- Surface cleaning ability
- Ease of cleaning a car
- Ease of storage
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Buying a new pressure washer can be confusing. There are usually several models in each manufacturer's range, with different types of motors and impenetrable model numbers which mean that useful accessories are either included in the price, or have to be bought as an extra.
To help you find the best pressure washer for your needs, we've rounded up the top-scoring models that impressed us in our tests, and because they've all gone through rigorous, independent Which? lab testing, you can rest assured that no matter which of these pressure washers you go for, they will tackle your tough outdoor tasks.
Read on to find out which pressure washers we recommend, along with all the advice you need to help you decide which one is right for your home.
Also check out our pressure washer reviews from brands, including Karcher and Nilfisk, to ensure you don't end up taking home a dud.
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Here's our pick of the top Best Buy or high-scoring pressure washers, including the cheapest model to ace our tests.
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Tables updated May 2023.
Pressure washers (also known as jet washers and power washers) deliver a powerful concentrated jet of water to remove dirt more efficiently than a brush, and using less water than you would with a garden hose.
A pressure washer is essentially a motorised hosepipe. It uses a pump to create a high-pressure flow of water that dislodges dirt more quickly and effectively than you can with a scrubbing brush or hose alone.
To choose the best pressure washer for you it is worth taking time to think about what you'll be cleaning, how dirty it will be and how often you'll use it.
Our expert advice will help you find one that has the right power and features for your cleaning jobs.
Best for: Cleaning small areas of lightly soiled paving, bicycles, small cars and garden furniture.
These tend to be own-brand, cheaper models that have low-powered motors (1,200W to 1,600W), low water pressure (less than 90-bar) and low flow rates. They are split into small hand-carried units and petite trolley-style models with low handles and small wheels.
Hoses lengths vary from three metres, which is too short to wash a car; to five metres, which is an adequate length for car cleaning. Some of the cheaper pressure washers come with fixed nozzles that don't allow you to vary the water pressure.
The shorter hose and low power can make cleaning slow and difficult, and the motors tend to be noisy. The parts also tend to be flimsy and prone to frost damage.
Best for: Cleaning domestic garden paved areas and decking, cars and 4x4s.
Medium duty pressure washers tend to be a mix of high-end own-brand models and cheaper premium-brand models. As such, you'll find a confusing array of high-powered-but-basic models by garden machinery brands such as Stihl or Nilfisk, mid-powered Karcher, Bosch or Vax models with some choice of accessories, and high-powered and highly accessorised machines from Qualcast and Mac Allister.
They tend to have good cleaning ability and are quick and easy to use.
Expect a medium-powered motor (1,600W to 2,000W), mid-range water pressure (100 to 130-bar) and medium flow rates. Most units are a bit heavy, have larger wheels and on-board storage for accessories so make sure you can lift it to clean and have somewhere to keep it stored.
Hoses tend to be five or six metres, and some may even have hose reels.
These machines can be noisy and others may lack the power to clean encrusted dirt and weeds.
Best for: Cleaning extensive areas of paving, grimy 4-wheel drive vehicles, commercial vehicles and caravans
The priciest washers on the market, heavy duty models tend to be made by well-known machinery brands such as Karcher, Bosch, Nilfisk and Stihl. These are semi-professional models with high-powered motors (1,800W to 2,500W), high water pressure (130 to 150-bar) and high flow rates which mean they tend to clean quickly and brilliantly.
Motor noise is typically less intrusive with these machines but they can be a little overpowered for many domestic cleaning jobs. Make sure you know how to use them properly to avoid damaging your surfaces.
The machines tend to be very large and heavy, to cope with the high-powered motors and pumps that they contain, and use more-durable aluminium pumps and induction motors than the cheaper models. Large wheels, telescopic handles, multiple lances and robust cleaning accessories are common.
Electric pressure washers are more suited to domestic cleaning, while petrol pressure washers are designed for professional, large-scale jobs.
Although you have to be near a power outlet to use an electric washer, they are typically lighter, better for the environment, less noisy and will be powerful enough for the usual home and garden cleaning jobs.
Petrol models will allow you to go anywhere because they don't need to be near a power socket. But will normally be too powerful for general jobs such as cleaning your car or patio.
This all depends on how much you can afford and how powerful and durable you want your pressure washer to be.
The best-known brands in pressure washers tend to be considerably pricier, but you generally get more robust products, built with better-quality materials. They can be considerably more of a pleasure to use than cheap pressure washers, with more power and a quieter motor.
If you just need a pressure washer for light cleaning, then most no-frills machines come with just one lance, which is a long tube with a nozzle on the end. The nozzle will usually provide variable pressure – when you twist the nozzle, you can adjust the spray from a powerful narrow jet to a more broad gentle fan.
But for anything more, the following additions could prove invaluable:
Visit our pressure washer reviews to find out what features each pressure washer offers.
There's real polarisation in the pressure-washer market, with lots of cheap models available for less than £100. These often appear to have all the features you want at a low price, but they tend to be cheaply made and lack the power to clean the toughest garden grime. Consult our expert pressure washer reviews if you're unsure which models to shortlist.
Popular online retailers that sell pressure washers include:
To discover which retailers are rated highly by Which? members, consult our expert guide on the best and worst shops.
Some pressure washers come with a patio cleaner attachment, but they're often an optional extra costing around £40-50. So are they worth it?
Patio cleaners can be useful for large expanses of patio or driveway. They make cleaning easier and less messy than using a standard jet lance, as the plastic cover over the nozzle helps to stop dirty water spraying everywhere. They are also often quicker to use than the main lance.
They can be particularly useful for cleaning block paving, as they're less prone to blasting away the sand from the joints than more powerful nozzles.
But there can be big differences between the effectiveness of patio cleaners from different brands. We make it clear in all our reviews whether we think that the compatible pressure washer accessory is a useful addition to the model.
Watch our pressure washing your patio video for some cleaning tips.
We've compared the two most popular pressure washer brands detailing their score and price range to the typical differences between them. The customer score, fault and loyalty stats are based on an online survey of 8,881 Connect and general public respondents, taken in January 2022. The minimum sample size for a brand to be included is 30.
Total tested | Best Buys | Don't Buys | Range of test scores | Price range | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nilfisk | 18 | 9 | 0 | 61 - 84% | £100 - £430 |
Karcher | 12 | 2 | 0 | 62 - 78% | £70 - £400 |
Which? is independent and doesn't accept advertising or freebies, so you can trust our reviews to give you the full, honest and impartial truth about a product.
As part of our pressure-washer tests, we wash a one-metre square patch of several different types of surface including concrete, block paving, paving slabs, softwood decking and even a car. Checking how long it takes and rating how clean the surfaces are. Our tests also look at:
To find out more, head to how we test pressure washers.
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