27 Ways to Make Your House Smell Great

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Cheap & effective ways to keep your home smelling fresh and clean

Co-authored by Ritu Thakur, MA and Dev Murphy, MA

Last Updated: October 28, 2024 Fact Checked

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Maybe you’ve noticed a bit of a funky smell in your house lately—or maybe you’re looking to use fragrance to give your home an extra comforting and inviting touch! Fresh scent isn’t just a sign of a clean and breezy home; it’s also a mood elevator. We’ve compiled a list of different ways to make your house smell good naturally and leave you (and your houseguests!) feeling happy and unable to stop sniffing, with expert advice from natural health care professional Ritu Thakur, MA.

How to Make Your Home Smell Good

Simmer pot infusions with cinnamon, peppermint, or other fragrant ingredients.
Absorb smells with baking soda.
Clean your rugs, linens, and curtains regularly.
Open your windows and doors and air out your home.
Bake something fragrant, like cookies.

1

Make potpourri.

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Scent your home with a blend of spices, dried ingredients, and oils. You can buy potpourri at many home décor and craft stores—or you can make your own! Making your own is easy and cheap, and it’s the best way to ensure you avoid potential toxins commonly used in commercial scent products.
- Gather flower petals, leaves, pinecones, and other plants and lay them out to dry. Drying will take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, depending on humidity and the type of plant.
  - Lay your ingredients in a single layer on a paper towel on top of a tray in a well-ventilated area to prevent mold growth. Try to ensure they get plenty of natural light.
  - You'll know your ingredients are dry when they crumble or snap easily.
  - You can forage for items yourself or purchase them. Regardless, Thakur advises using ingredients that are organic and pesticide-free.
- Add spices like nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon sticks, and whole cloves, or essential oils like lavender, lemon, and vanilla, as desired.
- Mix all your ingredients in a stylish bowl and display it in your house.

2

Open the windows.

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A simple way to remove funky or musty odors is to let in fresh air. On a nice day when you’re home, throw the windows and doors open to invite a natural breeze into your house. Open the doors inside the house, too, to ensure the air circulates throughout the house.^{[1]
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- Speed up the refreshing process by turning on ceiling fans and placing a box fan in the window.

3

Scent your home with candles.

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Scented candles can really liven up a space. You can purchase scented candles at most home goods stores, but if you want to keep things cheap and avoid potentially toxic chemicals sometimes present in commercial candles, make your own using wax and essential oils.
- Melt your wax of choice over medium heat. Once melted, add as many drops as desired of your preferred essential oils to scent the wax.
  - If you want to be really eco-friendly, use beeswax or soy wax—they’re compostable!^{[2]
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- Take a piece of twine or cotton string and soak it in your wax to make your wick.
- Tie or wrap one end of the wick around a pencil, and place the pencil over your container of choice, letting the wick dangle into the container below.^{[3]
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  - A teacup or glass jar makes for a great candleholder! You can also reuse an old candle container.
- Pour your scented wax into the container and wait for it to dry. Once dry, cut the wick as needed so that it extends about a quarter-inch above the candle surface.

4

Bake something fragrant.

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Chocolate chip cookies are our go-to. If you’re looking for powerful, comforting smells in a jiffy, baking or cooking a tasty meal is a simple and delicious way to do it. Plus, if you’re expecting guests, the fragrance of whatever you’re about to serve them is a wonderful way to welcome them to your home!
- Pies, cakes, cookies, and other sweet treats will give your house a warm, sugary fragrance.
- Chicken soup, lasagna, or roast beef will fill your home with a delicious savory scent.

5

Make your own reed diffuser oil.

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Essential oil diffusions are simple and effective odor-eliminators. Plus, they're easy to make yourself at home! Thakur swears by reed diffusers: they're "the best way to keep your home smelling clean and fresh without the use of possibly harmful chemicals."
- Mix ¹⁄₄ c (59 mL) of a carrier oil (Thakur recommends grapeseed, safflower, or sweet almond) in a small bowl with 2–3 US tbsp (30–44 mL) of rubbing alcohol.
- Add 15-20 drops of your favorite essential oil, and then transfer the mixture to a narrow-necked bottle to minimize evaporation.
- Add 2 or 3 diffuser reeds, and let your scent creation spread throughout the house!

6

Simmer pot infusions.

