Clothes that smell like mildew after going through the washing machine were left wet in the drum for too long before drying. Regular detergent in a second wash will not remove the smell, because it does not kill the mold spores that have colonized the fabric fibers. It just adds a clean scent on top of an active biological problem, which is why the smell comes right back within hours of putting the clothes on.
The reason detergent alone fails on mildew smell is the difference between cleaning and killing. Detergent removes dirt, surface oils, and surface odor by lifting and suspending particles in water. Mildew smell comes from living mold spores that have embedded themselves in the fabric fiber structure. What you need is an antimicrobial agent that kills the spores at the fiber level, not a cleaning agent that moves things around.
White vinegar is the most reliable and accessible solution. Run the affected clothes through a full wash cycle using only one cup of white vinegar in place of detergent. No detergent, no fabric softener, just vinegar. The acetic acid in vinegar kills mold spores effectively on fabric without damaging the fibers or the dye, and it rinses away completely so the clothes do not smell like vinegar once they are dry. This is the vinegar rewash method, and it resolves most mildew smell in a single cycle.
For clothes with a severe mildew smell, particularly anything that sat wet for more than a few hours, the two-cycle approach is more reliable. Run the vinegar cycle first to kill the spores, then run a second normal cycle with your regular detergent to remove the dead spore residue and any remaining odor compounds. This takes more time but works on cases that a single vinegar wash would only partially resolve.
If you do not have white vinegar on hand, baking soda works as an alternative, though it is less effective. Half a cup of baking soda added directly to the drum disrupts the mold’s chemical environment because baking soda is alkaline and mildew is acidic. It will reduce the smell noticeably but may not eliminate it completely on heavily affected garments.
The critical prevention step is the one most people know about but consistently ignore. Transfer clothes from the washing machine to the dryer within 30 minutes of the wash cycle ending. Clothes left sitting wet in a closed drum for more than an hour will almost always develop mildew smell, especially in warm weather when mold grows faster. Many modern washing machines include a reminder chime for exactly this reason. Setting a timer when you start the wash cycle costs nothing and prevents the entire problem.
If the mildew smell keeps returning even after washing, the washing machine itself may be the source. Mold grows inside front-load washing machines in particular, in the rubber door gasket and inside the drum. Every load then gets a fresh dose of mold spores transferred to the clothes. If this sounds familiar, check out how to address mold in your washing machine before running another load of laundry.
You can also check your laundry routine for other common mistakes that make clothes come out less clean than they should. Things like overloading the drum, using too much detergent, or washing at the wrong temperature affect cleaning effectiveness in ways that are easy to overlook.
Towels are a particularly common place for mildew smell to develop because they stay damp longer than most other fabrics after each use. The same vinegar method that works on clothes works on towels, and if musty towels are a recurring issue, the fix is the same once you understand why it keeps happening.
The biggest mistake people make is washing mildew-smelling clothes normally two or three times before trying vinegar, which wastes time and water. One vinegar cycle resolves what multiple regular cycles cannot, because it is addressing the right problem from the start. And always dry fully before folding or hanging in a closet. A garment that is 95% dry and folded into a dark, low-airflow drawer will develop mildew smell again within a day or two.
For monthly drum maintenance, washing machine cleaning tablets on Amazon are the most straightforward way to prevent the machine itself from becoming a mold source. Plant Paper also carries laundry options for households looking to reduce chemical exposure. If you want a broader approach to building better habits across the home,
You can also browse eco-friendly cleaning products that work well for laundry and household cleaning without harsh chemicals.
When You Were Never Taught to Clean ($11.99) covers the foundational knowledge that prevents small issues from becoming recurring ones. Keeping to a regular cleaning schedule is the other half of the equation.
