The Best and Easiest Way to Clean a Glass Top Stove, According to a Pro Cleaner

Glass top stoves add a sleek, modern appearance to the kitchen — and theoretically, they should be a lot easier to clean than gas stoves. For one thing, you’re only cleaning one, flat surface rather than scrubbing down multiple parts. Plus, you don’t have to worry about figuring out how to get stuck-on food out from hard-to-clean crevices.

That said, the glass used for these cooktops is also delicate, so if you follow the wrong steps when you clean your stove, you might end up with unwanted damage. With the right tools and strategies, however, the job is relatively simple — and I can bet you’ll be happy with the shiny results. As always, staying on top of wiping your stove top down after cooking can prevent harder-to-clean messes from accumulating. 

Here’s exactly how to clean a glass top stove, according to a professional cleaner. 

• A lemon
• Baking soda 
• A large, clean towel 
• Distilled white vinegar
• A spray bottle
• A dry cloth 

1. First, cut a lemon in half, then squeeze the juice all over your cool glass cooktop — make sure there’s no heat at all. Use the lemon half as a scrubber, and spend extra time on the trouble spots. “The citric acid in the lemon juice will help break down the cooked-on mess,” says Kathy Cohoon, operations manager with Two Maids & A Mop. “Plus, it smells nice!”
2. Sprinkle baking soda all over the cooktop surface. According to Cohoon, baking soda by itself is a wonderful natural cleaner, because the mild alkaline helps break down cooked-on food without being overly abrasive to the surface. Combine the baking soda and lemon, and you have a powerful little chemical reaction that helps loosen up the baked-on gunk even further. 
3. Grab an old towel and wet it with hot water. Wring out any excess water, and lay the warm towel over the lemon and baking soda-covered glass top. Cohoon suggests leaving the towel in place for at least 30 minutes (the longer, the better). 
4. Using the damp towel, gently wipe the surface until all baked-on spills and baking soda are removed. “You will most likely have to rinse out the towel once or twice as you do this,” Cohoon says. 
5. Add distilled white vinegar to a spray bottle and spray the glass top with it, using a dry cloth to clean off any residue and buff until it shines. 

One important note from Cohoon: With glass cooktops, always be mindful of dry debris to reduce scratching, and be careful not to use any chemicals that can be overly abrasive.