The Best Water Flossers for Easy and Effective Oral Hygiene

Brushing your teeth only cleans so much of the tooth surface. To get to everything inside your mouth, you really need to floss in some way. Flossing isn’t exactly most people’s favorite activity, however, but these water flossers can make short work of the task.

A water flosser (also called an oral irrigator) uses pressurized water that either applies continuous pressure or pulses against your gums and between your teeth to remove food debris and plaque. It’s not as effective as going for a professional clean, but it does give you that same satisfying super-clean-teeth feeling afterward. Water flossers are also a fantastic option for people with limited mobility (who can’t effectively use string floss) and people with dental work such as braces. Compared to the traditional flossing tools intended for people with braces, water flossers are far more comfortable and easy to use.

Some water flossers have reservoirs that you fill with water before using from anywhere in the home (although, flossing in the bathroom makes the most sense), while others plug into your faucet or shower and gain access to water that way. Each type has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Regardless of the type you’re looking for, here’s the pick of the bunch for giving your teeth some extra attention from the comfort of your home.

Best Overall: Waterpik Aquarius ($80)

The Waterpik Aquarius is the Cadillac of water flossers and a runaway bestseller on Amazon with a staggering 14,500+ reviews averaging 4.5/5 stars—and all for good reason. The flosser has 10 pressure settings so even those with sensitive teeth will feel comfortable using it. All pressure settings offer continuous pressure, without pulsation. It also includes 7 Waterpik water flossing tips for every kind of surface from plaque seeking tips to orthodontic geared tips designed to make cleaning around braces and other orthodontic work a breeze.

The flosser reservoir holds enough water for 90 seconds of water flossing and is easily refilled. The device is easy to hold with easy pressure controls and clear LED indicators. It’s a great way of improving your oral hygiene with minimal effort.

Do note that the Aquarius runs on wall current so you’ll need an outlet (and some counter space to park it) wherever you intend to use it.

Best Cordless Option: Panasonic Dental Water Flosser ($69)

The Panasonic Dental Water Flosser is a great option for folks short on counter space and spare outlets in their bathroom. It looks like a regular electric toothbrush except it uses pulsating water and jets to more deeply clean your teeth than any conventional toothbrush can. It has three flosser pressure settings including a deep and targeted cleaning mode, normal speed, and a lower-speed pulsing mode for children or those with sensitive gums. At its fastest, it offers up to 1500 pulses per minute. The water flosser comes with two flosser nozzles.

There’s the added benefit that its water tank is dishwasher safe so it’s easy to clean and maintain. It’s important to clean the water reservoir of any water flosser you use to avoid mold and mildew, so the dishwasher option on this model is particularly nice.

Best Faucet Flosser: Profloss Waterflosser ($20)

A faucet flosser means there’s no reservoir to refill regularly but also means you need to attach it to your faucet, of course. Typically cheaper than an all-in-one solution, they can be worthwhile if you’re on a budget or simply want a solution that doesn’t require any power source. The Profloss Waterflosser is the best of the bunch. It has both internal and external threads so it fits most 15/16″ female faucet threads or 55/64″ male faucet threads.

Simply plug it in and turn the tap on for a steady stream of water that can clean those awkward gaps between your teeth. Sure, it’s rudimentary stuff compared to the power of the Waterpik Aquarius given it’s dependent on the power of your water pressure, but it does the job remarkably well. It also has the added bonus of allowing you to adjust the temperature. If you have teeth that are really sensitive to hot or cold water, you can dial in the temperature to your comfort level using the hot and cold taps.

Finally, if you’re looking at this option thinking we’ve lost our minds if we think anyone is going to unscrew and rescrew an attachment onto their faucet every time they want to floss, don’t worry. You only have to screw it on once and then you can attach and detach the actual flosser in a matter of seconds.

Best Shower Flosser: ShowerBreeze Water Flosser ($36)

One of those people that brushes their teeth while in the shower to save valuable seconds in the morning? Well, now you can floss in the shower too. The ShowerBreeze Water Flosser works like a faucet flosser, only in the shower. It takes minutes to install on your shower head in a way that means you can both irrigate your teeth and shower at the same time.

Again, you’re dependent on your water pressure rather than any settings on the water flosser but it’s an inexpensive way to clean your teeth without needing a separate device that might need charging or refilling regularly. Just like the aforementioned sink model, you can adjust the water temperature to your comfort level.

It comes with two oral tips along with a holder that can be attached via suction cups, so it looks neat in your shower.