Best garden sprinklers 2024: The easy way to keep your lawn and borders watered

With the UK’s unpredictable weather, you never know when your garden might be in for days of hot temperatures, baking sun and drought. It doesn’t take long for grass to dry out and lose its green hue, or for plants and trees to wilt through thirst.

Ideally, we would all be planting drought-tolerant species and leaving our grass to turn yellow, but in practice this isn’t always an option if you don’t want to lose precious plants. This is where a garden sprinkler comes into its own, allowing you to water large areas of your garden in one go over an extended period. It’s not as precise as using a hosepipe or a watering can, but it gives the water time to sink in and – let’s face it – saves some time and effort.

I’ve tested a wide range of garden sprinklers over the last few years, covering everything from simple rotary sprinklers to complex, more controllable oscillating models. You’ll find my pick of the best sprinklers reviewed below. And if you need more information before you make your choice, you’ll find my comprehensive buying guide underneath our list of recommended products.

Best garden sprinkler: At a glance

How we test garden sprinklers

We test garden sprinklers by connecting them to a hosepipe and putting them to work on a flat garden lawn for a period of 20 minutes. We measure the range covered by the spray and look at the density and coverage of the spray pattern, to see if it leaves obvious gaps – or throws more water out in some places than in others.

We also consider how easy it is to change the range or the spray pattern, the robustness of the pipe fittings, and evaluate the stability of the sprinkler in operation – after all, nobody wants a sprinkler that won’t sit still while it waters!

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The best garden sprinklers to buy in 2024

1. Gardena AquaZoom M: Best all-round sprinkler

Price when reviewed: From £22 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… wide coverage and excellent value
• Not so great for… not much. It’s a great all-rounder

The mid-sized sprinkler in Gardena’s AquaZoom line, the AquaZoom M, is a fantastic device for watering, with easy adjustments for spray range, spray width and water flow. It also has the kind of build quality cheaper models just can’t match – all backed up by a four-year warranty. I found that, as long as there was enough water pressure, it could fire its fan of jets up to 18m away, covering an area of up to 250m². And if that’s not enough for your palatial garden, switching to the AquaZoom L will up the range to 21m to cover up to 350m² . You’ll have to pay an extra £25, but in my view it’s totally worth it.

The adjustments make it easy to water larger or smaller areas, and I was impressed with how consistent the watering was, with no pools or dry spots to be found. The wide feet also stop it moving around on sloping or uneven lawns. The Kärcher and Hozelock Pro sprinklers have the edge on features, but the Gardena is a superb all-rounder that’s hard to match on value.

Key specs – Type: Oscillating sprinkler; Range: 18m; Area covered: 250m²; Adjustments: Range, spray width, water flow; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock; Dimensions: 530 x 168 x 100mm

2. Kärcher Oscillating Sprinkler OS 5.320: Best sprinkler for range and control

Price when reviewed: £39 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… large lawns or sloping areas
• Not so great for… smaller lawns or budgets

It’s twice the price of some oscillating sprinklers, but this Kärcher model justifies the premium by being so adjustable. Little click-in buttons on the body allow you to turn the different banks of nozzles on or off, so that you can set it to water a narrow area or the widest area your water pressure allows. What’s more, you can turn the water on or adjust the pressure on the unit itself, as well as adjust how far back and forth it can shift while oscillating. I found that the solid-feeling plastic base helps keep it grounded, while flip-out ground spikes ensure it’s not going anywhere; a real plus on my sloping and uneven garden.

I was also impressed by the range of this sprinkler. If you’ve got enough pressure it will reach a range of 20m on either side, and even at a relatively lowly two bar of pressure it can reach up to 16m away. With a maximum coverage of 320m², it’s a great choice for keeping larger gardens watered.

Key specs – Type: Oscillating sprinkler; Range: 20m; Area covered: 190m² to 320m²; Adjustments: Nozzle on/off, width, pressure; Connectors: Threaded inlet with 1/2in Hozelock adaptor; Dimensions: 546 x 160 x 88mm

3. Silverline 868552 Impulse: Best budget sprinkler for coverage

Price when reviewed: £9.63 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… cheap and effective watering
• Not so great for… covering long, rectangular lawns

This Silverline sprinkler is definitely old-school. Stick it in the ground on its spike and it uses a spring-powered mechanism to keep a jet of water moving in a circular pattern. Just watch out when you first set it running: I discovered the hard way that instead of rotating clockwise continuously, it does one full circle then doubles back in the other direction, catching me and my soon soggy trousers unawares.

The aforementioned garments got a decent drenching, because the Impulse is also more powerful than you might expect. It will cheerfully send water flying a good 7m or 8m away and, despite sitting at near-ground height, clear any fences or hedges in the way. Luckily, you can move clips on the sprinkler to change the arc of spray. Don’t let its diminutive size fool you: this one will easily water a medium-sized lawn or garden, and you can daisy-chain a second to the outlet provided if it won’t quite reach.

Key specs – Type: Rotating sprinkler; Range: Not specified; Area covered: Not specified; Adjustments: 90- to 360-degree spray arc; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock, daisy-chain out; Dimensions: 32 x 140 x 350mm

4. Hozelock Ultra Twist: Best garden sprinkler that’s also a spray gun

Price when reviewed: £25 | Check price at B&Q

• Great for… tackling a range of watering and sprinkling tasks
• Not so great for… watering large areas

It’s not the best choice just for keeping your lawn watered, but the Hozelock is one seriously versatile spray gun and sprinkler. In its regular, untwisted form it’s an effective spray gun, complete with intense jet, gentle rose, fast fill and sprinkler patterns. I found that it’ll cover anything from watering your borders to spraying seedlings in the greenhouse or rinsing down the car after a wash. You can even use the little dial at the grip end to reduce the water pressure if you need to. Meanwhile, stick to sprinkler mode, lock the trigger and push the nozzle to the right, and the Ultra Twist becomes a compact sprinkler, perfect for leaving in a border to give thirsty plants a soaking or watering a dry patch on the lawn.

The simple, non-rotating pattern means it falls down slightly when it comes to range – I could only get around 4m to 5m rather than the quoted 9m. Still, as long as you don’t expect it to drench larger areas, it’s a great addition to your watering armoury.

Key specs – Type: Convertible spray gun/sprinkler; Range: 9.37m; Area covered: 69m²; Adjustments: 4x spray patterns, direction, water flow; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock; Dimensions: 270 x 255 x 64mm

Check price at B&Q

5. Kärcher Rotating Sprinkler RS130/3: Best sprinkler for small lawns and gardens

Price when reviewed: £15 | Check price at Kärcher

• Great for… quiet and consistent watering
• Not so great for… larger lawns

It’s just as small and light as all the bargain-basement sprinklers, but I soon discovered Kärcher’s smallest sprinkler was in a completely different league. Its tough plastic body and metal arms feel like they’re built to last, and the latter seem to turn without a whisper while its watering. With a good working pressure, Kärcher claims there’s enough power to cover a 133m² garden, and in my tests the high spray pattern covered a good, wide area of over 10m in diameter. In fact, it did so with a fantastic level of consistency, with some of the water heading skywards to make sure the centre gets as much attention as the edge. It’s not the ideal sprinkler for a massive lawn, but for smaller gardens this little beauty may be all you need.

Key specs – Type: Rotating sprinkler; Range: Not specified; Area covered: 133m²; Adjustments: None; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock; Dimensions: 200 x 248 x 100mm

Check price at Kärcher

6. Hozelock AquaSave Pro 220M: Best water-saving sprinkler

Price when reviewed: £33 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… sprinkling specific areas and saving water waste
• Not so great for… soaking larger lawns

It might not have the range of some of the premium sprinklers we’ve tested, but the AquaSave Pro 220M is all about using your water more efficiently. For a start, it gives you plenty of control, with a dial to increase and reduce the flow and a slider that adjusts how far to the left or right it tilts while oscillating. On top of that, controls at each side of the jets allow you to control the width of the spray. This all makes it easy to tailor the spray to the shape and size of your garden, meaning you’re not jetting water against the fence or into areas it’s just not needed.

