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6 reasons why you should wash clothes inside out
There are many reasons to turn clothes inside out when washing them, like helping to preserve the appearance of your garments. Use this guide to learn the benefits of turning your clothes inside out before washing them to help you better care for your family’s clothes.
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Why wash clothes inside out?
Turning your clothes inside out before washing them can help protect the fabric during the wash cycle and help keep your clothes looking new for a long time. Explore the benefits of washing your clothes inside out so you can help protect your clothes on laundry day. Always remember to consult your clothing’s laundry care labels before washing to help avoid damage.
1. Reduces pilling
Although your washing machine isn’t the culprit behind fabric pilling, it can exacerbate the problem if a clothing item has already begun to pill. Many washing machines rely on friction and agitation to remove soils and stains, which can make fabric pilling worse. Turning your clothes inside out can help protect the outside of your clothes from agitation, helping to maintain its smooth appearance.
2. Helps reduce color transfer
Dark or vibrantly dyed fabrics tend to bleed during the wash cycle. The washing process can agitate or loosen dyes and hot water temperatures are typically known for causing color bleeding.
Color bleeding, or dye transfer, occurs when loose or unstable dyes from a garment bleed onto another item during the wash cycle. It’s different from color fading, as it impacts the other garments in the load. Even if you turn your clothes inside out, it is recommended that you sort your laundry by color to help prevent color bleeding from occurring.
3. Protects decorative designs
Embellishments like screen prints, rhinestones and embroidery tend to be more sensitive to the elements of a wash cycle. When you wash your clothes inside out, the decorative designs are more protected from the friction of the wash cycle to help them look new for longer periods of time.
Garments with more delicate embellishments may benefit from using a mesh laundry bag, the Gentle Cycle or a combination of both. Consult your laundry care tag for specific instructions.
4. Helps to avoid odor retention
Garments that frequently come into contact with sweat and body odor, like jerseys, baseball caps, sports bras, leggings and sweat socks, may be tougher to clean, as sweat, body oils and odors can collect in the fabric. Washing clothes inside out, in addition to pretreating odors, may help to improve cleaning of the dirtiest areas of some of these clothes. Turning these items inside out before washing gives the laundry detergent direct access to those soil-heavy areas.
5. Reduces risk of detergent stains
Detergent stains occur when laundry detergent does not properly dissolve during the wash cycle. Most detergent stains are not permanent, but they can be frustrating. When you wash your clothes inside out, you help prevent the risk of a detergent stain landing on the outer layer of your items and affecting their overall appearance.
Note: Be sure to always follow detergent measurement instructions provided on the packaging to help you use the right amount of detergent per load.
6. Helps prevent color fading
Washing your clothes inside out helps prevent fading by allowing the inside of your garments to take the brunt of agitation and color fading that occurs during a wash cycle. This helps to protect the outside dye of your shirt or pants by reducing friction and contact while still ensuring a thorough wash.
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What clothes should you wash inside out?
It is often recommended that you wash several types of clothing inside out, including socks, baby clothes, embellished items, activewear, delicate fabrics, dark fabrics, colored fabrics and denim. Always check the item’s laundry care label before washing and check out the chart below for more details about some types of clothing which may benefit from being washed inside out.
| Clothing type | Why wash inside out? |
|---|---|
| Socks | Gives detergent direct contact with sweat, body oils and odors inside fabric. |
| Baby clothes | Helps protect the fabric and seams from general wear and tear. |
| Embellished items | Helps prevent friction damage to decorative elements. |
| Activewear | Gives detergent direct contact with sweat, body oils and odors. |
| Delicate fabrics | Helps prevent friction damage to delicate items during the wash cycle. |
| Dark fabrics | Helps prevent fading due to friction/agitation. |
| Colored fabrics | Helps prevent color bleeding. |
| Denim | Helps prevent color fading. |
How else can you care for delicate items?
Turning clothes inside out is a simple way to reduce friction and fading, but it is just one piece of a gentle laundry routine. Protecting sensitive fibers while still getting a thorough clean comes down to choosing settings and technologies that clean effectively without unnecessary strain on your garments.
Choose a Delicates cycle: Slower agitation and reduced spin speeds help prevent stretching, snagging, and excess wear on sensitive fabrics like lace, silk, and lightweight knits.
Wash in cold water: Hot water can cause fading, shrinking, and fiber breakdown over time. Cold water is gentler on delicate fabrics and helps preserve colors and elasticity while still lifting away everyday dirt.
Utilize UV washing technology: For fabrics that need a hygienic clean without relying on harsh chemicals or high water temperatures, select Whirlpool® Washers feature industry-first UV Clean Technology. Built-in UV-C light targets the DNA of bacteria during select cycles, adding extra bacteria-fighting power alongside standard detergent, water, and agitation. Because UV cleaning works with different wash temperatures—including cooler cycles—it helps reduce bacteria and freshen clothes while keeping fabric care in mind.
Use mesh laundry bags: Placing small or intricate items (like undergarments or hosiery) inside a zippered mesh bag adds an extra layer of protection against zippers, buttons, and friction from other garments in the load.
Washing clothes inside out FAQs
Still curious about washing your clothing inside out? Explore frequently asked questions below to help you care for your family’s laundry.
If your garments have noticeable stains, consider pretreating them before you wash them inside out. Turning clothes inside out limits direct detergent contact with the outer fabric, so pretreating first helps ensure the stain gets the attention it needs.
Fastening zippers may help prevent these elements from snagging in the wash or causing tears or twists in the fabric during the wash cycle. When it comes to buttons, however, use your judgement. Consider fastening buttons on sturdy items. However, if the fabric is more delicate or lightweight, you might want to leave buttons unfastened, so that the button holes don’t suffer pulling and stretching.
No, if a garment is recommended to be washed using a mesh laundry bag, washing it inside out is not a replacement. Mesh laundry bags are designed to help protect delicate fabrics (both the inside and outside) from the friction of a wash cycle. Mesh bags may also protect delicate straps from wrapping around other garments or the agitator of your machine.
When you dry your clothes inside out, you can sometimes help prevent color fading and lint buildup on the outside of some items that may occur from tumbling in the dryer.
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