9 websites for ethical and eco-friendly shopping in the UK

It’s easier than ever before to shop for ethical, zero waste and eco-friendly products online. Supermarkets and high street shops are being frustratingly slow on the uptake. But many online businesses are opening up with zero waste alternatives. When most of our shopping is done online now anyway, it makes sense to switch to online shops that do good. Here’s a collection of the best ethical and eco-friendly UK online shops that I’ve discovered.

Ethical Superstore

The Ethical Superstore is the first place I head to when I want to buy something as chances are they will stock it. And it will be ethical! From clothes, to groceries, to children’s toys, they really do have nearly everything. Not everything is zero waste but each product will have at least one ethical credential such as vegan or organic. You can search for items based on which criteria matter to you.

Green Alternatives

Green Alternatives* are a small Bristol based company who offer a great selection of zero-waste and eco-friendly products. I love their selection of gift sets, wrapping paper, outdoor kit and kitchenware. They even sell golf tees made from bamboo and eco repair sticks. Who knew those were a thing? Use the coupon code WILDANDGREEN to get 10% off your order!

Peace with the Wild

Peace with the Wild is one of my favourite online shops. They are my regular supplier of zero-waste soap, fluoride tooth and mouthwash tabs. They sell plastic-free and eco-friendly products with the aim to promote a sustainable lifestyle. They’ve also launched their own skincare range.

Plastic Freedom

Plastic Freedom is the first online shop I found (well was recommended to me) that is exclusively focused on selling plastic-free products (hence the name!). It’s a new business that’s going from strength to strength and growing its stock all the time. Definitely one to check out. They are always sharing offers in their emails, so it’s worth signing up to their newsletter.

Boobalou

Boobalou offer a lot of unusual poducts I’ve not seen anywhere else such as reusable bin liners and mason jar adaptors. They offer lots of practical options to help you reuse and reduce. Some of their products such as their bamboo toothbrushes are much cheaper than other online stores.

Earthwise Girls

Sorry guys, as the name Earthwise Girls suggests, this one focuses on eco-friendly products for women. They offer a lot of sanitary product options from moon cups, to organic tampons to reusable pads. But they do sell some other things too such as water bottles, and travel items.

Georganics

Some of the above shops stock Georganics products but here you can get them all directly. They mainly offer tooth hygiene related products such as toothpaste and mouthwash. It’s all plastic free. They even sell an electric toothbrush that can be recycled.

Rapanui

In my experience, Rapanui is the best place for affordable, sustainable, ethical and zero-waste fashion in the UK. No plastic microfibres here! They mainly sell t-shirts but you can also find knitwear and shirts on their site. Most of their t-shirt designs are in partnership with charities and profits go towards supporting them. You can even design your own t-shirt!

Rapanui promote circular economy fashion (way to get me excited!) and request that you return your Rapanui clothes to them when they wear out so they can be turned into new clothes. In my opinion, this has to be the future of fashion.

Books

The most ethical and eco-friendly book will always be one that is secondhand. World of Books is the place for secondhand books (and it means avoiding Amazon). I can’t believe it took me this long to discover this shop!

By going secondhand, you’re saving trees and preventing books from being recycled or ending up in landfill. Free delivery and affordable prices (some books are as cheap as £2.49) there’s really no reason not to turn to World of Books for your books (and DVDs and CDs if you still buy those).

If you must shop new, Hive is the ethical place for new books. Instead of giving money to unethical and tax-avoiding Amazon, use Hive and support your local bookshop.

Shopping advice

It’s important to be aware that online shopping has its own impacts on the environment. To reduce this try not to buy just one item at a time. Stock up on things you will need in the near future so you’re making the most of one delivery. Only buy things you actually need. For example, do you really need travel cutlery when you have normal cutlery at home? I’ve suggested UK based shops because many of them offer products that have been manufactured in the UK. This helps reduce emissions from importing goods.

When it comes to shopping for sustainability, the worst thing you can do is throw away something you are already using simply to replace it with an eco-friendly alternative. That is not sustainable, the most green option will always be the one you’re already using!

I’m slowly swapping to eco-friendly products as I use up the ones I have. But I’m sticking with my plastic hairbrush, plastic tupperware and takeaway containers until they break. I’m currently using old jars and takeaway containers to store my shampoo and soap bars. Try to adapt and reuse what you already have before looking elsewhere.

Do you already shop at any ethical and eco-friendly shops? What’s your favourite?

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*This denotes that this is an affiliate link which means, at no extra cost to you, I will receive a small percentage of the cost if you buy from this shop. I only work in partnership with ethical and eco-friendly companies that I support and am happy to use myself. Any money I receive from affiliate links or donations helps support the running costs of this blog.