I was so excited when we bought a microfiber sectional couch 7 years ago. The salesman told us microfiber couches were GREAT with kids because you could clean it so easily.
Ha! I quickly learned otherwise. Not only was our microfiber couch not easy to clean, but every little thing showed up! If my toddler dropped his leaking sippy cup with milk on the couch, it left a huge mark. Anything that spilled left a mark. Even drool or little ones sucking on the couch (< true story) left evidence!
And while I would scrub and scrub, it was slow tedious work, especially when the entire couch needed a deep cleaning. Of course I know it didn’t help that our couch was cheap microfiber – having quality material does make a difference.
But regardless, I promised myself I’d never do microfiber again.
Then we moved last summer. We ditched the old nasty couch and moved to our new house where a new (to us) couch awaited us. The previous owners (friends of ours) kindly left behind a beautiful sectional couch – the quality, expensive kind we’d never have bought ourselves. But as luck would have it, it was a microfiber couch.
Clearly, I had to learn how to handle this special breed of furniture.
And I have. Little marks and stains are still more obvious than I’d like for a family couch, but I’ve learned to not freak out when I see a new stain or mark (or usually many) on the couch.
Today I’ll show you how to clean a microfiber couch quite easily without special cleaners or supplies. You most likely already have these items around your house.
Supplies:
- rubbing alcohol (I used 50%)
- empty spray bottle
(I found mine in the travel section at Target) - clean white cleaning cloth
- scrub brush
(I found mine in the travel section at Target)
Tip: screw the spray bottle nozzle right onto the rubbing alcohol bottle. It should fit (unless you have a really large spray bottle) and it’s quicker and easier than pouring the rubbing alcohol into the spray bottle.
Here’s one of the many areas on my couch that I needed to clean:
Spray the rubbing alcohol on the stain.
This is where I do it a little differently than other sites. I use an old white prefold cloth diaper (they are my FAVORITE cleaning cloths – we call them cleaning rags because they are so sturdy and last FOREVER) to scrub the dirty area.
I’ve read that you can use a clean sponge that matches the color of the couch, but I could never find a sponge the right color, plus I’m not a big fan of sponges for cleaning (they tend to break apart when using a lot of elbow grease. And I need to use a lot of elbow grease on my couch, thanks to my four kids.)
Scrub the dirty area that you’ve just spray with rubbing alcohol well.
Don’t be afraid to use elbow grease. (If you are nervous how this may affect the material, try it on an inconspicuous area first.)
Scrub until the stain is gone. (Sometimes it’s hard to tell since the material is wet from the rubbing alcohol, but just try your best. You can always go another round with it later.)
Ew! Who would have guessed such a small area would be so dirty?!
Let the area dry – it may take a couple hours – and then gently brush in circular motions with your scrub brush. This will help soften the material again.
And that’s how you clean a microfiber couch. Pretty simple, right?
Of course if you have four children – one who looks like Pigpen from the Peanuts gang all summer long and has literally carried buckets of dirt and rocks into the house {< a true Luke story} – it may not be an easy task to thoroughly clean the entire couch. But that’s what happens when you have three boys.
What happens if you have more than just dirt stains on the couch? What if your toddler goes at it with a pen or marker?
This simple cleaning method works for that too!
That was courtesy of Luke. He tries to look innocent, doesn’t he?
Seriously my poor couch!
Luke helped clean my couch. I firmly believe that kids need to learn as early as possible to help out around the house – especially to clean up after themselves. And this was no exception.
Thank goodness this method for cleaning microfiber works so well!
Pin this tip for how to clean a microfiber couch so you can save it for later!
Got a tough stain? Clean here for my all-natural trick for removing tough stains from microfiber!
Jennifer says
Where was this article when I had my microfiber couch? I finally got rid of it, because I couldn’t keep it clean.
Melissa Pezza says
This is such a great article! Microfiber furniture is so pretty, but it’s really hard to clean if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Jenna Wood says
Wow, rubbing alcohol for a microfiber couch? We have one of these in the living room and it could certainly use a scrubbing- it’s the same color!
Robin Rue (@massholemommy) says
I tried this and it actually didn’t work for me. Some of it came out, but not completely 🙁
Erika says
Look for my post next week where I share how I remove tricky stains and dirt with a different method!
Chelley @ AisForAdelaide says
Oh my gosh- that worked great!!!! I definitely pinned! My favorite chair is microfiber!
Danielle says
Oh, how I needed this in my life. My microfiber couch is pretty embarrassing right now, to say the least.
