Best water flossers for a dentist like clean, tested by experts

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Interdental cleaning is just as important as brushing when it comes to healthy pearly whites honey oral irrigator

This article was updated in March to reflect the latest deals and prices.

Flossing is a vital part of our daily dental regime, yet we're probably not the only ones who sometimes forget to clean between our teeth (just don't tell our dentist).

While flossing should be regarded as just as important as brushing itself, it's an extra job that can get neglected. However, electric water flossers, much like electric toothbrushes decades ago, are revolutionising the market, helping to take the faff out of flossing. Alongside teeth whitening kits, they're becoming a must-have on bathroom shelves.

That’s because flossing is the most reliable way to dislodge the little bits of food that lurk in those hard-to-reach places, preventing plaque build-up and helping to keep your pearly whites looking bright for longer. It can also help reduce bad breath and gum inflammation, and who doesn’t want that?

As with any gadget, it can be hard to know which one is right for you. So, the Good Housekeeping Institute put a range of market-leading models through their paces — you'll find a quick guide to the best ones below, but read on for more detail.

Anything that helps people clean interdentally (between the teeth and gums) at home is a good thing from your dentist's perspective. “Water flossers are a brilliant addition to interdental cleaning and can even be used with mouthwash (or diluted mouthwash) in them to give antibacterial action between the teeth and gums,” says Harley Street dentist Dr Richard Marques.

“An estimated 40% of tooth surface is between the teeth, so cleaning this way is very important for gum and dental health,” he adds. Although it's important to note that water flossing should be used to supplement your current dental routine. Don’t worry, though, you don’t need to brush, water floss and manually floss each day (phew!), but it’s good practice to keep manually flossing when you can.

“Nothing can fully replace the mechanical action of floss (or interdental brushes), so we still recommend doing this occasionally,” Dr Richard explains.

Water flossers are a great way to improve your overall dental hygiene. “They help to clear plaque and food debris and reduce gingival (gum) bleeding,” Dr Richard says. They can also help you reach difficult areas, including the back of your mouth and behind braces or fixed retainers.

Our panel blind tested a range of market-leading water flossers over a two-week period. They assessed how easy the flosser was to use, as well as commenting on its design and overall performance.

At the GHI, our experts used the VISIA image analysis machine to assess how effective the water flossers were at removing plaque and food deposits on the buccal surfaces of the teeth.

Images were analysed by dental health professional Farah Karim who visually graded the difference in teeth before and after using the water flosser. Manufacture checks were also carried out, looking at noise level, weight, size and run-time.

This super-powerful brush gave what our testers described as a “dentist quality” clean. It features a hydro gravity ball, allowing it to continuously spray water, whatever angle you hold it at. The flosser's speedy charging and unique UV sterilisation mode, which removes potentially harmful bacteria from the water, also won points with the panel.

This flosser has the largest water tank of all the models on test, and it's also bigger than Spotlight’s previous model. This means you won't have to refill halfway through flossing — bonus — although some testers found it made it a little harder to hold.

Another stellar gadget loved by our testers. With a smaller tank than the Spotlight flosser, the panel found this one was easy to fill up and use. They also liked that it has six different settings, allowing them to select the perfect pressure for them.

Panellists also said it was easy to angle around their mouths to get to those hard-to-reach areas and dislodge any leftover debris post-brushing.

If you're after something affordable and simple to use, this Pecham flosser ticks both boxes. It scored the highest on test for how easy it was to use, and the panel found changing heads and attachments to be a breeze. They also liked that it comes with a waterproof bag. Although one niggle was that it's quite heavy when full.

Holding enough water for a full minute of flossing, this was a big tick for our testers, who all said their teeth felt cleaner after using it. And despite its low price tag, it still comes with a “gravity ball” at the end of the tube, which ensures water comes out of the flosser no matter which direction it's pointed in — so you can reach all the nooks and crannies easily.

Some testers found the buttons to be awkwardly placed, but it's a minor quibble for the price.

If you suffer from sensitive teeth, don't assume water flossing isn't for you. The Binefia has been especially designed for sensitive teeth with a ‘soft’ setting that it claims it's so gentle even children can use it.

Aside from its sensitivity claims, the panel found the machine easy to grip and control and it lasted “long enough to do the whole mouth without refilling.” It also comes with a handy travel bag to keep all the attachments together.

For anyone who has braces or fixed retainers that sit behind the teeth, you'll know that flossing isn't easy, or always successful. But the Waterpik Cordless Plus won praise for both from our panel and in the lab, where it was the most effective at removing plaque and food deposits on the buccal surfaces of the teeth.

The panel also liked the fact it's cordless and has a compact design but said this meant they had to refill it halfway through flossing, which lost it some points.

Florence is our Senior Beauty Writer, specialising in expert-tested beauty and grooming reviews — from toothbrushes to the latest skincare launches. She’s committed to sharing recommendations for products that truly work and make people feel confident and healthy. Prior to this she was at Tropic Skincare, where she worked closely with biochemists in the lab, delving into the functions of each fresh, natural ingredient and conveying its efficacy to her audience in easy-to-digest terms.

With over five years’ experience in beauty and health journalism, Florence has written for ELLE, Women’s Fitness, Sister Magazine, National Geographic Traveller and many more, with a strong sustainability angle thread through much of her work.

When she isn’t packing for a trip away, working out, eating out or reading up on retinol serums, you’ll probably find her experimenting with her film camera and building her portfolio of portraits. Florence’s photography can be found at florencereeves-white.com, her Instagram is @florencereeveswhite and her twitter is @floreadsnwrites

Nora is our Beauty and Grooming Tester and has a master's degree in cosmetic science. She is using her expert knowledge of product development, formulation, product evaluation and market research to test a wide range of hair and beauty products in the beauty labs for Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, ELLE, Men’s Health. In the lab she uses a variety of methods such as the Diastron, The Multi Skin Test Centre, The VISIA Complexion Analyser to test anything from hydration, skin barrier function, pore size and more.

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