Choosing a Which? Eco Buy

Buying sustainably isn't easy. It's difficult to sort the truth from the fiction to find what will really make a difference and what's just greenwashing.

That's where choosing an Eco Buy can help. They're based on independent lab testing and aren't influenced by brands, so you know the results are impartial and based on facts.

Our Which? Eco Buy recommendations highlight the products that will have the smallest environmental impact out of all the models we’ve tested in their category.

But Eco Buys have to be more than just green. They have to have scored well in our standard tests, so you can be sure that they'll also be great at their job.

Read on to find how we test for Eco Buys and which product categories currently have them. We'll be adding to these all the time.

Live more sustainably - get our free Sustainability newsletter to make changes for you and the planet

What is an Eco Buy?

We test for Eco Buys in the same way we do for Best Buys.

We buy every product we test, so our recommendations can’t be swayed by third parties, and we use the same consistent tests for each particular type of product. You can trust our product reviews because they’re based on our independent test results.

To earn our Eco Buy recommendation, a product must have a lower impact on the environment than alternative models. This can be proved in a number of ways, from being very energy efficient and therefore saving electricity with every usage, to being easily repairable. We also consider whether the product is from a brand with a proven reliability record, meaning it's more likely to last a long time.

But no one wants to buy green just to be disappointed by the product, so Eco Buys must also excel in our regular testing, whether that means boiling water quickly or washing clothes thoroughly.

Find details of all of our Eco Buy recommendations below.

Eco Buy barbecues

Barbecues are naturally not the most environmentally-friendly way to cook your food, but that doesn’t mean some have less environmental impact than others over their lifetime.

Keeping your barbecue for longer is one of the best ways to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Choosing one that’s made from good-quality, sturdy materials and is easy to clean will help with this. Your barbecue should be suitably portable too, which means you can keep it indoors to help prevent any rusting.

Using a barbecue that uses gas or electricity as its fuel source also means you’re not burning off as much carbon directly as when using charcoal. If you’re worried about the fuel source impacting the taste of your burgers and sausages, rest assured that our Eco Buys still have to produce delicious food.

To see our Eco Buy barbecues, head over to our barbecues reviews and filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy built-in ovens

We measure energy consumption using a special standardised test that simulates roasting a whole chicken. We take into account the energy each oven uses to heat up to temperature and stay there for the time needed.

Electric ovens tend to cost £50-60 a year to run. But the most and least efficient can vary by a lot more.

To find out which ovens are the most reliable, we survey owners annually to find out which brands are the most fault-prone.

Eco Buy ovens are the most energy-efficient models we've unearthed in our tests. They all come from brands that have a decent reliability record. They also score highly in our cooking tests.

To find a more sustainable oven, visit our oven reviews and filter on Eco Buys.

Eco Buy dishwashers

A large part of a dishwasher's environmental impact comes from using it, day-in and day-out. When replacing a faulty model, buying one that is efficient is a great way of reducing that impact, and saving you money along the way.

That's why we've started recommending Eco Buy dishwashers.

These are models that perform well in our cleaning tests while also being energy and water efficient and long-lasting. Buying an Eco Buy could save you on your energy costs.

To find the cheapest-to-run and most sustainable models, read our dishwasher reviews and filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy freezers 

Your freezer is on all the time, so choosing an efficient model will help to keep running costs down and reduce your environmental impact. Low running costs don’t always mean a freezer will keep your food safely frozen, however, and slow freezing can lead to unnecessary food waste. 

We’ve started recommending Eco Buy freezers, which combine low running costs with powerful freezing and good reliability.

Use the Eco Buy filter in our freezer reviews to find the most sustainable models.

Eco Buy fridge-freezers

A fridge freezer is one of the most energy-hungry appliances in your home, so it's no surprise that buying an efficient one will reduce your environmental impact and save you money.

But not all energy-efficient fridge freezers are good chillers, and some develop faults more quickly than average. That's why we've started recommending Eco Buy fridge freezers. These are the ones we've singled out as balancing good chilling and freezing performance with energy efficiency and great reliability.

