Best Toilets in 2026 (A Licensed Plumber’s Picks)

Plumbing Picks is reader-supported. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

New to this? Start with our complete guide: How to Fix a Running Toilet: A Licensed Plumber’s Complete Guide.

Measure before you buy — toilet rough-in size is what decides whether it fits.

After installing hundreds of toilets, I judge them on one thing above all: does it clear the bowl in a single flush? A weak flusher means double-flushing (which wastes the water you were trying to save) and more clogs — and when one does happen, you’ll want the right tool to clear a stubborn clog. The good news is the best modern toilets are both powerful and WaterSense-efficient.

Here are three I’d put in any home, from the flush-performance champ to a great value. All three are gravity-flush units a handy homeowner can install in an afternoon — two two-piece models plus the one-piece Champion 4.

Related: Upgrading the bathroom? A bidet toilet seat adds comfort to the toilet you already own.

What the WaterSense Label Is Actually Worth

Every pick above carries a flush rating, so it is worth knowing what the numbers mean rather than treating the label as decoration. Straight from the EPA WaterSense:

• The federal standard is 1.6 gallons per flush. A WaterSense label means 1.28 gpf or less — 20% less water — while still meeting performance requirements.
• Toilets are the single largest use of water in a house, at nearly 30% of indoor consumption.
• Replacing inefficient toilets with WaterSense models cuts toilet water use 20–60% — about 13,000 gallons a year for an average family, more than $170 a year in water costs and $3,400 over the toilets’ lifetime.

The plumber’s footnote on that: the savings are real, but they are the reason to choose between good toilets, not the reason to buy one. A 1.28 gpf toilet that needs two flushes has saved nobody anything — which is exactly why the picks above are chosen on flush performance first and the label second. Get both, and it is free money. Get the label without the performance and you have bought a slower version of the same water bill.

How to Choose the Right Toilet

1. Measure your rough-in (the distance from the wall to the center of the floor drain bolts) — almost always 12 inches, but check before buying.
2. Decide on bowl height: standard or ‘comfort/chair height’ (taller, easier to sit/stand) — most adults prefer comfort height.
3. Prioritize flush performance (MaP score) over fancy features — a strong single flush prevents clogs and double-flushing.
4. Choose elongated bowl for comfort or round for tight spaces; treat the WaterSense label as a tiebreaker between strong flushers rather than a filter, since two of the three picks above are 1.6 gallon per flush models.
5. Budget for a new wax ring and supply line at install — never reuse the old wax ring.

Before you pick a model, settle the height. Bowls in this guide come in both, and the difference is about two and a half inches at the seat — see comfort height vs standard toilet for which suits your household, and the measuring trap that makes a lot of product listings misleading.

Bowl shape is the other decision to settle before you buy. It comes down to two inches of floor space — round vs elongated toilet covers where those two inches matter and the compact elongated option most people never hear about.

The other build decision is one-piece vs two-piece. It is less about leaks than people think — the real differences are cleaning and whether you can physically carry it up your stairs.

How We Pick Toilets

Picks here start with field experience on real jobs — which makes and flush mechanisms hold up in occupied homes, and which ones generate callbacks. That is read against published manufacturer specifications (capacity, flush volume, trapway, materials, warranty) rather than guessed, and against the standards that apply, EPA WaterSense included. We weigh value rather than price: the cheapest toilet that fails in two years is not a deal. Nobody pays to be included, and we name a small number of genuine winners instead of every model on the market. The full method is on how we pick.

Why Trust Plumbing Picks

This guide is written by Isaac Daniels, a licensed Georgia plumber — journeyman license #JP507711, which you can verify through the Georgia Secretary of State’s license verification portal. No manufacturer pays to appear here and there are no sponsored placements. The site is reader-supported: some links are Amazon affiliate links, and we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. More about who writes this on the about page.

FAQ

What is the best flushing toilet?

