At a German supermarket, a bottle of Palmolive sits next to a bottle of Ecover. Palmolive is €2.09. Ecover is €2.48. The difference looks trivial — but Palmolive is 750 ml, Ecover is 450 ml. Per litre, you're paying €2.79 for conventional dish soap and €5.51 for eco. A 97% premium, hidden by smaller bottles.
What the data shows
Sivix tracked more than 75 dish soap price records across German retailers in early 2026. Three tiers emerge clearly:
| Brand | Pack size | Shelf price | Per litre |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palmolive | 750 ml | €2.09 | €2.79 |
| Frosch (750 ml) | 750 ml | €2.38 | €3.17 |
| Ecover | 450 ml | €2.48 | €5.51 |
| Almawin | 500 ml | €2.59 | €5.18 |
| Sodasan | 500 ml | €2.99 | €5.98 |
Palmolive anchors the conventional end at €2.79/l. Frosch — widely seen as a mainstream eco brand — costs €3.17/l in its 750 ml format, a 14% step up. But step further into premium eco territory (Ecover, Almawin, Sodasan) and the price nearly doubles vs Palmolive — with shelf prices that give almost no indication of it.
The trick is the bottle. Ecover costs just 39 cents more than Palmolive at the till — but it holds 300 ml less. Sodasan is only 90 cents more, but delivers 250 ml less. The per-litre gap stays invisible unless you do the arithmetic.
Shelf price per bottle — Germany, dish soap brands (€)
| Brand | Shelf price (EUR) |
|---|---|
| Palmolive 750 ml | 2.09 |
| Frosch 750 ml | 2.38 |
| Ecover 450 ml | 2.48 |
| Almawin 500 ml | 2.59 |
| Sodasan 500 ml | 2.99 |
Source: Sivix, Germany, Jan–Apr 2026
Why this happens
Eco brands justify higher per-litre prices through plant-based formulas, biodegradable surfactants, and smaller, refillable packaging. The smaller bottle is partly a sustainability choice, but it also compresses the apparent price gap at the shelf. A shopper who compares bottle prices — not litre prices — will consistently underestimate how much more she's paying for the eco choice. Even Frosch — using the same 750 ml bottle as Palmolive — already costs 14% more per litre. The premium isn't just the bottle; it's baked in at the brand level too.
What it means for you
If you get through a 500 ml bottle every two weeks — a realistic pace for a household that cooks daily — you're buying around 26 bottles a year. At Palmolive prices (€2.79/l), that's about €36/year. At Ecover prices (€5.51/l), it's €72 — double. The green tax on dish soap is real, it just doesn't announce itself. If the eco credentials matter to you, that's a fair trade — but it's worth making the choice consciously, not because the bottles looked the same price at the till.
Data source: Based on 75+ dish soap price records collected by Sivix users across Germany. Data reflects real shelf prices as reported at time of purchase.
Products referenced in this story
Real shelf prices as reported by Sivix contributors. Tap any product to see current prices.
