The 10 Best Dog Brushes, Tested With Real Dogs

Brushing a dog’s hair is a beneficial way to keep their coat free of tangles and mats—which can be uncomfortable and even lead to health complications if not addressed. Plus, the practice of grooming your dog will help to reduce the amount of shedding you find throughout your home.

We researched dozens of dog brushes and selected 28 for real-world testing—including slickers, de-shedding tools, and pin brushes. For a month, our testers followed our methodology, brushing their dog at least once or twice a week—in accordance with their dog's coat needs—to gather feedback on each brush's effectiveness, durability, value, and ease of cleaning.

Our Top Tested Pick

Chris Christensen Original Series Oval Brush

$43 at Amazon View on Chrischristensen.com

A pin-style brush is a reliable go-to that the majority of dog parents should have on hand. The Chris Christensen Original Series Oval Brush has stainless steel pins with polished tips to gently and effectively pass through a variety of dog coats. The versatile dog brush is easy to clean and made with a lightweight yet durable beechwood.

The eight-and-a-half-inch brush has a long handle and three options for pin sizes to guide your selection. The 20-millimeter size is recommended for short coats, 27 millimeters for medium to long coats, and 35 millimeters for long, thick, full coats.

Our Pomeranian tester, who doesn't love being groomed but tolerates it in small doses, was unbothered by the use of both the 20- and 27-mm sizes, remaining calm as the pin passed through the fur on her body and arms with the help of a detangling spray.

The same with our border collie tester who endured grooming with this pin brush with fewer complaints than any other brushes, even on sensitive legs and around his ears.

This is a well-made brush that is designed to last for a long time and is suitable for a wide range of dogs in all shapes and sizes. You may find that you also want to use a slicker and/or a comb in addition to this brush to pick up strands that have been shed (slicker) or to tackle mats in fur more directly (comb), but the pin brush also helps with the aforementioned issues.

Handsome brush with quality stainless steel bristles

Another Great Choice

Hartz Groomer's Best Combo Dog Brush

$8 at Amazon $8 at Chewy $11 $8 at Walmart

The Hartz Groomer's Best Combo Dog Brush is effective, versatile, and suitable for a variety of dog coats. One side has stainless steel pins that can help untangle knots and collect loose hair, particularly for dogs with long, curly, or wiry fur. On the flip side, the brush head has soft nylon bristles for fluffing and for short coats. The bristles also help spread your dog’s natural oils throughout the coat for shiny, soft hair. The heads of the pins have rounded tips, so the brush is gentle against the skin, and the nylon bristles are very soft so most dogs don't seem to notice when they are being groomed with that side.

We tested the Hartz Groomer's Best Combo Dog Brush on dogs with a variety of coats, including long, fine hair and long, matted hair—the brush performed exceptionally well with both. It worked best on our border collie test subject. One tester even noted that it worked well on her dog's thick butt hair. The Hartz brush was less effective for dogs with short hair and also isn't the right tool if you're looking to tame your dog's undercoat.

The heads of the pins have rounded tips, so the brush is particularly gentle. Our testers with short-haired dogs didn’t collect quite as much fur, but all dogs seemed to be less bothered by this brush, particularly the soft-bristled side.

For humans, the brush has a soft rubber handle that makes it comfortable to hold. That’s especially important if you have a big dog or one with lots of hair. Like most pin and bristle brushes, it isn’t very easy to clean, but it’s hardly a deal-breaker for the price and versatility. The pin side is somewhat easier to clean than the bristle side, and we recommend clearing out all the hair you collect after each brushing session to prevent build-up.

Combo pin brush and bristle brush

How We Picked

Testing: We’ve conducted two rounds of home testing with real dogs to see how 28 dog brushes endure and perform.

For an initial four weeks, each of our canine participants was groomed with their assigned brush at least once a week by their most trusted human companion. Each human participant was tasked with gathering insights and providing feedback in the following categories: quality, ease of use, effectiveness, ease of cleaning, and overall value. Many of our top choices remain in use for continued observation, and because our testing participants found the dog brushes to be beneficial for their needs.

Equipped with this first-hand information, we ranked and categorized our top picks—all of which received high marks from our testers.

