How much alcohol or solvent can my cleaner contain?
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If you sell into California, very little. The Air Resources Board caps volatile organic compounds (VOCs, the evaporating carbon compounds such as alcohols and many solvents) by percent of product weight, category by category, in 17 CCR 94509. For nonaerosol products as read on October 22, 2026: general purpose cleaner 0.5 percent and glass cleaner 3 percent, both from December 31, 2012, and bathroom and tile cleaner 1 percent from December 31, 2008 [1]. Fragrance up to 2 percent is exempt for products made before January 1, 2031 [2]. A homemade-style glass cleaner with a quarter cup of rubbing alcohol per two and a half cups of liquid works out near 8 percent by weight.
California's limits for household cleaning categories
These rows are from the Table of Standards in 17 CCR 94509(a), with the category names as the table writes them, as published by the Cornell Legal Information Institute and read on October 22, 2026 [1]. Each figure is percent VOC by weight. The current limit is the row with the latest effective date that has passed.
| Category (as named in the table) | Form | Current limit | Effective | Earlier steps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Purpose Cleaner | Nonaerosol | 0.5% | Dec 31, 2012 | 10% (aerosol and nonaerosol, Jan 1, 1994); 4% (Dec 31, 2004) |
| General Purpose Cleaner | Aerosol | 8% | Dec 31, 2008 | 10% (Jan 1, 1994) |
| General Purpose Degreaser | Nonaerosol | 0.5% | Dec 31, 2012 | 4% (Dec 31, 2004) |
| General Purpose Degreaser | Aerosol | 10% | Dec 31, 2010 | 50% (Jan 1, 2002); 20% (Dec 31, 2008) |
| Glass Cleaner | Nonaerosol | 3% | Dec 31, 2012 | 8% (Jan 1, 1993); 6% (Jan 1, 1996); 4% (Dec 31, 2004) |
| Glass Cleaner | Aerosol | 10% | Dec 31, 2012 | 12% (Jan 1, 1993) |
| Bathroom and Tile Cleaner | Nonaerosol | 1% | Dec 31, 2008 | 5% (all other forms, Jan 1, 1994) |
| Bathroom and Tile Cleaner | Aerosol | 7% | Jan 1, 1994 | |
| Toilet/Urinal Care Product | Nonaerosol | 3% | Dec 31, 2006 | |
| Oven or Grill Cleaner | Nonaerosol | 4% | Dec 10, 2011 (the table points to 94509(q)) | 5% liquid (Jan 1, 1993); 1% (Dec 31, 2008) |
| Carpet/Upholstery Cleaner | Nonaerosol (ready-to-use) | 1% | Dec 31, 2010 | 3% (Jan 1, 2001) |
| Carpet/Upholstery Cleaner | Nonaerosol (dilutable) | 0.1% | Jan 1, 2001 | |
| Spot Remover | Nonaerosol | 3% | Dec 31, 2012 | 8% (Jan 1, 2001) |
| Furniture Maintenance Product | Nonaerosol (except solid or paste) | 3% | Dec 31, 2008 | 7% (all other forms except solid or paste, Jan 1, 1994) |
| Floor Polish or Wax | Resilient Flooring Material | 1% | Dec 31, 2010 | 7% (Jan 1, 1994) |
| Floor Polish or Wax | Nonresilient Flooring Material | 1% | Dec 31, 2010 | 10% (Jan 1, 1994) |
| Floor Polish or Wax | Wood Floor Wax | 70% | Dec 31, 2010 | 90% (Jan 1, 1994) |
| Floor Wax Stripper | Nonaerosol | See 94509(j) | ||
| Metal Polish or Cleanser | Nonaerosol | 3% | Dec 31, 2012 | 30% (all forms, Jan 1, 2005) |
| Dusting Aid | Nonaerosol | 3% | Dec 31, 2010 | 7% (Jan 1, 1995) |
| Disinfectant | Nonaerosol | 1% | Dec 31, 2008 | |
| Sanitizer | Nonaerosol | 1% | Dec 31, 2008 | |
| Fabric-Refresher | Nonaerosol | 6% | Dec 31, 2006 | |
| Laundry Prewash | All other forms (other than aerosol or solid) | 5% | Jan 1, 1994 | |
| Laundry Prewash | Aerosol or solid | 22% | Jan 1, 1994 | |
| Laundry Starch/Sizing/Fabric Finish Product | All forms | 4.5% | Dec 31, 2008 | 5% (Jan 1, 1995) |
| Multi-purpose Solvent | Nonaerosol (outside the South Coast district) | 3% | Dec 31, 2013 | 30% (Dec 31, 2010); South Coast nonaerosol: see 94509(p)(4) |
| Air Freshener | Liquid or pump spray | 18% | Jan 1, 1993 |
One row needs a note. The Oven or Grill Cleaner entry in the Cornell table shows both 1 percent (December 31, 2008) and 4 percent (December 10, 2011) without labeling the second row's form [1]. The Air Resources Board's digest of its 2010 amendments settles it: they "increased the limit for nonaerosol Oven or Grill Cleaner products from 1 percent to 4 percent by weight VOC" to allow noncaustic formulas, effective when the amendments became legally effective, and widened the definition to include grill cleaning products, which were given until December 31, 2012 to comply [8]. The same amendments bar alkylphenol ethoxylate surfactants in oven or grill cleaners, in 94509(m) [8]. Aerosol rows are given only where a home or small-batch maker might plausibly sell that form; the regulation has many more categories (lubricants, herbicides, personal care), which are outside cleaning products.