For raw flush power, the American Standard Champion 4 is famous for clearing the bowl every time and rarely clogging. For the best all-around combination of strong flush, efficiency, and build quality, the TOTO Drake is the plumber favorite. Both clear waste reliably in a single flush, which is what matters most.

What rough-in size toilet do I need?

Rough-in is the distance from the finished wall to the center of the closet bolts on the floor. The vast majority of homes use a 12-inch rough-in, but older homes sometimes have 10- or 14-inch. Measure before you buy — the wrong rough-in won’t fit.

Can I install a toilet myself?

Yes — it’s a very doable DIY job in an afternoon. Shut off and disconnect the supply, remove the old toilet, scrape off the old wax, set a new wax ring, lower the new toilet onto the bolts, tighten evenly (don’t overtighten or you’ll crack the base), reconnect the supply, and check for leaks. Always use a fresh wax ring.

Bottom Line

For most homes, the TOTO Drake is the toilet to buy — a powerful single flush, great build, and water-efficient. Want unbeatable flush power for a problem bathroom? The American Standard Champion 4. Looking for style and value? The Kohler Cimarron. Whatever you choose, check your rough-in and use a new wax ring at install.

What Else Goes in the Cart on Install Day

A toilet ships as a bowl, a tank and the bolts that hold those two together. Nothing that connects it to your house comes in the box. Every one of these is a part you cannot finish the job without, and every one of them is the reason people end up at the hardware store with the old toilet already off the floor.

• A seal for the floor flange — wax or wax-free. Never reuse the old one; it’s compressed to the shape of the toilet you just took out. The traditional choice is the Fluidmaster 7513 extra-thick wax toilet bowl gasket with flange, which fits 3-inch and 4-inch waste lines, carries 40% more wax than a standard ring, and includes a polyethylene flange so it still seals when the flange sits level with or below the finished floor. That last part matters if you’ve tiled over the old floor.
• Or skip the wax entirely. If you’re setting the bowl on your own and would rather not get one shot at it, the Fluidmaster 7530 Better Than Wax wax-free toilet seal can be lifted and repositioned without ruining the seal, works on uneven or recessed-flange floors, and comes with its own no-rust brass bolts and hardware — so it covers the next item too. Wax works fine when you get it right the first time; wax-free forgives you when you don’t.
• Closet bolts, if you went with wax. The bolts holding your old toilet down are usually corroded, and you will not want to fight them again in five years. Danco 89055 brass closet bolts, 5/16 by 3-1/2 inch, come as two bolts with nuts and washers — brass so they don’t seize into the flange. The extra length gives you something to hold when the bowl is heavy and you’re working blind.
• A supply line. The old one has a hardened washer and has been bent into one position for a decade. A Fluidmaster B1T12 braided stainless toilet connector is the standard replacement — 3/8-inch compression at the shutoff, 7/8-inch ballcock nut at the tank, 12 inches long. Measure your shutoff-to-tank distance before ordering; the same connector comes in other lengths and a short one will not stretch.

One more thing worth doing while the toilet is off the floor: try the shutoff valve. If it won’t close fully or drips once you’ve turned it, replace it now rather than after the new toilet is bolted down on top of it. A BrassCraft quarter-turn angle stop (model G2CR19X) is the usual replacement: a 3/8-inch compression outlet, which is exactly what the connector above expects, and a quarter turn to shut it instead of six. Check your stub-out first — this one takes a 1/2-inch nominal compression inlet, and a threaded stub needs a different inlet. If the old valve closes fully and stays dry once you have turned it, leave it alone; a working stop is not worth replacing for its own sake.

Related Plumbing Guides

• Best Toilet Flapper Replacements
• Toilet Won’t Flush? Causes & Fixes
• Best Bidet Attachments
• How to Fix a Running Toilet (Complete Guide)

A tank that drips in summer isn’t leaking, it’s condensation — see toilet sweating and condensation for the fixes (and which tanks resist it).