Travel Products Travel Accessories The 6 Best Travel Hand Sanitizers for On-the-go Protection The best hand sanitizers come in delicious scents and leave your hands feeling nourished. By Jess Kelly Updated on May 16, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email In This Article Expand Jump to a Section Our top picks Reviews Tips for Buying FAQ Why Trust T+L We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. Courtesy of Retailers as Credited When you’re on the go, hand sanitizer is the next best thing to soap and water — particularly on planes, trains, buses, and any other mode of public transportation. Planes harbor an enormous amount of germs, especially in areas like tray tables, seatbelts, and seat-back pockets, and they notoriously have low humidity, which affects flyers’ mucus levels and makes them more susceptible to illness. Diligent use of hand sanitizer helps lessen your risk of being stuck in a hotel room feeling under the weather. Dr. Dendy Engelman of New York’s Shafer Clinic says to look for products with “70 percent ethyl alcohol or higher” and recommends our top hand sanitizer pick, Touchland Power Mist, for knocking out germs without dealing with that cheap-liquor smell. “One of my favorite hand sanitizer brands, Touchland, designs TSA-approved products that are perfect for travel,” says Engelman. If you prefer a gel formula, fragrance-free products, or need more size variety, we have plenty of other options that go above and beyond the 60 percent alcohol that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends should be in a hand sanitizer. Our Top Picks Best Overall: Touchland Hand Sanitizer at Amazon Jump to Review Best Budget: Purell Hand Sanitizer at Amazon Jump to Review Best Organic: Lemyn Organics Medical Grade Hand Sanitizer at Amazon Jump to Review Best Fragrance-free: Breathe Hand Sanitizer at Home Depot Jump to Review Best Size Options: Clorox Liquid Hand Sanitizing Spray at Amazon Jump to Review Best Wipes: everyone for every body Hand Sanitizer Wipes at Amazon Jump to Review Best Overall Touchland Power Mist Hand Sanitizer Sephora View On Amazon View On Bloomingdales View On Sephora Why We Love It With 15 incredible scents to choose from, this highly moisturizing sanitizer comes in everyone’s favorite fragrance. What to Consider It’s more expensive than most hand sanitizer and is only available in 1-ounce bottles. You’re probably used to sanitizers drying out your hands, cracking your nails, and generally being really rough on your skin, but Touchland Power Mist is here to change the game. The mist spray contains 70 percent ethyl alcohol but also provides your hands with a dose of aloe vera for hydration, nourishing lemon essential oil, and radish root ferment for extra antimicrobial action. The formula is vegan, fast-absorbing, and doesn’t leave your hand with that sticky feeling that sometimes comes post-sanitizing. But our favorite thing about Touchland Power Mist is the huge variety of scents and eye-popping colors you get to choose from. Whether you want something fruity like watermelon, citrus, or apple; a floral like lavender or rosewater; or even a fresh, minty smell, Touchland has a fragrance for you. According to Engleman, “Their newest scent, Beach Coco, smells like a tropical getaway on its own!” Apart from making a product that doesn’t smell like straight-up rubbing alcohol, the brand can help improve your vacation life with its travel kit that includes a zippered “pouchette” for clipping your sanitizer onto a purse, backpack, or suitcase. Nylon lanyards and a fun, kid-friendly Disney bundle with pop-art Mickey Mouse designs are also available. Price at time of publish: $30 for pack of 3 The Details: 1 ounce Best Budget Purell Advanced Hand Sanitizer Refreshing Gel Clean Scent Amazon View On Amazon Why We Love It Purell is a classic option with a great reputation — you can’t go wrong picking up a six-pack to have on hand while packing for future trips. What to Consider It smells pretty generic but does the trick. Purell Advanced Hand Sanitizer is ubiquitous for a reason. Many hand sanitizers will leave your hands feeling sticky — like you washed your hands with just soap and no water — but Purell provides a genuinely clean feel. It contains 70 percent ethyl alcohol as the active ingredient, which is 10 percent more than the CDC recommends to get the job done. Purell’s hand sanitizer also has the addition of denaturants to discourage misuse of the product. These bad-tasting ingredients can also sway a child’s accidental interest in the product, which can sometimes be piqued by the fruity smells and bright colors of certain sanitizers. Plus, this hand sanitizer comes in everything from tiny 1-ounce bottles with hooks that are perfect for slipping into carry-ons to 1-liter bottles you can store at home and use to refill your travel supply. Price at time of publish: $18 for 2 ounce pack of 6 The Details: 2 ounces Best Organic Lemyn Organics Medical Grade Hand Sanitizer Lemyn Organics View On Amazon View On Lemyn.com Why We Love It This sanitizer has a clean citrus scent. What to Consider The bottle occasionally leaks in warm temperatures. A terrific organic option is the Lemyn Organics Medical Grade Hand Sanitizer. The gel sanitizer uses an organic sugarcane based ethyl alcohol at 70 percent but leaves a fresh citrus scent and smooth feel on hands without drying them out. People with sensitive skin especially may find their match in this hypoallergenic sanitizer, as it contains aloe, orange extract, and avocado, jojoba, and sunflower oils to soothe and hydrate. Vitamin E and glycerin also help moisturize your hands. In addition to it being vegan and cruelty-free, Lemon’s sanitizer meets the standards for healthcare providers and hospitals. It comes in a TSA-friendly 2-ounce size, an 8-ounce bottle, and a 12-ounce bottle with a pump. Price at time of publish: $7 for 2 ounces The