You do not need a shelf of branded bottles to clean shoes properly. You need a short kit of the right tools, and the sense to match each one to the material and use it in the right order. Get that wrong and the tool does the damage. Get it right and almost any shoe comes up clean and keeps its shape.
In short. To clean shoes properly you need a soft-bristled brush, a microfibre cloth, a mild detergent, a pair of shoe trees, and a structured shoe wash bag for the machine-wash route. Add a suede brush and eraser if you own suede, and a stiffer brush for outsoles only. Match the tool to the material, use cold water, blot rather than scrub, and air dry. That short kit cleans almost any shoe without damage.
"Properly" is doing two things: cleaning the shoe well, and not harming it while you do. Both come down to the tools and the order. This is the complete kit, what each tool is for across different shoe types, the minimum you can start with, and the ones people reach for that quietly cause the damage.
The core kit: five tools that clean almost anything
Whether it is a school runner, a work boot or a good pair of sneakers, the same short kit covers most of the job.
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A soft-bristled brush. The most useful tool you own and the one most people get wrong. A soft brush lifts dirt from mesh, canvas, knit and leather without fraying or scratching. Nike's care guidance is to remove loose dirt first with a dry, soft-bristled brush, or a spare toothbrush, before anything else (Source: Nike, how to clean your shoes). Keep a stiffer brush for outsoles only.
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A microfibre cloth. For lifting soapy moisture and dirt off the surface. Blot, do not rub. Rubbing wears the material and spreads the dirt, which is why Nike's method is to blot with a soft cloth rather than scrub.
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A mild detergent. A small amount of gentle detergent in cool water is all most shoes need. ASICS recommends 15 to 30ml of mild detergent and warns against bleach and household cleaners, which break the materials down (Source: ASICS, how to clean your running shoes).
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Shoe trees. A pair of adjustable shoe trees holds the shape while the shoe cleans and dries, so it does not collapse or curl. They matter most after any wash, when a wet shoe is at its most vulnerable.
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A structured shoe wash bag. For the machine-wash route on canvas, mesh and synthetic shoes, a bag with separate compartments protects the shoe from the drum and the drum from the shoe. It is the tool that makes a machine wash safe rather than a gamble.
Add these only if you own the material
Beyond the core five, a couple of tools earn their place only if your shoes need them. If you own suede or nubuck, add a suede brush and a suede eraser, because water and ordinary soap ruin suede and these are the only safe way to clean it. If you own leather shoes or boots, add a leather cleaner and a conditioner, since leather wants a wipe and a feed, not a soak. And a dedicated stiffer brush is worth keeping for outsoles, where the grime is heavier and the soft brush is wasted. Buy these when a shoe in your rack actually needs them, not before.
Match the tool to the material
This is what "properly" really means. The fastest way to ruin a shoe is to use one method on every material. Canvas, mesh and synthetic uppers take a soft brush, mild detergent, and a machine wash in a bag if you like. Leather wipes clean with a damp cloth and a leather cleaner, never a soak. Suede needs the dry suede brush and eraser and no water at all. Knit uppers want the softest brush you own and the gentlest touch. Boots follow the same logic by their material: leather boots get the leather treatment, canvas and synthetic boots get the soft brush and mild soap. Knowing which shoe you are holding decides which tool you reach for, and it is the step most people skip.
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The tools that quietly do damage
Some of the most common cleaning tools are the ones wrecking shoes. A stiff wire or hard nylon brush shreds mesh and knit. Bleach yellows and weakens fabric and rots stitching over time. Magic erasers strip print and coatings off uppers, though they are fine on a rubber outsole. And heat, from hot water to the clothes dryer, melts the adhesive that holds the sole on, since most athletic-footwear adhesives soften above 40°C. Cold water and air drying are not just gentler, they are the difference between a clean shoe and a ruined one. If a tool only works by force or heat, it does not belong in a proper kit.
The minimum kit, if you are starting from scratch
You do not need everything at once. The minimum to clean most shoes properly is three things you probably already own: a soft brush, a microfibre cloth, and a mild detergent. That handles the everyday clean on runners, canvas shoes and textile boots. Add shoe trees next, because holding the shape is what separates a clean shoe from a clean, misshapen one. Add the structured wash bag when you want to machine-wash rather than hand-clean. Add the suede and leather tools only when you own those materials. Built this way, the kit grows to fit your rack, not the shop's catalogue. For the deeper version of the sneaker-specific kit, see our guide to the best tools for cleaning sneakers without damage.
