I was driving home from work one night last week, listening to The National on my Prius's stereo, when I received a text from my wife. A friend of hers was in dire need of a new washer, and she wanted buying advice.
Now, that really is a difficult question to answer without more information, such as budget, family size, space limitations, turnaround time, etc. I relayed this concern to my wife, who then had her friend call me to help decide what to get. She was interested in the differences between front and top-loading washers, and also wanted to know if anything was new in the laundry industry. It occurred to me that these two subjects might make for an interesting blog subject as well.
That being said, let me address the first question: "What are the pros and cons of front vs. top load washers?"
Essentially, there are three categories of washing machines:
Front loading (below is the Maytag MHW6630HW)
Then, we have two types of top-loading washers:
- Top Loaders with traditional agitators
- Top Loaders with an impeller type wash plate.
(Shown above are the agitator driven Speed Queen TC5003N, and the impeller driven GE PTW600BSNRS)
If you haven't had to purchase a washer recently, you'll find significant changes in 2025 era clothes washers.
The four major changes are:
- Capacity has increased. For example, in 2000 a "super capacity" washer was 3.0 to 3.2 cubic feet. Today machines can be as large as 5.5 cubic feet in capacity! In fact, the smallest capacity on a normal, 27" full sized washer is 3.9 cubic feet. In short, all washers have larger tubs!
- Water consumption has greatly decreased. Today's machines use approximately 12 gallons of water per load on front loading machines, and about 20 gallons on top loaders. By contrast, washers a generation ago could use over 40 gallons per load!
- (And here we mention the negatives!) Cycle times are longer. The tradeoff for using less water and having a larger capacity is that it becomes necessary to have a longer cycle time to properly clean a load of laundry.
- All washers have electronic controls, vs. mechanical. All machines employ a water level sensor to measure and limit the amount of water used per load. The days of turning a dial, then pulling the dial out to start the machine are gone. Having dealt with many hundred customers over the years selling washers, I can attest that many people miss the old mechanical washers!)
Now, back to the differences between the three washer styles. Note that I'm discussing typical, American sized 27-28" wide washers. "Euro-style" compact (24" wide) units are available, but they are mostly a specialty application product in the US.
This article below from Energystar.gov does a nice job explaining the difference between front and top loading machines. Granted their perspective is heavily biased toward the more efficient front load styles, but I still found it to be a balanced look at the pros and cons of front vs. top loading washers:
Likewise, this article from The Spruce does a great job explaining the pros and cons of the two different types of top loading washers:
I hope all this helps you understand the difference between the three washer types, and can help you make a decision that is "right" for your home and needs.
Now, to the second question: What's new in the industry?
Two new products have appeared in the past couple of years. The first is an "all-in-one" unit that will wash and then dry a full (4.5 cubic ft. capacity washer!) in about two hours. These units also run on a standard 110v circuit instead of the usual 30 amp 230v dedicated dryer line. These two features allow the all-in-ones to be placed and used in locations such as a basement or in-law apartment without having to upgrade the electric line or create a duct hole in the wall.
The GE Profile model PFQ97HSPVD, retailing for $2199, is shown above.
While this product is admittedly on the pricey side, and its use falls under the category of "special application", the second innovative product has a much more universal appeal:
Behold! The removable agitator!
Not sure whether to purchase an agitator driven machine for its more aggressive washing of everyday items, or the impeller driven machine with the wider space ideal for bulkier items? Whirlpool recently released three models that have removable agitators! Leave the auger shaped agitator in for every day loads. But if you need to, say, wash a king-sized comforter, then the agitator removes with a simple twist! This will give you a little more capacity, and also allows the bulky item to spread out more, providing more even cleaning without tangling.
Below, Westfield store manager Patrick Barrett demonstrates this easy-to-use feature:
The model above, the 4.7/4.8 cubic foot capacity Whirlpool washer, has been by far the best selling of these hybrid models. It currently retails for $699, placing it solidly in the center of washer pricing!
I could easily go on about other facets of today's washers (maintenance and care, potential smells, longevity, noise, and so on), but I'll save that for another article!
If you have questions about any of the above, feel free to reach out and speak with any of our sales professionals in any of our eleven (soon to be twelve, as we add Pittsfield to our lineup!) locations; phone numbers and addresses can be found on the front page of our website.
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