Upgrade your near-empty bottle with these CDC-approved picks.
By Jake Smith Updated: Jan 9, 2021 Save Article
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Combined with wearing a mask and practicing social distancing, keeping your hands clean is essential in preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus, as well as other germs that can cause the common cold and flu. Of course, washing your hands is the gold standard, but hand sanitizer is great option if don’t have access to soap and water. As we navigate cold and flu season (and the second wave of COVID-19), a bottle of hand sanitizer is a must-have. But choosing the right brand isn’t always simple.
Hand sanitizer is just alcohol suspended in a hand rub, which neutralizes germs that might be lurking on your hands, including SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends hand sanitizers that contain at least 60% ethanol (ethyl alcohol) or 70% isopropanol.
Coronaviruses (which also cause the common cold) are “enveloped viruses.” This means they they have an outer membrane, which is known to be killed or inactivated by alcohol-based hand sanitizers. However, with a lower concentration of alcohol (or even contamination from other kinds of alcohol like methanol or 1-propanol), sanitizers could be ineffective or even toxic. Long story short: Check the alcohol percentage and buy from trusted brands, like the ones below.
When you’re at the grocery store or on public transportation, hand sanitizer is a great stopgap solution to make sure your hands are as clean as they can be—but it doesn’t replace soap and water. When you have access to a sink, you should practice thorough hand-washing instead of just sanitizing, especially if your hands are visibly dirty.
Hand-washing is more effective because the combination of soap, water, and rubbing kills coronaviruses while also protecting you from other pathogens. When you gain access to a sink, make sure you wash your hands for at least 20 seconds as soon as you can, even if you’ve already used hand sanitizer.
Just like when you wash your hands, the CDC recommends that you cover your hands in sanitizer and rub them together until they’re dry, which should take around 20 seconds. Don’t forget to rub for as long as you can, and don’t think of your hands as entirely clean after—still refrain from touching your face and others in public.
Got all that? Great, now it’s time to pick out the best hand sanitizer. Below, you can shop effective options (which all exceed CDC requirements) to keep you germ- and worry-free this flu season and beyond.
