Best Craftsman Pressure Washers (2026)

The CMEPW2100 is the top of the corded Craftsman line, with a 2100 max PSI label and 1.2 GPM, plus a soap tank built into the pressure washer gun, which means detergent goes on at the touch of a setting rather than through a separate bottle or siphon tube. The onboard storage for nozzle, hose, cord and wand keeps the whole kit in one piece.

Multiply the labels and you get about 2,520, but the max pressure and the flow apply at different settings, so treat that as a ceiling, with a realistic working figure somewhat lower. Against the 1900 and 1700 siblings, the 2100 gives you the most pressure headroom for a stubborn stain, while the flow stays identical at 1.2 GPM, so rinsing speed does not change. That is why the step up costs little in capability but also gains little.

Ownership is easy: drain the pump after use, keep the hose coiled loosely, check the quick-connect o-rings each season and store out of freezing weather. Use the soap setting at low pressure and flush the gun tank after each use so detergent does not harden inside it. For siding and painted surfaces, work from the bottom up with soap, which prevents streaking, then rinse from the top down with a 40 degree tip held at least a foot back, and never aim upward beneath the lap of a panel.

Take the CMEPW2100, reduce the pressure label to 1900 PSI, keep the 1.2 GPM, the soap tank and the onboard storage, and you have the CMEPW1900. In practice the 200 PSI difference is small, and for washing cars, outdoor furniture and siding you will not notice it, because the wide tips you will use for those jobs dilute pressure anyway.

That makes this the sensible middle of the corded range for people who want the integrated soap tank and the storage design without paying for the top label. Compared with the 1700 model below, it adds 200 PSI of headroom on stubborn spots. The risk is the opposite of buying too little: do not assume the extra 200 PSI lets you tackle driveway oil, because 1.2 GPM still limits how quickly a large surface is cleaned.

Care is the same as for the whole family: drain the pump, keep the hose from kinking, replace worn o-rings and store indoors. Because the design is simple, it is easy to look after, and wide tips keep it gentle on paint and wood. A useful way to decide between this and the 2100 is to ask what you wash: if the list is cars, furniture and a fence, the 1900 label is fine, and the 200 PSI you save buys nothing you would use.

The lightest-label model in the corded range uses a soap applicator bottle instead of a tank in the gun, which is a step down in convenience but still gets detergent onto a surface. A 1700 max PSI label at 1.2 GPM keeps it in the gentle zone for cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats and patio furniture, where lower pressure reduces both the risk of damage and the recoil in your hands.

If your jobs are light, the 1700 does most of what the 2100 does, because the flow is the same and flow decides rinsing speed. Against the CMEPW1900, you lose 200 PSI of headroom and the built-in soap tank. The compact design and onboard storage keep it easy to put away in a small garage.

To keep it going, flush the soap bottle after use, drain the pump and watch the quick-connect fittings for weeping. It is the logical choice for a first pressure washer where cleaning cars and furniture is the whole brief. If you later find the jet too gentle, the nozzles and gun fit the family's other corded models, so you can step up without relearning how the machine works, and you will already know to rinse top to bottom and keep the tip moving.

This is the serious cordless option in the line: a V20 RP model with a brushless motor, two 9.0Ah batteries and two chargers in the kit, and the ability to draw water from any source as well as a tap. At 1.2 GPM it matches the corded machines on flow, which is far more honest than the handheld washers that claim several gallons a minute from a small pack.

Two 9.0Ah V20 batteries at 18V nominal are about 162 watt-hours each, a large energy store, though the pump will use much of it quickly. The 1500 max PSI is a notch below the corded range, so it is not a replacement for the 2100 on stubborn dirt. Against the tool-only and spray-gun options in this lineup, the CMCPW1500 is a complete kit.

The real benefit is platform fit: if you already own V20 tools, the batteries are interchangeable and the kit costs less than it seems. Keep batteries indoors, flush the pump after drawing from a bucket, and drain it before freezing weather. Charge both packs before a big job, and keep the supplied chargers handy so a depleted pack can refill while you work on the second. When drawing from a bucket, use a clean one and let the suction hose sit fully submerged so the pump does not gulp air, which is the commonest reason a cordless washer sputters.

This is a spray gun with a pump, not a pressure washer, and the numbers say so: 350 max PSI and 0.5 GPM, which the maker calls five times the pressure of a garden hose. It draws from any fresh water source through a suction hose or connects to a garden hose, and the kit includes an extension, a soap bottle and a V20 battery.

The reason to own it is convenience: for rinsing a bike, cleaning a grill, washing windows or doing a quick job on a boat, it is far easier than dragging a corded washer out. It will not strip paint or clean concrete, so it is safe on delicate surfaces, though it will also not remove anything stubborn. Against the CMCPW1500, it uses far less battery and weighs much less, at the cost of nearly all the cleaning power.

Think of it as a garden accessory: flush the pump after drawing from a bucket, store the battery inside and keep the nozzle clean. It suits older owners and tiny jobs where a corded machine is overkill. If a stain does not shift after a patient soak with cleaner and a soft brush, the gun is not the problem, and moving to the corded models will not necessarily help either, since a stubborn stain usually needs the right chemical, not more water.