Best toilets for most bathrooms

The Drake II is the toilet I’d point most homeowners to first. TOTO’s spec sheet lists model MS454124CEFG as a two-piece, 1.28 gpf toilet with an elongated bowl, a high-profile tank and an SS124 SoftClose seat. The #01 suffix is the Cotton white finish. That seat is in the box, which only one other pick here can say.

The flush is TOTO’s Tornado Flush. TOTO lists a minimum static pressure of 8 psi, a 2-1/8 in. trap diameter and a 2-1/8 in. trap seal, the depth of water that blocks sewer gas. The water surface is 6-3/4 by 8-5/8 in. That’s smaller than the Kohler picks, so the sides of the bowl stay dry higher up.

TOTO coats this bowl in CEFIONTECT, a ceramic glaze it says keeps debris and mold from sticking. TOTO says that means fewer chemicals and less water when you clean. The model without the G suffix skips the glaze and only comes in Ebony, so check that the box reads MS454124CEFG.

Height is TOTO’s Universal Height, its chair-height bowl. TOTO’s sheet says it meets the ADA when the seat height lands between 17 and 19 in. and the trip lever sits on the approach side. A right-hand lever model, MS454124CEFRG, exists for bathrooms where the open side is on the right.

The certifications list is long: IAPMO cUPC, EPA WaterSense, Massachusetts and the City of Los Angeles. TOTO also lists California’s CALGreen and AB715 water rules, and Buy American Act compliance. My call: the WaterSense mark is what most water utility rebates look for, so keep the receipt.

The one install note to read is the drain. TOTO says high efficiency toilets need a 4 in. drain line with at least 2% slope and runs no longer than 60 ft, plus other fixtures adding flow. In an older house with a long, flat 3 in. line, that’s worth checking before you buy any 1.28 gpf toilet.

TOTO backs it with a one-year limited warranty. My call: buy it if you have a 12 in. rough-in and want the whole toilet, seat included, in one order. A top answer in Reddit’s r/Plumbing thread on this question also named the Drake. It was sold by Amazon.com, new and in stock when I checked.

The Champion PRO is built around one job: moving a lot of waste in one flush. American Standard’s spec sheet for model 211AA.104 lists a 4 in. piston-action Accelerator flush valve and a fully glazed 2-3/8 in. trapway. Both are the biggest on this page. The .020 at the end of the part number is the White finish.

It’s also the only pick here with a printed flush score. The sheet lists a 1,000 g MaP score at 1.28 gpf. MaP, short for Maximum Performance, is an independent test of how many grams of test waste a toilet clears in one flush. EPA’s WaterSense label needs at least 350 g, so 1,000 g is far above that floor.

American Standard tested its MaP score through IAPMO’s lab, with the report by Veritec Consulting and Koeller and Company. The Amazon listing adds that it flushes a bucket of golf balls, which is a demo, not a spec. My call: the trapway and valve sizes are the numbers I’d trust for a clog-prone line.

The bowl is American Standard’s Right Height, with a 16-1/2 in. rim height the sheet calls suited for accessible use. The sheet says it meets ADA guidelines and ANSI A117.1. Add a seat and you’re near 17 in. The water surface is 9 by 8 in., larger than both TOTO picks.

Two things make cleaning easier. A PowerWash rim scrubs the bowl with each flush, and the EverClean surface is in the box, per the spec sheet. The trip lever is metal, and so is the shank of the fill valve, where some toilets use plastic. EZ-Install tools and color-matched bowl caps come with it.

The warranty is 10 years, the longest here. The trade is availability. American Standard’s site marks the white 211AA104 as discontinued and out of stock, while this Amazon listing was new and in stock from Homestead Supply & More. My call: check that the box reads 211AA104 when it arrives.

You’ll need a seat. The spec sheet names the Champion Slow Close seat, part 5325.010, and the listing suggests the 5503A00B.020. The supply line is sold separately too. At 30-1/4 in. deep, it’s the deepest of the four toilets with a listed depth, so measure from the wall to the door swing first.