To find the most sustainable models, go to our fridge freezer reviews and use the filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy fridges

Just like with fridge-freezers, when replacing a faulty model, buying one that’s energy efficient is a great way of reducing your environmental impact and saving you money on your energy bill.

Eco Buy fridges are carefully chosen for balancing good chilling performance with top-tier energy efficiency and brand reliability.

Find the greenest models with our fridge reviews and filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy headphones

If you find you’re throwing away your headphones too often, it's worth considering a pair that's built to last.

Eco Buy headphones have superb performance – so you’ll want to keep using them again and again – and also offer ways to help them last longer. For example, some pairs will offer battery replacement schemes so you don't have to throw them out if the battery fails. Others will offer a range of replacement parts so you don’t need to buy a whole new pair in the event of damage.

They must also be made by a brand with a proven track record for long-lasting products you can rely on (based on feedback from surveying headphone owners) and rated by our lab experts as being as durable and built to last.

To make sure your next headphones last as long as you need them to, go to our headphone reviews and filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy kettles

You can make a big difference by opting for a kettle that will last you a long time before it needs to be replaced, boils quickly and efficiently and has a low minimum fill level. 

This means you don't need to waste energy boiling water you may not end up using, which is better for the planet and your pocket.

Eco Buys are chosen because they're excellent performers and are energy efficient. We also prioritise kettles from brands that perform well in our product experience surveys, which means they're likely to last longer.

To find the most sustainable models, head to our kettle reviews and use the Eco Buys filter. 

Eco Buy laundry detergents

If you want to be kinder to the environment, you might want to opt for a laundry detergent that's been designed to have a lower environmental impact.

To help you find an eco-friendly detergent that also cleans well, we look into a number of factors – including whether or not they are biodegradable, whether they are harmful to aquatic life and how easy packaging is to recycle. We also consider how transparent manufacturers are being about the ingredients they use so you can make a more informed buying decision based on their environmental footprint.

While some products performed poorly when it comes to environmental impact or with the main task of cleaning clothes, a few were good enough to earn our Eco Buy recommendation.

An Eco Buy needs to be better for the environment than alternatives on the market, and it needs to perform well at its core job of removing stains and odours.

To find a sustainable detergent that can get your clothes looking great, read our laundry detergent reviews and filter for Eco Buys.

Eco Buy lawn mowers

A lot of the environmental impact of lawn mowers is down to them breaking and needing replacing. There aren’t currently any particularly viable ways of recycling old mowers, so the best choice you can make for the planet (and your wallet) is opting for a mower that will, given the proper attention and care, last a long time. 

If you’ve got a lawn bigger than a cabbage patch, it’s likely a manual push mower won’t be your favoured option, so you’re going to want something powered: corded, cordless or petrol. Because of the well-documented polluting effects of petrol, we disqualify petrol models from earning eco-buys, and corded and cordless models have to score highly in tests of energy-efficiency.

Eco-buy lawn mowers are the most energy-efficient models we’ve tested, with great grass-cutting performance and from brands with a proven track record for long-lasting mowers you can rely on (based on feedback from surveying lawn mower owners).

To find the most sustainable mower models, head to our lawn mower reviews and use the Eco Buys filter.   

Eco Buy microwaves

Microwaves are a good way to cut your energy costs as they use significantly less energy than other cooking appliances. And if you choose one of our Eco Buys, you can look forward to years of fuss-free cooking.

That's because Eco Buy microwaves are more energy efficient than most - they all score a full five stars in our energy consumption tests.

They're also a more sustainable choice because they come from brands with a decent reliability record. 

They're excellent at basic tasks such as heating and defrosting, scoring 65% or above and some even score high enough to be Best Buys, too.

To find out which microwaves make the grade, head to our microwave reviews and use the Eco Buy filter.

Eco Buy printers

While printers don’t use as much energy as some other home and tech appliances, an inefficient model will guzzle ink and chew through lots of paper, which not only makes them expensive to run but also creates excessive waste. 