What’s more, I also found this a very consistent sprinkler, dishing out much the same quantity of water across the whole area it covers. That helps keep water waste down, and might even save you a little money.

Key specs – Type: Oscillating sprinkler; Range: 11m; Area covered: 220m²; Adjustments: Spray width, direction, water flow; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock; Dimensions: 145 x 433 x 51mm

7. Hozelock Rectangular Sprinkler Pro 200m: Best sprinkler for consistent watering

Price when reviewed: £49 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… consistent watering over a large area
• Not so great for… epic range

Hozelock’s premium sprinkler brings you extras such as a metal hose connector, sliders to control the oscillation range and a dial that switches the outer nozzles off for a tighter fan of water. However, I think its real killer feature is its consistency. Hozelock claims that it’s designed to give 100% even water coverage regardless of water pressure, and I found that even with a slightly kink-prone hosepipe and turning down the tap, I could still got steady streams of water erupting from its 20 nozzles, covering my lawn and borders evenly with its fan-shaped spray. The Kärcher and Gardena sprinklers had it beaten on range with everything maxed out, but the 15m maximum is nothing to be sniffed at.

What’s more, the slightly heavier sled base keeps it nice and stable, and everything works like a dream. If you live in an area where water pressure comes and goes, especially in the summer, then this is the sprinkler to buy.

Key specs – Type: Oscillating sprinkler; Range: 15m; Area covered: 200m²; Adjustments: Spray width, oscillation range; Connectors: 1/2in Hozelock; Dimensions: 160 x 100 x 80mm

How to choose the best garden sprinkler for you

There are three main types of garden sprinkler, each available in a range of different sizes. Your choice will usually be governed by the area you want to cover.

Fixed sprinklers spray water upwards and outwards, and are particularly effective for getting water to small, dry areas where you are growing flowers, shrubs or other plants which need plenty of water. Fixed sprinklers usually stick into the ground using a spike.

Rotary sprinklers spray water from one or more heads or nozzles. They usually have a stick pushed into the ground or they sit on a base and they rotate under water pressure, meaning everything within the range of the sprinkler can get some water. They either spin in a 360-degree circle, or spray back and forth through 180 or 270 degrees.

Oscillating sprinklers are the kind you might see on a cricket pitch. Using water pressure they oscillate back and forth giving you a bit more control over where the water goes, so you’re not wasting it. They also cover a square area which makes them particularly handy for the average square lawn.

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How far can sprinklers reach?

Beside the type of sprinkler, the other key thing to consider is the range. This will always vary according to the water pressure at your property, but you’ll find that some have a maximum range, or radius, of as little as 3m to 4m, while others will throw water up to 20m or more away. Sprinklers with a longer range might not necessarily w

ater so well at close range though, as tuning the spray pattern for a larger radius can mean more landing at the edge and less landing near the centre.

Manufacturers will also talk about the size of the area the sprinkler covers in square metres. This gives you a good idea of how much of your garden will get watered, but keep in mind that the spray pattern will have an impact. Remember: if your sprinkler can’t water the whole lawn or garden, you can always move it around (though you might want to turn it off first).

Is there anything else worth looking out for?

Keep an eye on the connectors. Most sprinklers use the standard 1/2in Hozelock-style connector, but some just have a threaded inlet, meaning you’ll either have to attach your own adaptor or screw the hose onto the sprinkler with a threaded brass or plastic connector. A few also have an outlet, allowing you to connect two or three to the same hose and use them at the same time, as long as there’s enough water pressure.

More expensive sprinklers may also have sliders or settings that enable you to adjust the range, or switch between several spray patterns, which can be great if you want a finer, close-range mist or to focus most of your water away from the lawn and onto your borders.

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