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The PurSteam is a sturdy, easy-to-use, wrinkle-busting steam iron that comes with all of the features you need for a fresh press. Read More

This iron glides smoothly over fabric, ridding wrinkled clothing from deep creases. This is a heavy-duty iron with extra features worth the splurge. Read More

Quick to come up to temperature, the Maytag M1400 has high-tech digital settings while delivering a solid ironing experience. Read More

This iron has a durable design that smooths fabrics without creating new wrinkles but it falls short on steam performance power compared to our No. 1. Read More

This iron's bulky size doesn't stop it from effortlessly smoothing out wrinkled fabrics but it does require extra storage space in your hall closet. Read More

When the dryer doesn’t cut it, a steam iron is key for crisp, fresh-looking clothes. This compact, laundry room appliance brings the reviving power of steam to refresh clothing and get out even the most deep-set wrinkles. Steam irons are a great tool for linen lovers (a notoriously wrinkly fabric) and business people who desire a wrinkle-free look.

After weeks of testing, the PurSteam Professional Grade 1700W Steam Iron (available at Amazon) topped our tests. This wrinkle-busting steam iron is easy to use and has a large water tank to handle all of your laundry needs. For a steam iron with all the bells and whistles, the Rowenta Steamforce DW9280 (available at Amazon) is a luxurious way to remove deep creases with its powerful steam. But there are plenty of great steam irons to choose from.

Here are the best steam irons we tested ranked, in order:

The PurSteam PS-S101 smoothly slides across fabrics like skates on ice, all while zapping out wrinkles.

The PurSteam Professional Grade 1700W Steam Iron is the best steam iron you can buy. Like a pair of skates on ice, this steam iron smoothly slides across fabrics, all while zapping out wrinkles. With a large, easy-to-fill water tank, you will be able to iron your suits and much of your family's wardrobe all in one fell swoop. The iron excels at removing wrinkles, giving your clothes a fresh look and feel.

The 14-ounce water tank of the PurSteam is one of the biggest of any iron we tested and pops open to comfortably angle under the sink for fill-up. The steam iron comes with a small plastic cup to help with filling the iron, but we found that it was easy to fill without using the cup. Despite having such a large water tank, we are pleased that there is no leakage when using the steam function, which is a common fault among other irons we tested.

It moves comfortably over fabrics and quickly removes fine wrinkles with little to no effort. The water and steam buttons are near the handle so you can adjust as needed while ironing. We love how easy to read the controls are, making it easy to find the right temperature settings for our fabrics. Note that while some temperature dials have an arrow to mark where to set the temperature, this iron has a raised bump.

For the best steam iron that removes wrinkles easily and quickly, the PurSteam is the one you want.

Hard to read temperature dial

The Rowenta Steamforce heats up quickly, is easy to use, and removes wrinkles fast.

The Rowenta Steamforce heats up quickly, is easy to use, and removes wrinkles fast. It's more expensive that most steam irons, but it gets the job done well, earning a top spot as our Best Upgrade pick.

The iron seamlessly glides over clothing, removing deep wrinkles and creases with powerful steam. Not once did it snag on any of our fabrics, so we’d feel comfortable using it on delicate materials.

The iron is heavier than others in our guide, which has its pros and cons. The heavy design helps the iron glide smoothly and easily over fabrics, but it can be quite the workout if you're doing anything more than a handful of dress shirts.

One gripe we have is that the Rowenta 9280 can be awkward to fill in the sink. It’s not a dealbreaker but the water tank needs to be at just the right angle to avoid making a big wet mess. It’s also hard to see the water line in order to know how much water to add. It’s also more expensive than many other steam irons in our guide, but if you want to spend up on an iron, the Rowenta Steamforce DW9280 offers the most luxurious ironing experience.

I’m Samantha Mangino, and I’m a staff writer for the Home team at Reviewed. I write about appliances and home décor. I’ve even covered how to iron your clothes without an iron. The last time I used an iron daily was when I was in high school when I thought it was important to have my graphic tees pressed before heading to homeroom. I’ve had the occasional iron mishaps, including one too many burns to the ironing board, so I feel passionate about finding the best steam iron.

We put these steam irons through multiple rounds of testing—including ironing our own clothing and linens. We tested the minimum and maximum temperatures of each steam iron (and how quickly each one heats up). We also looked at usability features like the ease of filling the water tank and how smoothly it glides on an ironing board. Other features, too, like electrical cord length, stability, and tank size were taken into consideration for this guide.

