The three Greatest Countertop Dishwashers of 2025, Examined & Reviewed

In case you have a built-in dishwasher, you would possibly take the equipment with no consideration. However for these with out one, hand-washing and drying dishes will be each annoying and time-consuming. Scalding scorching water, soiled dishwater…you get the image. In case you have the house, a countertop dishwasher affords an answer. This mini equipment features a lot the identical means as its bigger sibling: water is available in, dishes are washed, and soiled water drains out. 

To seek out the most effective countertop dishwashers, I put seven fashions to the check—evaluating their cleansing talents, capacities, and extra.

The Winners, at a Look

The Comfee countertop dishwasher can ship sparklingly clear and bone-dry dishes very quickly. (It took 130 minutes per cycle throughout my assessments.) There’s a built-in UV gentle for further sanitization and a wide range of specialised settings for glassware, child bottles, and extra.

This isn’t a foul different to our winner. It doesn’t have a UV gentle or an robotically opening door nevertheless it carried out equally and all of the dishes got here out clear and dry.

This bigger choose is nice for anybody needing extra dishes cleaned directly. It’s quiet, smooth, and cleans dishes in addition to any full-sized dishwasher I’ve had.

The Assessments

• Setup Check: I set a stopwatch and timed how lengthy it took me to unbox and arrange every dishwasher.
• Most Capability Check: I crammed every mannequin to find out its most capability and famous what number of dishes match and if there have been any areas that have been tough to load.
• Cleansing Check: For every machine, I coated a number of plates and units of flatware with barbecue sauce and loaded them. I crammed a couple of glasses with milk, dumped the milk out, and added the glasses to the dishwasher. I ran a typical cycle and appeared for any residue left behind.
• Actual-World Check (Winners Solely): For machines that handed the primary three assessments, I ran a cycle utilizing dishes from a typical meal in my family, noting ease of use and the way clear the dishes have been.

What I Realized

Most of the Countertop Dishwashers Carried out Actually Nicely

I assumed countertop dishwashers could be comparatively low-powered, however I used to be pleasantly stunned that these small however mighty home equipment might actually maintain their very own. Regardless of their compact dimension, most of the countertop dishwashers I examined delivered spectacular cleansing energy. They dealt with cussed, sticky substances, oily tomato-based residue, and delicate glassware with ease. 

Constructed-In Water Tanks Streamlined Setup

A number of the countertop dishwashers required a water hookup to run. Sadly, my sink has a pull-down kitchen hose that has no threading and, thus, nowhere for me to connect a dishwasher’s consumption hose. After calls to customer support, a couple of journeys to the ironmongery store, and a few purchases from Amazon, I used to be in a position to lastly connect these hoses. Regardless of this, I nonetheless had issues with leaking. It’s additionally price noting that when the machine is plugged into your kitchen faucet, you can not use the sink to, say, wash your arms or refill a glass. 

For that reason, I preferred countertop dishwashers with built-in water tanks, as they have been self-sufficient. The trade-off is that dishwashers with out built-in tanks can maintain extra dishes. Nonetheless, my high choose from Comfee was nonetheless in a position to accommodate two massive dinner plates, three small salad plates, one juice glass, two cereal/soup bowls, two espresso mugs, two forks, two spoons, and two knives.

Watch out for White Labeling

White labeling refers back to the observe of a producer promoting the identical product below a distinct model title. A number of of the dishwashers I examined have been the very same machine, with the one actual distinction being the value.

The Standards: What to Search for in a Countertop Dishwasher

Earlier than you even contemplate shopping for a countertop dishwasher, take into consideration what number of dishes you want cleaned and the way a lot storage and countertop house you may have. Smaller fashions can maintain about two place settings whereas bigger variations can accommodate as many as six (or two plus some pots and pans). Your dishwasher will should be located pretty near the sink so the wastewater hose has someplace to empty. If attaching a hose to your faucet isn’t sensible, a number of of the fashions I examined got here with built-in water tanks that you simply fill earlier than working. Smaller elements to contemplate are issues like noise degree or fancy options like a setting with high-heat sterilization for child bottles. 

Our Favourite Countertop Dishwashers

What we preferred: Every of the machines I examined had its mixture of strengths and weaknesses. The Comfee stood out as a gem, seamlessly combining all the most effective options into one spectacular equipment. It delivered an ideal steadiness of efficiency, comfort, and reliability. The Comfee left dishes sparklingly clear and bone-dry, a feat not many dishwashers have been in a position to pull off. Specifically, I used to be impressed with the Comfee’s drying, because it lets you put dishes away instantly after the cycle concludes. This mannequin pops open the entrance door when it’s near the tip of drying to hurry up the method and permit for extra airflow. The within was roomy and match 10 dishes plus silverware. The dish rack has a number of configurations and I famous the noise degree to be a quiet 67 decibels (not loud sufficient to interrupt a dialog or the tv).

