Best tweezer

Which tweezer is best?

Tweezers have a multitude of uses, including removing stray facial and body hair, removing ingrown hairs, putting on false eyelashes, removing splinters or thorns, and decorating nail art. Some are better for vanity tasks, such as eyebrow grooming, while others are better for medicinal ones like removing splinters.

While it may seem straightforward to buy a new pair of tweezers, there are actually quite a number of considerations that go into making a purchase. The top pick is the highly crafted Zizzeli Basics Surgical-Grade Stainless Steel Tweezers, which can address all your plucking needs.

What to know before you buy a tweezer

There are six kinds of tweezers.

• Slant tip: This most common type of tweezers works well for plucking eyebrows and putting on false eyelashes. It has a slant tip that points slightly.
• Point tip: This has a tip with a precise point, good for prying out embedded things like ingrown hairs, ticks or splinters. It's also favored for placing nail art.
• Pointed slant tip: This hybrid of the slant tip and point tip has versatile uses.
• Round tip: This has a rounded tip that won’t stab you if your head slips or is unsteady. If using it for grooming, be aware that it may grab multiple hairs at once and is best for plucking coarse hairs. It works well when positioned at an angle.
• Flat tip: This features a blunted tip edge that’s helpful for putting on fake eyelashes.
• Arched claw: This has tips that arch instead of tapering straight to allow more leverage and visibility when you tweeze stray hairs. It's ideal for removing lighter or shorter hairs.

What to look for in a quality tweezer

Material

Tweezers are constructed from plastic or one of several kinds of metal.

• Plastic: Though less expensive, plastic doesn’t offer the durability or precision of metal. They also aren’t great for sensitive skin.
• Stainless steel is commonly used for tweezers because it's rust-resistant and affordable, and doesn’t generally irritate the skin. 
• Hardened steel is stronger than stainless.
• Titanium is the highest-quality metal used for tweezers and carries the highest price tag. Titanium tweezers are lightweight, retain their shape, and glide easily over the skin.

Grip

If small objects tend to slip from your hands, choose tweezers with a textured grip to give you better hold and control.

Alignment

To do their job, tweezer tips must be properly aligned so there is no gap between the edges when grabbing something. While less expensive tweezers may be tempting, they are sometimes misaligned, rendering them useless.

How much you can expect to spend on a tweezer

Tweezers range in price from $1-$36 a pair. For a good pair of aligned stainless-steel tweezers, expect to pay between $6-$15.

Tweezer FAQ

Q. How do I clean my tweezers?

A. Clean your tweezers after each use with a cotton swab dampened with rubbing alcohol. If they come into contact with blood, you may also want to boil them.

Q. How can I prevent my tweezers from going dull?

A. Store them face up in an open container such as a cup. Pointed tweezers must be sharpened occasionally; buy them from a manufacturer that offers theservice for free. This perk comes only with high-end tweezers, but a lifetime of free sharpening makes for a worthwhile investment. 

What's the best tweezer to buy?

Top tweezer

Zizzeli Basics Surgical-Grade Stainless Steel Tweezers

What you should know: These quality metal tweezers offer durability and precision.

What you'll love: Made from surgical-grade stainless steel, they come with a protective pouch and tip guards. The tips are perfectly aligned.

What you should consider: The slanted tips are not ideal for removing super fine hairs.

Where to buy: Sold by Amazon

Top tweezer for the money

Revlon the Designer Collection Slanted Tweezers

What you should know: These low-priced, attractive tweezers come from a trusted cosmetic brand.

What you'll love: They come in fun designs, and the slanted tips provide precision alignment. 

What you should consider: The design in its featured photo is different from the actual tweezer. 

Where to buy: Sold by Amazon

Worth checking out

Tweezerman Safety Tweezers

What you should know: These are first-aid tweezers from a brand synonymous with tweezers.

What you'll love: Their pointed tips are designed for precise tweezing of splinters, tick, and ingrown hairs. They're made from top-quality stainless steel.

What you should consider: They're not for everyday grooming needs.

Where to buy: Sold by Amazon

Want to shop the best products at the best prices? Check out Daily Deals from BestReviews.

Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.

Ana Sanchez writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.