For the third round, we brought in two wrinkly culprits: a cotton dress shirt and a linen tablecloth. After washing, we let each item air dry to help them become as wrinkly as possible.

Most steam irons have a triangular shape that includes a water tank that when filled creates steam.

Most steam irons have a triangular shape that includes a water tank that when filled creates steam. Most steam irons also feature a water spray feature which squirts water on fabric to help release wrinkles.

Steam irons will feature different settings listed such as low and high, however, most irons will list the settings by fabric type. Polyester and nylon blends will be at a low setting of around 250°F while cotton and linen are at the hottest temperature around 450°F. The controls of the iron are set typically through a dial while digital versions more commonly have buttons.

There are some slight differences in the design you’ll encounter. The plates of steam irons are either ceramic or stainless steel. In our tests, our top two performers had stainless steel plates.

Most irons also feature an automatic shut-off feature. The standard setting for auto-shut off is for the iron to turn off when left facedown for 30 seconds without movement or 8 minutes when resting on its heel.

The controls for most steam irons sit near the handle, making it easy to adjust the settings while you’re moving it across fabrics. This is also where you can control the iron’s steam distribution to flow continuously (or not at all). If you prefer to use the iron as a clothing steamer, you can use it vertically and release puffs of steam to more delicate fabrics, there’s a button on the steam irons that will release the steam. You can use this feature while using an ironing board or while a piece of clothing is hanging up.

A clothes steamer is another popular option for releasing wrinkles from your wardrobe. Clothes steamers are more gentle on fabrics as they don’t apply any direct heat to fabrics. Instead, the hot steam gets into textiles to release wrinkles. This makes it a better choice for fabrics like silk and polyester, which burn easily when exposed to high temperatures.

However, using a steam iron for your cotton and linen items helps you achieve a sleek ironed press on your fabrics using direct heat.

The Maytag M1400 impressively heats to its highest temperature in just 30 seconds, one of the fastest of any steam iron we tested. It excels at smoothing most of the wrinkles on cotton and linen fabrics.

The 7-ounce water tank is on the small side for steam iron and was somewhat hard to fill as it required angling it precisely under the faucet so it wouldn’t overflow.

It took us about 17 minutes to iron a cotton dress shirt and linen tablecloth and by the end, we’d run the water tank dry. (Ironing more than two items would have required frequent refilling of the water tank.)

Another gripe we have is the awkward placement of the control button, which is located at the top of the handgrip. Each time we used the iron, we bumped the button, accidentally changing the setting. The heat settings reading is digital and listed through a pictograph signifying low, medium, and high, which we found easy to read.

Despite being a well-made iron that didn’t wobble on the ironing board, the DW5280 only got out 50% of the wrinkles in our tests. With its heavy-duty design, it tracks smoothly across the fabric with setting buttons that are easy to reach while in use. However, it doesn’t have as powerful of steam as our No. 1 pick does.

The plumes of steam that were released from the iron were on the smaller side. We found that we had to press the steam button more than we did with other irons to get a sufficient amount of steam for ironing out wrinkles.

This iron was difficult to angle under the sink faucet and the tint of the water tank made it tough to see when it was full.

Reliable Maven’s steam iron is one of the biggest and bulkiest we tested. While the other irons have a water tank built-in, this design includes a base with a 54-ounce tank that has a pad for the iron to rest on. There’s a cord that connects the iron to the base and is used to create steam. Even with its large design, the station still fits on our ironing board. An upside to the large design is that it feels sturdy sitting on the ironing board and during use. While other irons rest on their back heel, this iron has a spot to rest your iron so you won’t be at risk of burning your ironing board or clothes when it’s not in use.

There’s no water spray feature, however, we didn’t miss that feature during testing. It thoroughly got out the wrinkles in the cotton shirt and linen tablecloth with its steam power.

If you’re doing a lot of ironing, this iron will help you run through your whole closet quickly and efficiently. You can position it on an ironing board, but it will take up a lot of space so we recommend placing it on a table nearby.

We love the look of this iron with its bright turquoise color and vintage design. The 12-foot power cord is one of the longest of any iron we tested, making it easy to move the iron freely up and down the ironing board without pulling the cord taut.

