The Best Washer and Dryer Combos, Tested by Laundry Experts (2024)

GE was first to come to market last year with its Profile UltraFast Combo which looks like none other we've ever tested. Its overall size is what you notice first. It's larger than most traditional and compact laundry appliances, but it offers so many great performance and convenience benefits that we've named it our Best Overall pick. Here's how it scored in our Lab assessments:

✔️ Washing: We were impressed with GE Profile's cleaning abilities and its stain-removing prowess. It achieved a very good to excellent cleaning score, effectively lifting over 90% of the tough soils from our test stain swatches. Its normal cycle was a bit more aggressive on our swatches than other machines we have tested, though we don't expect that you'd end up with damaged clothing as a result. The UltraFast Combo also excelled at spinning and removing moisture, meaning the load zips through the dry cycle a bit faster.

✔️ Drying: When it comes to drying performance, the GE Profile is a clear winner. It dried our overly-wet test loads faster than the LG unit and at a low, safe temperature for good fabric care. And since it does such a great job of extracting moisture from fabrics, medium loads that go straight from washing to drying are done in two hours, as claimed.

LG is no stranger to the combo washer and dryer trend. It, like GE, has made small compact units for years, but now LG is also offering its larger, more fully featured combo model, the All-in-One WashCombo. And because it comes in two colors, sells at about $2200 (or less!) and costs around $13 per year to run, we think it's a great value. Here's what we discovered when testing it:

✔️ Washing: Also a great cleaner and stain remover, the LG achieved an over 90% stain removal score in our wash testing. As far as gentleness goes, we found it only barely gentler than the GE, but also not as gentle as other non-combo models we've tested. Where the LG stumbled was in our water retention test. The WashCombo left the loads 6% wetter than the GE after the spin cycle.

✔️ Drying: The LG's gentle dryer temperature, while a good thing for fabric care, also made the LG WashCombo take an extra 30 minutes to dry our standard test load. It’s worth noting that our test laundry load is damper than either of these machines left the loads at the end of their wash cycles, so your actual drying cycles will likely be a little faster than reported here. Though it took longer, the laundry from the LG still emerged perfectly dry.

At the Good Housekeeping Institute, we test washer-dryer combo units based on industry standards established by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM). For washing performance assessments, we place pre-stained fabric strips into each load. Once washed and dried, we measure the reflectance of each of the six stains with a chromo-meter or spectrophotometer and calculate an overall soil removal index for the cycle. We also examine gentleness by washing cotton swatches with pre-cut holes and evaluating fraying levels to gauge fabric damage.

When evaluating drying capabilities, we use identically dampened loads of laundry and track how long the dryer cycle takes to finish. We measure the remaining moisture in the load to calculate how long it would take different units to dry the test load to a standard level of dryness. We also affix temperature strips to items in the load to make sure drying happens without excessive heat that could damage fabrics. Factors like water and energy usage, ease of loading, the quality of the control panel and door operation are also considered in our evaluations.

The answer ultimately depends on your priorities. Both the LG WashCombo and the GE Profile UltraFast Combo offer high-performance laundry care without taking up as much space as a traditional set. While the LG has a greater number of built-in cycles, the GE Profile supplements its repertoire with downloadable options. Both machines had excellent cleaning performance and offer app connectivity and lots of extras, but the GE Profile wins out in its spin cycle’s ability to remove moisture.

When it comes to drying, the GE unit dries a bit faster, but neither machine was super speedy, especially with larger loads. The LG remains a strong contender with its slightly smaller overall size and sleek design, which could be a deciding factor if the unit will be placed somewhere highly visible, such as the kitchen or where space is tight.

Washer-dryer combos may be a good choice in households with limited space where separate units may not fit. Or, by swapping out two appliances for one, you could even turn the extra space you gain into a storage cabinet or air-drying space. And because they work with energy-efficient heat pumps that don't need to be vented outdoors to dry clothing, these combo units use less energy than a traditional vented dryer model, though they likely take longer to dry.

Washer-dryer combos are best suited for those seeking efficiency in their laundry routine. These units offer the convenience of washing and drying without the need to transfer the load between machines, so it's easy to squeeze a load in on a busy weeknight instead of waiting until the weekend to tackle it all. Keep in mind that while the manufacturers claim you can wash and dry a load in two hours or less, that depends on the size and weight of your load and the cycle you choose. Larger, heavier loads will take longer, even on a normal wash and dry setting.

With a traditional washer and dryer setup, one load can be washed while another dries, so if you need to do multiple loads of laundry, it will probably take longer with a combo unit. If you prefer super-capacity machines, a combination unit probably isn’t right for you, though you could get two and place them side-by-side.