As temperatures continue to drop around this time of year, you might be getting ready to break out your favorite sweaters and cardigans for fall. Except there's one small problem: you forgot about all of the pilling you said you'd "get to later" when you put them away. Well, later is here!
I personally deal with pilling on most of my clothing. In fact, it's rare that I find something in my closet that doesn't have some type of pilling going on. Frustrating as it is, there is a solution (that's not just throwing away your clothes and buying new ones): fabric shavers.
I decided, for the good of my closet (and wallet), to test out eight popular fabric shavers on different items in my closet that could use a little TLC. Here, I share the results from my tests, including which one is the best of the bunch. I also sought out experts in the textile and cleaning industries to learn more about what causes pilling and how to handle it.
What should you look for in fabric shavers?
Fabric shavers are usually electronic devices that are rechargeable or battery-powered that typically have blades that run in a circle as you move the device along the affected areas. As you move the device, it will cut off pills and suck them into a bin to be discarded later.
Chief hygiene officer at Pro Housekeepers, Jennifer Rodriguez, recommends looking for a fabric shaver that has a comfy grip and a big lint trap.
Best overall fabric shaver
Ease of use: 5/5 | Efficiency: 4.5/5 | Volume: 4.5/5 | Ease of cleaning: 5/5 | Overall average score: 4.75/5
Ease of use: This fabric shaver was very easy to use. I really liked that it had just one setting and the mechanism to turn it on and off was a simple slide on the side. This made it easy to quickly turn it off because the way you grip it, your thumb is right on the button. The back of the device also has a compartment that comes off to reveal an electrostatic cloth that picks up any lint or hair. I used this both before and after using the actual fabric shaving capabilities to make sure the area was clean and no lint was left behind.
Efficiency: The device has three blades that spin very fast to help it tackle even small pills like the ones on the groin area of the cotton-blended pants I tried it on. In just a couple of swipes, it was able to take off these really small pills that I could not pick off with my fingers.
A little time goes a long way with this particular fabric shaver, but I never felt scared that I was going to shave a hole in anything because the curved top makes sure your garment is protected.
Volume: I found that this fabric shaver wasn't too loud. Since it only had one setting, the level of noise was easy to get used to.
Ease of cleaning: I really liked how this device had the lint trap in a separate area from the blades. It made it super easy to clean without damaging the blades, device or myself. Once I popped out the lint trap, I just dumped it out and it was ready to go again.
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Other fabric shavers tested by the editor
Best for large garments:
Ease of use: 5/5 | Efficiency: 4.5/5 | Volume: 4/5 | Ease of cleaning: 4/5 | Overall average score: 4.38/5
Ease of use: I found this device to be very easy to use. It was powered by a simple on/off button on the back. It has a fairly large head, which made it easy to cover a lot of ground on the shirt I tried it on.
Efficiency: Initially, I was scared that I was going to shave areas that did not need it since the head was so big, but I did not notice it tarnishing the cotton T-shirt I tried it on. The shirt had small and straggly pills on it and this fabric shaver did a great job of getting rid of them in a couple of swipes. This device says it can be used on upholstery and curtains, which I have not tried yet, but I think, because the head is so big and the lint container is big, it is a great option if you have a lot of pills you need to tackle.
Volume: Because the head of this device is so big I was worried it was going to be really loud, but it turned out to be similar to the other devices in noise level.
Ease of cleaning: The lint trap was a little bit hard to pop out (you have to really push in the button hard to get it to pop out), but once I was able to pop it out, it was super easy to dump into the trash and the device came with a brush so it was easy to get deep into the lint compartment.
Best for tackling multiple areas at once:
Ease of use: 3.5/5 | Efficiency: 4/5 | Volume: 4/5 | Ease of cleaning: 4/5 | Overall rating: 3.88/5
Ease of use: Upon first glance, this device had a lot going on. It had a visible screen that displayed the current battery percentage (a feature I liked), three speed settings and it had a removable lint roller in the bottom of the device. It took me a while to get out the lint roller and the device took around an hour to fully charge. The speed settings also took a little bit to figure out but were easy to use.
Efficiency: I was using this device on this sweater that is made of 59% polyester, 36% recycled polyester, 5% spandex (aka very thin fibers) so this top pills very easily. I was focusing on the armpit area and, after testing all three settings, opted for the second one. Using the second setting, it took a couple of tries to fully get all the pills out, around 4 swipes.
The device has a large head and can cover a lot of surface area. I think this fabric shaver is great if you have a top or bottom with different types of pilling throughout because you can easily switch settings to tackle them all.
Volume: This device, while big, didn't sound too loud. It was easy to get over because the device sounded more like a vacuum sound with the air suction of the device being the loudest part.
Ease of cleaning: At first, cleaning seemed intimidating but it was actually pretty easy. You just have to twist off the blade covver and dump out the lint and blades, then place them back in.
Best for traveling:
Ease of use: 4/5 | Efficiency: 4/5 | Volume: 3.5/5 | Ease of cleaning: 4/5 | Overall average score: 3.88/5
Ease of use: This device looked very small upon first glance, but it was very easy to use and follow after doing some research. It has two settings, 1 and 2, and the higher the setting is made to be used on thicker clothing.
It also comes with a cover that you can take on and off when you're using more sensitive fabrics. I also found it easy to flip between settings by twisting the cover.
