If you’ve spent any time at all looking at cars for sale, you’ll know that a good picture makes a world of difference to the attractiveness of an advert. And a good picture of a car invariably means a picture of a car that’s clean. And even if you’ve never picked up a sponge in your life there is an easy, cost-conscious solution to getting something approximating a showroom shine – invest in a budget pressure washer.

Pressure washers are great because they take much of the strain out of cleaning a car. Attach the tap, plug them in and add a few basic cleaning solutions, and you could have your car looking much more presentable in no time.

A pressure washer really does make car cleaning much easier – and they have plenty of other uses as well, such as cleaning up the patio or blasting the grime from old garden furniture.

We’ve listed the best affordable options below.

Five of the best budget pressure washers

Bosch EasyAquatak 120 – from £109.99

Now, you might have spotted this model doesn’t have any wheels – a problem that’s compounded by the relatively short hose. It’s also the most expensive listed here. But for the money, you get a load of accessories, including a high-pressure detergent nozzle, a brush and a rotary patio cleaner. It’s also a deceptively powerful device, and the main lance attachment has a variable pressure sprayer that gives you a wide range of cleaning power without the need to pause for a nozzle swap. At 4.7kg it’s also easy enough to move around while packing away really small for storage.

Karcher K2 Compact – from £72.00

Karcher is arguably THE household name for pressure washers, and for good reason. This K2 Compact model is light – just 3.7kg – and easy to store, and while it’s not as powerful as the Bosch above it does have those handy wheels for towing it about while you clean. The price is attractive, too, but you don’t get a great deal for your money here. The only things in the box are the vario lance and a dirt blaster attachment. Karcher does, however, have a huge range of additional accessories to choose from, should you get bitten by the pressure-washer bug.

Nilfisk C110 – from £94.79

You might not be as familiar with this name as some of the others on this list, but if you’re after a pressure washer that will last you a long time, Nilfisk has an outstanding reputation for build quality and reliability. You will have to do a bit of assembly before you can get spraying, and this is not a lightweight machine by any standard. But it offers a high rate of flow at 440 litres per hour and all the included components – lance, two nozzles and a detergent bottle – store inside the body, so it’s not as difficult to pack away as it might first appear. A very solid choice.

Pro-Kleen Pressure Washer – from £79.95

At 7kg this is another chunk on wheels, but with its 1,600w motor capable of producing up to 135 bar of pressure via an aluminium pump this is the most powerful option we’ve included here. The maximum flow rate doesn’t quite match the Nilfisk, being rated at 408 litres per hour – but it can provide 33 litres per hour continuously and should make quick work of even the dirtiest vehicles. Pro-Kleen also promises next-day replacement parts are available should something go wrong in the future, while the 5m hose should make getting the job done relatively straightforward.

Turtle Wax TW110 – from £75.36

Another compact hand-held device, the Turtle Wax TW110 nonetheless packs in a 1,400w motor capable of 110 bar and can manage a peak output of 330 litres per hour. You don’t get much with it – just a lance, ‘jet’ nozzle and detergent nozzle – but they all store neatly on the washer along with the 5m hose. Plus, the use of quick connectors makes it straightforward to add other accessories. A great budget choice for those who don’t have much storage space, with an ergonomic handle that makes it more comfortable to carry around than many rival choices.