The Best Toilet Brushes, Tested and Reviewed
Our top pick not only makes the bowl shine, but gets under the rim too.
Reviewed by Carolyn FortéHome Care & Cleaning Lab Executive Director
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Toilet brushes are the oft-forgotten, but oh-so-important members of our home-cleaning dream team. While you could pick up any old toilet brush, the best toilet brushes have proper parts for reaching under the rim, a sturdy holder that won’t tip over easily and a long handle to keep your hands as far away from the toilet bowl as possible to help keep harmful bacteria and germs at bay.
But we know that there aren't many people who want to spend their precious time researching toilet bowl cleaners, so the Good Housekeeping Institute Cleaning Lab is always doing the hard work for you, testing the best cleaning appliances and tools to keep your bathroom sparkling. In our most recent round of testing, we tried 14 different toilet brushes to find the ones that do the best job cleaning inside the toilet bowl and under its rim.
OXO Good Grips Toilet Brush with Rim Cleaner
Pros
- Angled bristles to reach under the rim
- Holder stays open while brush is in use
Cons
- Brush holder has more parts to clean than others
Replaceable head: Yes | Material: Plastic brush and holder | Brush length: 18.5"
Traditional toilet brushes can have a hard time reaching under the rim of a toilet bowl because of their stiff, round shape, but this toilet brush from OXO has the look and feel of a traditional toilet brush with the handy addition of angled bristles to reach where others can’t. In our test, all it took was five swipes around the toilet bowl for this toilet brush to completely rid the bowl of messes. We found the handle easy to hold and liked that we didn't have to turn our hands at uncomfortable angles to clean every side of the toilet bowl.
The brush holder keeps the brush out of sight when not in use; it opens when you pull up on the brush and stays open while using so you don’t have to reach down and manually reopen it. A ventilated drip tray keeps your brush from sitting in a puddle of water, allowing the brush to air dry to deter odors and bacteria. Take note that the holder has more parts to clean than others.
Pros
- Flexible enough to clean all parts of the bowl
- Holder can be attached to the wall
Cons
- Requires a little extra scrubbing to clean well
Replaceable head: No | Material: Silicone brush and plastic holder | Brush length: N/A
At a fraction of the price of most of our other picks, this quick-drying silicone toilet brush from Sellemer cleaned our test toilet in just seven swipes around the bowl, even if it did require just a bit more elbow grease than some others. Our expert found that, despite its untraditional shape, this silicone one was flexible enough to cover all sides of the bowl without too much wrist acrobatics.
We like that the Sellemer brush comes in a slim, easy-to-store holder that can be mounted on the wall to free up floor space and has ventilation holes to allow the brush to dry quickly. A drip tray in the holder also helps keep your floor dry and keeps the brush out of contact with any water that drains away — all important factors for long-term cleanliness.
Better Living Products Looeez Hygienic Toilet Squeegee
Pros
- Water does not stay trapped in brush head
- Reaches under the rim easily
Cons
- Handle shape is a bit uncomfortable
Replaceable head: No | Material: Silicone brush and plastic holder | Brush length: 17"
By far the best-performing silicone toilet brush we tested, the Looeez quickly tackled the sunflower butter mixture we used on the toilet to mimic solid waste, requiring only four swipes around the bowl to remove all traces of the mess completely.
It's all thanks to a brush head that's flexible enough to make contact with all sides of the bowl without much effort. Perfectly angled top blades reach under the rim easily and water rolls right off of the brush head with no shaking required when you’re done. On the downside, the angular shape of the handle was a bit uncomfortable to hold.
For sanitary reasons, we appreciate the wide spaces between each of its blades. Debris didn't get stuck in this brush, and it was easy to clean. The brush holder is also surprisingly sturdy, requiring a deliberate push to tip it over. Not to mention, it's small enough to fit neatly in a corner of your bathroom.
Clorox ToiletWand Disposable Toilet Cleaning System
Pros
- No extra toilet bowl cleaner needed
- Easily eject scrubbing heads with one click
Cons
- Each cleaning head can only be used once
Replaceable head: Yes | Material: Plastic brush and holder | Brush length: 15.3"
No extra cleaning products are needed when using this ToiletWand from Clorox. The scrubbing head has a built-in disinfecting cleaner that begins dispensing as soon as the brush comes into contact with the toilet water, and it contains the perfect amount of cleaner for a single use. Just note: The manufacturer advises letting the built-in cleaner sit for five minutes to sanitize the bowl or 10 minutes to disinfect.
In our tests, this disposable toilet cleaner required the least amount of swipes of all the brushes we tested, leaving our test toilet spotless after just three swipes. This toilet bowl brush is hygienic not just because you’re getting rid of the piece that touches the germy toilet bowl after every use (Toss it in the trash, not down the toilet!), but also because of its hands-free method of attaching and detaching the cleaning sponges.
The used head detaches with the press of one button, and then you simply click the handle into a fresh head, meaning you never have to touch the end that goes into your toilet. The holder is big enough to store about 10 pad refills at a time while taking up the same amount of space as a traditional toilet brush.
Libman Toilet Brush & Plunger Combo
Pros
- Holder is easy to clean
- Holder has holes to quickly dry brush
Cons
- Doesn't clean under the rim as well as others tested
Replaceable head: No | Material: Plastic brush and holder | Brush length: 15"
This space-saving combo from Libman stores both your toilet brush and your plunger in a well-ventilated holder that allows for easy drying of both bathroom tools. With just five swipes, the Libman toilet brush cleaned most of the sunflower butter from our test toilet bowl. However, reaching under the rim was a little more difficult because of its lack of under-the-rim extending bristles.
