iTouchless vs simplehuman
simplehuman builds the better can and iTouchless builds the better value, and the thing that decides between them is not price - it is whether a lid that closes on your hand would bother you every day.
By Ryder M. · Last reviewed October 10, 2026
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The short answer
Buy the simplehuman 58L Sensor Can if you will use the can twenty times a day, and the iTouchless 13 Gallon SensorCan if you will use it five. The difference that justifies simplehuman's price is the adaptive sensor: it holds the lid open while it can still see you, where iTouchless runs a timer. If the can is in a busy kitchen you will meet that difference every evening. If it is in a guest bathroom or a home office you will never notice it, and iTouchless gives you a carbon filter in the lid for a fraction of the money.
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  simplehuman 58L Sensor CanThe touchless can that gets the sensor right — it reads how long you are standing there rather than running a fixed timer. | Best touchless overall | |
| 02 |  iTouchless 13 Gallon SensorCan with AbsorbX Odor FilterThe touchless can that ships with a carbon filter in the lid and takes ordinary 13-gallon bags, at a fraction of the premium price. | Best touchless value | $79.99 · View on Amazon $89.99 · 11% off · Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money |
| 03 |  simplehuman 45L Semi-Round Sensor CanThe flat-backed semi-round shape with the adaptive sensor, for kitchens where the can has to sit against a wall. | Best touchless for a wall | $124.99 · View on Amazon $160.00 · 22% off · Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money |
| 04 |  iTouchless 13 Gallon Oval Plastic Sensor CanThe plastic-bodied version of the same sensor can — lighter, cheaper, and immune to the two things that make steel cans look old. | Best lightweight touchless | $69.97 · View on Amazon Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money |
Both brands do the same basic thing well - an infrared lid that opens without being touched, a liner ring that hides the bag, a non-skid base. Neither is a bad product. They are built to different budgets and they fail in different places.
Head to head on the five things that matter
| iTouchless | simplehuman | |
|---|---|---|
| Sensor behavior | Infrared with a fixed timer | Adaptive - holds while it still sees you |
| Odor control | AbsorbX carbon filter in the lid, standard | Odorsorb pod sold separately |
| Liners | Standard 13-gallon bags | Code-letter fitted liners (standard bags fit loosely) |
| Capacity range | One size: 13 gal / 50 L | 45 L, 58 L and up, several shapes |
| Warranty | 1 year | 5 years on sensor cans |
| Extras | Lid lock, wheels and plastic-body options | Voice control, liner pocket, finish choices |
Read that table and the split is obvious: iTouchless wins on what ships in the box and what it costs to run, simplehuman wins on how the can behaves and how long it is supported. There is no row where the cheaper brand is worse at the actual job of opening a lid.
The sensor is the whole argument
Every sensor can has the same bad moment. You are scraping a plate, you pause for two seconds to get the last of it off the fork, and the lid shuts on your hand. A fixed-timer sensor cannot avoid that, because it has no way of knowing whether you are still there - it opened, it counted, it closed.
simplehuman's adaptive sensor keeps the lid up while it still detects something in front of it, then closes once you step away. That is a software difference as much as a hardware one and it is genuinely the feature people describe as the reason they stopped thinking about the can. iTouchless does not match it, and does not claim to.
There is a third answer here that people skip past: a step can has no sensor to get wrong at all, costs less than either of these, and has no batteries. If the hands-free part is the only reason you are shopping touchless, read step can vs touchless before you spend anything.
Where iTouchless wins outright
The carbon filter is in the box
iTouchless builds an AbsorbX activated-carbon cartridge into the lid of every can in the line. simplehuman sells its Odorsorb pod as an accessory, and also sells carbon-infused liners. Both approaches work; only one of them is included in the purchase price.
Your existing bags fit
iTouchless designs around standard 13-gallon tall kitchen bags. simplehuman designs around its own code-letter liners, which fit beautifully and cost more than supermarket bags - and if you buy the wrong code letter they do not fit at all. Ordinary bags will work in a simplehuman can, they just will not sit as neatly. Why liner codes exist.
There is a plastic version
Steel cans fail cosmetically before they fail mechanically: a dent near the pedal, a permanent haze of fingerprints. iTouchless sells the same can with a plastic body, which has neither problem and costs less again. simplehuman's cheaper bodies exist on step cans, not on the sensor line.
The value side of the argument: the steel SensorCan with the filter in the lid, and the plastic-bodied version of the same can.
Best touchless value
iTouchless 13 Gallon SensorCan with AbsorbX Odor Filter
The touchless can that ships with a carbon filter in the lid and takes ordinary 13-gallon bags, at a fraction of the premium price.
$89.99 · 11% off · Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money
Best lightweight touchless
iTouchless 13 Gallon Oval Plastic Sensor Can
The plastic-bodied version of the same sensor can — lighter, cheaper, and immune to the two things that make steel cans look old.
Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money
Where simplehuman wins outright
Five years of warranty against one
This is the row that should move a buyer who intends to keep the can. A sensor can contains a motor, a circuit and a battery contact - three things that do not exist in a step can - and a one-year warranty on that package is short. Five years is a different proposition.
It comes in the size and shape your kitchen needs
iTouchless builds one capacity. simplehuman builds 45 and 58 liters in rectangular and semi-round bodies, with a flat-backed version for a can that has to sit flush to a wall. If the gap you have to fill is awkward, that choice is worth money on its own.
Voice control is not a gimmick when your hands are full
Saying "open can" with a dripping colander in both hands is the one scenario where it is unambiguously better than waving at a sensor. It is a small thing, but it is the kind of small thing the premium price is made of.
The premium side: the adaptive-sensor 58L, and the flat-backed 45L for a can that has to sit against a wall.
Best touchless overall
simplehuman 58L Sensor Can
The touchless can that gets the sensor right — it reads how long you are standing there rather than running a fixed timer.
Best touchless for a wall
simplehuman 45L Semi-Round Sensor Can
The flat-backed semi-round shape with the adaptive sensor, for kitchens where the can has to sit against a wall.
$160.00 · 22% off · Price as of October 16, 2026. #ad How we make money
The verdict, by kitchen
| Your situation | Buy | Because |
|---|---|---|
| Busy family kitchen, can opened constantly | simplehuman 58L Sensor | The adaptive sensor is the feature you meet every day |
| First touchless can, not sure you will like it | iTouchless 13 Gallon SensorCan | Find out for a third of the money, filter included |
| Bathroom, office or bedroom | iTouchless | Low cycle count; the sensor difference never shows up |
| An awkward gap or a wall the can must sit flush to | simplehuman 45L Semi-Round Sensor | iTouchless does not build the shape |
| You hate buying batteries | Neither - buy a step can | No electronics, no consumables, lower price |
| The can gets knocked by kids or pets | iTouchless Oval Plastic | Nothing to dent, nothing to fingerprint |
If the comparison you actually want is between the two value brands, that is iTouchless vs Ninestars, and the full field is in the best touchless trash cans.
How we compared them
We have not bench-tested either brand. This comparison is built from each manufacturer's published specification - sensor description, odor-control hardware, liner system, capacity range, power arrangement and warranty term - plus the retailer listings for the specific models named. Where a brand makes a claim we could not verify independently, we say which brand is making it. Methodology, disclosure.
Common questions
Is simplehuman worth three times the price of iTouchless?
In a kitchen where the can is opened fifteen or more times a day, yes - the adaptive sensor and the five-year warranty are things you meet daily. In a bathroom or an office, no; the iTouchless does the same job and includes the carbon filter.
Does iTouchless have an adaptive sensor like simplehuman?
No. iTouchless uses an infrared sensor on a fixed timer, so the lid can close while your hand is still over the opening. simplehuman's sensor holds the lid while it still detects you standing there.
Can you use normal trash bags in a simplehuman sensor can?
Yes, they just will not fit as tidily. simplehuman designs around its own code-letter liners, which are cut to the exact can; a standard 13-gallon bag works but will show overhang and can slip off the rim.
Which has better odor control, iTouchless or simplehuman?
iTouchless ships a carbon filter in the lid as standard, so out of the box it is better. simplehuman sells an Odorsorb pod and carbon-infused liners separately, which get you to the same place for more money.
What is the warranty on each?
iTouchless states one year on its sensor cans. simplehuman states five years on its sensor cans. That is the single widest gap between the two brands.
Which brand is better for a large family?
simplehuman, on capacity alone - iTouchless builds one 13-gallon size, while simplehuman goes to 58 liters. If you want more than that, look at XL automatic cans instead.
Sources
Every specification on this page traces to one of these, checked at the time of writing. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure, the page says so rather than estimating it.
Read next
- Touchless Trash CansSensor cans that do not close on your hand, plus battery life and the lid fix.
- The best iTouchless trash cansThe four iTouchless sensor cans, separated by throat width, body material and whether it rolls.
- iTouchless vs NinestarsThe two budget sensor brands head to head: a carbon filter in the lid against the better battery figure.
- The best touchless trash cans of 2026Seven sensor cans compared on sensor behavior, battery life and warranty.
- Is simplehuman worth it?The cost-per-year structure, including the liner cost nobody counts.
The author
Ryder M.
Owner and editor of Lid & Liner, published by Magoo Media Group. He started the site after getting tired of the same problem everyone has: every “best trash can” article covers ten products and none of them tells you whether a 13-gallon bag actually fits a 13-gallon can. Lid & Liner covers one category and tries to cover it completely.
Last reviewed October 10, 2026. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it and note the correction.