Best: Overall

Rating: 10/10

We loved the look of this corded iron, with its aquamarine trim and its sleek tapered handle. But we’re all too aware that a stylish profile doesn’t necessarily mean more efficient ironing times. What does, though, is the fantastic design of Braun’s iron.

The open-ended handle ramped up the manoeuvrability, and we loved the smoothness of the glide offered by the ceramic soleplate. Controls, such as the water-reservoir cap, are easy to grip without being overly chunky, and we loved the low weight, which came in at a wrist-friendly 1.2kg.

In summary? A brilliant, wallet-friendly iron that’s a worthy rival for models with a much higher price tag.

Best: For smooth gliding action

Rating: 9/10

Not only were we impressed with the smooth gliding action on this iron, but we also appreciated the extra-long 2.5m cord on the base. Placement of power points should never be the deciding factor in where we indulge in our ironing sessions, and the cable on the ceraglide gave us much more freedom of movement.

We were also huge fans of the cordless design, which comprises a base (the Orbit 360 Easy Dock) and a 360-degree design, which allows the iron to be placed in any position. Also, the way in which it locks into place (and requires the press of a button to unlock) meant we were less likely to knock it over.

It’s quick to heat up (the blurb states 25 seconds, which we verified), and we absolutely loved the placement of the steam button, which is a trigger-style affair positioned under the handle, making it much easier to reach.

Best: For tough creases

Rating: 9/10

This is another iron – in this case, a steam generator-style one – that has a gorgeous design. Steam generators, which comprise a unit that generates very high-pressure steam, are ideal for families and anyone who wants an iron that will handle the toughest of creases (in this case, you’ll be treated to seven-bar pressure and a crease-busting 600g/minute steam shot). The downside is that they’re often rather bulky – but this Morphy Richard’s design bucks the trend.

Despite the base unit having a huge 1.6l water reservoir, the iron itself is surprisingly compact, and we loved the way the cord wrapped neatly around the base, keeping it out of our way while ensuring it didn’t get tangled when it needed to be unravelled.

This mean steam machine is also wonderfully low maintenance, with auto-clean and auto-shutoff features, which are standard on this type of iron. It also has a brilliantly innovative intellitemp feature to ensure the optimal balance of temperature and steam output, whatever the garment.

Best: Steam generator

Rating: 9/10

This particular steam generator might not have all the features of more expensive models, but if you’re craving extra steam power and don’t want to break the bank, it’s a fantastic option.

We’ve touched on how steam generator-style irons are always going to be bulkier pieces of kit, but various features on this iron ensure it’s still easy to manoeuvre. These include the placement of the steam button – a trigger-style affair placed under the handle – and the sharp taper on the soleplate, which made getting to the trickiest of corners a breeze.

This Beko is incredibly quick to heat up and, living in a hard-water area, we appreciated the “calc buster” function. This flushes out the calc (the build-up of calcium and mineral deposits that cause limescale) from both the 1.8l reservoir and the internal workings, helping to keep the iron scale-free. Brilliant.

Best: For versatility

Rating: 9/10

Prone to clumsiness? This could be your dream weapon for waging war on your laundry pile. This sculpture-like iron (and yes, we did just say that about a household appliance) has a streamlined shape and a tapered soleplate, which took the hard work out of ironing the items we dread the most (we’re looking at you, lapels and oversized cuffs).

Admittedly, we were sceptical about the anti-drip system, but we’re converts – this is one of the few irons that won’t leave random splashes of water on your freshly ironed clothes.

Our favourite feature? The vertical steam option, which is designed for smoothing creases on items such as curtains. Its water reservoir, with a capacity of 0.27l, isn’t the biggest, but this didn’t prove to be an issue.

Best: For quick crease-busting

Rating: 8/10

This speed demon is one of the best budget irons we’ve come across, thanks largely to the base. This feature is a super-fast ceramic soleplate with an elaborate network of channels and vents, which did a great job of dispersing the steam where we needed it most (and our testing material included a crumpled T-shirt with more creases than the Grand Canyon).

This is a brilliant iron for couples or singles. Its 230ml reservoir is undeniably on the small side, but it will handle a wide range of garments with ease. We also loved its profile, particularly the way a semi-transparent cover shields the reservoir lid, which on many irons (at least in our experience) has an annoying tendency to pop open during ironing sessions. We appreciated the generous two-metre cable, too.

Best: For lightweight design

Rating: 8/10

One of our favourite aspects of this iron was the clarity of the controls. Temperature settings don’t mean that much to us – how many of us know the ideal temperature for silk, cotton and linen, after all? This is precisely why we loved the clear markings indicating the ideal settings for a wide range of materials, including silk, cotton, linen, wool and synthetics.

Vertical steam options meant we could iron draped items like, and the combination of a wide reservoir mouth and the included pourer made top-ups easy. And, believe it or not, you’ll get all this for just £10.

Best: For families

Rating: 8/10

“Station” is an apt word for this generator because it’s guaranteed to be a hub for anyone in your household with heavy-duty ironing needs.

On a fickle note, we love the way Swan has attempted to lighten the boredom of ironing by sticking some fun facts on the box. Who knew, for example, that up until 1933, most households heated their irons by either putting hot coals inside them or putting them over gas rings (which, to be clear, is something that absolutely shouldn’t be done in this day and age)?

But back to the important stuff. We were impressed with the ultra-secure way the iron locked into the base and with the layout of the controls, clustered into a kind of control centre on the rear of the base. The eco and max settings were the ones we used most, and we loved having the ability to quickly dial down the steam power when ironing delicate irons while knowing we had an impressive 130g/min steam output to call upon when faced with the deepest of creases. The 1.8l reservoir was surprisingly easy to remove, too.