Bosch
SMV6ZCX01G
Test score
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Blocked pipes and broken control panels are some of the most common dishwashers faults. If you buy from the best brands, you're much less likely to encounter these problems.
Knowing which brands develop more faults is vital when you're buying a new dishwasher. That’s why this year, in our unique longevity and customer satisfaction survey, we've asked more than 12,000 Which? members and 5,000 members of the public to tell us whether they're happy with their dishwasher and if they've experienced problems.
Our survey data takes into account which dishwashers had faults reported and whether they needed to be repaired or replaced as a result.
We've crunched the numbers for the biggest dishwasher manufacturers – including AEG, Bosch, Miele, Neff and Siemens – and have calculated a customer score for each, so you know which brands owners would recommend.
Decided on the brand? Discover the best dishwashers for you.
The table below summarises this year’s results, based on dishwashers bought in the past seven years. Brands are ranked by their customer score, which reflects customers' level of satisfaction and whether they would recommend them.
The 'proportion faulty' is the percentage that experienced a fault, and the 'proportion repaired or replaced' is the percentage of dishwashers that were fixed or thrown away due to the fault.
Only logged-in Which? members can view which brands are the most and least reliable, and which our members are most satisfied with, in the table below. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.
Brand | Customer score | Proportion faulty in first seven years | Proportion repaired or replaced due to a fault |
86% | 10% | 7% | |
83% | 11% | 7% | |
80% | 13% | 9% | |
78% | 35% | 30% | |
78% | 11% | 7% | |
70% | 19% | 11% | |
70% | 23% | 16% |
As you can see in our table, there's a big difference between the best and worst dishwashers in both the satisfaction score reported by customers and the proportion of appliances that developed faults.
Best | Worst | |
Customer score | 86% | 58% |
Proportion faulty in first seven years | 10% | 35% |
Proportion repaired or replaced due to a fault | 4% | 30% |
Dishwashers should last beyond seven years without any problems, but we've found that for some brands as much as one in four need to be repaired or replaced in that time.
As you can see in the table below, there’s a big difference between how reliable the best and the worst brands are. The least reliable brands are three times more fault-prone than the most reliable.
To become an Eco Buy, a dishwasher must be both energy and water efficient and come from a reliable brand. If our survey has shown that more than 10% of a brand's dishwashers have had to be repaired or replaced, none are eligible to be awarded an Eco Buy.
Which? members can log in to view which dishwasher brands last the longest before they need to be replaced. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.
Proportion repaired or replaced due to a fault | |
Best brand | 4% |
Average for all dishwashers | 9% |
Worst brand | 30% |
We've pulled together our fault data, customer insight and their average performance in our independent dishwasher tests to give you an in-depth look at each brand.
Only Which? members can log in to view our verdicts on the brands listed below and whether they are worth buying.
If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access to the following dishwasher brand verdicts: AEG, Beko, Blomberg, Bosch, CDA, Electrolux, Fisher & Paykel, Hoover, Hotpoint, Ikea, Indesit, John Lewis, Kenwood, Lamona, Miele, Neff, Siemens, Smeg, Whirlpool, and Zanussi.
Already know which dishwasher brand you want? Use these links to go straight to our reviews and find your ideal model for each brand:
Taking good care of your dishwasher - cleaning it regularly for example - could help you avoid the three most common dishwasher faults.
A deterioration in how well your dishwasher is cleaning could be down to a number of basic maintenance problems.
To try to fix the problem, first clean the filter at the bottom of the dishwasher, as this could be clogged.
Second, check the holes in the spray arms. If one of these is blocked you can use a toothpick to unclog it.
Third, refill the salt and rinse aid, as these help your detergent and dishwasher work to the best of their abilities.
Finish by running the dishwasher empty on a hot cycle with a dishwasher cleaner, to give the drum and pipes a proper clean.
Check out our guide on how to clean a dishwasher for more information and our guide on dishwasher salt and rinse aid explained.
The number one cause of a dishwasher not draining will be that the filter or pump needs unblocking and cleaning. Luckily this is free to do. Check out our guide on how to fix a dishwasher that's not draining.
If this doesn't work, the drain pump itself could be broken and need replacing. These are pretty inexpensive and not difficult to do yourself, so it's worth trying before replacing your whole dishwasher.
To prevent this problem happening in future, make sure to clean the filter of large bits of food every week and use a dishwasher cleaner every few months to keep your machine in tip-top shape.
Electrical faults can be mysterious to diagnose. They can be anything from the display not working to the machine not turning on at all.
For these you'll probably want to get a professional in to fix it. But, depending on the price of your dishwasher, you may just think it's easier and cheaper to buy a replacement.
Search Which? Trusted Traders to find a Which?-approved trader in your area.
Which? has a wealth of information on Britain's favourite brands. Every year we ask Which? members to tell us about the home appliances they own – from how likely they would be to recommend a brand, to how reliable the products are once they get them home.
This year, 12,411 Which? Connect panel members and 5,011 members of the public told us about more than 75,000 individual products. We calculate a brand's customer score, fault rate and proportion replaced or repaired based on the results of our annual survey.
Our surveys, combined with our extensive lab tests, mean we can recommend the best dishwasher to buy.
For more on what it takes to be a Best Buy, head to the how we test dishwashers page.