Radiant Regular Pads With Wings vs Chlorine Free Maxi Pads: which is safer?

Seventh Generation Chlorine Free Maxi Pads is the clear pick. Always Radiant Regular Pads With Wings carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.

Always Radiant Regular Pads With Wings

Always

Radiant Regular Pads With Wings

PFAS grade

Poor 25/100

Overall grade

Bad 17/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

cellulose/SAP absorbent core with waterproof plastic backing

Confidence

45%

PossiblePlastic backing composition and leaching

PossibleSynthetic dyes and fragrance in top sheet

Our pick

Seventh Generation Chlorine Free Maxi Pads

Seventh Generation

Chlorine Free Maxi Pads

PFAS grade

Excellent 100/100

Overall grade

Excellent 96/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 1

Material

organic cotton, wood pulp

Confidence

78%

PossibleFragrance allergen content

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Plastic backing composition and leaching and Synthetic dyes and fragrance in top sheet on the Always and not on the Seventh Generation.
  • We flag Fragrance allergen content on the Seventh Generation and not on the Always.
  • The Always is cellulose/SAP absorbent core with waterproof plastic backing where the Seventh Generation is organic cotton, wood pulp, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 75 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Seventh Generation is the one to buy.
  • We are less certain about the Always grade, at 45% confidence against 78%, because it discloses less.

Both products run through the same public rubric, which covers materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

More period pads, see the full ranking