By Debbie Wolfe and Mark Wolfe | Updated Sep 13, 2023 2:01 PM
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Photo: Mark Wolfe for Bob Vila
When it comes to kitchen renovation, cabinetry and new appliances usually take up most of the budget. However, smaller design choices, such as fixtures, can make a significant impact on the aesthetic of your cooking space.
The faucet is the kitchen’s workhorse and can serve as a vital piece of hardware that helps you wash hands and rinse fruits and vegetables with ease while also keeping the space around you clean. Shoppers should think twice before purchasing the first faucet they see—there’s a lot more to consider than brand and price. With hundreds of styles to choose from, not to mention the finishes and other features, picking the best kitchen faucet for your space can seem like a daunting task.
If you’re on the hunt for the perfect faucet, check out this list of our top picks. After carefully shopping among the most popular offerings on the market, we chose this group for our in-home comparison tests. See the results for each one later in the individual reviews. One of these highly rated products could add the finishing touch to your kitchen.
Photo: Mark Wolfe for Bob Vila
To find the best kitchen faucets, we started by considering styling and functionality, just like shoppers in the midst of a remodel. Brands are important at this stage because appearances are very often deceiving, particularly when it comes to online purchases. Our picks had to come from trusted suppliers with a strong reputation in the industry. We chose a range of products that would be suitable for DIYers to install.
We installed each of the picks in our home kitchen and used them for a day to get a realistic feel for their construction, ease of installation, and quality of operation. We then rated them in 10 objective categories and 10 subjective categories to determine the category winners. In order to make the cut, a faucet had to score an average of 7 or higher on our 10-point scale.
We’ve looked at the best kitchen faucets and selected those that meet the needs of shoppers’ budgets, design preferences, and finishes. We tested the following models in our home trial and noted the overall specs, pros, and cons of each one in terms of installation, appearance, and functionality.
Delta is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of home improvement and building products and one of the first to revolutionize faucet manufacturing. This top pick is an excellent combination of traditional style and modern features. This faucet has more than just looks. It combines everything shoppers love about a modern kitchen faucet: a pull-down spout, gooseneck style, smudge-proof brushed finish option, single-handle function for water control, and touch-on activation for minimal contact operation.
The faucet features Touch2O technology for turning the water on and off and utilizes magnets for proper docking of the spray head. There’s an LED light that signals water temperature and three different spray modes. If a brushed stainless finish isn’t your cup of tea, don’t worry; there are three other finishes to choose from, including chrome, arctic stainless, and Venetian bronze.
In our installation, the touch feature added a few steps to the process, installing the solenoid and battery pack, but the process was not difficult. However, Delta’s plastic water supply lines are stiffer than the braided type that other manufacturers use, which made the process slightly more complicated. Water pressure was good, no drips, and the shield spray feature eliminated 80 percent of overspray.
Get the Delta Faucet Leland Touch faucet at Amazon, Lowe’s, or The Home Depot.
Moen is known for designing beautiful products that last a lifetime. The feature that sets the Moen Arbor faucet apart from its competitors is the Duralock Quick Connect Installation System, which makes this faucet easy to install. It also features a long hose—68 inches long and built with Reflex technology to flex, pivot, and stretch in all directions without getting tangled or damaged.
The Arbor also controls the flow of water with its boost-stream function that offers a faster clean and faster fill with the push of a button. There are four finishes to choose from: chrome, stainless steel, matte black, and oil-rubbed bronze. The Arbor is similar in price to the Delta Leland, but it lacks the touchless option.
We liked this Moen faucet’s combination of quality and simplicity at a moderate price point. The parts felt substantial, and the pull-down hose is extra long. It was easy to install in our test sink. The 1.5-GPM flow feels somewhat weak, but the boost-stream button increases flow as needed. The one we installed operated manually, but the same style is available with touch or touchless capabilities.
Get the Moen Arbor One-Handle Pull-Down faucet at Amazon, The Home Depot, or Wayfair.
WEWE is a small home improvement company that specializes in affordable kitchen and bathroom faucets, bath, and shower products. The WEWE single-handle high-arc faucet features a sleek tulip-like design that will easily match most sinks. It gives users a three-way spray setting—stream for filling water, spray for rinsing, and pause to avoid splashing in multitasking mode. The pull-down hose and water line hose come preinstalled in the kitchen faucet for easy installation. It features a corrosion- and rust-resistant finish that hides smudges and prevents dirt from sticking to the surface.
The WEWE High Arc faucet was extremely easy to install, partially due to the lack of electronic features. The lightweight metal construction feels less substantial than the others we tested, but at a quarter the price of the others, we felt like that was to be expected. The generous 1.8-GPM flow rate provides plenty of water for convenient cleaning and filling, and we experienced no drips or leaks.
Get the WEWE Single Handle High Arc faucet at Amazon.
Delta continues to revolutionize faucet manufacturing. Our upgrade pick features high-quality brass construction, a sleek goes-with-everything design, and loads of convenience features, from the pull-down spout with secure magnetic docking, Touch2O activation, LED indicator lights, and a generous 1.8 GPM flow rate.
