20+ Best Vinyl Record Cleaner Tools and Record Cleaning Kits

What’s a vinyl record cleaner?

Vinyl record cleaners are specially-designed tools used to clean, dust, and polish your precious collection.

Many tools can be used to make your vinyl cleaner, from simple carbon fiber brushes to advanced ultrasonic machines. They’re designed to help you keep your vinyl in squeaky clean condition.

The best record cleaners on a budget

This section covers the best budget choices, with a few options that are a great starting point for collectors.

Best vinyl record brushes and pads

A cleaning brush is a simple and affordable tool for keeping vinyl records clean. They either come designed like traditional fiber brushes or with a pad (velvet brush).

They’re used by most collectors for quick cleaning before and after playing records, not really for deep cleaning. They’re good at picking up hairs and dust but won’t remove grease or anything else that isn’t just on the surface of the disc.

Pros & Cons of Vinyl Brushes

• + Easy to use
• + Quick
• + Low cost
• + Removes surface dust
• – Not a deep cleaning method
• – Doesn’t remove oil, grease, or fingerprints
• – Risk of scratching without proper attention
• – They tend to drop bristles, which is counterproductive.

Regular Record Cleaner Brush vs. Velvet Brush/pad

When looking at brushes, you’ll find both traditional brush style and velvet pad style tools.

They both work similarly, but each has a slightly different performance.

Personally, I have a better experience using velvet pads than a carbon fiber brush, as they seem to be more effective in picking up debris and smaller fibers. Sometimes the brushes just push it around but don’t actually pull it from the record’s surface.

I also find velvet pads easier to handle and less risky. If you’re not careful with a brush, it’s easy to push it too hard into the surface, which can cause the sharp plastic casing to come into contact with the vinyl, potentially causing scratches. This problem doesn’t arise with pads.

My recommendations in this category

Best Record cleaning fluids

Record cleaning fluid helps to clean records more than standard dry techniques like brushes.

The fluid removes oil and grease and helps to evaporate dust. Typically the fluid is either sprayed or dabbed onto the surface of a record, left to react for a few seconds, then wiped dry.

For a full walkthrough, see my guide on cleaning vinyl records, where I explain both wet and dry techniques for removing dirt from your vinyl collection.

Pros & Cons of fluid

• + More effective than brushes. Helps to remove dirt from grooves
• + Eliminates Ease, oil, and fingerprints
• + Relatively quick and easy to use
• + Generally affordable
• – Some brands can be expensive
• – May leave marks or residue if not dried properly
• – Using the wrong chemicals can damage records – make sure you use vinyl-friendly fluid that is not alcohol-based and doesn’t contain ammonia.

My recommendations in this category

DIY cleaning fluid: Soap and tap water

This can work as a last resort, but it isn’t advised or recommended. Whilst it may remove dirt and grime, using water and soap can leave the record in worse condition, as the minerals in tap water may dry in the grooves. Distilled water is preferred, although you should avoid this method altogether really.

The best record cleaning kits

Vinyl cleaning kits are an easy way to get all the basic tools you need in one package. Each kit is slightly different, but typically they contain a brush and/or pad, a bottle of washing fluid, and a vinyl-friendly microfiber cloth. Some kits contain extra tools to keep your vinyl records in shape.  Kits often help save cash compared to buying individual parts. These are also a popular gift idea for vinyl collectors.

If you’re looking for a record cleaning kit, here are some of the best packages to consider.

My recommendations

The best record washers

Record washers are an effective and relatively affordable tool for deep cleaning your favorite records.

These are much more effective than a standard dry brush and are quicker, easier, and safer to use than most methods.

They work by spinning the record through a series of solutions, brushes, and pads to wash them clean. They are a great tool for quickly cleaning a large batch of records – they’re also quite fun to use!

Although they aren’t perfect: Issues arise with these washers, which is why I prefer proper record cleaning machines despite their high price.

• Wet washers can get messy, and you run the risk of damaging the labels
• It’s quite a process to go through and can be slow. Nice if you want to savor what you’re doing, but it does get boring quickly.

My recommendations

Record cleaners for the pros

This next section looks at professional equipment for cleaning vinyl, which is the best choice if you can afford one of these machines.

They’re used by people working in a vinyl store (particularly second-hand), for record labels, or in vinyl pressing studios and factories.

These are the most effective methods, often quickly achieving a high level of deep cleaning. The only downside of these tools is the price, size, and sometimes complexity. Some machines can also be time-consuming but still generally faster than most methods.

I’ve sorted these machines in order of effectiveness, starting with the best.

Best record cleaning machines

Record cleaning machines are an advanced tool. The specifics vary from model to model but read this section to understand how they work, and why we chose them as the best cleaning tool.

How record cleaning machines work

Record cleaning machines work by combining all the tools into a single device.

This is the basic process. Rotate and apply fluid. A brush is used to spread fluid. Then the vinyl is vacuumed to remove the dirty liquid.

Record cleaning machines are designed to remove as much grime from the grooves as possible and will keep a record collection sounding great with ease. Some are wet, others are dry. The main advantage of these systems is the vacuum, which is highly effective at removing residue.

Are record cleaning machines worth the money?

Cleaning machines are one of the best types of tools for the job and are much better than dry methods with brushes or using a washer like the Spin-clean. They achieve great results and are fast to use.

Pros and Cons

• + Achieves great results
• + Easy to use and safe
• + Quickly cleans, good for larger batches
• – Expensive
• – Loud when the vacuum is switched on
• – Generally requires semi-permanent installation, and takes up room.

My recommendations

Stylus cleaner tools

Keeping your stylus clean is also important for great sound quality. The more a stylus gets played, the more dirt and dust can build up on the tip. Cleaning your stylus can make a large improvement in terms of audio quality and reproduction.

Stylus cleaning tools typically come in 3 categories: Fluid & Brush, Gel Pad, and Ultrasonic.

Below is a shortlist of recommended stylus cleaners. For more information, check out my guide on the best stylus cleaners.

Fluid and Brush Stylus Cleaners

• Audio-Technica AT607a Cartridge Stylus Cleaner: A decent fluid and brush-type cleaner from a reputable brand.
• Stylus Fluid & Carbon Fiber Brush budget fluid and brush.

Gel-Based Stylus Cleaners

• Momila Turntable Stylus Cleaner Affordable but effective gel pad.
• ONZOW ZeroDust Higher quality gel pad.

UV Stylus Cleaner

• Hudson Hi-Fi UV Stylus Cleaner – quick and effective.