Choosing the best paint sprayer can leave you feeling a little bit out of your depth if you don’t know what you’re looking for but that doesn’t need to be the case.
Paint sprayers have become more and more popular recently as the once high tech, high price product has become more affordable. They allow you to save lots of time and have the added benefit of providing a clean finish without brush or roller marks.
Whilst limited to certain types of paint, you can use paint sprayers on lots of surfaces including:
- Walls
- Fences & Sheds
- Furniture
- Cabinets
- Ceilings
We’ve combined our extensive experience with thousands of online reviews to come up with the definitive guide to help you buy the best paint sprayer for the job.
Best Paint Sprayer Overall: Wagner Paint Sprayer
The Wagner paint sprayer is an obvious choice as the best paint sprayer overall. When people are searching for a paint sprayer, it’s very likely that they need it for paint application on a fence, decking or garden furniture.
This paint sprayer has perfected the art of painting outdoors and can even cover a fence panel in under 2 minutes. It has a large pot (1.4L) which means you can continue spraying for longer and the turbine shoulder strap ensures mobility as well as keeping you comfortable during the job.
The application is almost always uniform due to their superior atomisation and you can use paints made for wood, metal, primers and preservatives with this sprayer.
Features
- Suitable for all standard solvent or water based fence paint, oil, stain, varnish, wood preservatives and treatment – no need for specialist Spray able paint
- Detachable gun to quickly and easily change attachment, the paint, refill or clean the gun
- 3 paint jet settings for horizontal, vertical or detailed spraying
- Fully adjustable paint flow for precision painting
- Spray a 1.8m x 1.8m fence panel in less than 2 mins
Pros
- We cover roughly 6 fence panels in under 20 minutes when using this
- The paint coverage is about as uniform as you can get
- Can be used on multiple surfaces
- It’s very easy to assemble even if you’ve never used a paint sprayer before
- Very easy to clean – it should only take you about 15 minutes
Cons
- None
Final Verdict
For a paint sprayer that’s going to save you hours of work and effort, the price tag is more than justified. Beyond having a professional do the job for you, this is as good as it gets.
Best Fence Sprayer: Terratek 550W
The Terratek 550W is everything you want in a fence sprayer. It’s simple to use, leaves a perfect uniform finish and offers great value for money.
One of our favourite features of this product is the viscosity cup which allows you to measure the density of the paint and adjust the spray pattern accordingly (there are 3 pattern options).
If you’re a complete novice when it comes to using a fence paint sprayer, you don’t need to worry. The manual that comes with it is easy to follow and should ensure a high quality, even finish. We understand that you might be skeptical seeing something branded as ‘easy’ but this product truly lives up to the hype!
Features
- Industrial strength motor
- One touch operation
- 800ml container capacity
- Lightweight and compact design
- Detachable for easy cleaning
Pros
- Gives a superb, even finish regardless of how experienced you are at using paint sprayers
- Easy to obtain an even coat with paints such as emulsion, eggshell and acrylic
- Has a slight delay on the trigger giving you time to adjust if needed
- It’s detachable which makes it easy to clean up
- Saves a lot of time whilst achieving a similar finish as a paint brush
Cons
- None
Final Verdict
For novices and professionals alike, this paint sprayer is one of the best you’ll find for painting your fence. Save yourself hours of time and effort by investing in the Terratek 550W.
Best Paint Sprayer for Furniture: Wagner W100
Wagner are one of the best companies to go to for paint sprayers and they make our list for the second time – this time as the best paint sprayer for furniture.
Just as you’d expect from Wagner, the sprayer is ready to use within 5-10 minutes as it’s very easy to set up. When it comes to finding the best paint sprayer for furniture you need to bear in mind one thing. You need something that is able to cover difficult to reach corners and edges. With Wagner’s precise spray system that’s exactly what you get.
Beyond that, our other favourite feature is the HVLP technology which essentially means you won’t overspray any areas.
Features
- Suitable for wood and metal paints including; gloss, satin, undercoat, stain, varnish wood preservatives and many more
- Perfect for spraying fencing, decking, garden furniture, doors, skirting, windows and other wood or metal surfaces
- Fully adjustable paint volume for ultimate control
- Click and Paint handle to quickly change the paint pot, refill or clean
- Three spray patterns, vertical, horizontal or detailed and Includes HVLP technology for minimum overspray
Pros
- Is great at reaching hard to reach corners and edges
- It’s super precise in its application whilst ensuring a smooth, even coat
- Useful for small to medium projects
- Very easy to clean with either water or a solvent
- Has a variety of extra accessories available to purchase
Cons
- None
Final Verdict
The Wagner W100 is easy to assemble, easy to clean and easy to use. If you have furniture that requires a precise and even finish, this is the paint sprayer for you.
Best Electric Paint Sprayer: Terratek 650W
The Terratek 650W is an upgrade on the Terratek 550W and is our pick for the best electric paint sprayer. It’s simple to use, gives you a professional finish and has a 2 year guarantee should something go wrong with it.
