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Cut your laundry costs by £156 this year
From washing and drying to the type of laundry detergent you use, find out what cost savings you can make with a few quick and easy changes
There's no getting out of doing the laundry, but our expert tips can help you save money while tackling that seemingly bottomless pile of washing.
Our unique washing machine, tumble dryer and laundry detergent lab tests give us insights on the best products to use and the most-effective way to use them.
We've crunched the data and worked out that you can cut your laundry costs by £156 per year by following our tips. Read on to find out more.
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1. Wash at 20°C or 30°C when possible
- Total saving: £37
We've tested a range of washing machines to see how washing at lower temperatures affects cleaning and energy use.
On average, switching from 40°C to 30°C saved 38% energy and washing at 20°C saved 62%.
The average washing machine costs about £59 a year to run four washes a week, so dialling down to 30°C would shave £22 off of this while washing at 20°C will cut that cost by £37.
But does lowering the temperature mean you need to compromise on stain-busting power?
No. Our snapshot test revealed that unless you're washing really stained clothes, modern machines – particularly our Best Buy washing machines – will still do a good job most of the time.
Tips for effective cleaning at lower temperatures
- Set your machine to wash at 30°C or 20°C.
- Switch to a liquid laundry detergent. We found that tough stains lifted more easily with a liquid than a powder at 30°C and 20°C.
- Pre-treat tough stains with diluted detergent for the best chance of removing them.
- Run a monthly hot maintenance wash (60°C with the machine empty and washing machine cleaner in the detergent tray).
There are some cases where you might want to wash at a higher temperature. Read our washing machine temperature guide to find out more.
If you need a new washing machine now, check out our pick of the best cheap washing machines for under £400
2. Switch to a Best Buy laundry detergent
- Total saving: £85
Don't automatically get sucked into buying big-brand washing powder, capsules and liquids.
The most expensive detergent recently tested costs 53p per wash, but we've found cheap Best Buy washing powder that costs as little as 12p per wash.
If you use your machine four times a week, you'll save just over £85 over a year.
And, because it's a Best Buy, you'll still be getting top-notch stain-busting cleaning power.
Find out which cheap detergent wowed in testing in best and worst washing powders and laundry detergents
3. Maintain your tumble dryer properly
- Total saving: £25
When we tested how a range of heat pump dryers performed over 20 loads of drying, we were shocked by some of the findings.
Some machines ended up using 50% more energy on the last load than during the first. This is because the lower filters get blocked up with dust and lint from your clothes.
The average heat pump dryer costs around £50 a year to do three loads a week, so you can see how this could quickly add around £25 to your annual laundry costs.
Tips to stop your dryer from becoming inefficient
- Find the lower filter at the bottom of the dryer – it's a sponge that sits in front of the heat exchanger (the condenser) and can be hidden behind a flap. You might need to push two small levers inwards to unlock it.
- Remove the lower filter, taking out any larger pieces of fluff and hair from the heat exchanger.
- Rinse the lower filter and (if it's removable) the heat exchanger under a cold tap until they're completely free of any dust or debris.
- Make sure the filter is completely dry before you insert it back into the machine.
- If you can't remove the heat exchanger, brush any fluff away.
- Only begin cleaning the lower filter when the dryer has cooled down from its last drying cycle.
If you're in the market for a new dryer, you could save as much as £100 a year in running costs by choosing an energy-saving heat pump tumble dryer rather than a less-efficient condenser model.
Head to our tumble dryer reviews and filter for heat pump dryers, or take a look at our tumble dryer tips and maintenance guide
4. Stop doing small daily washes
- Total saving: £9
The most energy-efficient way to wash clothes is to fill the drum rather than washing one or two items on a quick wash program.
Quick programs – or speed-up buttons – slightly reduce how much energy is used, but not by the same amount that the capacity is reduced. So it's much more economical to do fewer big loads than daily smaller ones.
When we checked what effect speed-up functions have on cleaning and energy, we found dramatic differences between the three machines we tested.
One only reduced the energy used by around 20%, while another cut it in half. But this still isn't enough to justify a daily wash. Doing a bigger normal wash four times a week used 17% less energy than the average of the three fast daily washes.
This would add up to an annual saving of around £9 for the average washing machine.
This may not sound much, but you'll also be saving by using less detergent – more on that below.
Find out more about which temperature to wash your clothes at with our washing machine temperature guide
5. Look for Great Value
Be sure to look out for Which? Great Value product recommendations.
While Which? Best Buys remain the gold standard when it comes to product recommendations, our Great Value products also do a good job and are excellent value for money.
Across the Which? site, you'll find more than 600 Great Value products from around 100 product areas.
Great Value washing machines start at around £280, and Great Value heat pump tumble dryers start at around £350. You can buy Great Value washing detergent from just 7p a wash.
