The best garden hoses in 2024
Need a new hose? See which models our experts scored best.
A hose is an essential bit of kit for a gardener, making the task of watering your garden much easier than heaving a heavy watering can back and forth from the tap. There's a huge range of garden hoses available to buy and choosing the right hose will depend on the size of your garden, how much time you spend watering and, of course, your budget.
There are also a number of types of hose to choose from :
- Bare hoses. A simple, loose hose, available without connectors and accessories.
- Hose kits. A loose, bare hose plus spray guns and connectors.
- Hoses with reels. A hose reel plus storage, this is either a hose plus a cylindrical spindle or case and can be either free-standing or mounted on a wall. The hose is retracted at the pull of the hose or wound by hand with a handle.
- Expandable hoses. These offer a lightweight, space saving alternative to traditional rubber hoses, and shrink to an easy-to-store size when not in use.
In general, hosepipes are constructed with layers of vinyl, polyurethane and rubber, often reinforced with nylon or metal mesh. Expandable hoses come with a tough woven fabric outer layer that allows them to expand and contract. On the whole, cheaper hoses have less layers, which affects their strength and durability over time. Rubber hoses kink easily and can even get in a tangle, whereas expandable hoses, with their fabric outer layers, are designed to be anti-kink and anti-knot.
Need an attachment for your hose? Discover which of the garden hose spray guns we tested came out on top. If a watering can is all you're after, we've chosen 10 different designs to suit your gardening needs.
You may also be interested in our guide to buying the best pressure washer. Alternatively, to store water for your hose, take a look at the best water butts.
Hoses - Buyer's Guide video
Many thanks to Rosie Yeomans and Sparsholt College for their help in making this video.
Best bare hoses, expandable hoses and hose reels at a glance
- Best expandable garden hose for durability: Hozelock Superhoze Expandable 30m Hose
- Best expandable garden hose for performance: Robert Dyas Extendable 30m Hose
- Best garden hose mini reel: Hozelock Pico reel
- Best portable garden hose reel: Hozelock Auto reel mobile 35m
- Best garden hose reel for storage: Kärcher Compact Hose Box
- Best larger garden hose reel: Hozelock Fast Reel
- Best lightweight larger reel: Gardena Hose Reel 30
- Best bare hose for ease of handling: Flopro+ Hose
- Best premium hose: Hozelock Ultimate Hose
Jump to:
- The best expandable garden hoses
- The best garden hose reels
- The best bare garden hoses
- How to choose the best garden hose
- What accessories are available?
- Water-wise gardening
- How we tested garden hoses
In every review we award the outstanding products our coveted Best Buy award. To see these and the others we recommend, browse our pick of the best hoses below:
The best garden hoses
The best expandable garden hoses
Hozelock Superhoze Expandable 30m Hose
RRP: £44.78
Our rating: 4.8 out of 5
Available from OnBuy (£53.54), Wickes (£59), B&Q (£60)
Pros:
- Lightweight
- Expands three times its length, up to 30m
- Tangle-free
- Five year guarantee
- Guaranteed leak-free fittings for a water-tight connection
- Nozzle included
Cons:
- Hooks or reels for storage aren’t included
- Expensive
Lightweight, tough and coming with a five-year warranty, our experts awarded this a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for its durability. This expandable hose is easy to use in a small-sized garden, and as it expands up to three times in length, is convenient to store when it shrinks back to its original size.
Read the full review of the Hozelock Superhoze expandable 30m hose
Robert Dyas Extendable 30m hose
RRP: £39.99
Our rating: 4.8 out of 5
Available from Robert Dyas (£39.99)
Pros:
- Lightweight
- Expands from 10m to 30m
- Spray gun included
- Tangle-free
Cons:
- No storage features included
Winner of a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy award for its performance, this lightweight, extendable hose comes with connectors as well as a seven dial spray gun, which are both accessories you have to buy separately with many of the other hoses that we tested. When the hose is filled with water it fully expands up to 30m, or three times its length, retracting back to its original size in next to no time when you turn the tap off.
Read the full review of the Robert Dyas Extendable 30m hose
Buy the Robert Dyas Extendable 30m hose from Robert Dyas
Buying an expandable hose - video
Follow our guide to choosing the right expandable hose for your garden
The best garden hose reels
Hozelock Pico Reel
RRP: £37.00
Our rating: 4.75 out of 5
Available from Keen Gardener (£29.74), Tooled Up (£36.95), OnBuy (£36.99) and Wickes (£37)
Pros:
- Fully assembled
- Versatile, connects both ends
- Comfortable, easy to use, excellent spray gun
- Long warranty
Cons:
- Feeder hose fiddly to tuck away
Our experts judged this a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy in the mini reel category as it was compact, lightweight and good value. The hose is easy to rewind and has handy features such as drip-free storage with a parking port. There’s also an easy to use and adjustable spray gun with five spray pattern options. Plus, this hose comes with a five-year warranty.