Touch2O technology lets you turn the water on or off with just a light bump of your hand or forearm. A flexible pull-down hose and strong magnets in the docking base make for smooth and precise spray head action. There’s an LED light that signals water temperature and three different spray modes. And, in addition to the “Arctic Stainless” we tested, this model is also available in Chrome, SpotShield Stainless, or Venetian Bronze.
In our test kitchen, Delta’s stiff plastic water supply lines made installation a bit more complicated. Installing the solenoid and battery pack added a couple of steps to the process, but it was not difficult. Water pressure was good, there were no drips, and the shield spray feature eliminated most overspray. The heavy-duty brass components add to the cost but should last a lifetime.
Get the Delta Trinsic Touch at Amazon, The Home Depot, or Lowe’s.
Kohler is another powerhouse in the home improvement industry, best known for its plumbing products. The Simplice touchless faucet allows users to enjoy a cleaner, more hygienic kitchen environment. It features Intuitive Response technology that is in tune with users’ every move. With a simple wave of a hand or the movement of an object such as a pan, the smart faucet turns on or off. Don’t worry; not every movement will activate the water. The sensor is precision designed to prevent false activations.
The Simplice also has the bells and whistles of many high-end faucets like a gooseneck style, pull-down spout, magnetic docking system located within the spout, and optional power boost for cleaning and filling pots. It’s available in four finishes.
We found the Kohler Simplice to be a well-constructed luxury faucet with classic styling and robust functionality. The motion sensor is strategically positioned under the spout where it turns on/off at the right time, without risking an unnecessary arm soaking when you place dishes in the sink. It was easy to install but does require an AC outlet, which could add to the cost of installation if you need to have one wired.
Get the Kohler Simplice Response Touchless faucet at Amazon or The Home Depot.
The BioBidet by Bemis Flow Motion Activated Kitchen is an elegant, high-arc touchless faucet. It features a generous flow rate of 1.8 GPM with two spray settings.
For hands-free automatic operation, we needed four AAA batteries, but we were happy to see that the faucet also offers manual functionality so if batteries need to be replaced, we can still use the faucet.
The faucet comes with a comprehensive how-to manual, and the company’s website features a series of installation and troubleshooting videos. The installation process only took about 10 minutes to install the power box under the sink. It’s a plug-and-play type of set up with the hoses clearly outlined.
Basic installation required us to simply turn off the water, uninstall the hoses from the current faucet, remove the faucet from our sink, and then install the new faucet into the single hole and reattatche the hoses. We ran into no issues when installing this unit.
The BioBidet is available in five finishes, including brushed nickel, chrome, oil-rubbed bronze, matte black, and champagne. The finish we tested was the stainless steel option and we coudn’t be happier. It matches the rest of our stainless steel finishes and cleans with the wipe of a paper towel.
It features metallic waterways, a ceramic valve, a spout that swivels up to 180 degrees, and everything necessary for single- or three-hole installation.
In addition to employing a motion sensor that turns the faucet on with a wave of your hand, the BioBidet also features smart latch technology. This function automatically turns water on when you pull the faucet head down and turns it back off when you return the head to its housing. We didn’t realize how often we would use this function but it has pretty much become our favorite feature. The faucet head even has a pause button for those moments when we needed just a minute without water.
Get the BioBidet by Bemis kitchen faucet at Amazon, The Home Depot, or BioBidet.
Those going for a professional appearance will appreciate both the form and function of the Hansgrohe Joleena semi-professional faucet. The chrome finish, high-arc gooseneck design, and coil spring hose support lend a pro-kitchen style, while the 360-degree spout and 18-inch hose provide total access to the kitchen sink area. An aerated spray head limits countertop overspray. In the retracted position, a magnetic dock holds the spray head securely in place.
While Hansgrohe recommends installation by a licensed plumber, we did a DIY-style installation without problems. Brass construction combined with the chrome finish really made this faucet stand out among the test group in terms of substantial weight and appearance. The spray pattern was clean and drip-free, and the spring hose support offered the greatest range of motion of all the faucets we tested.
Get the Hansgrohe Joleena Kitchen Faucet at Amazon, Lowe’s, or The Home Depot.
Best Compact8 Peerless Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet Photo: amazon.com SEE IT Not every kitchen is built for a high-arc gooseneck faucet. Where space is limited, a straight faucet probably makes the most practical sense. This Peerless single-handle faucet is a pared-down option for those who need basic functionality. We easily installed the Peerless single-handle kitchen faucet in about 15 minutes. It operated well with no drips or leaks. The 1.8 GPM flow rate combined with the scaled-down proportions left the somewhat ironic impression of a more luxurious flow than most of the larger, more stylish faucets. The basic design will not stand out in the kitchen, and the low rise means less room in the sink for big pots and pans, but where space is limited, this could be a good choice. Product SpecsStyle: StraightOperation: ManualFlow rate: 1.8 GPM ProsLow profile design; doesn’t take up spaceInexpensive price point compared to similar optionsGood value; durable and reliable for years ConsSprayer is not includedBasic appearance and functionalityRequires 3-hole configuration Get the Peerless Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet at Amazon or The Home Depot.
