Best pressure washer

From cleaning cars to erasing years of caked-in dirt, pressure washers are a handy tool to have around the home.

Best pressure washer
(Image credit: Karcher)

Cleaning your outdoor areas can be a chore, but there’s a much easier way to wash down your driveway, decking, windows, fences and more, with minimal effort required. The right pressure washer can clean them all, and certain models can even soap up your car and get it nice and sparkly too.

Brands such as Bosch, Kärcheri and Worx all offer pressure washers to suit different needs and budgets. If you’re wanting to transform an outdoor area that’s suffered years of neglect, you’ll need a powerful pressure washer with a high PSI, such as the Kärcher highlighted below. For smaller jobs that don’t require as much grit, you could be better served by a pressure washer with a lower PSI – which is usually cheaper too. 

Staff pick

Bosch High Pressure Washer EasyAquatak 120

(Image credit: Amazon)

Bosch UniversalAquatak 125

An excellent multitasker

With strong pressure and a 3-in-1 nozzle, the Bosch UniversalAquatak 125 is a good all-rounder.

Pros:

  • 3-in-1 nozzle for targeted cleaning
  • Detergent attachment
  • Easy to manoeuvre

Cons:

  • Requires large storage space
  • Hose length may be short for some

This electric pressure cleaner from Bosch packs 125 bars of pressure, so it can blast away tough dirt and grime in all your outdoor areas. It comes with a 3-in-1 nozzle too, so you can target between mossy garden pavers using the pencil jet, or fan out to clean a wider space. And if you want to clean your car, you can also attach a detergent nozzle to quickly soap up your vehicle. The unit is lightweight, and easy to move around thanks to its wheeled body, though the 5 metre hose length may not be long enough for some users (an extension hose is available separately). It’s not as compact as the EasyAquatak version below, but the handle does fold down to halve its size when storing.

Best value

Bosch EasyAquatak 120

(Image credit: Amazon)

Bosch EasyAquatak 120

Portable and fairly priced

This small yet mighty pressure washer from Bosch is good for those short on space.

Pros:

  • Lightweight and portable
  • Compact size for storing
  • Good water pressure for small jobs

Cons:

  • Pressure gun can be awkward to store
  • Hose length may be too short for some 

The Bosch EasyAquatak 120 is a more compact pressure washer than the model above, but despite its size, its capabilities are still quite strong. It’s equipped with a marginally lower 120 bars of pressure, which is plenty for washing off the dirt from your car or bike, as well as most outdoor areas. It also features a high-pressure detergent nozzle, so you can reduce your cleaning time by directly applying soap. Unlike the Bosch UniversalAquatak 125 above, this model doesn’t come on wheels, but its smaller size and attached handle still makes it easy to move around. The attached pressure gun is a little awkward to store, but otherwise it’s a winner for those living in apartments that are short on space.

Best premium

Kärcher K4 Premium Full Control Home 2100W Pressure Washer

(Image credit: Amazon)

Kärcher K4 Premium Full Control Home

A powerful machine that’s best-in-class

This pressure washer has enough grunt to peel away years of caked-in dirt and grime, with no elbow grease required.

Pros:

  • Incredibly powerful
  • Multiple attachments included
  • Retractable hose reel

Cons:

  • Bulky build takes up storage space

Kärcher is well-known for its pressure washers, and this K4 Premium Full Control Home is a powerful piece of kit. It has a maximum PSI of 2,100, and you can control the pressure right on the spray lance, with a handy LED display showing what mode you’re using. This is the Full Control Home version of this pressure washer, meaning it comes with extra attachments including a surface cleaner, a detergent nozzle and a dirt blaster nozzle, so you can tackle different jobs. While it’s a little bulky to move around, it has a very practical 9 metre hose reel which is completely retractable, keeping things neat and tidy for storing. This is the pressure washer to buy to be the envy of your neighbours.

Cordless

Worx 20V Hydroshot Cordless (WG629E.1)

(Image credit: Amazon)

Worx 20V Hydroshot Cordless (WG629E.1)

A portable pressure washer that can draw water from anywhere

Don’t have access to a tap or a wall socket? No worries. The Worx Hydroshot is an affordable, go-anywhere pressure washer.

Pros:

  • Cordless and portable
  • Easy to store
  • Suction hose for drawing water

Cons:

  • Lacks power for heavy-duty cleaning
  • Not suited to large areas

An interesting feature of the Worx Hydroshot is that it can be used anywhere, without access to a tap or a wall socket. That’s because it’s a battery powered pressure washer, and it using a suction hose to draw water from any source, even a bucket or swimming pool. It’s not the most powerful pressure washer on the market though, as what you’re really paying for here is portability. With this in mind, the Worx Hydroshot is perhaps best suited to small jobs, such as washing off a dirty car or bike, or cleaning up camping gear. The lower pressure also means it can be used for watering the garden. Plus, its compact size lends itself to easy storage.

The pressure is on

Why you can trust Real Homes Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

It’s fair to say that a pressure washer isn’t a tool you’ll be using every week, but when those gruesome cleaning jobs do come around, a pressure washer will absolutely make them easier to tackle.

The best pressure washer for you will depend on your needs and budget, but for an excellent all-rounder, the Bosch UniversalAquatak 125 is likely to get the job done for most people. If you want something you can easily take on the road to wash down cars, bikes, boats or camping gear, then the Worx 20V Hydroshot Cordless will serve you well, while the Kärcher K4 is the one you need for exceptionally tough cleaning tasks.

Why trust us?

At Real Homes, we recommend the best products to enhance your life. As expert curators, we handpick products based on quality and usefulness to positively impact your day-to-day, from cart to doorstep. We take our responsibility seriously – testing products, reading reviews, and sourcing knowledgeable outlets to ensure our selections are worthy of your time and money. We deliver detailed product overviews, balancing objective information with subjective opinions, so making the best choice for your home and lifestyle is as easy as possible.

Real Homes is the homes website for people with real lives, real budgets and real problems. Everyone deserves to love where they live and Real Homes is the ultimate homeware authority that makes this possible by covering realistic and achievable ways to make your home better. Expect easy DIYs, advice on costing and loads of interiors inspiration. Whether it is our first hand experiences, or finding an expert with the best know-how, everyone can find a project to suit their needs on Real Homes.

SPONSORS