No one likes seeing their once-glistening precious jewels turn dull. I’ve had my fair share of sterling silver necklaces whose chains have turned green or gold rings that have tarnished into a less-than-desirable copper color. I ended up hiding them in my jewelry box and buying shiny new replacements instead. Then, I realized there was a better solution.
To help keep jewelry in tip-top shape, we spent hours testing a dozen popular jewelry cleaners on six different metals and gemstones. What we learned is that not every cleaner works the same—and choosing the right formula depends heavily on the type of jewelry you own and how deep of a clean it needs.
While some liquid dips are ideal for breaking down stubborn tarnish on rings and small pieces, spray formulas are better suited for quick touch-ups on necklaces and bracelets. We also found that certain cleaners can be too harsh for delicate or porous stones, making compatibility just as important as cleaning power.
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Of all the jewelry cleaners we’ve tested, the Connoisseurs Dazzle Drops is our top choice thanks to its effectiveness, versatility, and overall value. Whether you want a hands-off cleaning solution or one to spruce up the delicate parts of your ring, Connoisseurs drops are perfect for both.
Along with the concentrate solution drops, this compact kit has a soft-bristle cleaning brush and a scooper to help dip your jewelry into the container. It’s good for up to 80 cleanings.
The container is on the small side, so it may not fit your larger jewelry pieces. However, the good thing is that you can add drops directly onto the brush and clean your jewelry that way. If you do decide to soak your jewelry, we advise giving your pieces a good scrub before rinsing.
The Connoisseurs Dazzle Drops cleaned our dirty rings instantly. This cleaner is easy to use, the instructions are easy to follow, and we appreciate the ammonia-free formula. It’s not compatible with porous gemstones like opal and pearl, but it’s great for diamonds, platinum, gold, and more.
Cleaning Method: Liquid | Suitable For: Gold, silver, platinum, diamonds, stone | Cleaning Time: 1-2 minutes | Amount: 1-ounce (80 cleanings)
How Often Should You Clean Jewelry?
Most formulas are gentle enough to use daily, but as a guideline, aim for once a week, and pay attention to dirt and grime buildup around your stones, gems, and bands.
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While you may want to take your fine, exceptional pieces to professionals, there are highly effective cleaners made for delicate gems, like the Connoisseurs Premium Edition Cleaner. We love it for its quick results and ease of use.
Like our best overall, also from Connoisseurs, this cleaner involves a 30-second soak. However, the container is designed with a dipping tray that lowers straight into the solution, which we found is an effective method to clean jewelry.
You get 9.6 ounces of product, which can be long-lasting if you’re an infrequent jewelry cleaner like me. This is an ideal pick if you’re looking to clean gold-plated jewelry or diamonds.
However, be careful with the jewels you clean because this fine cleaner isn’t suitable for soft, porous pieces like pearls and opals. For that, we recommend the brand’s delicate jewelry cleaner instead.
Cleaning Method: Liquid | Suitable For: Gold, diamonds, precious stones | Cleaning Time: 30 seconds | Amount: 9.6 ounces
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What We Like
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Great for all gemstones
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Sensitive skin friendly
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Softens dirt
This gentle jewelry cleaner is ideal for those with skin sensitivities and a jewelry stash filled with gold, silver, diamonds, and rubies. And with 8 ounces of product, you’ll get a lot of uses, all for just under $10.
This liquid cleaner doesn’t have multiple application methods like our best overall pick, but thanks to its included dipping basket, you won’t have to get your hands dirty. Just let your jewelry soak for three minutes, scrub away any leftover debris, and rinse.
Brilliant encourages polishing your jewels with a cloth after rinsing, but you’ll have to buy one separately. We found our rings to still be heavily tarnished after letting them soak for those three minutes, so you may need to use the included brush for extra cleaning.
Overall, the Brilliant Jewelry Cleaner is great for light jewelry spruce-ups that aren’t heavily tarnished. Plus, its affordable price tag and gentle, bleach-free formula is a bonus.
Cleaning Method: Liquid | Suitable For: Gold, platinum, silver, diamonds, rubies, sapphire, non-porous gems | Cleaning Time: 3 minutes | Amount: 8 ounces
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If your jewelry has lost its glistening effect, consider snagging a bottle of Grandma’s Secret Jewelry Cleaner for added shine. Its bleach- and ammonia-free formula is safe to use on gold, silver, sapphire, and other non-porous jewelry.
Since this is a spray cleaner, it’s great for on-the-go cleaning or to clean pieces that need a quick spritz. For an everyday clean, simply spray the solution directly onto your jewelry, let it saturate for 15 seconds, rinse, dry with a polishing cloth, and voila.
If your jewels are heavily tarnished, you can add some of the solution to a bowl and let your pieces soak for 10 minutes for a nice, deep clean. Just note this spray made us cough and has a similar smell to Windex, so the aerosol formula may be too strong for some.
