9 Best Epilators for 2023

If you find waxing too messy and that shaving doesn’t last, welcome to the beautiful world of epilators. Epilation is a method that pulls out hair from the root, which is what epilators are designed to do. While waxing and tweezing technically count as epilation, using an electric epilator is much more convenient when removing body hair at home. 

But which epilator to buy? Some are notoriously painful, while others break hair instead of pulling it out. In this guide, we’ve selected the best, most effective epilators — the ones that’ll easily get rid of your hair so that you can feel silky smooth. 

Best epilators overview

• Best overall: Braun Silk·épil 9 Flex Epilator, Beauty Set with FaceSpa
• Best budget: Remington Smooth & Silky Essential Epilator
• Best for body: Braun Epilator, Silk·épil 9
• Best for legs: Philips Epilator Series 8000
• Best for underarms: Philips Satinelle Essential
• Best for the face: Braun Facial Epilator, FaceSpa Pro
• Best for sensitive skin: Panasonic Electric Shaver and Epilator EL7AP
• Best for travel: Epilady Legend 4 Rechargeable Epilator 
• Best manual: Tweezerman Smooth Finish Facial Hair Remover

How we chose the best epilators

To compile this list, we researched manufacturer specifications, including tweezer count, settings, and more, to create a short list of the top epilators. Then, we combed through detailed product descriptions, ratings, and reviews to find the best epilators at each price point and for every body part.

Our picks for the best epilator

The Silk·épil 9 Flex is as close to perfect as an epilator can be, and it has the price to show for it. It’s one of the most comfortable, effective, and easy-to-use epilators on the market, and it comes in a luxurious kit with a lot of accessories. 

Built with 40 micro-grip tweezers, it grasps hairs as short as 0.5 millimeters and pulls them out from the root. Its most unique feature is a flexible swivel head that makes epilating curved areas like the underarms a breeze. It’s also cordless and waterproof so that you can use it in the shower. 

Should you want to switch gears, it comes with multiple hair removal, cleansing, and massage heads, as well as caps that allow you to adjust the surface area or level of contact with your skin for gentler or more targeted epilation. If you don’t need all of the extras, you can also buy the Silk·épil 9 Flex in a smaller set.

Target areas: Arms, legs, face, bikini line, underarms | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 40

This affordable epilator from Remington is an awesome full-body option for anyone trying to stay under a specific budget. It has a compact body, but the head is full-sized with 40 tweezers, which makes it easy to use on both large and small areas. 

It may not come with fancy bells and whistles, but where things matter, it performs — reviewers consistently mentioned it works well for body hair removal. 

It’s corded, which means you never need to worry about keeping it charged, but it does get in the way of portability. Maneuvering the cord can be awkward, and you won’t be able to use it in the shower.

Target areas: Legs, arms, underarms, bikini | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Corded | Number of tweezers: 40

If the Braun Flex is a little too pricey for your comfort, this is our next top pick from the brand — it’s still expensive, but not to the same extent. It offers the same micro-grip tweezers and has a large head, making it easy to cover a lot of space with speed. That’s exactly what you need for full-body epilation.

While the head isn’t fully flexible, it still pivots to accommodate hard-to-reach areas, and a SensoSmart feature prevents you from pressing too hard on the skin. Additionally, it comes with a shaver head, trimmer comb, and a massage cap designed to reduce pain.

Target areas: Legs, underarms, bikini line, arms | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 40

Make quick work of body hair with this excellent epilator. The Series 8000 is Philips’ latest epilator and features a large head and fast-moving tweezers. Philips promises you’ll be able to epilate your lower legs in as little as 10 minutes. 

The concave shape of the head hugs the legs and arms, although it’s not as comfortable to use on body parts that curve inward, like the underarms. 

You’ll love that you can use it both wet and dry, and it comes with many accessories, including a standout contact cap that stretches the skin on large or less taut areas. Other accessories include a body exfoliator, shaver with combs, and a rotating foot file for a total home spa experience.

Target areas: Legs, arms, bikini line | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 32

If you’re looking for an epilator specifically for small areas like the underarms or bikini line, consider the Philips Satinelle. It comes with a sensitive skin cap for places where you want a gentler touch. 

It’s the perfect size for epilating hard-to-reach spots, with powerful tweezers that grab short hairs easily. It’ll also work on the legs, albeit not as quickly as a larger epilator.

It’s designed for corded use, which makes it less portable and prevents you from using it in the shower. If you’re the kind of person who forgets to charge devices, though, this could be a benefit.

Target areas: Underarms, legs, bikini line | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Corded | Number of tweezers: 21

This slim epilator was explicitly designed for facial hair. It’s shaped like a wand, so you can easily control it to remove hair from areas like the brows or upper lip. It comes with a facial cleansing brush attachment that you can use to cleanse and exfoliate prior to epilating. Since it’s waterproof, you can even use it in the shower. The only drawback is that it’s a little pricey for such a small tool.

