The 9 Best Portable Washing Machines of 2023

Best Overall

Magic Chef 2.0 cu. ft. Compact Portable Top Load Washer

4.6

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For a well-equipped portable washing machine, it’s hard to beat the combination of capacity and features found on this model from Magic Chef. This compact top load washer has a stainless steel drum for durability, 2.0 cubic feet of capacity for washing more clothes, towels, or sheets in each load, and a quick connect hose system that eases worries over installation. 

Unlike basic portable washers that have separate compartments for washing and spinning, you make all of your cycle selections using the electronic controls on the LCD display panel. There are six wash programs (including an option for delicates or a speed wash), and two spin cycles. A transparent lid lets you look in on your laundry load as this mighty machine goes through the motions of soaking, agitating, rinsing, and spinning your clothes—leaving them clean and relatively dry, according to users. Of course, you’ll need to finish drying them in a portable clothes dryer or by line drying. 

The Magic Chef MCSTCW20W6 is an electric portable washer, but only requires that you plug it into a standard 120V household outlet. It features a quick connect hose that makes it easy to hook the washer up to your faucet. Take note that there are also two inlets for cold and hot water, a feature not found on some more basic portable washing machines. Some people find that the hose connections are too short to reach the sink. If that’s the case, you’ll need to move the washer closer to your water supply or purchase new hoses. 

If you plan to frequently move the washer around (like storing it in a closet and rolling it out on laundry day), keep in mind that it weighs 79.4 pounds and only has two rear caster wheels. It’s not the most maneuverable portable washer. But most people who move it around frequently put it on a flat dolly to make the job easier. 

Price at time of publish: $465

_{Type: Electric | Capacity: 2.0 cubic feet | Weight: 79.4 pounds | Cycles: 6 | Drum Material: Stainless steel | Installation requirements: 120-volt outlet; Quick connect and rear water inlets for both hot and cold water} 

Best Budget

Black + Decker BPWM09W 0.9 cu. ft. Portable Top-Load Washer

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The Black+Decker BPWM09W Portable Washing Machine is a great buy if you’re on a budget. While you’ll give up some capacity (the drum is 0.9 cubic feet), it has five wash cycles, a powerful spin setting that revs up to 983 RPM, and includes features not always found on other portable washers—like a delayed start function in case you need to load up your laundry and run the cycle later or a child lock to keep little ones from interrupting the cycle. It's one of the most affordable electric portable washing machines you can buy.

Aside from being budget-friendly, the Black+Decker BPWM09W is highly maneuverable. It weighs less than 50 pounds and has two rear roller wheels and a handle on each side of the unit to make it easy to position it for use or storage. A quick-connect faucet adaptor is included to help you set up the washer for use at a standard sink, like in the kitchen or bathroom. Keep in mind that the manual for this model recommends that you only operate the washer using cold water, which may be a downside if you typically use hot water wash cycles for things like whites or towels. However, cold water washing will keep your utility costs lower and this Black+Decker portable washer contributes to that goal by using a minimal $3 a year in energy savings, according to estimates on the product’s Energy Guide label. 

Price at time of publish: $285

Type: Electric | Capacity: 0.9 cubic feet | Weight: 48.4 pounds | Cycles: 5 | Drum Material: Stainless steel | Installation requirements: 120-volt outlet, single faucet connection

Best for Camping

The Laundry POD Non-Electric Portable Washer

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Whether you’re tent camping or glamping, there’s a good chance that your outdoor adventure is going to leave you with a pile of dirty clothes. Keep up with your laundry (and pack less for your trip) by bringing along a basic portable washer. A non-electric version, like The Laundry POD, is your best bet. 

The Laundry POD stands out for its compact design and simple operation. It weighs only 4 pounds, measures 14.45 x 14.02 x 13.55 inches, and looks and operates very much like a salad spinner. The plastic housing opens to reveal a wash basket that you can load with up to 10 garments, according to the manufacturer. In real world use, expect to hold a few t-shirts, some underwear, or a couple of dish towels. Heavier or bulky items, like jeans and bath towels, may not be a good fit in the basket. But it’s a great solution for washing single items of clothes or keeping up on the essentials while you’re away from home or off-the-grid. 

Because this is a manual portable washer, you'll spend about 10 minutes of hands-on time to wash and spin your clothes. Be forewarned that it’s a real arm workout. How efficient The Laundry POD is at removing water from the items inside will depend on the material and the amount of force you exert while spinning the basket. Compared to hand-washing in a sink or tub, most people find it to be a real timesaver. It requires less than 3 gallons of water, 1.5 teaspoons of laundry detergent, and no electricity, making it eco-friendly, too. 