More We Recommend

Chris Christensen Big G Dog Slicker Brush

$66 at Amazon View on Chrischristensen.com

Best Slicker: The Chris Christensen Big G Dog Slicker Brush has a rectangular head with thin curved pins that are soft to the touch and gentle as they glide over a dog's skin, but powerful when it comes to brushing out knots from a variety of dog coats, including long and double. The slicker comes in three sizes, each with a long handle to help keep the grip comfortable.

Our participating tester, a mini Bernedoodle, has wavy to curly hair, and like many doodles, doesn't shed but can develop mats in their fur very easily when not brushed well. This slicker effectively worked through the coat to detangle, helping to prevent mats from developing. And while this brush is more expensive than other options, it may reduce the number of visits your dog does annually with a professional groomer.

Available in three sizes

Ruff 'N Ruffus Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush

$20 $15 at Amazon $10 at Chewy $15 at Walmart

Best Budget: If you are looking for a moderately priced option, the Ruff 'N Ruffus Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush is an effective brush that's suitable for most coat types. We tested this slicker brush on a black Labrador and a border collie mix and were satisfied with the results on both dogs' coats.

The handle molds to the shape of your hand, making it easy to maneuver. The plastic bristles are not as durable as other brushes we tested, but they hold up well and have rounded tips at the ends so they won't scratch your dog's skin. For clearing out the loose fur that it collects from your dog, this brush features a convenient self-cleaning mechanism that retracts the bristles with the simple push of a button.

It also comes with dog nail clippers which you may find useful, but we recommend you check out our latest roundup of the best nail clippers for dogs. The story includes tips and recommendations on how to safely trim your dog's nails at home.

Self-cleaning retractable bristles

Four Paws Magic Coat Professional Series Dual-Sided Curry Brush

$12 $10 at Amazon View on Chewy View on Fourpaws.com

Best for Short Hair: The Four Paws Magic Coat curry brush is a two-sided silicone brush targeted towards dogs with short, wiry, or curly coats. The nubs massage your dog and stimulate natural oils while removing loose hair. One side has shorter bristles to remove hair and the other has longer bristles to massage and deeply clean.

We tested this on a short-haired German shepherd puppy for several weeks, including in the bathtub. Our tester thought it was easy to grip and sturdy and doesn’t slip from soapy hands in the tub. However, it isn’t very helpful with medium or long-haired dogs where hair can get tangled.

You can also use the curry brush to pick up hair from carpet or furniture. It helps collect fur, lint, and dust.

Especially helpful in the bathtub

Maxpower Planet Dematting Undercoat Rake Grooming Brush

$10 at Amazon View on Maxpowerplanet.com

Best for Double Coat: The Maxpower Planet Double Sided Undercoat Rake for Dogs works to de-shed your dog and deal with mats. One side has nine teeth and the other has 17 teeth. It helps to use the side with wider spacing to work through mats and tangles. Then use the more compact side for deshedding.

“The amount of hair that came off the dogs was jaw dropping,” said one of our testers, who tried the rake on a German shepherd, blue heeler, and Rottweiler mix, as well as a long-hair dachshund. She was particularly careful with the dachshund who had thick matted hair around her ears and haunches.

Know that the blades are very sharp, so use caution when working around sensitive parts of your pup (or your own fingers). Because of this, we also wish the brush came with a storage cover for the blades. The hair comes off easily and cleanly from both sides of the brush.

Two-sided brush sheds and de-mats

FURminator Undercoat deShedding Tool

$40 $26 at Amazon $36 at Chewy $36 at Walmart

Best for Shedding: There are lots of imitators, and our testers tried a bunch of them, but the FURminator Original deShedding Tool is more effective and sturdier than other de-shedding tools we tested. For dogs with dense undercoats, this tool can help to collect loose hair and skin flakes before they have the chance to stick to your sofa. The stainless steel toothy edge moves through the dog’s topcoat to pull any loose undercoat hair. There’s a curved guard around the blade to keep it from getting too close to the skin.

Hair just keeps coming and coming the first few times you use the de-shedder, which is why this tool has so many fans. “Absolutely worth the price,” said one tester who tried both the long-hair version on her border collie and the short-hair model on her pit bull. It’s relatively easy to clean with an ejector button that pushes hair and dandruff out of the blades. There are several versions based on your dog’s size and hair type.

