(If other, please specify.)

it probably depends a lot on the person

like some people might find it intrusive, some might be really gratefu;. I'd say ask about it

autoclave: Every situation is dependent, sure, but if you didn't know what kind of person they were, what would you lean towards?

(Assuming you couldn't ask.)

i would probably do it and see what happened. i try to be grateful/helpful to people i live with

If it's handwashing dishes and the liquid/sponge stuff is right there, I'd do it without putting anything away.

But if it's not straightforward and you don't know the place very well, better to leave it and ask later.

^ agreeing with this

I've never turned down someone washing dishes for me. It's always been appreciated.

I've had friends over and woke up with them having washed bottles etc and it's always sweet

... I would ask, and judge by the answer - not just the words but also face/body language

dishwashing seems like the kind of chore that everybody appreciates someone else doing

like, whether they think you're being nice or passive-aggressive... they're still going to enjoy not having to do their dishes

unless they are really picky and neurotic about how their dishes are done

I think it's a lovely gesture, but some people feel differently about stuff like that. Asking first would be safest.

to me, doing dishes is far less intrusive than doing laundry for them. glares at mother-in-law

oh yeah, doing laundry is a BIG no

I would say it's c - a lovely gesture. No one likes doing them, so having a small chore done for you is always nice

Mix of b and c. I would think it's a little weird, but would overall greatly appreciate it because house chores suuuck

who does other people's laundry unasked?!

kikibug13: What if you couldn't ask?

It's honestly not been that much of a temptation this far (also, I avoid renting rooms, but that's beside the point). If I need the sink, I'd wash them; otherwise, leave them be, most likely.

Thanks. Appreciate multiple cultural viewpoints.

I genuinely enjoy hand washing dishes and it makes me uncomfortable when dishes are in the sink (thanks OCD), so I usually do them for

friends or the like if it's not a huge inconvenience. But my friend said it would be weird to do them for our hosts, so I refrained.

But then I was curious what others thought.

... yeah, in that case, definitely ask before it comes to that, just to avoid your host being... unpleasant? I know some people are picky about their dishes. But UGH OCD.