Cleaning Method: Spray | Suitable For: Gold, silver, sapphire, non-porous jewelry | Cleaning Time: 15 seconds | Amount: 3 ounces
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If you need a cleaner specifically for your most precious rings, we highly recommend investing in Made By Mary’s Restore Jewelry Cleaner. It’s a little more expensive than our other picks, but it’s a long-lasting solution you’ll be able to use on most metals. It also comes with a handy polishing cloth.
This cleaner has a similar application method to our fine jewelry cleaner pick, in the sense that you soak your jewelry in a dipping tray. However, we think the Made by Mary is the best ring cleaner.
The container is a bit small, but we can comfortably fit three of our rings on the tray just fine. The instructions say to let them soak for two minutes, then wipe with the soft cloth and small brush that is provided. Getting them perfectly clean is impossible due to our rings’ small cracks and crevices, but it isn’t visible to the naked eye.
What Our Tester Said
“My personal jewelry is sterling silver and brass, and it did a good job of getting the worst of the oxidation cleaned up.”
We highly recommend following the brand’s included cleaning chart to see how to best clean your jewelry depending on its material. For example, opal and jade gemstones can be lightly buffed with the outer cloth and not the inner cloth. The inner polish cloth is best for cleaning stainless steel, and it also works as a sterling silver jewelry cleaner.
Cleaning Method: Liquid | Suitable For: Gold, silver, diamonds, pearls, and more | Cleaning Time: 2 minutes | Amount: 4 ounces
Final Verdict
The Connoisseurs Dazzle Drops is our overall best pick for its versatile application and effective cleaning results. If you want to bring life back into your jewels with added shine, we recommend Grandma’s Secret Jewelry Cleaner, our best spray pick. This spray cleaner is portable, effective, and takes just a few minutes to work its magic.
How We Tested the Jewelry Cleaners
We evaluated 12 jewelry cleaners and put them through a slew of tests on three ring types, including a diamond white-gold ring, a sterling silver moissanite, and a cubic zirconia gold-plated ring.
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The Spruce
Cleaning Effectiveness: We dirtied up all three rings with one drop of body oil, a lotion-and-sand mixture, and rubbed deodorant, focusing on the rings’ crevices. We then followed each manufacturer’s cleaning instructions and inspected each ring with a magnifying glass to see how well the solution lifted the dirt and debris.
Credit:
The Spruce
Size: For devices and kits, we evaluated the size of each cleaner’s container by noting how many jewelry pieces it can hold and clean at once. For solution cleaners, we estimated the amount of cleaning sessions the solution might have based on the formula type and its size.
Credit:
The Spruce
Design: We evaluated how easy it was to use each jewelry cleaner based on its design. For solutions, how much did we need? Was the application method clear and easy? Did we have to soak the jewelry or could we instantly wipe it off? For cleaners with an included basket, we asked, how many pieces of jewelry did the basket or tray actually fit?
What to Look for in a Jewelry Cleaner
Consider Jewelry Type
The first step in finding the best jewelry cleaner for your accessories is to pick a cleaner that’s compatible with your jewelry’s material, as some cleaners’ formula may be too harsh and damage your precious gems.
- For example, our best overall is great for most jewelry types, including gold, silver, platinum, and diamonds, but it’s not ideal for porous gemstones, like opal, pearl, and soft stones.
- Instead, we’d recommend our best cleaner for rings for delicate pieces.
Credit:
The Spruce
The type of jewelry—earrings, necklaces, and rings—also plays a role.
- For smaller pieces, we recommend cleaner kits with a dipping tray or basket, like our best overall and best for fine jewelry picks. The baskets are large enough to clean multiple small pieces of jewelry at once. The kits also include small bristle brushes to scrub intricate parts.
- We also recommend using spray cleaners like our best for shine pick for larger jewelry, like necklaces and bracelets.
Think About Your Cleaning Method
In our tested list, you’ll notice two main cleaning methods: a liquid dip and a spray. Both are effective in their own ways, but the method you choose all comes down to how much time you have and the severity of your tarnished pieces.
- For quick cleaning, try a spray like our best shine pick, which only needs a few spritzes. You just leave it on for just 15 seconds before wiping. However, if your jewelry has a lot of dirt, you may need to follow up with a scrub or let it soak in the solution for a few minutes.
- If you have time to give your precious gems a thorough deep clean, our overall best and our best for rings pick are liquid dips that soften and break down tarnish and buildup within minutes.
Credit:
The Spruce
Why Trust The Spruce?
I’m Kenedee Fowler, a writer for The Spruce. I have helped work on our entire library of articles on the best cleaning products for your home—including one test where I tried seven different stainless steel cleaners. For this guide, I took a deep dive into our jewelry cleaner insights and handpicked the five best cleaners with the top-performing formulas, shiniest results, and cleaning times. I also included solutions compatible with various jewelry types.