Are you interested in ethical shopping or conscious shopping? Good for you! After all, ethical shopping is the new black… But, it can be pretty hard to separate the real conscious brands from the ones that aren’t, or just pretend to be. This is why we’ve put together a list of apps that will make your life a whole lot easier.
Because when you immerse yourself in the world of fashion, it may seem like there aren’t any ethical or conscious fashion brands at all! H&M uses organic cotton for their Conscious line, but they (still) produce their clothes in factories where people work in poor working conditions. The fashion industry is incredibly complex with non-transparent chains.
While, for the environment it is best not to consume, in some cases you still might need something.
Fortunately, you can turn to the following apps that will help you make the right choices when it comes to ethical shopping.
1. TreeClicks - plant trees for free while shopping online
If you are into conscious or ethical shopping, you probably worry about the consequences of your purchases. Buying products isn’t good for our planet, after all. Think about all of the CO2 that comes with the production and transportation of new (or second-hand) products. Or think about the all of the pollution from the fashion industry.
Best-case scenario would be to prevent CO2 production, of course. But in this current world, that would be impossible. The second best thing to do then, would be to give something back for your purchases. This is done with the app TreeClicks. When you add TreeClicks to your browser, it receives an ad fee while you are shopping. With this ad fee, TreeClicks invests in tree planting projects, which help absorb CO2 from our atmosphere. It does that all for free. Shopping prices remain the same.
Platform: Online, Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari for Mac, iOS and Android
Languages: English and Dutch
2. Good On You - Eco shopping
The fashion industry has long been under fire for unethical practices. The app Good On You makes it easier for consumers to shop in an ethically responsible way. You can easily look up a brand and the app immediately tells you how ethically responsible it is. It does this with the use of a five-star rating system. Since 2015, the company assessed more than 3000 brands, including H&M, Levi’s and Zara.
Platform: Online, Android, iOS
Language: English
3. Rank a Brand - Environmental brand comparison
Rank a Brand is/was an independent brand comparison site, where you can see how sustainable a brand is. It has done very well in the last 10 years, and it has ranked more than 500 brands on sustainability and fair trade practices. However, as of 2019, it has been incorporated by Good On You. For now, you can still use Rank a Brand to check your brands, but in the future, all web pages will be redirected to Good On you.
Platform: Online, Android, iOS
Language: English and Dutch
4. United Wardrobe - Vintage Clothing
United Wardrobe works as a kind of marketplace for second-hand clothing. You can offer or auction your own second-hand clothing. Of course, you can also browse through a large collection of second-hand items from other sellers. Most of the items on offer are still of excellent quality. You can pay via the app or the website, with iDeal, PayPal or credit card.
Platform: Online, Android, iOS
Language: Dutch and other languages
5. Depop - Second Hand Clothing App
Depop is a major international platform for second-hand clothing. The idea is that you follow other users to see what they sell. You can also sell your own items. Payment is done via Depop, with PayPal or credit card. Depop is, however, a lot less convenient than other second-hand clothing apps, and the search function is also less extensive.
Platform: Android, iOS
Language: English
6. Too Good To Go - Be more sustainable by preventing food waste
Too Good To Go is an app that you can download to your phone, which helps you to “rescue food waste”. Every day, restaurants and stores throw away perfectly good food due to company policies. This adds up to 10 million tons of food per year. With Too Good To Go, you select your favourite food or store, and then you go pick it up at the store for a discount price (often more than 50%).
Platform: Android, iOS
Language: English and Dutch
7. FairFashion - better clothes ranked on sustainability
Fair Fashion was developed by the Clean Clothes Campaign and focuses specifically on living wages for workers. For a year, the Clean Clothes Campaign researched working conditions of textile workers of major clothing brands. More than 140 clothing brands were analysed and can now be found in the Fair Fashion app.
The app is free and downloadable for Android and iPhone. Enter the brand name of a garment and a scoreboard appears with extra information. Each brand has a profile with the efforts they make in relation to the working conditions of their employees. The final score shows you if your favourite clothing brand is doing something about the working conditions and living standards of its employees.
Take, for example, the Spanish chain Zara, which is extremely popular all over the world. According to the app, Zara is taking steps to raise the salaries of its employees, however, it’s not yet doing enough.
Some brands can't be found in the Fair Fashion app, because they refused to participate in the research. As a result, you won't find out anything about their approach to a higher living wage. But maybe that says enough anyway.
Platforms: Android, iOS
Languages: English
Did we forget any ethical shopping apps? Please share your thoughts!
