To clean wallpaper without damaging it, dust it gently with a soft brush or a vacuum’s brush attachment, spot-clean light marks with a barely damp microfiber cloth and a drop of mild soap, and avoid scrubbing, soaking, or harsh chemicals at all costs.
The right method depends on what kind of wallpaper you have.
A washable vinyl can handle a lot more than a delicate hand-blocked heritage paper.
Most wallpaper damage actually happens during cleaning, not from normal wear.
Someone reaches for an all-purpose spray and a rough sponge, and within seconds the print is rubbed off or the seam is bubbling.
Our guide below walks through the safe way to handle each cleaning situation, from a light dust to a real kitchen splash, with notes on what works for which paper.
Know Your Wallpaper Type First
Different wallpapers handle cleaning in very different ways. Before you touch yours with anything, you need to know what kind it is. Here’s a quick breakdown:
● Washable vinyl wallpaper: handles a damp cloth well, can tolerate mild soap, the most forgiving of all types
● Non-woven wallpaper: usually washable, but check manufacturer notes; tougher than traditional paper
● Traditional paste-the-wall paper: fine with light dry dusting; very limited tolerance for moisture
● Hand-blocked heritage wallpaper: delicate; can fade or bleed if rubbed or wet; dust only, unless the maker says otherwise
● Grasscloth and natural-fibre wallpaper: never wet; dust gently and that’s it
If you’re not sure which type you have, check the receipt, the leftover roll, or look up the brand.
Heritage designs from makers like Sanderson, Morris & Co., or curated collections at William Morris Wallpaper usually come with specific care instructions worth following.
Hands gently dusting a beautifully patterned heritage botanical wallpaper with a soft brush in a bright, sunlit room
Everyday Dusting and Dry Cleaning
Regular dusting does most of the work of keeping wallpaper looking good.
It pulls off the fine layer of dust, pet hair, and cooking residue that settles on the surface over time. Most of this work needs no water at all.
A vacuum with a soft brush attachment is your friend here.
Set the suction low. Run it gently from top to bottom, working in sections.
Don’t press hard. The bristles should barely touch the surface. The vacuum does the work.
For delicate or hand-blocked papers, swap the vacuum for a long-handled microfiber duster or a clean, soft natural-bristle brush.
Sweep lightly in the same direction as the pattern repeat. That avoids snagging on any raised texture.
Twice a year is enough for most rooms. In rooms where dust builds up faster, kitchens, kids’ rooms, rooms with pets, go every two to three months instead.
Catching dust early is much easier than dealing with it once it bonds to a greasy surface.
How to Clean Light Stains and Marks Safely
For light stains and fingerprints, the safe move is a barely damp microfiber cloth with a single drop of mild dish soap. Blot, don’t rub.
Test a hidden spot first if the wallpaper is delicate or you’ve never cleaned it before.
Here’s the step-by-step:
- Mix a tiny bit of mild dish soap (something like Dawn or a similar gentle dish soap) into lukewarm water in a small bowl
- Dip a clean white microfiber cloth in, then wring it out really well: the cloth should feel just barely damp
- Blot the stain gently from the outside edges in toward the centre
- Pat the area with a dry cloth right after
- Let it air dry fully before checking again
Blot is the word to remember. Rub or scrub and you can lift the print right off the paper. Heritage and hand-blocked papers are especially fragile here.
The printing sits in a thin layer of pigment that can dissolve if you press too hard with water.
For pencil marks, a clean white eraser used very lightly can work on washable papers.
Test first. Crayon or marker is much harder and may need professional advice.
How to Handle Bigger Spills, Grease, and Kitchen Splatters
When you get a bigger spill, grease, sauce, food splatter, speed matters.
Blot up what you can with a dry cloth immediately, then follow the same damp microfiber and mild soap method in small light passes. Acting fast beats scrubbing every time.
The sooner you reach the mark, the less damage.
A grease splash left for a week soaks into the paper and is much harder to remove than one wiped within the hour.
Keep a stash of clean white microfiber cloths under the sink in any room with wallpaper near food prep.