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Simmer pots are eco-friendly, easy, and cheap. Simmer pots are just what they sound like: pots of simmering water with scented items added to create a fragrant aroma. It’s like a scented candle, only much quicker and easier!^{[4]
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- Fill a pot with water and let it simmer on the stove.
- Then, add your ingredients—popular ingredients include citrus peels, fragrant flowers (like lavender or rose), and fragrant herbs (like rosemary or thyme).
- Consider adding spices like cinnamon or nutmeg, or essential oils.
- Let the pot simmer for a few hours, being sure to check on it every half-hour or so. And avoid drinking it, no matter how strong the temptation!^{[5]
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7

Place flowers in your home.

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They not only look nice, they smell great. Fresh flowers are the perfect way to welcome guests to your home and make your living space smell wonderful! Pick your favorite fragrant flowers, set them up in vases around your house, and let their scents spread.
- Popular fragrant flowers include lavender, lilac, hyacinth, lilies, gardenias, and jasmine.
- You can also hang them upside down to dry them and let them release their scent for a long period of time.
- Just avoid leaving flowers in water for more than a week or so: they may start to emit a putrid stench as they decay.

8

Mix your own natural room freshener.

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Blend vodka, water, and essential oils for an easy air freshener. Mix 3 fl oz (89 mL) of distilled water in a spray bottle with 1 fl oz (30 mL) of unflavored vodka and 20 or 30 drops of essential oils, then shake the mixture to blend it well. Spritz it around the house to freshen up your space.
- Lemon, tea tree, lavender, and peppermint oils are particularly astringent and good for cleaning.
- Thakur recommends frankincense oil because it "induce[s] relaxation, peace, harmony, and meditation.... It can be used as a calm air spray in the bedroom to assist with sleep."

9

Fight odors with apple cider vinegar.

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Make your own natural apple cider air freshener. Apple cider vinegar is a mighty warrior when it comes to eliminating odors. Mix it in a spray bottle with water at a 1-to-1 ratio and spritz it around your home to help neutralize foul smells.^{[6]
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- You can also simmer apple cider vinegar on the stove and let the apple cider aroma emanate throughout your kitchen. Just simmer the cider and water at about a 1-to-1 ratio.

10

Absorb smells with baking soda.

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Baking soda will help fight funky or musty odors. Just leave an open box of baking soda in your fridge to eliminate fridge smells, or sprinkle baking soda on your carpets and rugs before vacuuming to get odors out. Let the baking soda sit for about 24 hours or overnight.^{[7]
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- You can also pour baking soda into small bowls and leave them around the house for a few days to absorb odors.

11

Eliminate odors with coffee grounds.

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After enjoying your morning cup of joe, empty the used grounds in a bowl and place it near any particularly stenchy areas (such as near the garbage or pet spaces). Over the span of a day or so, the grounds should absorb the smells.^{[8]
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12

Absorb smells with activated charcoal.

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Activated charcoal is another great natural deodorizer, and it's less messy than baking soda and coffee grounds! Just set it in an area that needs a little freshening up, and it should minimize odors over the course of a day.^{[9]
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13

Clean your garbage disposal.

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If there’s an odor coming from your kitchen stink—uh, sink, you might need to clean your garbage disposal (or your drain, if you don’t have a disposal). Squeeze some lemon juice or white vinegar—natural deodorizers—into the drain or disposal to cut through old food and eliminate smells.^{[10]
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14

Take out the trash.

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It seems obvious, and yet sometimes it’s the culprit behind a stench. Even if you take out the garbage regularly, your trash can itself might be clinging to some foul odors that are easily eliminated with a little soap and water. In between bags, scrub your trash cans with dish soap and water and then wipe them down (or let them air dry) before putting in a new bag.
- If you don’t already, make a habit of taking out particularly foul-smelling trash (like expired food, pet waste, cheese, fish, etc.) immediately rather than letting it sit in the trash can overnight.

15

Clean out your fridge.

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Spoiled food can leave your kitchen smelling less than pleasant. If you're noticing a weird odor coming from your fridge, it might be time to check the expiration date on that carton of milk or throw out last week's leftovers.
- Even after removing any foul-smelling foods (and taking them out to the curb immediately), give your fridge a good wipe-down to remove any leftover stains or spills and make things smell a little more fragrant.
- Try an all-natural spray to keep your fridge as food-safe as possible, or make your own spray with apple cider vinegar and water in a one-to-one ratio.

16

Check your houseplants for mold or rot.

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Your favorite plant may be making your house smell worse. Houseplants can liven up your living space, but contrary to popular opinion, they don't actually help to purify your air.^{[11]
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American Lung Association
Nonprofit health organization dedicated to improving lung health through education, advocacy, and research

Go to source} In fact, if you're noticing a rank smell, a dying or overwatered houseplant could be the culprit!
- Decaying houseplants may smell somewhat putrid, and overwatered plants can lead to root rot and produce mold and bacteria that are harmful to breathe.^{[12]
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- Reduce the chances of root rot by ensuring the plant has good ventilation and only watering it when needed.
- To determine if your plant needs to be watered, stick a dowel rod in the pot before watering and pull it out. If the bottom of the rod has dirt sticking to it, the plant doesn't need water.