The regulation's definitions of each category, and of VOC itself, are in 17 CCR 94508 and are not reproduced here [1]. Before you decide which row is yours, read the definition for your category there. The Cornell text is a republication, not the official code, so confirm limits against the official California Code of Regulations or with the Air Resources Board.
Three rules inside the table
- Diluted products. For a product whose label says to dilute it with water before use, the limits "shall apply to the product only after the minimum recommended dilution has taken place" (94509(b)(1)) [1]. A concentrate is judged at its weakest recommended use dilution.
- Pump sprays. For products sold in pump spray containers, the limits apply "prior to any minimum recommended dilution" (94509(b)(4)) [1]. A trigger-spray bottle is judged as it sits on the shelf.
- Sell-through. A product made before a limit's effective date "may be sold, supplied, or offered for sale for up to three years after" that date (94509(c)(1)) [1]. Every limit in the table above is well past that window.
The exemptions in 94510 that matter for cleaners
The table's footnote for general purpose cleaner and degreaser points to 94510(c)(1) and (c)(3) [1]. Section 94510, read on the same day, gives these allowances [2]:
| Subsection | Products | Allowance | Applies to products made |
|---|---|---|---|
| (c)(1) | Nonaerosol general purpose cleaner and degreaser | Fragrance up to 2% by weight and monoterpenes up to 0.25%, combined total no more than 2% | Before Jan 1, 2031 |
| (c)(2) | Other products | Fragrance up to 2% by weight | Before Jan 1, 2031 |
| (c)(3) | Nonaerosol general purpose cleaner and degreaser | Fragrance and monoterpenes combined up to 0.25% | On or after Jan 1, 2031 |
| (c)(4) | Air freshener, disinfectant, sanitizer | Fragrance up to 0.25% | On or after Jan 1, 2031 |
| (d) | All | The limits do not apply to any LVP-VOC (low vapor pressure VOC, defined in 94508) | |
| (a), (b) | All | Products made for shipment and use outside California, with reasonable precautions to keep them out of the state; not products sold to California retail outlets |
Monoterpenes are defined by Table 94510(c): limonene (d, l and dipentene forms), alpha-pinene and beta-pinene [2]. Because (c)(1) caps monoterpenes separately at 0.25 percent, a general purpose cleaner that relies on d-limonene as a solvent should not assume the 2 percent fragrance allowance covers it. Ask the Air Resources Board how your limonene is counted.
The 2031 change is the one to plan for. A general purpose cleaner whose fragrance falls between 0.25 and 2 percent is inside the exemption if made in 2030 and, if that fragrance counts as VOC, can be over the line if made in 2031, with nothing else changed. The 2022 amendment that added these dates is the last entry in the section's history [2].
How the percentage is calculated
VOC percent by weight is the weight of the VOC ingredients divided by the weight of the whole product, times 100. Volumes do not work, because alcohol is lighter than water. Convert each ingredient to grams using the density on its safety data sheet, as weighing instead of measuring shows, then:
- List every ingredient by weight.
- Mark each one that is a VOC under 94508. For a purchased ingredient that is itself a mixture, use only its VOC fraction.
- Subtract any exempt portion: fragrance and monoterpenes within the 94510(c) allowances, and any LVP-VOC.
