The Best Hand Dryers to Buy in 2026

Yearly review, first published 01/01/2022
Last updated 10/12/2025

What are the best hand dryers in 2026?

The "best" depends on the requirements of your facilities. But we have a ‘best’ hand dryer for every need at HandryersUK.

What's your main focus?

• Energy efficiency or speed of dry?
• Low noise?
• Fast drying that stands up to the rigors of an Airport?
• A low cost, fast drying hand dryer that will give years of service in a low traffic small office?

We’ll be discussing the "best" hand dryer in a number of these categories. 

 

The best hand dryers to buy in 2026 include:

 

1. Dryflow Bulletdri

 

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: from £174 ex VAT

          

Everything you need from a hand dryer, it ticks every box. 

Fast drying ✔  Up to 7 years guarantee ✔  Slim ✔  Long-life ✔  Vandal proof ✔  Eco ✔  Carbon Neutral ✔  Warm air setting ✔  Low noise ✔  Stainless Steel cover ✔  Suitable for schools ✔  Black finish option ✔  HEPA Filter ✔

2500 - 2727 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ (motor type dependent) compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^

View product page

 

 

3. Dyson Airblade V HU02

The best if you want the most popular model

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: £769.99 ex VAT (currently on sale for £599.99 ex VAT) 

        

Product summary

Best for.... Speed of dry with low noise; Energy efficiency; Enhanced hygiene (click to view more)

• Very popular model
• Rapid drying
• Low noise - Quiet Mark approved
• Compact with 10cm depth
• Easy to install plug-in system
• HEPA Filter & NSF approved
• 1500 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^
• Guarantee: 5 years
• Suitable for heavy use

View product page

 

5. Mitsubishi Wave u02

The best for low noise fast drying

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: £520 ex VAT (currently on sale from £325 ex VAT)

          

Product summary

Best for.... Speed of dry with low noise; Reliability; Energy efficiency; Enhanced hygiene (click to view more)

• Mitsubishi quality & efficiency throughout
• Exceptional drying speed
• Very quiet
• Long life motor
• Antibacterial resin injected & NSF approved
• 2739 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^
• Guarantee: 8 years
• Suitable for heavy use

View product page

 

7. Viska Ultra Quiet Hand Dryer

The best for schools or other facilities that require low noise fast drying

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: From £199.90 ex VAT

          

Product summary

Best for.... Schools;  Meets all Department for Education specification guidelines: Technical Annex 2A. (click to view more)

• Unmatched energy efficiency
• Low noise 65 dbA
• Long life brushless motor
• Slimline
• HEPA filter
• ADA and DOC M Compliant
• 12,500 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^
• Guarantee: 5 years
• Suitable for heavy use

View product page

 

9. Turboforce

The best for no-frills fast drying

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: £399.90 ex VAT (currently on sale from £360.90 ex VAT)

        

Product summary

Best for.... Speed of dry (click to view more)

• No frills, just exceptionally quick drying
• Popular throughout the UK
• Suitable for major daily use
• Stainless Steel cover
• Outstanding motor life
• Guarantee: 7 years

View product page

 

11. Dryflow Slimforce

The best for when size and value matter

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: £99.90 ex VAT (currently on sale for £84.90 ex VAT)

    

Product summary

Best for.... Compact / Small size; Entry level (click to view more)

• Fast drying
• Small
• Slim (ADA compliant)
• Robust
• Low yearly running cost
• Stainless Steel cover
• 2500 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^
• Guarantee: 3 years

View product page 

 

13. Mitsubishi Wave i01

The best blade style alternative to the Dyson AB14

• Dry time: 10 - 15 seconds
• Price: £845 ex VAT (currently on sale from £523 ex VAT)

          

Product summary

Best for.... Speed of dry with low noise; Reliability; Energy efficiency; Enhanced hygiene (click to view more)

• Mitsubishi quality & efficiency throughout
• Exceptional drying speed
• Super reliable
• Very quiet
• Long life brushless motor
• Antibacterial resin injected & NSF approved
• 2272 dries possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^
• Guarantee: 8 years
• Suitable for heavy use

View product page

 

(*all prices are ex VAT and correct at time and date of post but are subject to change)

^Based on £0.20 per kWh. ^^Based on average 143 paper towels per £1 spent, using 1 paper towel per dry.

Further information and Alternative Hand Dryer Options

 

Speed of dry

In our experience, there are only a few hand dryers on the market that truly come under the label of high speed hand dryer.

The new Dyson Airblade 9kj has taken over the crown from the previously discontinued Dyson Airblade AB14, with a 10 second dry time.

You’ve also got the Mitsubishi Jet Towel Wave i01 in the hands in hand dryers category that are very close behind with an impressive 11-second dry time. These units are also some of the quietest hand dryers available and have an easily serviceable water collection system, which means no pesky water marks on walls or spillages on floors.

