Garment Steamers ~ A Great Alternative To Clothes Irons

The Best, Most Recommended Fabric Steamers

Don’t let wrinkles get you hot & bothered. Garment steamers are a great alternative for quickly removing wrinkles at home & while traveling.

Garment steamers work better on difficult to press clothing, such as sequined tops & suit jackets. They are ideal to use on items you don’t want press marks on or sharp creases, like sweaters or dresses. Plus, steamers are great for de-wrinkling fabrics throughout your home, such as drapes, bed skirts, decorative pillows, & more.

A fabric steamer is also a great travel accessory. Many are lightweight, portable & take up little room in your luggage. Furthermore, you can remove wrinkles right on the hanger so there’s no need to find a smooth, firm surface to press down on, like with a regular iron. Garment steamers make de-creasing clothes simpler.

How Garment Steamers Work

While I’m sure you already know how fabric steamers work, I’m going to share it with you anyway (just in case). Steamers heat water & then pump out soft clouds of steam. The hot steam causes wrinkles to fall out of fabrics. For stubborn wrinkles, it helps to hold the fabric taut while you steam.

Here’s something I’m guessing you don’t know: Garment steamers that heat water to at least 212° F can actually sanitize & remove odors from fabrics. And here’s a fun fact: According to BestReviews, fabric steamers “will run for roughly one minute per ounce of water in the tank, give or take a few minutes.” This will give you a good gauge of how long a steamer will run before you need to refill water tank.

To smooth this out for you (see what I did there), I started my research with a few of my favorite resources: BestReviews, Consumer Reports & the Good Housekeeping (GH) Institute. Then I worked my way out from there. Below are features to look for when buying a garment steamer & a list of the best, most recommended steamers.

What Features To Look For In Fabric Steamer

• Heating Time – Depending on the water tank size, the steamer could take anywhere from 30 seconds to 2 minutes to heat up.
• Heating Temp – The hotter the steam, the faster wrinkles will be removed. But be careful when using on delicate fabrics. If you can’t control the temp, hold the steaming head farther away from clothing to avoid damaging fabric.
• Water Tank Capacity – Obvi, the bigger the tank, the longer you can steam before having to refill. Note, many manufacturers suggest you use distilled water for optimal performance.
• Continuous Steam – Some steamers require you to hold down a button for the steam to come out, which can become uncomfortable if you have a lot of steaming to do. Others will billow continuous steam until you turn them off.
• Size & Weight – These vary so choose based on your needs. Go small & light for travel, compact for occasional use, & upright for regular use.
• Electrical Cord – If you’re planning to steam drapes, for instance, look for a long electrical cord that will enable you to reach the top of draperies without having to take them down.

The Best, Most Recommended Garment Steamers

Best Overall Garment Steamer

Conair Turbo ExtremeSteam Handheld Fabric Steamer ($52)

The Conair Turbo ExtremeSteam has 4.5 stars from over 4,000 ratings on Amazon where, while reading reviews, I discovered a great feature not mentioned elsewhere: the steamer turns off when you put it down so it doesn’t waste steam. As soon as you pick it up, the steam starts again. I like that.

This free-standing steamer has five steam settings that range from delicate to turbo. It comes with a built-in creaser & three attachments for better results: one to lift fibers, another to protects delicates & the last pulls thicker fabrics taut.

The steamer heats up in under 40 seconds & the 7.3 oz water tank provides 15 minutes of continuous steam. With a temperature range from 200° to 395°F, the Conair Turbo ExtremeSteam can kill 99.9% of bacteria at its higher temp settings. It stands 13.6” tall x 8.6″ wide, weighs 3.6 lbs. & has a 9 foot electrical cord.

Best price: Amazon, where the Conair Turbo ExtremeSteam is available in two colors: purple for $51.62 & white/champagne for $52. Also available at Best Buy in teal & white/champagne for $60.

Best Budget Garment Steamers

Hilife Handheld Garment Steamer ($23)

Reviewers suggest not tilting the steamer too far forward to keep water from sputtering out. They also recommend holding the steamer at least an inch away from garments to keep them from getting wet.

Best Price: $23 on Amazon

Conair CompleteSteam Fabric Steamer ($20)

The Conair CompleteSteam stands 10.3” tall x 6.7 wide, weighs only 2.4 lbs & has a 8 foot electrical cord. The 4.9 oz water tank provides 5-8 minutes of continuous steaming.

Best price: $20 at Best Buy, also available on Amazon for $23

Best Upright Garment Steamers

Jiffy Garment Steamer J-2000 ($185)

The steamer heats up to 212° F in 60 seconds & produces 90 minutes of continuous steam from its ¾ gallon water tank. Plus, the water tank can be filled while in operation so you can steam nonstop.

The Jiffy J-2000 is 15” x 10” x 64,” weighs about 16 lbs, & has a 7 foot power cord. The steamer head is available in plastic or metal attached to a 5.5 foot flexible rubber hose & comes with a 3-year warranty.

The steamer’s 360° swivel casters make it easy to move around & it shuts off automatically for safety. The Jiffy doesn’t come with attachments but it’s a workhorse, which is why you’ll find it at every fashion shoot.

Best Price: Amazon – $185 for a pink base with a plastic steam head, or $213 with a metal steam head. The unit also comes in tan base, with the option of a plastic ($224) or metal steam head ($213).

PurSteam Professional Garment Steamer PS-910 ($74)

This steamer has a 61 oz (.47 gallons) water tank that heats up to 248° F in under a minute & can run continuously for an hour. It’s small but mighty, the PurSteam base is 10.5” x 9.5” x 12” & the unit weighs 13 lbs.

I love that the PurSteam has a telescopic pole that collapses, making it easier to store. The pole is 52” long from the top of the steamer & the full height of the unit with the pole extended, including the hook, is 63.” The steamer hose is 5 feet long & the electrical cord is 7 feet.

The PS-910 comes with job specific attachments, such as a hanger that expands from 15-19 inches to accommodate different clothing styles, from t-shirts to suit jackets; a crease attachment for hems, sleeves & collars; & clips to hold skirts, pants, pillow cases, placemats, etc. in place. The PurSteam comes with a two-year warranty.

Best Price: $74.72 at Amazon

Steamer Notes

Keep your hands, face, children & pets away from billowing steam, it’s H-O-T hot! (duh)

A word of caution, be careful using the steamer on easily marked or damaged fabrics, such as silk & velvet. Hold the steamer head as far away from delicate fabrics as feasible while still allowing for wrinkle removal.

With any of these steamers, calcification can happen, just like with your coffee machine. Always check with the manufacturer & follow their directions. Do NOT hold me to this, but the cleaning usually involves filling the water chamber with a solution of ½ vinegar & ½ distilled water. Turn the steamer on until it starts to steam to allow the vinegar solution to travel through the steamer. Then turn it off for 30 minutes to allow the solution to dissolve any calcification. Afterward, turn the steamer on again & let it run until the tank empties. Fill once more with only distilled water & run the steamer again to flush it out & remove the vinegar smell.

Hope you enjoy crease-free clothes with your new garment steamer. Please let me know which steamer you get & how you like it.

All prices are accurate and items in stock (unless noted otherwise) at time of publication.