How to Get Cranberry Sauce Stains Out of Clothes, Tablecloths and Carpet

To remove cranberry sauce, scrape off the excess, rinse the stain from the back with cold water, work in a little liquid laundry detergent, and launder in the warmest water the fabric allows. Cranberry is a dye-heavy fruit stain, so fast action matters, and you should avoid heat until the color is gone.

Before you start

• Check the care label on clothes and linens for water temperature and bleach warnings.
• Test any product on a hidden spot first, such as a seam or the underside of a hem.
• Use cold water at the start. Hot water can set a fruit stain.
• Blot, do not rub. Rubbing spreads the sauce and can damage fibers.
• Keep the dryer off until the stain is completely gone, since heat can make a leftover trace permanent.

Never mix cleaning products. Use one product at a time, rinse well between steps, ventilate the room, and keep cleaners away from children and pets.

Cranberry sauce on clothes

1. Lift off the extra sauce with a spoon or the dull edge of a butter knife. Work from the outside of the stain towards the middle.
2. Turn the garment inside out and hold the stained area under cold running water. Water flowing from the back pushes the stain out instead of deeper in.
3. Apply a few drops of liquid laundry detergent to the stain and gently work it in with your fingers or a soft brush. Let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Rinse with cold water and check the fabric. If color remains, repeat the detergent step.
5. For a stubborn mark, soak the item in cool water with a laundry stain remover or an oxygen bleach that is safe for the fabric, following the product label for time and amount.
6. Wash as usual in the warmest water the care label permits. Check the stain before drying, and air-dry if any shadow remains.

White cotton can usually take a stronger treatment than colored items, but check the label before using any bleach. Chlorine bleach is not suitable for silk, wool, spandex or colored fabrics.

Cranberry sauce on a tablecloth

Holiday tablecloths often come in cotton, linen or a blend, and a stain is easier to treat before the cloth has been left in a pile overnight.

1. Remove the solids with a spoon and blot the liquid with a clean cloth or paper towel.
2. Rinse the back of the stain with cold water.
3. Rub in a drop of liquid detergent and wait 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Soak the cloth in cool water with an oxygen-based stain remover if the stain persists, following the label.
5. Launder as the label says, then look at the stain before drying.

If the cloth is delicate, embroidered or dry-clean-only, blot, take it to a professional as soon as you can, and tell them what the stain is. A tablecloth with gravy as well can be handled with our guide to getting gravy out of a tablecloth, which also covers the cloth fibers. Grease from the rest of the meal can be treated with the advice in how to remove grease stains.

Cranberry sauce on carpet

Carpet needs a lighter touch, because you cannot rinse it the way you rinse a shirt, and too much water can soak into the backing.

1. Scoop up the sauce with a spoon, then blot with a clean white cloth. Work inwards from the edge.
2. Mix a small amount of mild liquid dish soap, about ¼ teaspoon, with 1 cup (240 ml) of cool water.
3. Dab the solution onto the stain with a clean cloth, and blot repeatedly, moving to a clean part of the cloth as it picks up color.
4. Rinse by dabbing with a cloth dampened with plain cold water, then blot dry with a stack of towels.
5. Place a dry towel over the area with a heavy book on top for a few hours to draw up leftover moisture.

If a pink or red shadow stays after drying, a carpet stain remover made for the fiber, used according to its label, is the next step. Similar sticky stains are covered in how to get red wine out of carpet, which uses the same blotting approach. For a big spill, wool carpet or a rug of unknown fiber, a professional cleaner is the safer choice.

Old or dried cranberry stains

A stain that has dried or has been through the dryer is harder, but not always hopeless.

• Soak the fabric in cool water with detergent for 30 minutes up to several hours, then rinse.
• Use an oxygen bleach soak as the label directs, and check progress every so often.
• Repeat treatments rather than using one strong dose.
• Stop if the fabric color starts to fade, and ask a dry cleaner about valuable items.

Some stains leave a faint tint, particularly on delicate or light fabrics. It is better to accept a slight shadow than to damage the fiber.

What not to do

• Do not use hot water or a dryer before the stain is gone.
• Do not scrub hard, which can fray the fibers and spread the color.
• Do not combine bleach with vinegar, ammonia or other cleaners.
• Do not skip the spot test on colored or delicate fabrics.

Quick answers

Does cranberry sauce stain permanently?

Not usually, if it is treated quickly. The risk goes up if the stain dries or gets heat from a dryer.

Is hot or cold water better for cranberry?

Start with cold water for rinsing. Wash in the warmest water the care label permits only after the pre-treatment.

Can I use vinegar on a cranberry stain?

Some people dab diluted white vinegar on fruit stains, but it is not needed, and it should never be mixed with bleach or other cleaners. Detergent works well enough for most stains.

What about other holiday stains?

Coffee is common at the same meal, and our coffee stain guide covers clothes, carpet and upholstery.