5 Things to Know About High-Efficiency Top-Loaders

There are more than two dozen HE top-loaders in our washer ratings, and a third of those earn an excellent rating in our washing performance tests. A few more earn a very good rating, meaning they’ll clean most loads just fine. That’s better than agitator top-loaders, most of which earn a middling rating in washing performance.

You can boost your washer’s performance by pretreating stains with a dab of a good laundry detergent. Consider using the washer’s heavy-soil or heavy-duty cycle, too, but keep in mind that those cycles are tougher on fabrics.

Like their agitator-equipped siblings, most of the HE top-loaders in our tests aren’t so gentle on fabrics. Two-thirds earned a satisfactory or less-than-satisfactory score in our gentleness tests. “That’s due to the combination of low water levels, longer wash times, and the laundry items rubbing against each other,” Ciufo says.

Using the normal wash/normal-soil setting for most loads and, when possible, the light-soil setting, can help preserve your clothes. The delicate cycle goes even easier on your laundry, making it ideal for undergarments and other delicate fabrics.

Combine low water levels, fast-rotating impeller action, and the 55 to 80 minutes of wash time typical of HE top-loaders, and you have the potential for tangled laundry.

To reduce tangling, wash similar items together—say, a load of sheets, then a load of towels. Rather than dumping a whole basket of dirty laundry into the washer, add a few items at a time to separate them more. Lowering the washer’s spin speed also reduces tangling.

A load of laundry can become unbalanced in any type of washer, but each one handles it differently. When the clothes inside an HE top-loader get out of balance, as sometimes happens in our tests, the machine will attempt to rebalance the load by adding more water to improve the circulation and even things out. It’ll try this multiple times, but if it doesn’t work, you’ll get an error message alerting you to manually rebalance the load. The owner’s manual should tell you how to do that.

Manufacturers often warn against washing waterproof items in an HE top-loader because it increases the risk of the load becoming unbalanced. Others suggest using a lower spin speed. If you frequently wash waterproof jackets or other items, check the manufacturer’s website before choosing a model.

Many HE top-loaders in our washing machine ratings have claimed capacities of 5 cubic feet or more, putting them on a par with many front-loaders and making them larger than many agitator machines.

But that means some may be wider or taller than the machine you’re replacing, so double-check dimensions in our ratings. Measure your laundry space and entry doors to ensure your new machine can fit.

In a top-loader, larger capacities can also mean deeper tubs. When you’re shopping, reach into the machine to see whether you can touch the bottom so that you’re sure you can get all the laundry out. Some readers tell us they can’t, and wind up using tongs or a step stool to retrieve socks and other small items from the bottom of the drum—gadgets not designed for your laundry routine.

The best HE top-load washers in our ratings all hail from LG, a brand that earns a top-notch reliability rating and an above-average owner satisfaction rating in our member surveys. Each machine hit our washing and water-efficiency tests out of the park.