Read the full review of the Hozelock Pico hose reel
Hozelock Auto Reel Mobile 35m
RRP: £219.99
Our rating: 4.5 out of 5
Available from Amazon and Wickes
Pros
- Great for taking around the garden
- Excellent rewind with no kinking
- Very stable
- Well designed with accessory storage
Cons
- Takes time and heavy to build
- Costs a lot of money
If you’ve ever struggled with a kinking, twisting hose or a reel that’s constantly toppling over, then this is the reel for you. The 30m anti UV hose is housed within a sturdy portable case that you can wheel around the garden with ease. The handle’s adjustable to suit your height and collapse down for storage and it also has a folding kickstand to help it remain stable in use. This can then be tucked away for easy wheeling and storage. The hose is easy to pull out, and there’s a braking mechanism to keep it controlled and to lock it in place once you’ve got as much as you need. Once you’re finished, simply tug the hose out another 25=cm and it will automatically rewind neatly back into the case. There’s no handle to wind and no tangling. Five meters of feeder hose are included you give you 35m in total, plus all the connectors you need such as hose end and water stop connectors, and threaded tap connectors of 21 and 26mm. There’s also a spray gun with the choice of three sprays- fine rose, jet and cone.
Although this is very easy to wheel around once built, it does weigh 17kg and this is noticeable when putting it together. There’s quite a lot to assemble, including attaching the wheels, the handle and the accessory basket, and this requires a screwdriver and about 30 minutes of your time. Until the wheels are attached it’s heavy to lift and move around and it’s all low down on the ground so may not be for the less able gardener.
This reel is also one of the most expensive we’ve tested but, it is very well designed, with lots of storage for the feeder hose and accessories, it feels durable and sturdy and is backed up by a five-year warranty (when registered online). If you use a hose on a regular basis this is ideal. You definitely get what you pay for and is well worth considering for the sheer ease of use.
Kärcher Compact Hose Box
RRP: £51.99
Our rating: 4.5 out of 5
Available from Amazon UK (£51.99), Kärcher (£51.99), Very (£51.99)
Pros:
- Sturdy, enclosed, with non-drip storage
- Versatile connection, additional feeder hose
- Can be used with Kärcher pressure washer
Cons:
- Feeder needs tucking under bracket
This sturdy and compact hose is supplied fully assembled and is enclosed in a smart square box. The nozzle and handle are detachable and there’s an additional two metre feeder hose as well as wall-mounting bracket, so you can store it out of the way. Although it’s slightly awkward to rewind, we awarded this hose a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for storage. It is guaranteed for one year.
Read the full review of the Kärcher Compact Hose Box
Hozelock Fast Reel
RRP: £105
Our rating: 4.5 out of 5
Available from ManoMano (£104.99), OnBuy (£109.95), B&Q (£110.74) and Tooled Up (£111.95)
Pros:
- Completely assembled, enclosed reel
- Sturdy, stable, exceptionally easy to rewind
- Neat non-drip storage
- Long warranty
Cons:
- Largest, heaviest and dearest
The automatic self-layering feature on this hose made it extremely quick to wind and unwind, despite being the longest we tested. The casing fully encloses the hose and feels both sturdy and stable. This was the heaviest and priciest hose on our expert test, but it does come with a five year guarantee. Overall we were impressed and awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for the best larger hose.
Read the full review of the Hozelock Fast Reel
Gardena Hose Reel 30m
RRP: £37.95
Our rating: 4.5 out of 5
Available from Tooled Up (£37.95)
Pros:
- Lightweight yet very stable frame
- Very easy to carry
- Good twist-grip nozzle
- Long warranty
Cons:
- Lowest capacity reel
- Not 'ready to use' as described
Our expert testers found this hose comfortable to use and carry as it remained stable while unwinding. The hose is lightweight but still felt sturdy and we liked the angled connector which reduces the chance of kinking. There’s also five-year warranty and we awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for the best lightweight larger reel.
Read the full review of the Gardena Hose Reel 30
The best bare garden hoses
Flopro+ Hose
RRP: £49.95
Our rating: 4.8 out of 5
Available from Tooled Up (£37.95)
Pros:
- Flexible yet strong, with four layers
- Light and comfortable
- Easy to coil and resistant to kinking
- Long guarantee
Cons:
- Higher price than most
A BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for the best bare hose for ease of handling, this tough hose is light, but is durable thanks to a four-layered reinforced construction. Less likely to crush, twist or kink, it's also comfortable to use and makes watering a joy. Comes with a lengthy 20-year guarantee.
