Best Washing Machine for Small Loads

If you’re only washing small loads, you don’t need to invest in a giant washing machine.

Instead, you can find plenty of more compact, cost-efficient options that clean your clothes well.

We picked the best two small load washers for you to consider and detailed everything you’ll need to know about them in this guide.

These are the best washing machines for small loads:

  1. Danby Compact Top Load
  2. Frigidaire Top Load

This article will cover the best washing machine for small loads and a great alternative.

Read on to learn more about their pros and cons!

1.) Danby Compact Top Load

Highlights

This compact Danby washing machine is perfect for small loads of laundry.

It offers a capacity of 0.09 cubic feet and a 900 RPM spin speed, with a durable stainless steel drum.

The washing machine is smart enough to auto-balance itself.

It also comes with several different wash cycles you can use, making it perfect for giving your clothes a deep clean.

Features

  • 900 RPM spin speed – perfect for spinning clothing to remove excess moisture. This speed is outstanding for most top-loading washers.
  • Stainless steel drum – durable and long-lasting so that you can get a lot of use out of your washer.
  • Auto-balancing – prevents clothes from falling to the side of the washer drum, which could cause shaking and other problems.
  • Five wash cycles – allows you to choose the cycle that best suits your load of laundry for efficiency.
  • Buzzer – goes off when the wash cycle finishes, so you’ll know when your clothes are ready to dry.

What We Like About the Danby Compact Top Load

This compact top load washer is perfect for cleaning small loads. If you don’t put too much into the machine, it will remove stains very well.

We also appreciated that it came with an easy-to-access lint trap and was very quiet when running.

The machine was highly compact and could still provide five different washing cycles, including normal, gentle, heavy, rapid, and soak.

You can choose between these options to ensure your clothes come out completely clean. It even uses water efficiently, so it won’t cost you very much to run it.

Overall, we loved this design. It’s very compact, allowing you to fit the washer in many living spaces, including crowded apartments.

What We Don’t Like About the Danby Compact Top Load

There’s a lot to love about the Danby washer and only a few things we didn’t like.

First, it’s a bit expensive for its size.

Second, there are washers of similar size with larger washing capacities.

Pros

Cons

Doesn’t cost much to use

High price

Comes with five wash cycles

Other similar-sized models have a higher load capacity

Extremely compact

 

Runs quietly

 

2.) Frigidaire Top Load

Highlights

As an alternative option, we have this Frigidaire washing machine.

It is larger than the Danby, so it has a capacity of 4.1 cubic feet, although it’s still great for small loads.

The washer also comes with a child safety lock, 12 different wash cycles, and a maximum spin speed of 680 RPM, which is impressive for the size of the machine.

Features

  • Child safety lock – doesn’t allow children to open the machine while running.
  • Larger capacity – the machine can hold loads up to its 4.1 cubic foot capacity. 
  • Delay start – you can set the timer to wash your clothes hours after you load them.
  • 12 wash cycles – includes normal, delicate, heavy-duty, and more. 
  • 5 soil settings – choose the setting to most efficiently wash your small load of clothes. These include extra light, light, medium, heavy, and extra heavy.

What We Like About the Frigidaire Top Load

We appreciate all Frigidaire’s settings— you can combine the wash cycles with the soil settings to wash your clothes efficiently.

The machine also has easy-to-use controls and can dispense fabric softeners on its own.

What We Don’t Like About the Frigidaire Top Load

It’s not as compact as the Danby option and might be too large for extremely small loads.

Pros

Cons

Child safety lock

A bit pricey

Delay start

Not as compact

Many wash settings

 

What To Look for When Buying a Washing Machine for Small Loads

Stainless Steel Drum

You want your washing machine to come with a durable drum since that’s the area that sees the most wear and tear.

Both of these options come with a strong drum made from this material, but you’ll still want to keep an eye out for this feature.

Multiple Wash Cycles

Your small washer should offer multiple wash cycles. That way, you can choose what settings best suit your small load of laundry.

You can clean your clothes much more efficiently and won’t waste water or power.

Final Verdict

The Danby Compact Top Load

The Danby Compact Top Load washing machine is the best for cleaning small laundry loads.

It’s a smaller washer but still extremely powerful, so you can trust that your clothes come out clean.

We also appreciated that it came with an auto-balancing feature, so you won’t have to worry about it spinning at a strange angle.

The Danby Compact Top Load is perfect if you want a top-quality washer. Buy it here on Sears.com.