Meagan says
This is the only way I clean my microfiber couch and it works like a charm! I did’t know it can take out pen too!
Shauna says
Wow, who knew??? This is so super-cool. I never knew and need this badly. Thanks so much for sharing.
Stefani Tolson says
I wish I would have known how to clean the couches better that we had. Thanks for the info.
Sarah Marturano says
This is awesome, and right on time! My friend’s daughter just took to their suede couch with marker… I’ll be sharing this with her.
Amy Desrosiers says
Oh my gosh, thanks for letting me know! My son pretended he was Picasso with the pens this past week.
Erika says
Don’t you love when they practice on the furniture?
Marcie W. says
We had a microfiber couch when our kids were really young and we could have totally benefited from these awesome cleaning tips. Who knew a solution was so easy?!
Liz Mays says
Wow I can’t believe how well that worked. I’m definitely going to have to take your advice.
Elizabeth @ Being MVP says
Gotta love microfiber when you have little kids. Never going with regular fabric furniture!
Maureen says
This is seriously genius! I would be in tears seeing my couch like that. It is amazing how well your method works!
Mama to 5 BLessings says
Wow! Great job! Looks like a new couch!
Stacey- Travel Blogger says
I’m so glad you were able to get the pen and marker out! It’s smart to make him help you clean it!
Aimee SMith says
Ahhh I needed this post a few months ago! Microfiber can be quite a pain can’t it!
Ann Bacciaglia says
This looks like a great way to clean micro fiber. I will have to try it on my rec room couch. It could use a good cleaning.
Lisa Bristol says
My friend has a Microfiber couch and was just saying she was looking for the best way to clean it. I will have to share this post with her.
DEBI says
I ahve been thinking about getting a new couch but I am afraid of the kids just wreckin a new one. This is exactly thr infomartion I needed.
Nancy @ Whispered Inspirations says
OMG, I can’t believe it is all gone. I totally need this for my basement sofas!
Ronni says
Wow, that worked great!
I have one in need if ya want to come help out!! 😉
Sara Killinger says
Using rubbing alcohol on the couch is a brilliant idea! I work for a janitorial service working in a number of offices. I frequently run across microfiber couches with a number of odd stains on them and they’re difficult to remove. Would rubbing alcohol also work to help clean other types of furniture as well?
Sarah says
Great tutorial! We were just given a lightly used sofa and love seat in microfiber fabric for free and our little guy got marker on one of them this morning. Needless to say I will be trying this tomorrow! Thanks!
Linda says
I am going to try this and more of you cleaning tricks
Lauren says
This was so helpful, took the highlighter stains right out of my new couch. Thank you!
Sarah White says
Thanks for sharing this process! I was given a sofa from my friend, and it needed some major cleaning work. I usually just get all my upholstery cleaned once a year by a local carpet cleaning company and they do great work. But for just one sofa, I thought I could clean it myself. Your method worked very well and I will definitely use it again. Thank you so much!!
Julia says
My son “accidentally” drew with markers on a microfiber chair today. I found your post and want to thank you for including the pic of your son after the pic of the marker mess on the sofa. It made my son feel so much better to know he wasn’t the only kid who made this mistake.! Then the pics of your son helping clean up. ***thank you*** – it clicked with my son that yes, kids can do this! He thought it was hilarious we were using an old diaper as the rag. We worked together – I sprayed the stains & he scrubbed. It worked!
Christine says
We’re so glad it helped! Yes, kiddos get creative. Thank you so much for sharing your story. It reminds us that sometimes our posts are more than just a cleaning tip. HUGS!
Sara Ann says
This is a game-changer! I used to get the large sectional in my home cleaned once a year by a local upholstery cleaning company, but we moved away and I haven’t found another cleaner yet. The sectional was in really poor condition with all the stains my 3 young kids had caused. I followed your process and the results were very impressive! It turned out much better than I thought it would, and I will definitely be keeping this DIY handy for future use!
Alicia Hursley says
Yeah, I’ve definitely had a child use our ottoman as a coloring book haha As a mom of three rambunctious boys I’m always looking for ways I can deep clean my couch and furniture in between visits from my professional upholstery cleaning service that seriously deserves an award after everything they’ve had to do for my little family. Looking forward to giving this a try!
Noah Enholm says
Rubbing alcohol works well in removing markers from almost all surfaces, including marker stains from upholstery.
Marsha Harrison says
Rather than making a paste with baking soda, you can simply sprinkle it on the stain. By using a brush, you can remove dry-erase marker spots from the couch.