---
title: "Can you mix vinegar and ammonia?"
description: "Vinegar and ammonia: you can, but it achieves nothing. What actually happens, and what to do instead."
url: https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/vinegar-and-ammonia/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Can you mix vinegar and ammonia?

**Vinegar and Ammonia: You can, but it achieves nothing**

Not dangerous, and they cancel each other out.

## What actually happens

An acid and a base neutralise to produce ammonium acetate and water. It is not a hazardous reaction — this is the rare case where two cleaning products meet and nothing bad happens — but both are consumed and neither cleans afterwards. Ammonia is an excellent glass cleaner and vinegar an excellent descaler, and the mixture is neither.

## What to do instead

One or the other, chosen for the job.

## Cleaning products

| Combination | Verdict | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Bleach and ammonia | Toxic gas | No. This is the classic household poisoning and it produces chloramine gas. |
| Bleach and vinegar | Toxic gas | No. Any acid plus bleach releases chlorine gas. |
| Baking soda and vinegar | Pointless | Safe, dramatic, and it leaves you with salt water. |
| Bleach and toilet cleaner | Toxic gas | No. Most toilet cleaners are acidic, so this is the bleach-and-acid reaction. |
| Bleach and rubbing alcohol | Toxic gas | No. It produces chloroform and other chlorinated compounds. |
| Hydrogen peroxide and vinegar | Do not | No — mixed in a bottle it forms peracetic acid, which is corrosive. |
| One drain cleaner and a different drain cleaner | Toxic gas | No. Drain cleaners come in strongly acidic and strongly caustic types, and combining them is violent. |
| Bleach and hydrogen peroxide | Do not | No — it is exothermic and destroys both, and can spray hot liquid. |
| Vinegar and castile soap | Pointless | Safe, and it curdles into a white mess that is worse than either. |

## Common questions

### Can you mix vinegar and ammonia?

You can, but it achieves nothing. Not dangerous, and they cancel each other out.

### What happens if you do?

An acid and a base neutralise to produce ammonium acetate and water. It is not a hazardous reaction — this is the rare case where two cleaning products meet and nothing bad happens — but both are consumed and neither cleans afterwards. Ammonia is an excellent glass cleaner and vinegar an excellent descaler, and the mixture is neither.

### What should I do instead?

One or the other, chosen for the job.

## Related pages

- [Bleach and ammonia](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-ammonia/)
- [Bleach and vinegar](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-vinegar/)
- [Baking soda and vinegar](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/baking-soda-and-vinegar/)
- [Bleach and toilet cleaner](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-toilet-cleaner/)
- [Bleach and rubbing alcohol](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-rubbing-alcohol/)
- [Hydrogen peroxide and vinegar](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/hydrogen-peroxide-and-vinegar/)
- [Bleach and ammonia](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-ammonia/)
- [Bleach and vinegar](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-vinegar/)
- [Bleach and toilet cleaner](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-toilet-cleaner/)
- [Bleach and rubbing alcohol](https://atoneplace.net/can-you-mix/bleach-and-rubbing-alcohol/)
- [Hazard symbols](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/)

## Sources

- US Environmental Protection Agency — EPA (https://www.epa.gov/) [Public domain (US Government)]