Where the Shoe Wash Kit fits
Two of the five core tools come in one kit. The Shoe Wash Kit is a three-compartment bag plus a pair of adjustable shoe trees, so you get the machine-wash protection and the shape-holding in a single product. One outer compartment takes each shoe so the pair never touches mid-cycle, and a centre compartment holds the laces and insoles. More than 3,000 soft chenille fingers line the inside and hold each shoe off the drum wall, and a 3D mesh panel at each end lets the water move through. On the Chalk Kit there is no dye anywhere in the bag, so there is nothing to transfer onto your white runners. It is tested to ISO 105-C06 grade 4 colour fastness and stress tested to 50 cycles at 60°C and 1400rpm, which is the durability test, not a usage instruction. Recommended use is a cold wash, on a delicate or gentle cycle, with the spin set to 600 to 800rpm, air dry only. Designed for canvas, mesh and synthetic shoes. Not designed for leather or suede.
The proper shoe-cleaning kit at a glance
| Tool | What it is for | Use on |
| Soft-bristled brush | Lifts dirt without fraying | Mesh, canvas, knit, leather |
| Microfibre cloth | Blots moisture and dirt off | All materials |
| Mild detergent | Cleans without stripping or yellowing | Most washable shoes |
| Shoe trees | Holds shape while drying | All shoes |
| Shoe wash bag | Protects shoe and machine in the wash | Canvas, mesh, synthetic |
| Suede brush and eraser | Cleans suede with no water | Suede, nubuck only |
| Hard brush, bleach, dryer | Damages fibres, colour and glue | Avoid |
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About Mudroom Co
Mudroom Co is a small Australian premium brand making home care tools for active families. We build for the way people actually use their homes, not the way the catalogue says they do. We launch in July 2026 with one product, the Shoe Wash Kit: a three-compartment bag plus a pair of adjustable shoe trees, built chalk cream inside and out, with a eucalyptus zip, piping and tag the only colour you see. It is tested to ISO 105-C06 grade 4 colour fastness and stress tested to 50 cycles at 60°C and 1400rpm. We are based in Melbourne and we sell direct. The machine washes the shoes. The bag protects them. That is the whole brand in one line.
Frequently asked questions
What tools do I need to clean shoes properly?
A soft-bristled brush, a microfibre cloth, a mild detergent, a pair of shoe trees, and a structured shoe wash bag for the machine route. Add a suede brush and eraser if you own suede, and a leather cleaner if you own leather. Matched to the material, this short kit cleans almost any shoe.
Do I need a special kit or can I use what I have?
Most homes already own the minimum: a soft brush, a microfibre cloth and a mild detergent. A dedicated kit earns its cost only when it adds the tools that protect the shoe, the shoe trees that hold the shape and the bag that makes a machine wash safe.
What is the best brush for cleaning shoes?
A soft-bristled brush for the uppers, which lifts dirt without fraying mesh or knit. Keep a stiffer brush for outsoles only, and a dedicated suede brush for suede. One soft brush does most of the work on most shoes.
Can I clean all my shoes with the same tools?
The core kit works across most shoes, but the method changes with the material. Canvas and synthetic take soap and a soft brush, leather takes a wipe and a cleaner, and suede takes a dry brush and no water. Match the tool to the material every time.
What tools should I avoid?
A stiff wire brush, bleach, and the clothes dryer. The hard brush frays fabric, bleach yellows and weakens it, and the dryer's heat melts the sole adhesive. Cold water, a soft brush and air drying protect the shoe instead.
Do I really need shoe trees?
They are the most underrated tool in the kit. A wet shoe is at its most likely to collapse or curl, and shoe trees hold the shape through the clean and the dry. They make the difference between a clean shoe and a clean, misshapen one.
Related reading
Going deeper on the topics above. Each of these is on the Mudroom Co hub.
In short. A proper kit is small: a soft brush, a cloth, a mild detergent, shoe trees, and a wash bag, with suede and leather tools added only if you own them. What makes cleaning proper is not the number of products, it is matching the tool to the material and using cold water and a gentle hand.
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About the author
Catherine Spiteri is the founder of Mudroom Co. With two teenage kids, an overflowing mudroom and a washing machine running twice a day, she noticed how few quality tools existed to make busy home life easier, and to protect the things we use every day so they last.
She started Mudroom Co because, while the tools existed, she could not find any made properly for the lives people actually lead. She has thirty years in development and construction, working with global corporates on projects of every scale and complexity, and now applies that skillset to household products with proper manufacturing and quality control behind them. Mudroom Co is based in Melbourne, Australia.
References
External sources cited in this article.
ASICS, how to clean your running shoes