Gel detergent compositions which pile-up on a surface, upon dispensing, to minimize the spreading of the gel to a substantially larger area. The gels that can pile up are less messy to use and provide better stain removal, since more detergent is concentrated on the desired area of fabric (e.g., the spot). The composition comprises from about 10% to about 35% of a surfactant, from about 0.1 to about 5% of a non-neutralized fatty acid; from about 50 to about 85% of water; with the total of anionic surfactants selected from soap, linear alkyl benzene sulfonic acid, primary and secondary alkyl sulfates being more than 50% of total surfactant level.