Even with a slightly shorter handle than the other toilet brushes our expert tested, this brush was easy to use and required no extra bending forward to reach into the furthest parts of the toilet bowl. There were also very few nooks and crannies in the holder for germs to hide in, making it a more hygienic option.
How we test toilet brushes
To find the best toilet brushes to clean your toilet bowl, our Cleaning Lab experts researched the most popular toilet brushes available to consumers — everything from traditional bristle brushes to silicone and biodegradable brushes made from coconut husks.
We then chose 14 toilet brushes that best represented what is on the market and put them all through the same performance and ease-of-use tests, narrowing the final list down to the top five performers.
After spreading a sunflower butter paste onto the inside of a toilet bowl and allowing it to air dry for 20 minutes, each brush was used to clean the bowl with no additional toilet bowl cleaner (except for the Clorox ToiletWand, which has cleaner built into the scrubbing head).
After just over 130 total swipes around the bowl, our experts made note of the number of swipes that were made with each brush to remove the paste, along with the effort that was required to reach all sides of the toilet bowl.
We noted how well each brush cleaned under the rim and how easily the brush and holder were to clean and store. To test the sturdiness of the toilet brush holders, our expert pushed and pulled on the holders to determine how easy each was to tip over.
What to look for when shopping for a toilet brush
Shopping for a toilet brush seems pretty simple, but here are a few things to keep in mind to find the best one for your home.
✔️ Bristles vs. silicone: Two kinds of brush heads make up the majority of the toilet brushes on the market: plastic bristles and silicone. While both will get your toilet bowl clean, most silicone brushes require a little more effort and wrist maneuvering than those with plastic bristles. Traditional plastic bristle toilet brushes are easy to use, clean well and are more readily available at local stores. On the other hand, silicone brushes trap less water in the brush head and can be more durable than traditional plastic bristle brushes.
✔️ Brush head shape: Germs can get trapped and be forgotten under the rim of the toilet. Look for brushes with a rim cleaner or ones that have a shape that can easily be maneuvered to reach under the rim. Round, bristle and silicone brush heads were the easiest to maneuver in our tests. Cleaning with flat silicone brushes took a little more effort than we would have liked.
✔️ Brush holder: The holder for your toilet brush is as important as the toilet brush itself. It should provide proper ventilation for quick drying and odor control. Also, consider how much space you have on your bathroom floor. You may prefer a wall-mounted option.
✔️ Price: Toilet brushes cost anywhere from under $5 at your local grocery store to well over $100. How much you are comfortable spending on this bathroom cleaning tool is up to you, and it is important to note that the price of the brush is not necessarily indicative of how well it will clean your toilet bowl. If you choose a reusable toilet brush, you should plan to purchase replacement brush heads about twice a year. Disposable toilet brushes will also add an extra expense when you need to buy refills.
What is the most hygienic toilet brush?
Disposable cleaning brushes, like the Clorox, are the most hygienic. However, if you're using a reusable toilet cleaning brush, look for one that rinses cleanly and doesn’t trap matter or excess water it picks up. You also want a wand that dries quickly and sits in a holder that allows it to drain easily.
Do you have to clean your toilet brush?
You sure do. Toilet brushes can sit in a puddle of water inside the brush holder for days in between use. If you aren’t careful, this can lead to mold and other bacteria growing on the brush.
Every couple of uses, thoroughly spray your toilet brush and toilet brush holder with a disinfectant spray (and try to get into all the nooks and crannies germs may be hiding in). Allow them both to air dry before storing them again. If you notice debris trapped in between the bristles or silicone nubs of your toilet brush, toss it and use another. You don’t want to keep a toilet brush that requires scrubbing or touching the brush head to get clean.
How often should you replace your toilet brush?
Most manufacturers recommend replacing your toilet brush every six months or whenever your brush becomes discolored, begins to lose bristles or has an odor that can not be washed away. Some toilet brushes, like our best overall pick from OXO, offer replacement heads that can be purchased instead of buying a whole new toilet brush, minimizing both cost and the amount of plastic waste you produce. If you are using a disposable toilet brush, you should replace the toilet brush head after every single use.
Do silicone toilet brushes clean better than traditional bristle brushes?
From our testing, we found that silicone toilet brushes do not clean better or worse than traditional bristle brushes. All but two of the bristle brushes we tested required five to six swipes to remove the sunflower butter paste from our test toilet. Half of the silicone brushes we tested required the same amount of swipes as the best bristle brushes tested and the other half required more than seven.
Why trust Good Housekeeping?
Brigitt Earley is a writer, editor and content creator with over 15 years of experience in the home, cleaning and health spaces and more. For this guide, she worked closely with Carolyn Forté, Executive Director of the Good Housekeeping Institute Home Care & Cleaning Lab, to interpret results from our latest round of testing, which was conducted by Jodhaira Rodriguez, a former product reviews analyst in the Home Care & Cleaning Lab.
Brigitt is a writer, editor and craft stylist with nearly 15 years of experience. She specializes in lifestyle topics, including home, health, parenting, beauty, style, food, entertaining, travel and weddings. She has written for Glamour, People, Good Housekeeping, Women's Health, Real Simple, Martha Stewart, Apartment Therapy, The Spruce, and more.
Carolyn Forté brings more than 40 years of experience as a consumer products expert to her role as executive director of the Good Housekeeping Institute's Home Care and Cleaning Lab. Using deep analytical testing and writing expertise in appliances, cleaning, textiles and organizational products, she produces cleaning and home care advice for GH, has authored numerous books and bookazines for the brand and partners with the American Cleaning Institute to co-produce the Discover Cleaning Summits. She holds a bachelor's degree in family and consumer sciences from Queens College, City University of New York.
