Clear aligner and retainer cleaners

A clear aligner or retainer needs a clean of its own, separate from brushing your teeth. The useful choices are a tablet soak, a branded powder soak, a foam you can use without a glass, and an ultrasonic machine. This page sets those formats side by side, with yearly costs and compatibility limits, so you can match one to the way you clean.

How these products were chosen

This is desk research, not a hands-on test. We picked products that are sold in the US for clear aligners or retainers and have published directions. We give a price where we could find one on October 22, 2026; for Efferdent we could not, so it has no cost figure. Directions, ingredients and warnings come from each maker's own pages, and we list ingredients because some, especially persulfates, can cause allergic reactions. Prices change and differ by store. We have not measured how well any product cleans, and claims such as killing 99.9% of bacteria are the makers' own laboratory figures.

What a cleaner is for

Aligners and retainers collect film, saliva, and stains from tea, coffee, and ordinary wear. Rinsing removes loose debris. Invisalign describes a soft brush and lukewarm water. The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) suggests cool water, a soft brush and mild soap for clear retainers, with a soak at least once a week. A bought cleaner is an extra step for film and smell.

Hot water warps the plastic. Every soak on this page uses warm or lukewarm water.

Brush and floss your teeth before the aligners go back in. That is what prevents cavities. A cracked, warped, or heavily stained appliance needs the dentist or orthodontist who is looking after your treatment. The wider routine sits on the guide to cleaning clear aligners.

A lower-cost tablet soak

Retainer Brite is an effervescent tablet for removable appliances, including clear aligners, retainers, night guards, and mouthguards. One tablet goes into enough warm water to cover the appliance. You soak it for 15 minutes, then rinse it under running water. The directions set 15 minutes as the maximum for appliances with wire.

The formula on the directions includes sodium bicarbonate, citric acid, sodium carbonate, a potassium persulfate compound, and sodium percarbonate. People with a persulfate allergy should not use it. The tablet and the blue solution stay out of your mouth.

On October 22, 2026, a 96-tablet box was $17.99 at DentalHealth.com and $21.46 on Amazon, roughly 19 to 22 cents a tablet.

Quick pharmacy tablets

Two widely sold tablet brands work faster than Retainer Brite and list aligners on the pack.

Polident ProGuard & Retainer tablets go into very warm, not hot, water for 3 to 5 minutes. The maker then suggests brushing the appliance gently in the solution with a soft brush, discarding the solution and rinsing under running water. A 40-tablet box was $7.99 on Instacart, about 20 cents a tablet. The ingredients include potassium monopersulfate, a persulfate.

Efferdent Retainer Clean & Bright tablets also go into very warm water, for 3 minutes, followed by a thorough rinse. Efferdent says its appliance cleansers are safe for daily use on retainers and clear aligners, and warns that the tablets contain persulfates, which may cause allergic reactions. We could not find a current price to quote.

A branded aligner soak

Invisalign sells two powders for the same 15-minute soak in warm water, then a rinse. They are for Invisalign aligners and Vivera retainers.

Cleaning Crystals+ is a 300g bottle at $39.99. One capful is 5g, and Invisalign describes that bottle as about 60 days of daily use, so a soak is about 67 cents. The published ingredients are sodium bicarbonate, sodium percarbonate, mint oil, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium saccharin, and potassium iodide. The same capful can go into the Invisalign ultrasonic cleaner.

The original Cleaning Crystals are 50 single-use sachets at $49.99, about $1 a soak. Their ingredients are different: sodium sulfate, sodium carbonate, sodium tripolyphosphate, sodium dichloroisocyanurate, and sodium lauryl sulfate. If you already have a cup, the sachets are the simpler pack. If you want the powder that also goes in the ultrasonic cleaner, that is Crystals+.

Invisalign also publishes its own bacteria figures for some of these products. This page uses the products to show the format, the soak time, and the price.

A foam, without a glass

Invisalign Aligner Cleaning Foam is a 55ml bottle at $22.99. You put one or two pumps inside each aligner, wear it, and spit out the extra. Invisalign says you can do that up to four times a day, with no soak and no rinse. The published ingredients include water and hydrogen peroxide.

That is the travel option. It is a different job from leaving the aligners in a glass for 15 minutes. How many days a bottle lasts depends on how often you pump it, so there is no fair cost per use.

An ultrasonic cleaner

The Invisalign Ultrasonic Cleaner is a machine, powered by Zima Dental, listed at $99.99. It is for Invisalign aligners and Vivera retainers. You fill the 5 oz tank, optionally add 5g of Cleaning Crystals+, and run a 5-minute cycle at 42,000 Hz. Invisalign says not to use it if you have a pacemaker.

You pay for the device once. The crystals, if you use them, are the refill. A machine is not needed for a good clean; ask your orthodontist before using one on trays from another brand.

How the formats differ

The yearly figures assume one soak a day at the listed price. Many people soak less often; the AAO's suggestion for retainers is at least once a week, which cuts the tablet cost to roughly $9 to $11 a year.

A pharmacy tablet suits a quick soak; Retainer Brite or the sachet crystals suit a longer one. Crystals+ is the powder that also works in the Invisalign machine. The foam is the option when you are away from a glass of water. The ultrasonic cleaner is a device you buy once. Those are different purchases, so they are not lined up as first, second, and third.

Compatibility limits

• Brand. Invisalign sells its crystals, foam and ultrasonic cleaner for Invisalign aligners and Vivera retainers. For other brands, follow your provider's instructions.
• Wire. Retainer Brite sets 15 minutes as the maximum soak for appliances with wire. Check any product's directions before soaking a wired retainer.
• Allergy. Retainer Brite, Polident ProGuard and Efferdent all contain persulfates. If you have a persulfate allergy, choose a product without them or ask your dentist.
• Pacemaker. Invisalign says not to use its ultrasonic cleaner if you have a pacemaker.
• Denture cleaners. Efferdent sells appliance cleansers that list both dentures and aligners. Retainer Brite says its tablets are not for artificial teeth or partial dentures. A product sold only as a denture cleaner needs its own instructions before it goes near an aligner.
• Never use hot water, bleach or the dishwasher; the AAO warns against each.

What to leave to a clinician

Heavy stains, a cracked tray, a loose attachment, or a smell that survives ordinary cleaning are reasons to ask the practice looking after the aligners. Buying a stronger cleaner is a poor substitute for that conversation.