17

Wash your shoes.

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Smelly shoes can equal a smelly home! If you’ve been exercising or got your shoes soiled, or if it’s just been a long time since they’ve been cleaned, your shoes could be emanating a powerful, stinky foot odor. It might be time to wash them!
- Throw your sneakers in the wash on a gentle cycle with regular laundry detergent, then let them air dry. You can also speed up the drying process by using a hair dryer on them.
- If you’re concerned your shoes won’t hold up to washing, hand-wash them in the tub with gentle laundry detergent and then let them air-dry.
- If you don’t want to wash your shoes, put them outside and let the air freshen them up a bit.

18

Vacuum and mop regularly.

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Keep your floors clean to avoid odors. Baking soda may help eliminate floor odors—but cleaning the floors regularly will also keep smells to a minimum. Try to vacuum and mop the floors at least once a week.
- If possible, try to use a vacuum with a HEPA filter.^{[13]
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  Harvard Medical School
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19

Change your bed linens.

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Dirty bedding can leave your room smelling musty. Bedsheets and blankets can accumulate lots of things that don’t smell so great after a while, from sweat to dirt to body fluids and oils to dust to mites to makeup. Wash your sheets, blankets, and pillowcases at least every two weeks to keep them looking, feeling, and smelling fresh.^{[14]
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Cleveland Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals

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- If you’re prone to sweating or if your pet sleeps in bed with you, you may need to wash them more often.

20

Wash and dry your laundry promptly.

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Dirty or wet clothes can stink up your living space in a jiffy. Washing your laundry regularly is a good habit to get into to avoid odors, but be sure to dry your clothes immediately. If they sit in the washer too long, they'll develop a mildewy scent, and you'll have to wash them all over again to get rid of it.^{[15]
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- If you don't want to or can't use a dryer, hang your clothes outside promptly after washing.

21

Use scented laundry products.

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Regularly washing your clothes should prevent them from stinking up your home, but for a little something extra, use scented detergent or dryer sheets to make them smell not just clean but really good.

22

Keep your bathroom clean and dry.

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Odors could be emanating from a grimy restroom. Even if your bathroom looks clean, if it's not wiped down regularly and dried, it could harbor mold, mildew, and soap scum, which can cause foul odors.
- Wipe down your tub, sink, toilet, and floors with disinfectant at least once a week (or as needed), and open a window or run a fan after showering to reduce mildew-causing humidity.
- Replace towels every few days: damp towels can cause mildew and bacteria, which is not only harmful to breathe, but can also smell bad!

23

Use scented soaps, shampoos, and lotions.

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Make your house smell good by smelling good yourself! Be the fragrance you wish to smell in the world. Opt for scented hand soap, body wash, shampoo, and lotion to bring the good smells with you wherever you go.
- Also consider scented oils. Apply a few dabs of all-natural essential oil like peppermint, eucalyptus, lemon, lavender, or some combination to your wrists, neck, and/or hair to emanate pleasant smells.

24

Wash your curtains.

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It’s easy to forget about your curtains since they sort of blend into the wall, but smells can really cling to them! That’s why it’s so important to wash them once in a while—at least every year.

25

Clean your vents.

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If your air vents are clogged with dust and dirt, or if you suspect there’s mold in there, cleaning them (or having them cleaned) will not only help fresh air pass through your house more efficiently; it may also prevent you from breathing in harmful toxins and mold.^{[16]
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United States Environmental Protection Agency
Independent U.S. government agency responsible for promoting safe environmental practices

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26

Invest in an air purifier.

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A HEPA air filter can help clean your air and minimize odors. While opening the doors and windows is the easiest and most efficient way to clean the air in your house, running an air filter can go a long way, especially in rooms with little or no ventilation.^{[17]
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- Try to get a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter, as these will eliminate air particulates without emitting ozone.

27

Regulate your house's humidity.

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A humidifier or dehumidifier can help regulate your house's humidity. The ideal humidity is somewhere between 30% and 50%.

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What's a good way to make a bedroom smell nice when I can't use candles, essential oils, etc, due to my pet python? Snakes have sensitive respiratory systems.

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You can open a bottle of lavender scented bleach and let the odor linger in your bedroom. It will smell nice.

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