Not every kitchen is built for a high-arc gooseneck faucet. Where space is limited, a straight faucet probably makes the most practical sense. This Peerless single-handle faucet is a pared-down option for those who need basic functionality.
We easily installed the Peerless single-handle kitchen faucet in about 15 minutes. It operated well with no drips or leaks. The 1.8 GPM flow rate combined with the scaled-down proportions left the somewhat ironic impression of a more luxurious flow than most of the larger, more stylish faucets. The basic design will not stand out in the kitchen, and the low rise means less room in the sink for big pots and pans, but where space is limited, this could be a good choice.
Get the Peerless Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet at Amazon or The Home Depot.
Photo: Mark Wolfe for Bob Vila
It is important to keep in mind a few features to ensure you pick the perfect faucet for your kitchen. Whether you are replacing an old faucet or just want to upgrade, be sure to consider the handle, the reach, and the mounting style.
There are three options when it comes to handles for a kitchen faucet: single, double, and touchless.
Kitchen faucet spouts come with stationary, pull-down, or pull-out options.
Although pull-out and pull-down faucets have many similarities, the major difference between the two is the amount of clearance it needs. A pull-down faucet generally has a taller gooseneck spout, and the actual spray hose is usually shorter than pull-out models. Pull-downs are excellent choices for deep, single-basin sinks.
Pull-out faucets have shorter spouts, and the hose is longer than those of pull-downs. They can quickly fill pots and pans on your countertop rather than in the sink. These faucets are suitable for shallow, double-basin sinks.
Many sinks come with mounting holes predrilled for installing faucets and accessories such as soap dispensers. If you are shopping for a new sink to match your faucet, you can select anything that you like as long as the faucet mounts match the number of holes in the sink, or you can select an undermount or drop-in sink that doesn’t have holes, knowing that you’ll have to match up countertop holes with whatever your faucet requires.
If you are replacing a faucet on an existing sink, you need to match the mounting mechanism exactly. If the faucet comes with a base or deck plate, it can cover extra holes that are not in use. In general, do not purchase a faucet with more sinkholes than your sink has—drilling holes into your sink is not easy and not recommended as a DIY task.
There are also faucets designed to mount to a wall versus the sink. These faucets are typically found near a stove and are primarily used for filling pots. Most people do not use this mounting style.
The amount of water that flows through a faucet is measured in gallons per minute, or GPM. In older fixtures, rates of 2 GPM or higher were commonplace. Most building codes now call for faucet flow rates of 1.8 GPM or less in order to conserve water. In some areas, low-flow faucets with a maximum rate of 1.5 GPM are required.
Beyond the building codes, the benefit of choosing a low-flow faucet is that it can help you save money on your water bill. The downside is that it takes longer to fill up pots, pans, and pitchers. To counter the reduced flow, some low-flow faucets offer a stream boost button that temporarily increases the flow on demand. As soon as the button is released, low flow resumes.
Faucet designs are either straight or have a gooseneck curve.
Faucets are available in many types of finishes. Standard options include chrome, stainless steel, nickel, platinum, pewter, and matte black. The kind of finish affects the faucet’s appearance, cleanability, resistance to spotting and rusting, and price.
The shinier the finish, the more fingerprints and water spots will show. Many finishes are also available in a brushed option. This type of finish is perfect for hiding fingerprints and other smudges. It all comes down to whether the finish of your selected faucet suits your existing kitchen and decor.
If you’re still reading, you may have a few lingering questions about buying or installing a new faucet. Read on to learn more.
Pull-out faucets require less headroom and make a good choice where cabinetry is installed above the sink. Pull-down faucets are often constructed in a high-arc or gooseneck pattern to provide more in-sink clearance for pots and pans and other large items.
Plumbers recommend choosing a faucet from a quality brand, made of quality components. Some of the top brands include Delta, Moen, Kohler, and hansgrohe. Look for construction of brass, zinc alloy, or alloy steel for best results
Kitchen faucets last 15 to 20 years on average, but quality of construction can increase or decrease the lifespan. Paying more for quality fixtures will save time, money, and materials compared with cheaply made products.
Bob Vila has been America’s Handyman since 1979. As the host of beloved and groundbreaking TV series, including “This Old House” and “Bob Vila’s Home Again,” he popularized and became synonymous with “do-it-yourself” home improvement.
Over the course of his decades-long career, Bob Vila has helped millions of people build, renovate, repair, and live better each day—a tradition that continues today with expert yet accessible home advice. The Bob Vila team distills need-to-know information into project tutorials, maintenance guides, tool 101s, and more. These home and garden experts then thoroughly research, vet, and recommend products that support homeowners, renters, DIYers, and professionals in their to-do lists.
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