18 Best Ways to Dry Clothes Indoors (with Images)

• Cost: £120–£250
• Best for: small to medium loads in a closed room

Hang your clothes on a clothes airer or hanger if you have fewer items. Place a fan behind the clothes and the dehumidifier nearby. The dehumidifier removes moisture from the air, which dries clothes faster, usually within 2–5 hours depending on the fabric. Using a dehumidifier without a fan takes around 4–6 hours.

Most dehumidifiers cost around 7p–30p per hour to run. This is a budget-friendly way to avoid dampness and bad smells. The main disadvantage is the high price to buy.

• Cost: £30–£60
• Best for: drying with no electricity

An indoor rotary clothes line is a freestanding airer, usually with 3 or 4 arms that turn 360 degrees in the natural airflow. It uses no electricity. Open it when you need to dry clothes, hang the washing, and fold it away when you finish. It takes up little space when folded.

Place it somewhere with enough airflow for the arms to turn. You can also use it with the dehumidifier and fan from method 1. Use this rotary airer instead of a standard airer, because the turning arms can help clothes dry even faster.

• Cost: £7–£25
• Best for: small rooms, bathrooms and utility rooms

A retractable washing line is a small box fixed permanently to a wall. When you need to dry clothes, pull out the line and attach it to the other side of the room with a bracket, cleat or hook. Some have one line, some have two, and others have up to five.

Single lines are usually 4 to 5 metres long, while multi-line models offer up to 22 metres. Most support 10–20 kg, and some support up to 40 kg.

• Cost: £10–£40
• Best for: utility rooms, kitchens and small homes

A wall-mounted airer is fixed to the wall and folds out when you need it. Then it folds back flat to save space. It is ideal for utility rooms, kitchens or small areas where floor space is limited. Clothes dry using the air in the room, so it is a tidy choice for small homes.

There are also heated wall-mounted airers, which cost around £28–£650.

• Cost: Non-heated £40–£120 · heated £400–£600
• Best for: saving floor space

A ceiling-mounted (pulley) airer is fixed to the ceiling and lowered with a rope when you need to hang washing. Once the clothes are on, pull the airer back up towards the warmer air near the ceiling so they dry naturally. Most models use a wall hook to hold the rope. Some have a chain mechanism and do not need a wall hook.

Electric (heated) ceiling airers

Electric, motorised airers blow warm air to dry clothes faster. You control them with a remote: hang the clothes, press the button, and the airer moves up or down by itself. They are expensive, with an average cost of £400–£600. Many include LED lights, which are useful in laundry areas, and some have UV sterilisation.

• Cost: Around £14
• Best for: small, light loads and tight spaces

A travel washing line is made for trips, but it is small and portable, so many people use it at home too. It suits small loads, light clothes or tight spaces. Many travel lines need no pegs, and many need no drilled holes because they use suction cups or Velcro loops.

• Cost: Non-heated £15–£40 · heated £30–£170
• Best for: everyday drying for most homes

Non-heated airers normally cost £15–£40, while heated ones cost £30–£170. The running cost of a heated airer is around 8p–10p per hour. The main disadvantage of a non-heated airer is the risk of musty smells if there is no airflow. With a heated airer, you need to turn garments by hand to dry them evenly, but it is gentle on clothes.

There are 3 main types of airer, heated and non-heated:

1. Tiered or tower airers: These stand like a tower with 3 or 4 separate levels. Some have wheels, so you can move them easily. Drying space is 15–33 metres and weight capacity is 10–35 kg, depending on the brand.
2. Winged or X-wing airers: These have two wings that fold out when needed. When you finish, fold them down and store them under a bed or behind a cupboard. Drying space is 10–24 metres, capacity is 10–18 kg, and the airer weighs 2–4 kg.
3. Concertina or zigzag airers: These have an interlocking zigzag frame. Pull it up to open and push it down to fold flat. Most are made from wood or light metal.

• Cost: 18p–34p per hour to run
• Best for: drying a full load fast in winter

• Cost: 4p–8p per hour to run
• Best for: socks, T-shirts, gym clothes and baby clothes

A heated towel rail (also called a towel radiator or ladder radiator) is installed in a bathroom. It dries towels and also heats the room. You can use it for other clothes too.

This works best for small loads. Bathrooms are built to cope with moisture, so the risk of damp and mould is lower than in bedrooms or living rooms.

Running cost: very low. Most heated towel rails use 60–150 watts, which costs only 4p–8p per hour. That is cheaper than a tumble dryer and similar to a small fan.

Shut the bathroom door to keep the warmth in. If you have an extractor fan, switch it on to remove extra moisture. If you do not have one, open the window slightly.

• Cost: £3–£15
• Best for: socks, underwear and baby clothes

A radiator airer is a small, light metal rack that hangs over a radiator. It works best when the radiator is warm. If the radiator is off, clothes dry using the airflow in the room. An over-door airer has plastic or metal hooks that fit over the top of a door and relies on natural airflow only. Both are useful for small loads and do not take up much floor space.

