Dishwashers

What else should I look for when buying a dishwasher?

Check the yellow EnergyGuide label

Use this label to determine the model's energy use, compare the energy use of similar models, and estimate annual operating costs. Learn How to Use the Federal Trade Commission’s EnergyGuide Label and the Difference Between the Energy Guide and ENERGY STAR.

Choose the right size for your home

Standard-capacity models hold more than eight place settings and six serving pieces. Compact-capacity models hold less than eight place settings and six serving pieces. Due to their smaller capacity, compact models may use more energy than standard models over time.

Choose a dishwasher with several wash cycle options

A dishwasher with an auto-sensing cycle, means the dishwasher has a soil-sensor and is able to detect if the water coming off the dishes is dirty or clean, which can save water and help ensure the dishes come out clean. If selecting a dishwasher without a soil-sensor, look for models that have multiple cycle options so you can choose the cycle that best fits your load. If your dishes are only slightly soiled, you can use a light cycle that uses less water. Other options might include an energy-saving wash cycle or the ability to turn off heated dry.

ENERGY STAR Most Efficient

Products that are recognized as ENERGY STAR Most Efficient deliver cutting edge energy efficiency along with the latest in technological innovation. They represent the very best for energy savings and environmental protection. Find Most Efficient dishwashers here.

More Information:

Current Specification Effective Date: July 19, 2023

Dishwashers Key Product Criteria: ENERGY STAR

Learn How a Product Earns the Label

Dishwasher vs. Hand Washing Dishes

 If you still wash your dishes by hand, you're wasting more than just time.

Save money

Washing dishes in a new ENERGY STAR certified dishwasher rather than hand washing can cut your utility bills by about $210 per year, saving $3,200 over its lifetime compared to handwashing your dishes.

Save time

Instead of scrubbing, rinsing, and drying each dish, just load them all in an ENERGY STAR dishwasher and press start. Using an ENERGY STAR certified dishwasher can save you over 230 hours of personal time over the course of a year. That's almost 10 days!

Get better cleaning

ENERGY STAR certified dishwashers have features which result in better cleaning. For example, they boost water temperatures to 140 degrees, which allows for improved disinfection compared to hand washing.

Save energy and water

A new ENERGY STAR certified dishwasher uses less than half as much energy as washing dishes by hand and saves  8,400 gallons of water each year!

Save the environment

ENERGY STAR certified products reduce air pollution and greenhouse gases caused by burning fossil fuels. By reducing water consumption, ENERGY STAR certified dishwashers also help protect our freshwater resources. Did you know that less than 1% of all the water on Earth can be used by people? The rest is salt water or is permanently frozen and we can't drink it, wash with it, or use it to water plants. As our population grows, more people are using this limited resource. That's why it's important to use our water wisely. Learn more about other ways to save water with EPA's WaterSense.

Best Practices

Take advantage of these best practices to save more money on your utility bills.

Scrape don't rinse

Rinsing dishes before loading them in the dishwasher increases the total water and energy used. Save yourself the rinsing - just scrape food off dishes. ENERGY STAR certified dishwashers and today's detergents are designed to do the cleaning so you don't have to. If your dirty dishes sit overnight, use your dishwasher's rinse feature. It uses a fraction of the water needed to hand rinse.

Load it up

Dishwashers use about the same amount of energy and water regardless of the number of dishes inside, so run full loads whenever possible.