Details: 2-12 ounces 25 Carry-on Essentials T+L Editors Can’t Travel Without in 2023 Best Fragrance-free Breathe Hand Sanitizer Breathe View On Home Depot View On Sprayhello.com Why We Love It It doesn’t contain flammable propellants that are in some aerosol sprays and harm the environment. What to Consider It doesn’t come in sizes bigger than 5 ounces. Breathe Hand Sanitizer is a simple way to quickly and evenly mist the proper portion of germ-fighting sanitizer onto your hands. Whether it’s cleaning products or sanitizer, Breathe products come in continuous spray aerosol cans powered by compressed nitrogen instead of the flammable propellants that prompt many eco-conscious consumers to avoid aerosols. The spray consists of 75 percent alcohol and is designed with a child-resistant twist-lock. If you hate the traditional smell of hand sanitizer, you’ll appreciate that this quick-drying formula is also fragrance-free. Price at time of publish: $4 The Details: 1-5 ounces The 9 Most Comfortable Face Masks of 2023 Best Size Options Clorox Liquid Hand Sanitizing Spray Amazon View On Amazon Why We Love It It has a classic clean smell and comes in spray and gel options as well as a variety of sizes. What to Consider There are no additional scents to choose from. There’s no denying that Clorox is a classic go-to when it comes to keeping things clean, and its hand sanitizer is just as reliable. Clorox’s brand of sanitizer is made with 71 percent ethyl alcohol — containing no bleach, of course — and there’s no sticky, greasy feeling left behind. Just clean hands and the pleasant smell (and moisturizing power) of aloe vera. It comes in a vast array of spray and gel sizes for travel, at-home, and refill use as well as individually wrapped hand wipes in a variety of box sizes. On top of having the Clorox hand sanitizer with you while you travel, it’s never a bad idea to also keep Clorox wipes with you to clean some of the most contaminated and germ-filled areas on a plane such as armrests, seatbelts, front pockets, and tray tables. Price at time of publish: $15 for 2 ounces The Details: 2-33.8 ounces Best Wipes everyone for every body Hand Sanitizer Wipes everyone for every body Hand Sanitizer Wipes. Amazon View On Amazon View On Eoproducts.com Why We Love It These vegan hand sanitizer wipes are cruelty free. What to Consider The scent can be quite strong. Sometimes, you just want a hand sanitizer that won't create a goopy mess and leave your hands soaking wet and smelling of alcohol. These hand sanitizer wipes are perfect for cleansing hands and even the hard surfaces around you when you want to make sure you're safe from germs. Each resealable pack comes with 15 towelettes and easily fits into most purses, backpacks, and even fanny packs. The three powerful scents are created using plant extracts and essential oils and the wipes themselves are made from plant-based materials. The 62 percent alcohol content means they're fairly gentle on your skin, yet the wipes are still 99.9 percent effective against most common germs. Price at time of publish: $27 for 6-pack of 15 wipes The Details: 4.76 x 3.15 x 6.26 inches Tips for Buying Hand Sanitizer Examine the ingredients Always look at the ingredients before purchasing a hand sanitizer to determine effectiveness. Some professionals say over 60 percent alcohol is acceptable, but Dr. Dendy Engelman advises that a product containing at least 70 percent alcohol is ideal. Choose a consistency you like From mists to heavier sprays and gels, there are plenty of different types of hand sanitizer to choose from. You should pick yours based on what will be the most convenient and pleasant for your own personal use. Experiment with different consistencies to find one that suits you. No matter what type of dispenser you choose, just like when washing your hands, be sure to rub your hands together for enough time to let the formula fully soak in. The CDC recommends rubbing your “hands together until they feel dry.” This should take about 20 seconds. Frequently Asked Questions Does hand sanitizer expire? Yes, it definitely does. As Dr. Karen Dobos, professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology at Colorado State University, explained on Health.com, “the concentration of the two active ingredients, alcohol and hydrogen peroxide, decreases over time. The alcohol concentration decreases through evaporation, and the hydrogen peroxide concentration decreases through conversion to water." Pay attention to the expiration date, keep your unopened bottles of hand sanitizer in a cool, dry place, and aim to replace them every 12-18 months at least. Can I bring hand sanitizer on a plane? Yes, as long as you abide by liquid size regulations. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Aviation Administration allows hand sanitizer up to 12 ounces per passenger, but we recommend staying below the 3-ounce maximum for general liquids just to be safe. Why Trust Travel + Leisure Jess Kelly is a travel journalist and photographer living in New York. She’s written for over 10 different local publications throughout New York, the Huffington Post, Dame Traveler, Elite Traveler, World Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, Insider, Food & Wine, Cosmopolitan, Food 52, AAA Northeast, Eater, Lonely Planet, and more. To find the best hand sanitizers, we consulted Dr. Dendy Engelman of New York’s Shafer Clinic. The 8 Best Underseat Luggage Pieces of 2023, Tested and Reviewed Love a great deal? Sign up for our T+L Recommends newsletter and we'll send you our favorite travel products each week. Updated by Taylor Fox Taylor Fox Instagram Taylor Fox is a Commerce Updates Writer at Travel + Leisure where she tests, researches, and writes about travel products. Taylor holds a Master’s in Geography and has been a writer and editor for over seven years. learn more Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit