Best Toilet Bowl Brushes [That AREN’T Boring]

Choosing a new toilet bowl brush may sound like one of the most boring ways to spend your evening, and whilst it’s not thrilling, we believe that we’ve found a few brushes that will pique your interest. 

Here’s some good news for all you weary toilet brush shoppers: no longer must you settle for ugly but practical brushes!

Or, even worse, sleek brushes that can’t remove… well, anything from your toilet. It is possible for a toilet bowl brush to possess both beauty and practical value.

We’ve put together this article to help you find the perfect toilet bowl brush. We’ve included five of the best brushes on the market as well as a buyer’s guide and toilet brush FAQs. 

In a Hurry? Here’s Our Top Pick

The Holikme Toilet Brush is the best of the best for a few reasons. 

Firstly, it has a great brush head that contributes to three of its best features. The brush head and bristles are made of silicone. The texture of the silicone creates enough friction to clean the toilet bowl without scratching or damaging the porcelain. 

However, the texture also stops items like dirt and hair from getting caught up in the bristles. This non-stick texture allows anything that does miraculously become stuck to be washed off with ease. 

The head of this toilet bowl brush is perfectly flexible, allowing the user to reach all the difficult areas of the toilet bowl without too much effort. 

With this toilet bowl brush, you don’t have to choose between having a holder for your brush and being able to wall-mount it. What’s more, the bottom of the holder has a built-in aeration system that allows the brush to dry naturally and quickly. 

The one negative of this brush is that the holder does not come with any built-in cleaning functions. However, we don’t see this as a major drawback because the brush is built in such a way that it won’t need cleaning once it’s in the holder. 

This brush is a great length and comes with a non-slip handle as well as a 1-year warranty.  

Best Toilet Bowl Brush Reviews

1. Holikme Toilet Brush and Holder Set

The Holikme Toilet Brush was our top pick for many reasons. This brush has everything: a flexible silicone head, a non-slip handle, and even a versatile brush holder. 

Let’s start at the top. This brush has a flexible, silicone head that has three stand-out bonuses. Firstly, the range of movement in the said head makes reaching all the previously desolate corners of your toilet bowl a lot easier. It is able to curve and bend at multiple points. 

This toilet bowl brush head is perfectly textured for cleaning without damage, which is another reason why we love it.

The texture of the brush head and bristles creates enough friction to remove any build-up or stains on the toilet bowl without taking off any of the glazing, which would cause the porcelain to stain a lot faster. 

This texture also leads to two other bonuses. Firstly, dirt very rarely sticks, and if it does, cleaning the brush takes very little effort.

Next, the same texture that allows the brush to remove muck from the toilet bowl has been cleverly formulated to stop any of that dirt from sticking to the brush. That way, any dust or hair should just slide straight off.

However, if anything does catch, simply run the brush under water and watch the grime wash away (no second brush to clean the first brush is required).

One of the two minor flaws of this brush is that users, particularly those with reduced mobility, may find the flexible brush head difficult to use or maneuver around the toilet bowl. 

The handle of the brush is a good length, meaning you’re very unlikely to get splashed by the murky waters below. It also comes with a non-slip handle, which means you’ll always be able to keep a firm grip, even if you’re wearing wet gloves.

One of our favorite things about the Holikme Toilet Brush is the brush holder that comes with it. Unlike most toilet brush holders, which are either a hook on the wall or a stand on the floor, the Holikme Brush Stand is a combination of both mixed in with something a little special. 

The Holikme Brush holder looks like a standard floor brush holder; however, it can be fixed onto the wall, to give it a more streamlined look. What makes it different from most brush holders is the aeration system it has in its base that allows it to quickly dry the brush head while hanging from the wall. 

The second minor flaw of this product is that the brush holder has no cleaning system within it. However, due to the brush’s design, it would only be going into the stand dirty if something terribly wrong had occurred. It’s designed to prevent dirt from clinging to it.

Overall, we think this is absolutely one of the best brushes on the market. The team at Holikme has clearly spent a lot of time making sure to think about every little detail of this brush.

This brush will significantly cut down the time you have to spend scrubbing your toilet. If that’s not music to your ears, then we don’t know what will be! 

2.  Marbrasse Slim Compact Bathroom Toilet Bowl Brush

The Space Saver

Coming in at a well-deserved second place is the Slim Compact Bathroom Toilet Bowl Brush from Marbrasse.

This is a brush that will be a little divisive - it does not have all of the features that we would like in a modern toilet brush, but it still works incredibly well. 

This is going to be the perfect toilet bowl brush for those of you that want something that draws from both modern and traditional toilet brushes. 

Let's begin at the top again with the brush head. The brush head has a fantastic shape that allows you to get into all those difficult-to-reach areas of your toilet without contorting yourself into something pretzel-shaped. 

However, the brush head is made up of traditional bristles, which, unlike Holikme's silicone bristles, can be really difficult (and unpleasant) to clean. These types of bristles have also been known to damage toilet bowls when used too enthusiastically.

If these are your bristles of choice, we suggest using a cleaning aid to help reduce the amount you have to scrub. 

On to the handle…

Like the handle of the Holikme, this handle is a great length that will make life a lot easier for you. Unlike the Holikme, however, the Marbrasse doesn't have a flexible handle.

What it does have is a swan neck-like curve.

Most users really love this shape, saying it works well with the shape of modern toilet bowls. However, people with movement issues or older toilets seem a lot less fond of the shape. It seems to be a polarizing topic amongst toilet brush experts. 

Finally, let's talk about the stand, or more accurately, the lack of stand. This toilet bowl brush is designed to be hung up using a wall hook (this comes with the product).

While we are not against storing our toilet brushes out of sight on a hook, (and being on a hook is better than nothing) with the type of bristles this brush has, this gives us nightmares. 

The traditional, porcupine-like bristles on this brush are hard to clean and slow to dry. Although storing it on a hook will allow the brush to dry faster, we dread to think about what will be dripping off it. It is possible to separately buy a stand for this brush. However, we believe that this type of brush should come with one as standard. 

A few other things worth noting: it is not possible to replace the head of this brush (so the whole thing must be thrown away once the head is broken) and there is no warranty on this product. 

This is not a product for everybody, but for some people, it is absolutely perfect. 

3.  Domi-patrol Toilet Brush and Holder Set

The Problem Solver 

Our third choice is the Domi-Patrol Toilet Brush and Holder Set. This is a kit that offers way more than meets the eye. 

This brush set comes with two features that our top pick lacks. Firstly, the set comes with a hidden set of tweezers in the brush handle.

These can be used to help you clean other areas of your bathroom, such as sinks clogged with hair. 

Secondly, and perhaps more usefully to most of you, the Domi-Patrol set comes with a disk of Diatom mud that sits in the brush holder. This disk is a small miracle worker: the mud is a fast-absorbing material that will catch any drips coming off the brush, helping to prevent any bacteria build-up. The mud also absorbs any of the odors from the brush holder. 

Of these two features, we can see a lot of use for the Diatom mud but less for the tweezers, but you may think differently. Moving on, let's look at the rest of the brush, starting at the top. 

The brush head is made of silicone, like the Holikme, meaning that it will not damage the finish on your toilet bowl no matter how hard you scrub. The head differs from the Holikme in the shape of the head and its lack of flexibility. 

The head of this brush is a lot rounder and bigger, which is a benefit when cleaning easy-to-reach parts of your toilet. However, the head of this brush is too big to fit into the more awkward places to clean. The lack of flexibility in the head makes this even more difficult. 

The brush head also comes with a solid collar to stop anything from dripping onto the user's hand. That being said, this collar adds to the difficulty in maneuvering this brush. The brush handle has a non-slip coating at the base. 

The handle is rigid and straight, so this brush will suit those looking for a traditional brush with bristles that are easy to clean.     

4. Simplehuman Toilet Brush with Caddy

The Innovator 

We had to put the Simplehuman Brush set on this list since it offers something really different from a lot of the other brushes on the market.

The highlight of this brush is that the brush heads are replaceable and easy to remove. This means when the brush gives up the ghost, you can simply (and cheaply) replace the head without having to throw out the whole brush. 

We do wish that the bristles of the brush were made from silicone, which would make them easier to clean. The ¾ shape of the brush means that the bristles are densely packed and difficult to clean. Silicone brush heads also have a longer lifespan. 

It's not all doom and gloom though. Combined with the curve in the neck of the brush, the shape of the brush head allows the user to easily reach the underside of the toilet rim without much maneuvering. Users love this feature. 

The handle of this brush is made up of metal, which we worry may rust over time. There is a non-slip grip patch at the base of the handle. The handle and brush head themselves have no flexibility. 