This mannequin additionally comes with a couple of upgrades. There’s an inside gentle in addition to a UV gentle that may kill germs, ostensibly. It has high-heat cycles to sanitize objects, a no-heat possibility for cleansing fruit and greens, and a mild glass setting. In the case of water hookup, you’ll be able to connect a hardline to your sink or fill the built-in reservoir.

What we didn’t like: This dishwasher is on the small facet. 

Key Specs

• Supplies: Plastic and chrome steel
• Dimension: 16.5 x 17.3 x 18.43 inches
• Weight: 41.3 kilos
• Capability: 2 place settings
• Tank or laborious line?: Each

What we preferred: The Hermitlux has most of the similar options as our winner. You possibly can hook up the water consumption to your sink or fill the built-in tank. The Hermitlux holds a shocking quantity of dishes. (I used to be in a position to match two massive dinner plates, three salad plates, two bowls, two glasses, and two espresso mugs, plus silverware.) The usual wash cycle has a 69-minute run time and was in a position to clear dried-on barbecue sauce and milk residue with out concern. Greasy tomato sauce additionally got here proper off with no pre-rinsing.

What we didn’t like: The Hermitlux has a smaller water consumption than the Comfee (5 liters as a substitute of six). The holes in its silverware rack are formed pretty small, so your silverware won’t match, relying on its design. The run time was a lot shorter than my winner, however that left me with dishes that have been nonetheless moist and wanted to be dried earlier than being put away.

Key Specs

• Supplies: Plastic and chrome steel
• Dimension: 16.85 x 16.73 x 18 inches
• Weight: 26.5 kilos
• Capability: 2 place settings
• Tank or laborious line?: Each

What we preferred: The Danby is bigger than my different winners and features extra like a built-in mannequin dishwasher. It connects to water through a tough line and is bigger than an air fryer toaster oven, so it might match as much as six place settings and bigger objects like pots and pans. It’s water environment friendly and makes use of solely 3.1 liters of water to get dishes very clear. Whereas the run time on a typical cycle is lengthy (two-and-a-half hours), it’s additionally a lot quieter than different fashions I examined. I preferred its LED display, too, which tracks how lengthy is left within the dishwashing cycle.

What we didn’t like: At just below 20 inches tall, it could not match below all higher kitchen cupboards. The water hookup course of was difficult, particularly in the event you don’t have the correct of kitchen faucet. If you happen to do, you’ll nonetheless must maintain this dishwasher inside 30 inches of your sink. At 44 kilos, it’s not an equipment you’ll take pleasure in transferring.

Key Specs

• Supplies: Plastic and chrome steel
• Dimension: 21.5 x 19.5 x 17 inches
• Weight: 44 kilos
• Capability: 6 place settings
• Tank or laborious line?: Exhausting line solely

The Competitors

• Danby DDW621WDB: That is much like our winner from the model, however is cheaper and doesn’t have an LED display that counts down the time remaining in a cycle. Its housing is white as a substitute of chrome, nevertheless it in any other case cleaned the dishes simply as nicely and in the identical period of time.
• Comfee Countertop Dishwasher: This dishwasher is pretty similar to the Danby 631 (however in a black end)—all the way down to the buttons, rack, and water hookup line. If our favourite isn’t out there, it is a good choose. 
• Novete Moveable Countertop Dishwasher: This mannequin failed to totally clear the barbecue sauce off of dishes throughout a standard cleansing cycle.
• Farberware Moveable Countertop Dishwasher: The silverware rack warped after working one of many greater temperature settings.

FAQs

Does a countertop dishwasher use lots of water? 

Water utilization goes to fluctuate amongst machines. The smaller fashions I examined used about 5 liters of water to clean and rinse.

How do you clear a countertop dishwasher?

The reply to this query will rely upon the dishwasher however the entire fashions I examined didn’t want a lot in the way in which of cleansing. Over time, the filters and spray arms can get clogged with gunk. On this case, you’ll have to take away and rinse them with scorching water.

Why We’re the Consultants

• Taylor Murray has labored in meals and meals media for over 10 years, together with in award-winning eating places like Eleven Madison Park. She has written extensively for Critical Eats. (Take a look at her critiques of carbon metal pans and carving boards.)
• Taylor examined seven countertop dishwashers, utilizing every to scrub numerous dishes and silverware. Throughout testing, she evaluated every machine’s efficiency, usability, and design.