The Best Mops

This model excelled during every test: It was easy to assemble; it scrubbed up dirt, mud, pet hair, coffee, and stuck-on food spills with ease; and it was incredibly absorbent yet lightweight and nimble. We were particularly impressed by the bucket’s wringing mechanism, which rapidly spun the mop head with the push of a pedal and removed a remarkable amount of water, leaving the mop head nearly dry. We also liked the mop’s relatively long handle and wide, flat head, which was easy to remove and machine washable.

This model performed almost as well as our winner throughout testing, sopping up an impressive amount of liquid, clinging to dirt particles and pet hair, and scrubbing efficiently. It was easy to put together, and its replaceable mop head held up to multiple washings without issue. But we found its handle to be a bit too short, and we wish the included bucket’s wringing mechanism, a cylindrical plastic basket that squeezed the mop head as we applied pressure, was able to remove more water. The mop occasionally felt oversaturated and spread excess liquid on the floor.

This mop quickly scrubbed away sticky, dried-on stains better than any other model in our lineup. Its microfiber strings absorbed an impressive amount of liquid and clung to dirt particles with ease. We liked its long handle, and we loved that its large head was machine washable and reusable. The one downside: Its wringing mechanism took some time to master and required vigorous twisting to fully wring. We still think it’s the best stand-alone, self-wringing option for heavy-duty jobs.

We loved this mop’s long handle, which allowed us to scrub a large surface area at once, and we were also impressed by how absorbent the mop head was. It did a great job of sopping up liquid spills, and its microfiber strings clung easily to dirt, pet hair, and grime. Unfortunately, we found this model’s wringing mechanism a bit difficult to use and were disappointed that its mop heads weren’t machine washable. Attempting to wash them by hand was tedious and unpleasant, and it didn’t remove as much grime as a machine would have. It was also the heaviest model we tested.

This classic mop’s design, which includes a wringing sleeve that slides down the handle and twists over the head, was easy to master, and we liked that the mop heads were simple to remove and held up to repeated washings. But the wringing sleeve didn’t squeeze out enough water, which meant that we dripped excess water on the floor. Its cloth strips—which were only partially made of microfiber—didn’t cling to dirt or grime well and were less absorbent than other models and therefore less effective at sopping up liquid spills.

This mop and bucket system was unnecessarily complicated. To dip and wring this mop, we had to clip it into two separate centrifuges in the bucket and then push down on the handle to spin the head. If it wasn’t properly mounted in the centrifuges—which was consistently difficult to do—the whole mechanism was useless. Its retractable handle offered different length options, but we found it difficult to use; it kept getting shorter as we were mopping. We really just missed a simpler mop and were frustrated that this model was seemingly trying to outsmart us.

To wring out this mop, we had to fold a perforated plastic tab over the sponge head and squeeze it by hand. This got our hands dirty every time, so much so that we dreaded wringing out this model. It also did a poor job of clinging to dirt and sopping up liquid—at times it felt like we were painting the floor with mud or coffee instead of cleaning it. Its sponge also came loose during intense scrubbing. It’s not machine washable and doesn’t hold up through more than a few cleaning sessions.

We liked this sponge mop’s clever wringing mechanism, which consisted of a lever on its handle that you pull to fold the sponge in half and squeeze it. Unlike the other sponge mop, the lever kept our hands away from the dirty sponge and mop water. Unfortunately, this mop wasn’t absorbent enough to sop up liquid spills or grab onto dirt and grime; it merely smeared messes around. It also broke during an intense scrubbing session near the end of testing.