The Best Windshield Wiper Fluids [2023]

Why Choosing the Right Windshield Wiper Fluid is Important

The best type of windshield wiper fluid for your car is probably not something that is on your mind often. But when it comes time to change or refill your windshield washer reservoir it should be. It’s important to get the correct type for you because it could end up making your life a lot easier. The right windshield wiper fluid can help clear bugs off of your car on the highway. It can improve your vision in the rain and it can speed up your morning routine by helping to melt ice in the winter.

Using the right windshield wiper fluid is a must and because most people don’t think about it often we’ve done the research for you. No matter what time of your or what your lifestyle requires, we have the best options to make your day a little easier and potentially a little safer too!

OUR FAVORITE WINDSHIELD WIPER FLUIDS!

Best Overall

The best windshield wiper fluid overall is Prestone All-Season 3-in-1. This is by far the best windshield wiper fluid on the market. Prestone rose to the top of our list due to 4 different factors. To start Prestone is an amazing brand that has been in the car industry for a very long time and is trusted because of the reliable products they produce.

Then comes the bonus that this specific blend is cold weather durable to -27 degrees. That is the lowest temperature of any windshield cleaner that we could find. This is great because it not only gives you peace of mind that the liquid won’t freeze in your pipes. It also doubles as a great way to remove snow and ice!

The third defining factor and a very important one is that it has a deep cleaning bug wash to quickly break down and remove insects and dirt from your windshield.

And lastly, it leaves behind a water-resistant coating, so it gives a streak-free shine and water resistance for better visibility when driving in the rain or snow. All while remaining a safe option for those with rain-sensing windshield wipers.

While this is a premium product from a trusted brand it doesn’t come with a premium price tag. In fact, it is actually quite cheap! All of these benefits in one package makes Prestone 3-in-1 a no brainer. This is the product every vehicle owner should turn to for their next windshield wiper fluid.

Best For Water Repellency

If your main concern is water repellency or extending the life of your rain-x coating then Rain-X Washer Fluid Additive is the product you want. This comes from one of the leaders in the automotive industry for creating water-resistant glass coatings. This coating will help resist rain and snow giving you better visibility when driving in harsh conditions. It also leaves behind a film that makes it easier to clean bugs and debris off of your windshield.

The film ensures that they don’t stick quite as badly. I use this additive mixed with distilled water. This is helpful because when the fluid dries on your windshield in the areas that the wipers don’t reach it is less likely to leave water spots.

Best For Bug Removal

For more rural areas where a vast amount of bugs accumulating on your windshield may be your biggest problem, 303 Instant Windshield Washer has your back. 303 is hands down the strongest windshield cleaner we’ve ever used. It doesn’t have a low freezing point and it doesn’t add any rain or snow repellent to your windshield. But if you’re constantly driving through insects and you’re looking for the best windshield wiper fluid for bugs then you can rest assured that 303 Instant Windshield Washer can take care of the problem.

They use an industrial bug cleaning agent that loosens the bugs and dirt. Allowing your windshield wipers to scrape them up and off of the glass with ease. This product has amazing reviews and is as easy as filling the reservoir and dropping in a tablet. 303 states that the use of chemicals that give windshield wiper fluid a lower freezing point also damages their ability to properly clean. So they decided not to worry about adding any extras but instead building the strongest windshield cleaner that they could.

Best For Winter

The best winter windshield wiper fluid on the market is actually from the same company as our best overall pick. Prestone De-icer is our best windshield wiper fluid as it carries the lowest freezing point of any product that we could find at -27 degrees Fahrenheit. But it is also specially formulated to quickly melt snow and light ice.

This works because this wiper fluid has a very high methanol content as well as ethylene glycol that will leave a film behind to prevent it from freezing over in the future. This film also provides a water repellent coating meaning that when driving in the snow you will have increased visibility as the snow will struggle to stay on the windshield. This film works great for wet/snow and rain as well.

If you’re looking for a good winter blend windshield wiper fluid then you may also enjoy our article on the best windshield wipers for winter.

Best Concentrate

Our best budget windshield wiper fluid is Kristall Klar Washer Fluid. It actually works amazingly well and even if it cost more it would still be one worth trying. Fortunately, it doesn’t cost more, and price per gallon has it set at a little under $1. It doesn’t get any more affordable than that. Kristall Klar comes in a small eye dropper type bottle with a 1:200 Concentrate cleaner. One bottle is enough to make 12 gallons of windshield wiper fluid.

On top of being a great deal, people love this product and the reviews it has show a lot of happy customers. Kristall Klar concentrate works great at removing bugs, dirt and road grime. It provides glare and streak-free cleaning. And they even added in water softeners to make sure that over time hard water doesn’t clog your cars spray jets.

**PSA FOR PEOPLE CONSIDERING RAIN-X WIPER FLUID**

Rain-X was hit with a class-action lawsuit under the assessment that their Orange windshield wiper fluids were incompatible with the fluid sensors in Dodge, Jeep, VW, Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Mercedes Benz, and Mini Coopers. When used in these vehicles the fluid is said to build up on the sensors causing them to malfunction and display a low fluid level light even when this was not the case. These sensors cannot be cleaned but need to be replaced.

How to Replace Your Windshield Wiper Fluid

Replacing your car’s windshield wiper fluid is easy. All it takes is to make sure that you have emptied the old windshield washer fluid. Although you don’t have to do this if you are topping it off with the same kind as before. We do not recommend mixing windshield washer fluids. Then you look for the correct hole to pour the fluid into.

This part is extremely important because if you put it into the wrong hole you could severely damage your vehicle. The hole you need to pour the windshield wiper fluid into will have the symbol shown below on the cap.

Once you find the cap with this symbol you just pour in your fluid until the reservoir is full and you are done!