Price at time of publish: $100

_{Type: Manual | Capacity: Not listed | Weight: 4.15 pounds | Cycles: Not applicable | Drum Material: Not applicable | Installation requirements: None}

Best Manual

The Laundry Alternative WonderWash 0.7 cu. ft. High Efficiency Portable Washer

4.4

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Manually washing your clothes doesn’t have to be a wet, messy, time-consuming chore. The WonderWash from Laundry Alternative is a tried-and-true manual portable washing machine. There are no fancy features, but the mechanism is simple and efficient, requiring six liters of water and no electricity for a full load (up to 4.84 pounds).

One of the best things about the WonderWash is how fast it works—about 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the size of the load and the soil material. In testing the WonderWash, we thought this held true, with the exception of a muddy load that required rinsing and re-washing to get totally clean. For a full load, add 6 liters of water and 4 tablespoons of detergent. 

This portable manual washer is easy enough to use, but did require some effort to find the right speed with the hand crank. “Turning it too slow can result in dirty or somewhat soapy clothes, as can turning it too fast,” according to testing notes. The somewhat small opening at the top of the WonderWash also limits the size of items that can go inside this portable washer. It’s clear that a bed sheet isn’t going to be practical, so you’ll have to save those for a load in a full-size washer or a trip to the laundromat. However, it did work well when we tested it with jeans and bath towels, which is a common weakness of other small, manual portable washers. Ryan Mitchell, an expert on small living solutions at The Tiny Life, points out that "manual [washers] are really only practical for small loads or situations that aren't daily living," like camping or power outages.

Overall, the WonderWash won’t replace your need for a full-size washing machine altogether, but it’s efficient and fast, so it’s worth it for small loads or off-grid use. 

Price at time of publish: $70

_{Type: Manual | Capacity: 0.7 cubic feet | Weight: 5 pounds | Cycles: Not applicable | Drum Material: Not applicable | Installation requirements: Not applicable} 

Best Large-Capcity

Magic Chef MCSTCW30W5 3.0 cu. ft. Compact Top Load Washer

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If the limited capacity of portable washing machines has you questioning whether this appliance is practical for you, focus your search on large-capacity models. Our recommendation is the Magic Chef MCSTCW30W5. This portable washer has a stainless steel drum with 3.0 cubic feet of capacity, the most space for dirty clothes of any portable washer on our list. According to the manufacturer, it accommodates up to 15.4 pounds of laundry in a single load.

The top-loading design of this portable washing machine means that it’s easy to load and unload items like jeans, t-shirts, or towels. Because of its roomy capacity, it’s even possible to wash sheets. You can pick from six wash cycle settings, make selections for the soil level and water temperature, or add an extra rinse. An average load will take 39 minutes, using normal settings but expect a heavily soiled load to require about an hour of runtime.

The tradeoff for choosing a high-capacity portable washer is that it’s slightly larger and heavier. This model weighs 91 pounds, but only has two rear roller wheels. It can be cumbersome to move, so it’s best to install it in one location near your water supply or use a flat dolly to make the job of moving it easier. Like other portable washing machines from Magic Chef, this one includes a quick connect hose that makes setting up the washer fast and simple. 

Price at time of publish: $589

_{Type: Electric | Capacity: 3.0 cubic feet | Weight: 91 pounds | Cycles: 6 | Drum Material: Stainless steel | Installation requirements: 120-volt outlet; Quick connect and rear water inlets for both hot and cold water} 

Best for Apartments

Whirlpool WTW2000HW 1.6 cu. ft. White Compact Top Load Washer

4.4

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The Whirlpool WTW2000HW is a popular pick as a portable washer for apartments because of its space-saving design and ability to pick between portable and permanent installation. Keep it in a closet or a corner of your bathroom when not in use and wheel it over to your kitchen or bathroom sink when it’s time to do laundry. If you have a more permanent setup in mind, this model can work with that, too.

This washer measures 37 x 21 x 23 inches—it’s smaller than the similar GE GNW128PSMWW, which is 3 inches wider and 1.5 inches deeper than this model. Of course, the extra inches allow for the GE model to offer a larger 2.8 cubic foot drum. The smaller 1.6 cubic foot drum is one of the biggest pitfalls of this Whirlpool model, but it’s also still enough room for washing up to 4.4 pounds of clothing. 

Despite the smaller size of the stainless steel drum, you don’t need to sacrifice much in terms of cycle selections and options on this portable washer for apartments. The Whirlpool WTW2000HW has five cycle settings, plus a tub cleaning cycle to keep mold, mildew, and odors under control. There are four water temperature settings to pick from, too—but keep in mind that the hot or warm water options aren’t available when the unit is connected to a faucet. If you want to adjust the water temperature with portable installation, you’ll have to adjust the temperature of the faucet itself. 