Regardless of coating, you can expect to get a consistent, professional finish on any surfaces including fences, walls, ceilings and exterior siding. The 2 800ml containers ensures you can paint walls up to 8 times faster than a brush and the HVLP technology ensures minimal overspray.
Electric paint sprayers don’t come much better than this.
Features
- 3 spray patterns
- Works on walls, ceilings, exteriors and fences
- Lightweight and compact
- Container capacity: 800ml
- Maximum viscosity: 130DIN/secs
Pros
- Very easy to assemble
- Keeping it clean shouldn’t be a problem
- Saves you a lot of time and effort
- Works across many different surfaces
- High capacity means refills are less frequent
Cons
- It’s difficult to find replacement parts should something go wrong
Final Verdict
When it comes to electric paint sprayers, you should go with the Terratek 650W. The high level finish alone is worth it.
Best Airless Paint Sprayer: Wagner Airless ControlPro
OK, this one might only be for the professionals among you but this airless paint sprayer justifies its place on this list. Whilst we write these articles with an assumption that our readers aren’t professionals, we need to be mindful that some people want the very best equipment.
Wagner are pretty much the kings of paint sprayers and if anything, this model (north of £400 by the way) just shows the quality they produce as a brand.
This airless paint sprayer works with all water and solvent-based paints and has one of the softest, most precise finishes on the market. It also has a 10m hose which allows you to continue painting for longer.
It also has a highly efficient but pressure-reduced pump with the lower pressure ensuring up to 55% less overspray is generated compared to other models.
Features
- For water and solvent-based materials such as emulsion, enamels, varnishes, vinyl, gloss, acrylic paints, preservatives, stains and primers
- High-efficiency airless technology
- Lightweight airless spray gun with two-finger trigger
- Direct intake from the paint container – for fast, clean painting, no need to decant or refill
- Practical carrying handle
- Weight : 7.6 kg
Pros
- Direct intake from your paint container ensures fast, clean painting with no need to decant or refill
- It has reduced spraying pressure which gives a softer spray and maximum control. This also means it has a longer service life and up to 55% less overspray
- It’s much more precise than other models
- Comes with a 3 year guarantee
- High efficiency airless technology ensures perfect coverage with streak-free results
- Finish the job on average 10 times quicker than working with a brush or a roller
Cons
- It’s very expensive and might not be suitable for casual projects
Final Verdict
This is the best airless paint sprayer on the market and it isn’t really close. It’s suitable for application on walls, ceilings, fences and many other surfaces and would probably win every category on here if it wasn’t for the price tag! If you’ve got the money to spend and are completely redecorating a property/garden then it might be worth the high price tag.
Best Paint Sprayer for Walls: Bosch PFS 3000-2
Bosch are renowned experts when it comes to DIY and the Bosch PFS 3000-2 paint sprayer is an example of a high quality product produced by them.
Whilst we would normally recommend using a paint brush and roller for interior walls, if there was a best paint sprayer for walls, this would be it. It applies very evenly, the spray is very precise and of course overall application takes minutes.
What makes this paint sprayer stand out from others is that it’s suitable for almost any paint. Add to that the shoulder strap which gives you a high degree of stability during application and you’ve got yourself a nice piece of kit that’s going to give you a good finish.
Features
- Constant feed paint tank
- Spray wood and wall paint with the same pistol
- Three-stage paint nozzle
- Bosch SDS for fast paint changes and easy cleaning
- Shoulder strap for comfortable use
- 650 W motor makes painting very fast and easy
- Applies paint quickly at 2 m²/min for medium to large indoor and outdoor jobs
Pros
- It’s a fantastic all rounder
- You can use it for any kind of paint including wall paints, glazes and varnishes
- It’s very precise during application
Cons
- You might be prone to building up paint patches on your walls
Final Verdict
This is a great overall paint sprayer but we’d still suggest using a brush and roller if painting indoors. If you do decide to go for it, make sure the room is empty and the floor is completely protected!
How to Use a Paint Sprayer
If you’re looking to find out how to use a paint sprayer, one section on a blog post isn’t going to be a great source of information.
As different paint sprayers have different settings, there’s no single best way to use one. Our advice would be to always check the manual and follow their instructions.
Here’s some quick tips to bear in mind:
- Apply the paint at a consistent speed from top to bottom or side to side
- Overlap your spraying path by around 30% each time (or as specified in the manual)
- When spraying the top of a fence, use a shield to stop the paint going over to your neighbours’ garden
- Always do a test to make sure everything is working properly
- Warmer paints are usually easier to work with
- To achieve an even coating, maintain a constant distance at a right angle to the surface
Summary
Choosing the best paint sprayer for the job is often times the difference between a perfect coverage and a streaky finish.
Our personal favourite paint sprayers are manufactured by Wagner and in our opinion would be a good choice for beginners to experts. If you’ve never used a paint sprayer before, Wagner are particularly helpful as they offer a series of ‘how to’ videos that are easy to follow.
Other than Wagner, you could opt for a Terratek product. Terratek have never disappointed us and the thousands of positive consumer reviews online seem to back up our own personal experience using their products.
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Want to learn more about different paints? Feel free to take a look at our recent “best gloss paint” article!