Efficiency: I used this device on a different section of the same sweater I tried the Homeasy on. For this particular section, I liked the stronger setting more. I tried it with the guard cover on so I could make sure my sweater was protected. It worked very well after going over the area a couple of times. While the device picks up a lot of pills, the bin seemed to fill up pretty fast, so you may have to empty in regularly if you're using it more often.
Volume: Due to its small size, this fabric shaver wasn't the loudest. I'd compare it to the volume of a kitchen vacuum that's on the smaller side.
Ease of cleaning: The device is easy to dump out the lint, and it comes with replacement blades that are handy to keep around if the blades get dull. You pop off the lint trap and turn it upside down to dump it in the trash.
Best for sweaters:
Ease of use: 5/5 | Efficiency: 4/5 | Volume: 3/5 | Ease of cleaning: 3.5/5 | Overall rating: 3.8/5
Ease of use: I was initially hesitant about this fabric shaver because of the price point, but I ended up happily surprised by it. It has a simple button on the top to turn it on and it has an ergonomic handle so it's easy to grip and guide over fabrics.
Efficiency: This fabric shaver has two hours of charge and you can even use it while it's actively charging, which is always a bonus. I thought it did a good job of getting the pills out of my pants. I worked in a circular motion and it was easy to get the whole area after a couple of tries. The head of the device is a good size for sweaters and pants.
However, the lint trap is hard to get access and doesn't hold much, so you will have to dump it out pretty often.
Volume: This device is pretty powerful so I was expecting it to be super loud. While it wasn't outrageous, I was still a little shocked at how loud it was compared to the other devices I tested.
Ease of cleaning: This device is a bit more challenging to clean because you have to twist off the top and dump out the lint. It was a little hard to get the top back on correctly afterward, too.
Best for thin clothing:
Ease of use: 3/5 | Efficiency: 3/5 | Volume: 3/5 | Ease of cleaning: 3/5 | Overall average score: 3/5
Ease of use: This fabric shaver has three settings, so, after exploring the intensity of each, I opted for the first setting to use on my cotton T-shirt. It took some time to get used to the various settings and decide which one would be best. I read the reviews of what customers used the different settings for and looked at the instructions to see that higher settings are for thicker clothing pieces.
Efficiency: Using the first setting, I was able to get rid of the pills, but it did take a little bit longer than I expected. I had to go over areas I had already treated because the device did not get all the pilling the first time around. The lint trap is quite large, so you can work with a lot of surface area before having to clean it. I did find that you needed to press down hard on the areas you wanted to get pills up faster. I would use this on thin fabrics because you need more patience to make sure you don’t rip a hole in anything, and this device is very gentle.
Volume: This device gets louder with each increase in setting. It sounded pretty loud when I used it in testing and I wish it had stayed consistent in noise with the level increases.
Ease of cleaning: The lint trap is behind the blades of this fabric shaver. The blades are detachable so you can get a deep clean of the lint trap and you can even clean the blades themselves. But if you don’t want to remove the blades, you can simply just pull off the blade cover and dump the excess lint in the trash like I did.
Large lint trap:
Ease of use: 3/5 | Efficiency: 3/5 | Volume: 3/5 | Ease of cleaning: 3/5 | Overall rating: 3/5
Ease of use: This device looked a bit bulky coming out of the box. It has a handle similar to an iron, but the top of the device (round head) tilts up, so it was a bit awkward to shave the pills. Because the device was so light, I felt I had to put a ton of pressure on the head of the device for it to work.
Efficiency: The device was too light for a sweater so it took a lot of pressure to get it to pick up the pills. I think I would use this on smaller or thinner pills. The lint trap of this device is big, so you can use it for a long time before needing to clean it out. However, the head of the device is quite small compared to the device itself, so I would recommend using it n small areas of pilling only.
Volume: This device was the loudest of the bunch but it wasn't enough to deter me from using it at all. It's just worth noting that the noise it made was a high-pitched buzzing sound.
Ease of cleaning: The device was easy enough to dump out, but it was hard to get deep into the holder to clean it.
How we tested the fabric shavers
I, Annie Shigo, gathered a few items from my own closet that were pilling in different areas. I chose a pair of cotton- and denim-blend pants that had pilling around the groin, a cotton shirt that had pilling on the side panels and a polyester-blend sweater that had pilling all throughout. I then used tape to section off the areas I'd be testing a fabric shaver on.
Once I had the areas sectioned off, I made sure to charge the devices and set them up according to their respective instructions. I used each feature that was available on each device, whether that was different speed settings, guard covers or lint rollers. I used each device for around 30 seconds on each spot and then evaluated the spot after.
I also cleaned out the lint trap of each device to gauge how easy it was to do. I rated the fabric shavers based on four key factors and then scored them on a scale of 1 through 5 (1 being the worst, 5 being the best):
- Ease of use: How easy was it to set up and use? Did all of the features work?
- Efficiency: Did the device work as expected?
- Volume: How loud was it?
- Ease of cleaning: Was the lint trap easy to clean?
Why trust Shop TODAY?
Annie Shigo is an editorial assistant who has been reviewing and testing products in the beauty, tech, fashion and cleaning spaces since 2023. She has conducted multiple tests for our Ranked series, including steam mops, toilet bowl cleaners and stain removers.
Meet the experts
- Sean Cormier is an assistant professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology who teaches a class about textile quality assurance.
- Jennifer Rodriguez is the chief hygiene officer at Pro Housekeepers, an organization that connects customers with cleaning services in New York City.
