7 best clothes airers and drying racks, tried and tested

Score: 91/100

There’s a lot of drying space here, with four extended hanging corners that each fit up to two items. In our tests, we found it easily held a load of double bedding or two smaller laundry loads. It’s portable and lightweight, and, at only 59cm wide when open, it takes up minimal floor space, so is ideal for small homes.

The airer is great value for money, too, as it has several features that make drying laundry easier, including 21m of drying space and a fairly quick to assemble frame. Testers noted that it isn’t obvious how to collapse it, though, and it folds down quickly, so be careful with how you position your hands when your laundry has dried.

Key specifications

Score: 90/100

It’s easy for your laundry to chase the sun (and therefore dry more quickly) with this wheeled airer – testers found it sturdy to move, even with 5kg of wet laundry hanging from its rails.

There are 20 metres of drying space on offer, but it still folds away compactly (although its legs don’t lock in once down, so you need to watch out for any flapping if you’re carrying it far). Its wings lock securely in place when expanded though, and it’s very sturdy. It didn’t leave any crease marks on our clothing either.

Key specifications

Score: 90/100

This ‘X-wing’ airer has multi-position arms, so you can hang longer items up high, or position them so they lie flatter for delicates. There’s a secure lock and four hanging corners, too. Plus, the frame is lightweight.

Testers found the strong, well-spaced rungs did a good job of holding all types of washing, from bed sheets to clothing. There aren’t any rubber feet to grip the floor though, which means it can slip easily.

Key specifications

Score: 89/100

This compact airer is the lightest model on our list, weighing less than 2kg – under half the weight of some of the other airers. It also has a slim ‘X-wing’ design that lets you move its adjustable wings (complete with 26 rungs and four hanging corners) to three different positions. All this makes it well-suited to one or two person households, smaller spaces, or even as a second airer if you have hanging space elsewhere.

You can fit tea towels across the narrow rungs, while T-shirts are best draped over the end. Be careful with big loads of anything much larger, however, as items may start to overlap. That said, it can be configured with a flat section for delicates, or so that it’s tall enough to drape a bath towel over. A single duvet cover or sheet could also fit over the whole frame.

Key specifications

Score: 88/100

With 30m of drying space available, this tall tower airer is made for holding larger loads. If you’re drying fewer items, you can also use it folded in half to save space. And despite its height, it’s lightweight and easy to assemble.

Testers found that the rungs could bend under the weight of notably heavy items (although the frame itself is sturdy), making it better suited to clothes than drenched bath sheets. Small items can lie flat across the wide and spacious racks for quicker drying and there’s also a useful sock hook and two hanging pegs with space for four items on each. It has convenient attachable wheels, too.

Key specifications

Score: 83/100

Designed to sit inside a bathtub, this airer has a 35cm-deep base and strong, secure rungs, which hold damp and heavy items well. Despite its space-saving design, there’s enough room for large bath towels and double bedding when draped over the whole frame.

The flat design is ideal for drying smaller garments, but testers noted that the legs were stiff and wobbly at times. Suitable for smaller homes and households, it’s ideal if you want to leave your clothes to dry somewhere out of the way.

Key specifications

Score: 75/100

If you hate the sight of laundry hung out on an airer, this Joseph Joseph design has an elegant solution: an integrated cloth screen. Although we found the screen slightly creased out of the box, you can iron or steam it, and the ecru colour blends nicely into a room.

The three-tier design gives you flexible drying options – for instance, you can hang long dresses on hangers from the top tier and fold down the other two. We also like that it has wheels, which allow you to move it around – just note that they’re only on one side, so you have to tilt the airer to wheel it.

It’s easy to assemble, though we found the hooks that hold the tiers up a bit stiff to move. The frame is also a little wobbly, even when the wheel brakes are applied, and we’d prefer it to have some way of staying folded in storage without a leg swinging out. But all in all, it’s a worthwhile investment for reducing visual clutter.

Key specifications

Our verdict on clothes airers

The best clothes airer for your home will come down to the space you have to play with. If you’ve got ample room, our winning Minky 3 Tier Plus Indoor Airer is sturdy and well priced, with enough room for more than one load of laundry.

If space is tight, however, the Leifheit Pegasus 12m Bathtub Dryer is a smart buy. While it’s compact, it’s still designed to hold a load’s worth of clothes. Just note, though, that because of its height, it’s less suited to sheets and towels.

Why you should trust the Good Housekeeping Institute

It’s no exaggeration to say we’re laundry experts here at the Good Housekeeping Institute. Our homes testing team (headed up by Blossom Boothroyd) has tried out everything from washing machines to fabric shavers to laundry detergents in our quest to make sure your clothes get the TLC they deserve.

Our homes writer, Megan Geall, then takes their testing, asking all the same questions you have at home, and translates it into informative reviews, so you can find the best buy for you.