The Jet Towel Slim along with the Mitsubishi Jet Towel Smart, the "Hands under" Mitsubishi offering which also boasts an 11 seconds dry time has tremendous reliability, which is shown in the fact we’ve had a 0% return rate in 8 years

Three others in this category to look at are certainly the Turboforce, Mediclinics Machflow Plus and Dyson Airblade V HU02 which produce a dry time of 12 seconds. We’ll talk about the Dyson Airblade V HU02 more in the sections below as it has other equally as impressive features.

If you have a low use washroom (less than 100 uses a day) in places like Offices (Small to Medium Sized), Schools (Primary and Secondary), Pubs / Bars, Hotels, Restaurants and Factories you’ll also want to have a look at the JetDri MKII and Jet Force Junior. Both of these have a drying time of around 14 seconds.

Energy usage and efficiency

All modern hand dryers are low energy, but some take it to the next level.

New for 2026 is the Dryflow Viska. Not only is this ideal for schools with it's low noise level it can satisfactory dry the hands without it's heater element at just 120W! This means 12,500 dries are possible per £1 spent on electricity^ compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels^^ in 2025, the leader and still worth consideration was the Dryflow Ecoslim with a 180W rated power on its lowest setting. The speed of the dryer can be amped up and still only has an 850W rated power. 4347 dries are possible per £1 spent on electricity, compared to 143 dries per £1 spent on paper towels.

If you have the budget, the Machflow with brushless motor gives 4800 dries per £1 spent, whilst being one of the quickest to dry and a 20-year warranty!

And as we mentioned above, the Dyson Airblade HU02 has really improved its energy efficiency. It’s reduced its rated power from 1.6kW down to 1kW, whilst still keeping its very speedy dry time.

We all know that the Mitsubishi name is known for its high quality, but its dryers are great for the environment and the money in your pocket. Both the hands in (Wave i01) and hands under (Wave u02) versions are extremely energy efficient.

Quite a few hand dryers now have intelligent heating systems incorporated into their makeup. These systems only add heat if the temperature of the location is cold, so it will always be working at the most energy-efficient levels.

Examples of these units include:

• Turboforce Junior PLUS (500W)
• SteelForce (800W)
• Jet Force (750W)

 

Hygiene

Hand dryers have been at the centre of lively debate around hygiene, especially from the paper towel industry. So, just to reiterate once again that hand dryers are a completely hygienic form of drying.

If hygiene is what you’re looking for in a dryer, then we would recommend the following units:

• Dyson V HU02
• Mitsubishi Jet Towel Wave i01
• Mitsubishi Jet Towel Wave u02
• Warner Howard Airstream Pure

What these units have in common is their high-speed drying times, around 12 seconds and under, and this speed is key to making sure users have clean and dry hands. Damp hands is known for being a breeding ground for germs, and these germs would be carried out of the washroom if hands weren’t properly dry. These units have been certified by NSF International.

On top of this, the Dyson and Warner Howard hand dryer units include HEPA filters that have been tested and proven to trap 99.95% of bacteria. So, you know that the air blown out onto hands is clean and hygienic.

Other units which include a HEPA filter include:

• Dryflow BulletDri
• Viska
• Machflow Plus
• Jet Force Junior
• Dryflow EcoSlim
• Jet Force
• SteelForce

Quiet noise levels

The hand dryer market has some excellent quiet hand dryers, but that still perform really well.

These dryers are usually approved by Quiet Mark – an independent body that tests products for low noise levels, but still maintaining effective performance levels. 

The Mitsubishi Jet Towel (Wave i02 and u02) is one of the fastest drying and low-energy consuming dryers, and is also one of the quietest. Definitely worth checking out!

The Dyson V HU02 also stands out in this category. It’s one of the quieter units, whilst also maintaining its dry time of just 12 seconds.

There are of course quieter dryers than the HU02 which still have good dry times such as:

• Dryflow Viska
• Dryflow Ecoslim
• Turboforce Junior PLUS
  
• Dryflow Connect
• Jet Force

Compactness / size

The space you have in your location or facility is another factor to consider when looking to purchase a new hand dryer. We offer a number of dryers which are ADA compliant. This means that they have a 10cm depth, so very little projection off the wall.

Good examples of our small hand dryers are the Dryflow Slimforce, Dryflow Vistosa, Dryflow Viska and the Dryflow Ecoslim.

Over the sink units

We also tap style have dryers that can be installed over the sink too. This can save on space in a washroom, but also means that a user has all the facilities they need all in one place. No more water spillages!

So, there we have it! These are the best hand dryers of 2026 - broken down by differing priorities, so that you can find the best hand dryer for YOU.