My call: buy it if clogs are the problem you’re trying to solve. It was new and in stock when I checked.

The Cimarron’s tank has no flapper. Kohler’s spec sheet for the K-31621 lists an AquaPiston canister, a seal that lifts straight up instead of a rubber flapper that swings open. Kohler says it takes less force to work than a 3 in. flapper. It also has 90% less exposed seal material.

That matters because a worn flapper is the most common reason a toilet runs on its own. Kohler says the smaller exposed seal resists the wear, shrinking and swelling that cause leaks. My call: if you’ve replaced two flappers in the last few years, this is the tank I’d move to. See our flapper vs fill valve guide for how that repair goes.

The flush is Kohler’s Revolution 360, which Kohler says makes a strong swirl to keep the bowl clean longer. The trapway is 2-1/8 in. and fully glazed. That’s the same as both TOTO picks and narrower than the Champion PRO. It uses 1.28 gpf and carries the EPA WaterSense mark.

The water surface is 10-3/8 by 8-1/8 in., and the rim sits 6-5/8 in. above the water. A bigger water surface covers more of the bowl, so less sticks to dry china. Kohler adds CleanCoat, a treatment it says slows water scale and mineral stains, and a sanitary guard where the bowl meets the tank.

Kohler’s Comfort Height puts the rim at 16-1/2 in., per the drawing on the spec sheet. Kohler lists ADA, ICC/ANSI A117.1 and CSA B651 among its codes, when installed to those rules. The whole toilet stands 31-1/4 in. tall and 28-15/16 in. deep, a little shorter front to back than the Champion PRO.

There’s a back-to-back install note here too. Kohler says to use a 45-degree double wye fitting and not a double sanitary tee when two toilets share a drain. The seat and supply line are sold separately. Kohler suggests its PureWash E750 bidet seat, K-4108, if you want one.

Kohler backs it with a one-year limited warranty. My call: buy it if a running toilet is the problem you keep fixing. It was sold by Amazon.com, new and in stock when I checked.

The Aquia IV gives you two flushes. TOTO’s spec sheet lists 1.28 gpf for a full flush and 0.9 gpf for a light one, picked with a chrome push button on the tank lid. The flush system is TOTO’s DynaMax Tornado Flush, which TOTO says cleans 360 degrees around the bowl.

The base is completely skirted. That means the sides of the bowl run straight to the floor and hide the trapway’s curves, so you wipe one smooth surface. TOTO calls it easier to clean. The glaze is CEFIONTECT, like the Drake II, and the trapway is 2-1/4 in., one size up from the Drake II.

Here’s the detail I like most. The standard bowl is a 12 in. rough-in, but TOTO sells Unifit adapters for 10 in. (TSU48.10) and 14 in. (TSU48.14). Rough-in is the distance from the finished wall to the center of the drain. If you measure and land on an odd number, this bowl can adapt.

The trade is a small pool of water. TOTO lists the water surface at 7 by 5 in., the smallest here. A small surface leaves more dry china for waste to cling to, so you may brush it more often. TOTO’s glaze is meant to help with that. Minimum pressure is 8 psi flowing.

Height is TOTO’s Universal Height. There’s no seat in the box. TOTO lists three as options: SS114 and SS124 SoftClose, and the SS234 slim SoftClose. If you want a TOTO WASHLET bidet seat, the sheet says you need the 9AU321-A adapter to install it on this bowl.

Certifications include IAPMO cUPC, EPA WaterSense and Massachusetts, and it also meets ASME A112.19.14, the dual flush standard. The bowl ships at 83 lb and the tank at 29 lb, per TOTO. TOTO gives it a one-year limited warranty.

My call: buy it if water use or cleaning is your main concern, or if your rough-in isn’t a clean 12 in. It was sold by Amazon.com, new and in stock when I checked.