Read the full review of the Flopro+ Garden hose
Hozelock Ultimate hose
RRP: £79.99
Our rating: 4.8 out of 5
Available from Wickes (£50.51), B&Q (£50.99)
Pros:
- Lightweight and comfortable
- Anti-kink design
- Crush proof
- Long guarantee
- Lowest price per metre (in category)
Cons:
- Slightly tricky to re-coil
Awarded a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for the best premium hose is very light and easy to water and clean with. Constructed from five layers, including a reinforced material the Hozelock Ultimate also has a smooth inner layer to enhance water flow. Kink-free and flexible it comes with a 30 year guarantee.
Read the full review of the Hozelock Ultimate hose
How to choose the best garden hose
Think about the following before you choose:
- The best garden hoses are anti-kink, anti-twist and crush-proof - there’s nothing worse than having to unravel a tangled garden hose and it will eventually cause the rubber to split and leak. It’s also worth considering the jobs you’ll be using it for. If it’s just watering, you won’t need a super-strong hose with a high max burst pressure (measured in bars), but if you’re connecting it to a power washer, durability and strength are important - and steer clear of expandable hoses as they’re not recommended for use with pressure washers.
- Cheaper hoses will need to be replaced more often, which is ultimately bad news for your pocket and the environment. Spending a little more means you’ll get a tough, durable hose that will last for years, and with better technology behind the bigger price tag, watering the plants is more enjoyable too. Garden hose reel kits are more expensive, but they’re great if storage is an issue and the reel prevents hoses from getting tangled up or trodden on. However, they can be a pain when it comes to reeling-in the hose, especially with free-standing types. Expandable hoses dispense with storage problems, as they contract to a manageable size when they’re not in use, but they can also leak and split more readily than tougher rubber alternatives. It’s also worth checking if a hose comes with a guarantee, and if so, how long for . While hoses come with recommended maximum water pressure, kink and frost protection, if a long warranty is offered, it’s a good sign it’s built to last, assuming of course, you look after it.
- Length. To work out what size hose you need, there’s really no better way than getting out the tape measure. Start from the tap and measure the maximum distance you need to reach the bottom of your garden, and then add a bit on, so the hose won’t be at full stretch. Tempting as it may be, avoid going for a longer garden hose than needed, because in addition to being more expensive, it adds unnecessary extra weight and is more bulky to store. Some expandable hoses can be connected together to gain extra length - you’ll need to buy special adaptors - and similarly, smooth rubber hoses can be cut to length if required.
- Colour might seem an aesthetic choice, if you have your garden hose on display on a patio, you might want to choose the colour that best works with your scheme. Alternatively, a brightly coloured hose is more visible and so less likely to be run over by a car or machinery.
What accessories are available?
While a nozzle or spray gun isn’t essential - using your finger on the tip of the hose to adjust the water flow works well - they are practical. Some hoses come with these accessories included, which often makes them good value for money. However, there are plenty of attachments available to buy separately.
It’s also worth checking if the connectors that come with your hose are ‘universal’, which means they'll fit on any hose or with any accessory - a benefit, if you change the hose but don’t want to have to buy a new spray gun for example. Connectors are usually made in either plastic or brass and while there are different grades of plastic, it’s fair to say that the brass connectors will be the most long-lasting.
In general, a textured outer layer will attach more securely to the tap connector than smooth alternatives, and will be less likely to burst off the nozzle or tap connector while it’s in use.
Water-wise gardening
With water conservation becoming more important than ever, check out this fascinating discussion between Arit Anderson and water expert Janet Manning on the BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine podcast.
How we tested garden hoses
The BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Reviews team tested a range of different types of garden hose, using them across the spring and summer to water beds and borders, plants in containers and in the greenhouse. The hoses were compared and the following criteria used to assess each hose, with equal weight attributed to each:
- Preparation & storage. Assessed ease of assembly, weight and storage features.
- Handling & performance. Looked at ease of unwinding and rewinding, stability of the reel, if the hose kinked or twisted, how well the connectors and accessories fitted and worked, and the ease of carrying.
- Quality & features. Focused on reel durability, standard and type of hose, nozzle and connectors, plus any special features.
- Value for money. Considered all of the above plus hose length, accessories, RRP and length of warranty.
For more information on our testing process see How we Review.
This review was last updated in April 2024. We apologise if anything has changed in price or availability.
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