Refillable Deodorant: How It Works and Why It Cuts Plastic

Refillable deodorant, in one sentence

Refillable deodorant is a reusable applicator (a spray, roll-on or stick) that you top up from a larger refill bottle or pouch, instead of throwing the whole thing away and buying a brand-new one. You keep the bottle. You replace the contents. Less plastic goes in the bin, and your deodorant routine carries on exactly as before.

We are Salt of the Earth, a family-owned brand making natural deodorants in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire since 1993. Our deodorants are certified 100% COSMOS Natural by the Soil Association, registered with the Vegan Society and approved by Cruelty Free International. We were one of the first companies to offer deodorant refills, launching our spray refill back in 2013, so this is a subject we have been slightly obsessed with for over a decade.

How does refillable deodorant work?

Refillable deodorant works on a simple two-part system: a bottle you keep, and a refill you buy when it runs low.

Here is the whole thing, start to finish:

1. You start with a refillable applicator. For example, our Unscented Refillable Roll-On is a 75ml bottle that arrives full and ready to use.
2. You use it as normal until it is empty. Same formula, same protection, no change to your morning.
3. You top it up from a larger refill. Our roll-ons refill from a 225ml pouch or a 525ml bottle. Sprays refill from a pouch or a larger bottle. Unscrew, pour, re-seal, done.
4. You repeat. One 525ml refill bottle tops the 75ml roll-on up to seven times before you need another.

That is the entire idea. The clever part is not the chemistry (though we are quietly proud of that too). It is that the expensive, resource-heavy bit (the moulded applicator, the cap, the roller ball) gets made once and used for years, rather than made, used and binned every few weeks.

If you would like a step-by-step walk-through with pictures, we have a separate guide on how to use our refillable roll-on.

How much plastic does refillable deodorant reduce?

Quite a lot, and we would rather give you the specific numbers than wave a green leaf at you.

Across our range, refills use roughly 65% to 85% less plastic than the equivalent single-use bottles, measured by packaging weight. At the top end, choosing a 225ml refill pouch instead of buying three new roll-ons uses up to 85% less plastic. A 525ml refill bottle, which tops your roll-on up to seven times, sits in the same band.

Those individual swaps add up. Since 2013, our refill range has reduced 23.66 tonnes of plastic and the equivalent of 2.3 million bottles, calculated by multiplying refill units sold by the packaging weight difference versus single-use alternatives.