For greasy marks specifically, there’s an old trick: dust the area with a thin layer of cornstarch or talcum powder, let it sit for an hour to absorb the oil, then brush it off gently before doing the damp cloth treatment. That pulls the grease out of the surface so you’re cleaning less of it.
If a stain doesn’t come up after two gentle passes, stop.
Pushing harder usually makes it worse. Some marks just won’t lift, and trying to force them out can damage the print or paper.
At that point, consider replacing that section, especially if the paper has a small repeat that’s easy to patch.
What Not to Do When Cleaning Wallpaper
A few things will ruin a wall in minutes, so it’s worth naming them outright.
Harsh chemicals (ammonia, bleach, strong all-purpose cleaners) will strip the print and can dissolve the paper backing.
Those are meant for hard surfaces, not wallpaper. The green-scrubby kind of sponge will lift ink off the paper, sometimes in the exact shape of the sponge itself.
Soaking wet cloths are another killer. Water is fine in tiny amounts.
It’s not fine when the paper gets saturated, because the seams lift and the adhesive fails. Scrubbing, even with a soft cloth, wears the print down over time.
Wallpaper wants to be blotted or gently wiped, never scrubbed.
Two more to skip: steam cleaners and bleach.
Steam cleaners are made for removing wallpaper, not cleaning it.
The steam will undo the adhesive and lift the paper off the wall.
Bleach fades the print and bleaches the paper itself. Even diluted bleach can leave permanent light patches.
A close-up of someone gently spot-cleaning a small mark on a botanical wallpaper using a white microfiber cloth, soft natural lighting
How to Care for Heritage and Delicate Wallpapers
Heritage and hand-blocked wallpapers need the gentlest care of any wallpaper type.
Stick to dry dusting with a soft brush or microfiber duster only, and avoid water entirely unless the manufacturer specifically says it’s safe.
These papers are printed with natural-pigment inks that can dissolve or smear when they get wet.
The paper itself is usually unsealed, so moisture sinks in rather than sitting on top.
A damp cloth, even a lightly damp one, can leave a permanent shadow.
If you do have a mark on a heritage paper, the safest move is usually to leave it alone unless it’s really bad.
A small mark is often less noticeable than a damaged patch from a cleaning attempt that went wrong.
For care notes on a specific heritage design, check the maker’s instructions.
Curated collections at places like William Morris Wallpaper ship care notes with their patterns, and following them is how these papers stay looking right for decades.
They’re an investment, and they reward gentle handling with very long life.
If you’ve got a serious stain on a heritage paper that you can’t live with, contact a professional wallpaper conservator. Yes, that’s a real job.
They work on historic homes and antique papers, and they can sometimes help where DIY methods would only make things worse.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use water on washable vinyl and most non-woven wallpapers, as long as you use very little of it. Wring your cloth out so it’s only barely damp, and never let water pool on the surface or run down the wall. Traditional paper, heritage hand-blocked, and grasscloth wallpapers should not get wet at all.
The safest way is light dry dusting with a vacuum brush attachment or a microfiber duster, plus very gentle spot cleaning for marks using a barely damp cloth with mild dish soap. Always blot rather than rub, and always test a hidden area first.
Magic Erasers are actually mildly abrasive and will lift the print off most wallpapers. They might work on heavy commercial-grade vinyl in tiny test spots, but for home wallpapers, especially patterned or heritage papers, they’re risky. There are gentler ways to handle most marks. For collections like those at William Morris Wallpaper, follow the maker’s care guidelines instead of reaching for an eraser.
Light dusting twice a year is usually enough for most rooms. Kitchens and high-traffic areas may need a quick dust every two to three months. Spot-clean visible marks as soon as you notice them. The longer they sit, the harder they get to remove.
For grease marks, dust the area with cornstarch or talcum powder, let it sit for about an hour to absorb the oil, then gently brush it off. Follow up with a barely damp microfiber cloth and a single drop of mild dish soap, blotting lightly. Work fast. Fresh grease lifts much more easily than old grease.
Small surface mould can sometimes be wiped off washable wallpaper with a barely damp cloth and mild soap. Bigger mould patches usually mean a humidity problem in the room, and the wallpaper itself may be damaged underneath. In that case, replacement and fixing the cause (ventilation, leaks) is the right call.