Eco Buy printers have a lower impact on the environment than other printers. They’re energy efficient, economical with ink or toner, and automatically print on both sides of the page to help conserve paper - all while not compromising on print quality. 

Head to our printer reviews and use the Eco Buy filter to find a model that’s both sustainable and capable of producing great quality printouts. 

Eco Buy rechargeable batteries

If you use AA or AAA batteries frequently enough, rechargeable cells are innately more sustainable than disposable ones. Rather than manufacturing and transporting new batteries, an energy-intensive process, you can simply plug your old ones into the mains and refill them. 

But our testing shows us that some rechargeable batteries are less wasteful than others. Certain batteries maintain their capacity over hundreds of cycles and they lose less energy in self-discharge when they're not in use.

An Eco Buy rechargeable AA or AAA battery will have the longest life and retain more charge when unused than other batteries. But they also have to manage a minimum score for duration on a single-charge, and they need to have as much capacity as they say they do. 

Read our rechargeable battery reviews to find the right set to power your belongings for less.

Eco Buy steam cleaners

Steam cleaners are ideal for cleaning your home without needing to use harsh chemicals – they're good at lifting off tough grime and dirt thanks to the high temperature of the steam. 

If you want to invest in a new steam cleaner, you'll want one that's good at its main job and which will last. To help you do this, look for our Eco Buy badge.

An Eco Buy steam cleaner cleans effectively, while also being durable and well made. Only brands that score above average in our reliability survey are eligible to be recommended as Eco Buys.

Head over to our steam cleaner reviews and filter for Eco Buys to see which ones make the grade.

Eco Buy steam irons

Through our rigorous steam iron testing programme we've found that although different steam iron models do indeed use different amounts of electricity when heating up and producing steam, these differences are fairly negligible. The largest environmental impact steam irons have is in the manufacturing process, and when they come to be disposed of. 

It follows, then, that the best thing you can do for the environment is buying and replacing your steam iron less often, reducing the need for new steam irons to be produced and old ones to be got rid of. 

That's why we've started recommending Eco Buy steam irons. These are models that perform well in our ironing tests, while also being durable and long-lasting. We look at how easy they are to maintain - how simple it is to clean them or use their self-cleaning functions to prevent limescale buildup - and how scratch-resistant their soleplates are. An Eco Buy iron is an environmentally friendly choice, and because they last a long time, in the long run they're often a cheaper choice. 

To see the models that we've selected so far, read our steam iron reviews.

Eco Buy tumble dryers

The most sustainable way of drying your clothes is always going to be hanging them on a washing line or static airer. However, some tumble dryers are much more sustainable than others and will reduce the impact drying clothes in a machine has on the environment.

If your tumble dryer is beyond repair, choose an Eco Buy replacement. Not only are they among the most energy efficient we’ve tested, they're long-lasting and will do a good job drying your clothes.

Head to our tumble dryer reviews to see all Eco Buys.

Eco Buy washer-dryers

Washer-dryers hit your energy bills with a one-two punch of washing and drying.

While tumble dryers have become more energy efficient recently due to heat pump technology, washer-dryers still lag behind. 

Even the most efficient washer-dryer still uses more energy than most heat-pump tumble dryers, so the most environmentally friendly choice is to buy a separate washer and dryer.

But if that's not an option, our Eco Buys can help you find the best for the planet and your bills.

An Eco Buy washer-dryer cleans well and dries quickly while keeping energy and water use as low as possible to still do this. A washer-dryer also can’t be an Eco Buy if our survey shows that the brand is below average for reliability.

Go to our washer-dryer reviews to find Eco Buys.

Eco Buy washing machines

A lot of a washing machine's environmental impact will come from using it, day-in and day-out, through the energy and water it uses. Buying one that is efficient with both is a great way of reducing your impact and will save you money along the way.

Unfortunately, our testing shows that washing machines that do their job well typically cost more and use more energy, while those that are very efficient can have lacklustre results for your laundry.

That’s where our Eco Buys come in. These are the washing machines that clean well without being wasteful of either energy or water. 

Read our washing machine reviews and filter for Eco Buys.