The push-button controls are easy to use, but it’s also nice to have a digital timer that shows you how many minutes remain in the cycle. You can even take a peek at your laundry through the glass lid of this top-loading portable washer. The 850 RPM spin cycle is enough to expel quite a bit of moisture from your laundry load, leaving it ready for the dryer or to air-dry. 

Price at time of publish: $999

_{Type: Electric | Capacity: 1.6 cubic feet | Weight: 81 pounds | Cycles: 6 | Drum Material: Stainless steel | Installation requirements: 120V outlet, single faucet connection}

Best Features

GE GNW128PSMWW 2.8 cu. ft. 8-Cycle Top-Loading Portable Washer

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Portable washers focus on basic functions for clothes care: washing, rinsing, and spinning. This can be accomplished with very simple versions, like the manual WonderWash, or with more features like a full-size washer. The GE GNW128PSMWW is a great pick if you want a portable washer with more cycle selections and options. And there’s more room, too—a 2.8 cubic foot drum fits a normal size load when compared to smaller portable washers that can only wash a few garments at a time. This washer has plenty of perks, but a price tag that also makes it more similar in cost to a full-size washer.

There’s a good reason for the spendy price point. This model from GE is equipped to thoroughly wash jeans, delicates, and towels with ease. A specialty cycle for each can be found on the digital controlpad, along with five other cycle selections for a total of eight cycles. You can customize the cycle by adjusting the soil level and water temperature (there are four options: hot, warm, cool, and cold). Finally, give bulky or heavily soiled loads a deep rinse or an extra rinse if you’re concerned about lingering soap suds. Once you have your cycle selections made, the machine uses auto-load sensing to determine the right agitation to apply and the correct amount of water to add to the drum. Keep in mind that a deep fill option can be used for large or bulky loads you think may benefit from a full washtub of water. A steam option would really boost the cycle selections and make this a real competitor with full-size washers, but it’s missing that feature (in fact, there are no portable washers that currently have a steam setting). 

Four wheels are found at the base of this washer, which is a welcome addition since it weighs 99 pounds. Some larger portable washing machines, like those from Magic Chef, are only equipped with two caster wheels and can be harder to wheel in place. At the same time, the machine won’t move around once it’s in place and you’ve lowered the leveling legs. The biggest gripe is that it expels water during the rinse and spin cycles with significant force. If you don’t have a laundry tub or deep sink to drain the washer into, expect some water to splash. You may need to use a few towels to keep the surrounding area dry. 

Price at time of publish: $999

_{Type: Electric | Capacity: 2.8 cubic feet | Weight: 99 pounds | Cycles: 8 | Drum Material: Stainless steel | Installation requirements: 120-volt outlet, two faucet connections or single faucet connection}

Best Mini

Auertech Mini Compact Washer

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A mini portable washer is a simple solution to keeping up on your laundry in between trips to the laundromat or when you need to wash small items more frequently, like underwear, socks, or baby clothes. The Auertech Mini Compact Washer is our favorite pick in this category, because it has an 8 pound capacity, a simple, easy-to-use design, and small dimensions that make it a perfect fit in tight spaces or take along in your RV or tiny house.

This mini portable washer measures 14 x 14 x 23.6 inches and weighs less than 12 pounds. While it’s light enough to easily pick up and carry, it’s been noted that a handle would make the job easier than gripping the smooth, plastic housing of the unit. 

Flip open the lid to load the washer with up to 8 pounds of laundry. Keep in mind the limitations of a mini washer—heavier or larger items (like a pair of jeans or a big towel) will generally do better when washed individually. But for smaller items, including t-shirts and underwear, you can load several items together. There’s a single wash cycle with a dial to select 3, 6, 9, or 12-minutes of agitation. You’ll need to empty and refill the washer to rinse away suds. 

The most significant shortcoming of a mini washer is the lack of a spin function, a feature that you won’t find on the Auertech Mini Compact Washer, either. You’ll have to wring the items out by hand, or else purchase a separate laundry spinner to do the job. Because of this fact and the limited capacity, expect more hands-on time when using a mini portable washer compared to a larger, automatic capacity portable washer. Even still, this capable compact washer comes in handy for small and specialized laundry needs and costs less than most other portable washers.

Price at time of publish: $110

_{Type: Electric | Capacity: Not listed | Weight: 11.8 pounds | Cycles: 1 | Drum Material: Not applicable | Installation requirements: 120-volt outlet}