But when it comes to performance, the Singer Steam Iron fell short at removing wrinkles during our fabric tests. After seven minutes of ironing with our top-performing irons, they would have already removed most of the wrinkles, but the Singer had only removed about half. The settings button is awkwardly positioned on the handle and is easy to bump.

The hole to the water tank is narrow and requires a specific angle to be filled, which is burdensome to fill up.

The Electrolux Professional Steam Iron has a sleek, modern look to it, but good looks aren’t everything. This steam iron under performed in our tests, especially compared to other models in our guide. In our testing, the iron was more successful at removing wrinkles from the linen tablecloth than the cotton dress shirt. The ceramic plates on this iron didn’t travel as smoothly across the crevices of the shirt as the stainless steel plates of other irons did.

This iron is easy to fill up. Despite the narrow entrance to the water tank, it still filled smoothly without major spillage. When we bumped into the ironing board with the iron resting on it, it fell over quickly, making it a tippy option–best to avoid if you’re accident-prone.

The Chi Steam Iron has one of the longest cords, making it a great choice if you live in an older home with fewer electrical outlets than a new build. The iron is one of the easiest to fill and the settings controls are clear and easy to use. During our topple tests, the iron fell over quickly, causing the water tank lid to pop open, leaving us with a wet mess to clean up.

During testing, another issue arose with the water. While using the steam function, water droplets leaked from the plates, which soaked the fabric. With a ceramic-coated iron plate didn’t travel as smoothly as stainless steel plated irons did. It stumbled on the fabric creating creases that need another pass to smooth out.

The Black and Decker D3030 steam iron stood out among the bunch for its innovative water tank design. It has the best opening that creates a little pocket so water easily pours into the tank without any spillage. Its controls are difficult to read as there’s no clear marker for where to set the controls.

The plates are made from stainless steel, which should last you plenty of years. The smooth steel plate superbly pressing out the creases in a wrinkled dress shirt, however, the iron caught on the fabric several times which required a bit of skill to avoid making more wrinkles.

The D3030 is steadier than other irons when resting on its heel, so it can withstand a few accidental bumps of the ironing board without tipping over right away.

Gets out almost all of the wrinkles

The Sunbeam Classic stream iron has some of the most clear controls out of all the irons we tested. You can select your temperature through the fabric type you’re working with. It heats up 25 degrees higher than most other steam irons, leaving fabrics like cotton dress shirts flat and crisp.

On the downside, the iron's auto-shutoff feature takes 60 seconds before it kicks on—almost double the time it takes most others we tested. During our burn tests, the iron left prominent scorch marks after only 30 seconds. Given its very high heat settings, you can expect freshly pressed laundry, just make sure to use with care. (or any sort of general safety disclaimer you want to add on)

Got all of the wrinkles out

The Nori Steam Iron's sleek design resembles a hair straightener than a steam iron. This unique steam iron is made of two aluminum panels that clamp around fabric, making it easy to smooth out wrinkles in pant legs or shirt collars. It sits lower down on our list because the water tank is small (1-ounce), which means you'll need to refill the tank more frequently than others in our guide. (The tank is narrow and hard to fill; a funnel can help.)

It also isn't ideal to use as an everyday iron, but it is a nice supplement to your ironing routine as it can tackle smaller sections and areas that a larger steam iron can't. For a travel steam iron, the Nori is a compact option that easily stores in your luggage or carry-on bag. It's also ideal for small spaces like under bathroom counters or in dorm rooms, making a handy alternative to a full-size iron that needs more storage space.

The Steamfast SF-727 Travel Mini. This small but mighty iron is quite tippy. It is unstable when resting on the heel and doesn’t have auto-shut off which is a major safety concern if left unattended as it could easily fall from the ironing board and scorch your floors.

Being so compact in size, it was one of the more difficult to fill as the opening to the water tank was so small. For such a small iron, the cord is large and bulky. This makes it difficult to move the iron around in comparison to others in our guide.

However, because of its small size, it’s able to get into the nooks and crannies of a dress shirt to get the hard-to-reach wrinkles between buttons or on the back pleats. This is a great candidate to bring on trips since it is small enough to fit in a carry-on with occupying too much space.

Gets in hard to reach creases

Samantha Mangino is a Boston-based writer covering the home section of Reviewed. She began her career in restaurants before breaking into editorial. In her free time, you’ll find her swimming in the nearest body of water or reading on her back porch.

She received her Bachelors in Journalism from Emerson College.

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