The brush comes with a sleek storage holder that will look good in any bathroom. However, the storage holder has no odor neutralization or cleaning system.   

This is a great choice for people who want to keep their brush next to their toilet and are looking for a brush to help them clean under the rim of the toilet. 

5.  mDesign Compact Freestanding Plastic Toilet Bowl Brush and Holder

The Classic 

And finally, we have the mDesign Compact Toilet Bowl Brush set. We've included this brush for those of you who want a classic brush but won't settle for anything less than the best of the classic brushes on the market. 

This is a simple brush, but it does what it does very well. 

The mDesign is a dense brush, packed with traditional-style bristles. The head has no flexibility. There is a solid collar under the brush head to prevent 'dirt' from dripping onto the user's hands. 

The handle is rigid and a great length. There is no non-slip coating on the grip. The handle exactly matches the color of the holder and is available in 14 colors. Users love how sleek and stylish the set looks in the bathroom. mDesign sells full matching bathroom accessory sets in all these colors. 

If you want a traditional style brush that does a great job of cleaning your toilet and looks good while doing it, then this is the brush for you. 

Toilet Bowl Brushes Buying Guide

At first glance, picking out a new toilet bowl brush may seem like a simple affair. However, with advancements in this area, the choice has become a lot more difficult... 

We've put together this buyer's guide to help you pick out the perfect toilet bowl brush. It will walk you through the key areas in which a good toilet bowl brush needs to perform as well as some of the choices you'll make before buying a toilet bowl brush. 

Hidden? On Show? 

The first choice you will need to make is: do you want to have your toilet bowl brush on show or will you want it out of sight?

This will not affect what functions you require from your toilet bowl brush. That being said, if you want to keep it on show or if you have nowhere hidden to keep it, then you'll need to pick something you can look at every day. 

The bonus of keeping your toilet brush out of sight is that you don't have to sacrifice some of the quality for aesthetics. In other words, if the brush is ugly but works miracles, it doesn't matter. On the other hand, you may not enjoy the idea of having to carry your toilet brush back and forth around the house. 

Flexible 

The next choice you'll have to make is whether you want to go with a traditionally-functioning rigid brush or a more modern brush with a flexible head. 

We think the flexible brushes are an absolute revelation, as they make reaching all those awkward nooks and crannies so much easier. We do understand that some people have reservations about moving heads since they can sometimes give the user less control over the brush. 

A Holder or Hanging Fixture? 

Your final choice is: do you want a toilet bowl brush that comes with a floor-based holder, or do you want to hang it on the wall with a hook fixture? 

As you will see in the list above, it is possible to find quality toilet brushes in both categories, and it is even possible to find brushes that come with wall-mountable holders.

We prefer holders, as they look better and are more hygienic, but this choice is completely down to personal preference.  

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you use a toilet bowl brush on its own? 

The answer to this question is dependent on a few factors. How often is your toilet used? How often do you clean your toilet? And, well, how much 'dirt' builds up in the bowl? 

You may find it easier to use some form of toilet bar/gel/cage on a day-to-day basis to stop general stain build-up. Here is one of the best selling toilet gel patches. This will stop the majority of yellow stains from building up. 

Some people swear by the use of toilet bleach or cleaning vinegar in combination with their toilet bowl brush. You may find that using one of these reduces the amount of elbow grease you have to put into cleaning.  

How do you clean a toilet bowl brush? 

If your brush isn't non-stick or comes with a cleaning feature in its holder, then there are a few different ways to stop dirt from building up in your toilet brush. 

If your toilet brush is stained, then one of the best things you can do is put 3-4 tablespoons of baking soda into the water of your toilet bowl (or closed sink). Place the brush in the water and leave it there for 20-30 minutes.

Remove the brush, run it underwater, and flush the toilet. By doing this you get a little bonus: your toilet will get a little clean while you're cleaning your brush. 

You can do the same but with vinegar instead of baking soda to stop bacteria and 'dirt' build-up on your brush. To do this, use a cup to ½ cup of vinegar. 

You should try doing at least this once a month.  

How often should you replace your toilet bowl brush? 

Newer toilet brushes are designed to only be replaced after they have been broken. If you are using the method above to regularly clean your brushes, you should not get to the point where your brushes are too dirty to use anymore. 

However, if they have suffered wear and tear to the point where they are unusable, replace them as soon as you can.