The St. Tropez is the only one-piece toilet here. A one-piece toilet has the tank and bowl cast together, so there’s no gasket between them and no bolts inside the tank to leak. Swiss Madison’s spec sheet lists the SM-1T254HB at 27.5 in. deep, 16 in. wide and 31.5 in. tall.

The seat is in the box. Swiss Madison calls it quick-release and soft-close, and its product page says it detaches with a button push. That and the skirted base make it the easiest toilet here to clean. Swiss Madison’s page lists the trapway as fully glazed and skirted, without a size.

The flush is Swiss Madison’s Dual Vortex, with two buttons on top. Its product page lists 1.1 gpf for a light flush and 1.6 gpf for a full one. The full flush uses more than the 1.28 gpf the other five toilets use. Swiss Madison doesn’t list WaterSense on the page or the spec sheet.

That matters in two ways. Many water rebates ask for the WaterSense mark. EPA’s current rules let a dual flush toilet earn it with a 1.6 gpf full flush if the light flush is 1.1 gpf or less, so this split could fit. My call: without the label on the box, don’t count on a rebate.

Swiss Madison says the toilet is comfort height, with the seat landing between 17 and 19 in., and its spec sheet says ADA compliant. The bowl is elongated. It’s a standard 12 in. rough-in and floor mount, and the box includes the toilet and installation hardware.

Weight is the install issue. The spec sheet lists a net weight of 108.48 lb, and with a one-piece, that’s all in one lift. My call: plan on two people to set it on the wax ring without sliding it. Our wax ring guide covers the ring to use.

The warranty depends on where you buy. Swiss Madison’s warranty is one year. The three-year version applies only to toilets bought on Swiss Madison’s own website and registered within 30 days. My call: buy it for the one-piece look and the seat. It was sold by Amazon.com, new and in stock when I checked.

Most toilets are built for a 12 in. rough-in, the distance from the finished wall to the center of the drain. The Highline is built for 10 in. Kohler’s spec sheet for the K-3889 lists a 10 in. rough-in, floor outlet, two-piece elongated bowl and 1.28 gpf. It’s for older homes and tight bathrooms where a 12 in. bowl won’t fit.

A 10 in. toilet is the one you can’t fake. A 12 in. toilet on a 10 in. drain won’t fit, because the tank hits the wall. The Highline solves that without an offset flange. My call: measure to the bolt caps, not the baseboard, before you order it. Our 10 in. rough-in guide has more options.

The tank uses Kohler’s Class Five canister, a flush valve that lifts straight up like the Cimarron’s AquaPiston instead of using a flapper. Kohler says it harnesses gravity for a stronger flush. The trapway is 2-1/8 in. Kohler’s features list calls it fully glazed, and its technical table calls the trapway exposed.

Exposed means you can see the trapway’s curve on the side of the bowl. It isn’t skirted like the Aquia IV or the St. Tropez, so there’s more to wipe. Its water surface is the largest any maker lists here, 11-3/8 by 8 in. The rim sits 5-3/8 in. above the water, 1-1/4 in. less than the Cimarron’s.

Height is Kohler’s Comfort Height. The drawing on the spec sheet puts the rim at 16-1/2 in. and the toilet at 31-1/4 in. tall and 29-1/2 in. deep. Kohler lists ADA, ICC/ANSI A117.1 and CSA B651, when installed to those rules. It carries the EPA WaterSense mark.

Install uses Kohler’s three-bolt quick-connect system. The seat and supply line are sold separately. Kohler’s sheet suggests its K-4636-RL Quiet-Close elongated seat and a 12 in. supply line, and it lists a wax ring and hardware kit. Kohler covers it under its Toilets and Seats Limited Warranty, with the details on its website.

My call: buy it only if you measured 10 in. If you did, it’s the simplest fix on this list. It was sold by Amazon.com, new and in stock when I checked.