

What are your thoughts on #CleanTok on TikTok?

Mostly the CleanTok hashtag is harmless pleasure - but it can be harmful by leading people to believe those immaculately staged cleaning videos are real. Sure, some people keep perfect houses, but it's rare. Some of the practices shown are either unsafe (such as overload videos) or completely ineffective (such as lemon and bicarb videos). 

What do you think of #CleanTok trends that use multiple different products for simple day-to-day cleaning tasks?

It comes down to effectiveness.  If  people understand that cleaning is mostly simple, they are more likely to try it and get good results. Using too many products is expensive, time consuming, and then those products have to be stored. Start simple and work up!

‘Product overload’ is a huge concern amongst experts. Do you have any advice to keep your cleaning regime down to a minimum?

Start with a few basics: cloths, washing up liquid, a pair of rubber gloves, loo cleaner if you live in hard-water areas, and Limescale spray, too. Also, oven cleaner if, like me, you leave the oven too long, a few coarse metal scrubby pads, and take it from there.

There are many different variations of content on #CleanTok, such as cleaning motivation and cleaning ASMR. Do you think these really do help to inspire others to perform cleaning tasks at home?

The ones from real-life cleaners giving tips and hints are great, as are the ones aimed at neurodivergent people - the unrealistic reset ones are likely to make people feel inadequate and depressed.

Have you ever seen a really strange cleaning hack on #CleanTok?

One woman suggested putting a tube of toothpaste with holes cut into it inside your lavatory cistern - I'm still trying to work out on what planet she thought that would help.

*This research was conducted by analysing #CleanTok related TikTokhashtags, users, and most viewed content in July 2023.