However, some sensitive dogs really get antsy with this brush, and you'll definitely need to be careful around delicate areas like legs. It’s only for use in dogs with double coats because the blade can be irritating next to the skin. If your dog with an undercoat also has sensitive skin, we do not recommend using a de-shedding tool, but this one is suitable for most dogs and available in three sizes so you can find the one that gives you the most control.

To eject the debris you've collected from your dog, a button on the handle triggers the back of the brush to spring forward, pushing all the hair and dander off the teeth.

Retractable bristles

GoPets Dematting Comb

$47 $36 at Amazon $45 at Walmart

Best Detangler: For dogs with thick coats that are prone to mats, the GoPets Dematting Comb is the optimal tool for gently and effectively working through the tangles while preventing knots from developing. The squishy handle makes it easy and comfortable to grip the tool. It also helps you get into difficult-to-reach spots, like underneath the front legs, where mats tend to develop.

The dual-sided tool has curved prongs on both ends. One side has more space between each prong making it a highly effective rake that can work through mats of all shapes and sizes. And the other side, similar to a fine tooth comb, has curved prongs that are much closer together to pass through the undercoat knocking out loose fur and skin flakes, all of which are easily pulled from the comb for disposal.

Works through tangles and prevents knots

Pet Teezer Detangling Dog Grooming Brush

View on Amazon View on Chewy View on Tangleteezer.com

Best for Baths: The Pet Teezer Detangling Brush has two tiers of teeth to help pick up loose hair and remove dirt from a pup’s undercoat. It’s lightweight and comes in several colors. It can be used on wet or dry fur and is easy to clean. The brush is easy to pack and store and we like the way that it looks.

We tested this on a Cavapoo with curly, short, and thick hair. It worked well on a hypoallergenic pup that didn’t have loads of hair. The brush comes in two sizes and the smaller one was easy to move around sensitive areas. Although the brush has an ergonomic shape, the one thing our tester thought was missing was some sort of handle to help get a better grasp on it.

Two tiers of bristles

FURminator Grooming Rake

$9 at Amazon $9 at Chewy $20 $9 at Petco

Best Rake Brush: The FURminator Grooming Rake has a single row of rotating metal teeth that glide easily through dense fur, including a thick undercoat, removing excess strands and detangling knots to achieve a nice smooth coat. Our German Shepherd tester seemed to love how it felt on his skin and actually leaned in for more brushing.

When used gently, it will not pull on the fur or skin of your pet, and the handle is ergonomic for comfort and to give you more control. Rather than having to continually brush the same area over and over again, the FURminator passed through each section quickly and effortlessly picking up loose hair and debris in one sweep.

After each brushing session, the hair pulls right out of the pins with no hair left behind. If your dog is prone to mats or has a very dense undercoat, you may also need a de-shedding tool, like our pick for Best Shedding by the same manufacturer, the FURminator Deshedding Tool.

Easy-glide rotating teeth

Other Products We Tested

Tuffer Than Tangles Slicker Brush for Dog Grooming: Although this brush feels sturdy, it looks cheap. It works fine to rake out an undercoat. However, the bristles are stiff and unforgiving and our tester dog thoroughly disliked the grooming experience.

Bodhi Dog Bath Brush: This latex-free bath tool collects fur and dander while giving your pup a comforting massage. It can be used on wet or dry fur, but it’s not recommended for long hair because of the threat of tangling.

Le Salon Essentials Rubber Curry Grooming Brush: This rubber brush picks up and removes loose fur and is recommended for use before, during, and after bathtime. It’s very easy to clean, but designed primarily for dogs with short coats. It's not ideal for long or thick fur.

King KOMB The Self-Cleaning Multi-Use DeShedding Tool: A lightweight de-shedding tool, it doesn’t feel as nice as it looks. We like the tool’s folding handle, but the teeth are somewhat dull and the construction is flimsy in spots.

Why Trust The Spruce Pets?

This story was updated by Mary Jo DiLonardo, a veteran reviewer of dog products for The Spruce Pets. The proud mom of a rescue dog, she has fostered around four dozen dogs and puppies. DiLonardo has tried lots of different brushes on her own dog and foster pups and is always looking for the most effective and comfortable tools.

A previous version was written by Anna Mejorada, an editor for The Spruce Pets, who shares her home with a happy Pomeranian named Gidget. Mejorada uses a Chris Christensen Oval Dog Brush daily to keep Gidget's fur from tangling.