- Divide the remaining VOC weight by the total product weight.
- Compare with your category's current limit.
The VOC calculator runs these steps.
Worked example: a published alcohol glass cleaner
This is arithmetic to show the method. It is not a compliance finding for anyone's product.
UF/IFAS Extension's Window Cleaner calls for 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 2 cups warm water [3]. The publication names no alcohol strength. Assume 91 percent isopropyl alcohol, which one supplier's SDS gives as 90 to 92 percent by volume with a density of 0.8124 g/cm³ at 20°C [4]. Take white vinegar at the 1.0052 g/cm³ shown for 5 percent acetic acid on the same supplier's SDS [5], water at 1 g/mL, and a US cup at 236.6 mL.
| Ingredient | Volume | Grams |
|---|---|---|
| Rubbing alcohol, 91% | 59.1 mL | 48.1 |
| White vinegar | 59.1 mL | 59.5 |
| Water | 473.2 mL | 473.2 |
| Total, leaving out the cornstarch | 580.7 |
If all 48.1 g of the rubbing alcohol counted, VOC would be 48.1 ÷ 580.7 = 8.3 percent. Allowing for the roughly 9 percent water in the alcohol by volume, the isopropanol alone is about 42.7 g, or 7.4 percent. The cornstarch adds a few grams of non-VOC solid and lowers the figure slightly. Either way the mix is more than twice California's 3 percent glass cleaner limit. The vinegar's acetic acid adds about 3 g more, about 0.5 percent, if 94508 counts it.
To sell an alcohol glass cleaner in California, the alcohol has to come down to the limit. What each ingredient does is on glass and window cleaner, and the solvent side on solvents.
Other states with consumer product VOC rules
Several eastern states have their own consumer product VOC regulations. EPA's Safer Choice Standard requires certified products to meet the VOC restrictions "as prescribed by the Ozone Transport Commission" as well as CARB's [6], which tells you these state rules exist, but a model rule is not a state law. Each state must be read in its own code. One that has been read:
- Maryland. COMAR 26.11.32, Control of Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds from Consumer Products. The Maryland Department of the Environment posted a draft amendment dated July 1, 2026, which revises some category definitions for products made on or after January 1, 2028. The excerpt read did not include the limit table in Regulation .04B, so no Maryland limit is stated here [7].
Virginia and Ohio also appear as states with consumer product VOC rules; their codes are not summarized here, so treat them as states to check. If you sell in the Northeast or Mid-Atlantic, ask each state's air agency whether it has a consumer products rule and which category limits it uses.
This page reports the regulations as read on October 22, 2026, and is not legal advice. Confirm your category and limit with the California Air Resources Board and each state's air agency.
Running your own formula
Once you have each ingredient in grams and know which ones are VOCs, the VOC calculator does the division and shows the margin against your category's limit.
References
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, *Cal. Code Regs. tit. 17, § 94509, Standards for Consumer Products*, read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/california/17-CCR-94509
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, *Cal. Code Regs. tit. 17, § 94510, Exemptions*, read October 22, 2026. https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/california/17-CCR-94510
- UF/IFAS Extension (Amanda Griffin and Randall A. Cantrell), *Homemade Household Cleaners*, FCS3319, Release Date October 7, 2025. https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FY1449
- Alliance Chemical, *Safety Data Sheet: Isopropyl Alcohol 91%*, revised October 21, 2026, read October 22, 2026. https://docs.alliancechemical.com/sds/isopropyl-alcohol-91
- Alliance Chemical, *Safety Data Sheet: 5% Acetic Acid, Food Grade*, revised October 20, 2026. https://docs.alliancechemical.com/sds/5-acetic-acid-food-grade
- U.S. EPA, *Safer Choice Standard*, November 2023. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-11/epas-safer-choice-standard-november-2023.pdf
- Maryland Department of the Environment, COMAR 26.11.32, *Control of Emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds from Consumer Products*, draft for review dated July 1, 2026, read October 22, 2026. https://mde.maryland.gov/programs/regulations/air/Documents/proposed%20regulation.pdf
- California Air Resources Board, *Updated Informative Digest, Amendments to the California Consumer Products Regulation* (2010 rulemaking; Board hearing November 18, 2010), read October 22, 2026. https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/sites/default/files/barcu/regact/2010/cp2010/cpuid.pdf