They have 3–6 bars and 3–4 metres of hanging space. They are easy to set up, remove and store.

• Cost: £10–£30 (range £5–£60)
• Best for: drying without wet floors

An over-bath airer sits across the bathtub. It has an A or V shape and a non-slip frame that helps prevent scratches. It has around 15–16 bars and about 7–10 metres of hanging length.

Water from damp clothes does not drip onto the floor. It falls straight into the bath. When you finish, fold the airer away. It is made from light metal, so it is easy to store in a bathroom corner or another indoor space.

The average cost is £10–£30. The lowest and highest prices are around £5 and £60, depending on brand and quality.

• Cost: Around £7
• Best for: socks, underwear, gloves, mittens and hats

A peg hanger is a small airer with 16–32 pegs that hangs from a rail, hook, shower rod or washing line. It is compact and portable. Use it indoors or outdoors, wherever there is some natural airflow. It takes very little space and is easy to store. It is made from strong plastic, polypropylene or rust-resistant steel. Some models have arms that fold flat.

• Cost: Already owned
• Best for: one or two items in a hurry

A hair dryer can dry one or two small items quickly. It uses more electricity than airers or dehumidifiers, so keep it for emergencies. It is not for full loads.

First, remove as much water as you can. Wring out the garment, or roll it in a towel and squeeze. Then hang it on a hanger or rack, or lay it flat on a clean surface. Hold the hair dryer 20–30 cm away and move it back and forth over the damp area. Use medium heat and do not stay in one spot for too long, to avoid fabric damage or shrinking.

Bag trick: put a damp T-shirt inside a clean plastic bag and hold the opening loosely near the hair dryer. Blow warm air into the bag and shake the T-shirt now and then. A light T-shirt can dry in 5–6 minutes this way.

Using a hair dryer for a long time can make it overheat or blow a fuse.

• Cost: Already owned
• Best for: a quick fix when nothing else is available

This is a quick way to dry clothes with a dry towel and an iron. It dries clothes, but not perfectly.

1. Lay the wet garment on a clean, dry towel.
2. Roll the towel tightly like a burrito and press it firmly with your hands or feet to squeeze out the water.
3. Place the garment on an ironing board and cover it with a thin, dry towel to protect the fabric.
4. Move a warm iron over the towel until the remaining moisture goes.

Always check the care label and use a suitable heat setting. Cotton and linen are fine for this method. Delicate fabrics such as silk or wool should never be ironed wet.

• Cost: From £220
• Best for: fast drying for busy families

There are 4 main types of tumble dryer: condenser, heat pump, vented and gas. In our experience, condenser and heat pump dryers are the best for drying clothes.

• Cost: From £300
• Best for: small homes and flats

A washer-dryer washes and dries your clothes in one machine. It is a good choice for small homes, flats and people with no space for two machines. You do not need to move clothes from one machine to another.

However, it is not as fast or powerful as a separate washing machine and tumble dryer.

How it works: put your clothes in, choose a washing programme, and when the wash ends, select the drying option. Some models wash and dry in one go.

Drying time: usually 2–4 hours for a full load. A washer-dryer also cannot dry as much as it washes. For example, a machine may wash 8 kg but only dry 4–5 kg at a time, so you may need to take some clothes out first.

Running cost: washer-dryers use more electricity and water for drying than heat pump dryers. They are cheaper to buy (from around £300), but cost more to run than modern tumble dryers.

• Cost: Varies
• Best for: delicate clothes and shoes

A heated drying cabinet dries clothes with warm air and fans, without spinning or tumbling them. Electric heaters warm the air inside, and fans move it around the clothes so the moisture evaporates. You can hang clothes inside, or place items such as shoes.

To dry properly, the cabinet must also remove the damp air. Some models send it outside. Others collect the moisture as water, or use a heat pump to remove it and reuse the heat. Clothes stay still on rails or racks, so there is less rubbing than in a tumble dryer. This can help reduce wrinkles, fabric damage and shrinkage.

A drying cabinet is similar to a drying pod. The main difference is the outer shape: a cabinet has solid walls, a top and a bottom, while a drying pod uses a light fabric cover. Both use warm air and fans, but their heating and moisture removal systems may differ.

• Cost: £2–£6 for self-service drying
• Best for: big loads, bedding and no machine at home

There are two types of laundrette service.

1. Service wash. You give your clothes to the staff. They wash, dry and fold everything, and you collect it later. It costs more because they do all the work.

2. Self-service. You dry your clothes yourself in large tumble dryers and pay to use them. This is cheaper and usually costs only a few pounds.

Put your wet clothes in an empty machine and choose a heat level: low for delicate items, medium for normal clothes, and high for thick items such as towels and bedding. Pay with coins, card or contactless. The machine runs for a set time, usually 10–15 minutes per cycle.

You can open the door at any time to check the clothes. If they are still damp, add more money and run another cycle. Some laundrettes sell dryer sheets to reduce static and make clothes smell nicer, but they are optional. When the clothes are dry, take them out straight away to stop creasing.