Target areas: Face | Speed settings: 1 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 10

From Panasonic, this is another full-body epilator at a reasonable price. It has 60 tweezers, so it covers a lot of space with one stroke. This makes it a quick option for the body, but it might be a little unwieldy when you epilate smaller areas. 

It comes with two additional caps that control how close it gets to the skin, ensuring it’ll be gentler over sensitive areas. You can even use it in the shower to make the process more tolerable. That said, some reviewers noted it wasn’t quite as thorough as more expensive epilators, like Braun’s Silk·épil range.

Target areas: Legs, arms, underarms, bikini line | Speed settings: 3 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 60

Epilady’s claim to fame is being the world’s first epilator retailer. Today, the brand offers reasonably priced epilators and other hair removal tools. The brand’s fourth-generation epilator is compact yet designed for full-body use, making it our top choice for travel. A full charge lasts for up to 60 minutes of use. With 32,000 tweezing actions per minute, it’s plenty of time to do a full epilating session. 

Bear in mind that this epilator is not waterproof, so in-shower epilating is off-limits. Some reviewers also mentioned that it wasn’t particularly durable, so we don’t recommend it for heavy at-home use.

Target areas: Legs, arms, underarms, bikini area, face | Speed settings: 2 | Type: Rechargeable | Number of tweezers: 40

An epilator doesn’t have to be electric. If you’re only looking for a face epilator, consider this manual coil-style hair remover. Since it pulls hair directly from the root, we think it still fits the definition. Plus, it’s always ready to work, so you’ll never need to worry about charging it.

This tool excels at removing peach fuzz, especially compared to traditional epilators. This makes it ideal for the upper lip or cheeks. That said, there’s no room for precision with it, so whatever you do, keep it away from your brows. Learning to use it does take a bit of practice, so watch out for broken hairs early on.

Target areas: Face | Speed settings: N/A | Type: Manual | Number of tweezers: N/A

Smooth gliding 

An epilator is basically a very advanced tool for yanking out unwanted hair. The ultra-lux Braun Silk·épil 9 Flex is our top pick for its phenomenal design and bonus accessories. That said, with so many great options, we think you’ll have no problem finding an epilator that fits your needs and budget. 

How to pick the right epilator for you

Epilators come in all sorts of sizes with different functionalities. Below are the main factors to consider when deciding on the best epilator for you. 

Tweezers

Tweezers are the stars in every epilator. When they’re well-designed, the tweezers pull hairs directly from the root, even when you have minimal growth. Usually, the more tweezers on an epilator, the larger the head and the faster you’ll be able to epilate more extensive body parts like the legs. If you’re looking for an epilator for smaller areas like the underarms or face, choose a device with fewer tweezers and a smaller head. 

Speed settings

Most epilators come with two speed settings. Many brands recommend using a slower setting for sensitive areas and a faster one where your skin is more hearty. If you’d like to use one epilator on many different body parts, having multiple speed settings will give you more flexibility. 

We recommend experimenting with different settings to see what works best for you. For instance, faster speed settings are sometimes easier to tolerate since they pull the hair out more quickly. In other cases, we find that the slower speed settings can be more effective when hairs are difficult to grab since the tweezers have a bit more time to close over the hair. 

Power source

These days, most epilators are rechargeable or corded. Rechargeable epilators are the more popular choice since they’re portable and maneuverable. They’re often waterproof, so you can use them in the shower. A full charge usually lasts between 30 minutes and an hour, which should be enough for at least one or two epilating sessions, depending on how many body parts you’re treating. The main drawback to using them is that you mustt remember to plug them in, and they may lose power as the battery drains over time. 

Corded epilators are not nearly as flexible. They must be plugged in to work and can’t be used in the shower. On the plus side, you can plug them in and start epilating on a whim, and the continuous power supply often correlates with consistent performance. 

Wet and dry use

Today, many cordless epilators can be used both wet or dry. This can be convenient if you’re making the switch from shaving to epilating since you’re probably used to removing your body hair in the shower. It makes it easy to clean and exfoliate your skin immediately before epilating.

Some brands mention that the heat from the shower will allow hairs to come out more efficiently, which reduces pain levels. While we think this suggestion is largely based on a myth, many users do find the process less painful, perhaps because of the relaxing effect of a steamy shower. 

That said, epilators that support both wet and dry usage are often more expensive. If you don’t feel the need to epilate in the shower, you can save by buying a dry use-only epilator. 

FAQs

What’s the most effective epilator? 

Based on our research, Braun’s epilators consistently rate best when it comes to performance, thanks to highly efficient tweezers that pull out hairs as short as 0.5 millimeters. Your technique also matters, though, so check out our epilating guide to ensure you use your device correctly.

Are expensive epilators better?

Yes. In particular, we found that the more expensive epilators score better with users and come with valuable features and bonus accessories. That said, in many cases, you can save by buying a more minimal set. 

What’s the least painful epilator?

Pulling hair out from the root will almost always hurt. Moreover, pain is subjective, which is why two different users can have completely opposite pain experiences with the same epilator. That said, we find that Panasonic’s Electric Shaver and Epilator EL7AP is a great choice for sensitive skin or those with lower pain tolerance.