Which? has surveyed hundreds of buyers to search out out the place to purchase tech and home equipment from – and which shops to keep away from.
Whether or not you are Christmas purchasing or treating your self within the Black Friday gross sales, hundreds of you buy tech and residential home equipment at the moment of 12 months. And with squeezed family funds and worldwide distribution points, it is by no means been extra necessary to purchase from a retailer that provides each worth for cash and dependable customer support.
To uncover which shops are acing it and that are leaving buyers disgruntled, we surveyed 11,632 folks in September 2021 about their on-line and in-store purchasing experiences over the earlier six months.
Right here, we reveal the retailers and web sites getting it proper, and people to avoid.
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That are the perfect and worst tech retailers?
The tables under reveal the highest and backside performers in our survey. To learn the way all 28 shops – together with AO, Argos and Currys – scored, and to find retailers’ star scores for worth for cash, product high quality, customer support and returns, go to our information to the perfect and worst tech shops.
Finest tech shops
Backside of the tech desk
Outcomes based mostly on a September 2021 survey of 11,632 folks (4,161 Which? Join panelists and seven,471 members of the UK public). *Buyer rating based mostly on a mixture of buyer satisfaction and chance to suggest the retailer.
- Discover out extra:finest Black Friday offers for 2021
Richer Sounds tops the desk
Richer Sounds beat its rivals to land the prime place on the high of our desk. The British retailer gained a first-rate buyer rating of 92% and a clear sweep of five-star scores, so it is no shock we have named it a Which? Advisable Supplier (WRP) this 12 months. It additionally received the Which? Retailer of the Yr award in 2021, having already achieved so 5 occasions beforehand.
In our survey, the employee-owned enterprise had the best proportion of individuals (74%) who rated staff’ helpfulness and data as glorious, and it affords a value promise to beat different retailers by as much as£100 as much as 14 days after a purchase order.
It sells a wide array of high-end and budget-friendly choices, together with ex-display fashions, that are available in shops and on-line. One shopper felt that they had ‘struck gold’ after they noticed an ex-display mannequin of the audio system they wished to purchase and acquired a 30% discount.
The overwhelming majority (95%) of buyers stated Richer Sounds supplied good worth for cash – a determine that was solely matched by The Vary and fellow WRP John Lewis.
- Discover out extra: high 15 purchasing suggestions for Black Friday gross sales
The bottom-scoring tech retailers
Robert Dyas was on the backside of our tech desk, receiving an unexceptional buyer rating of 62% and not more than three stars for any aspect in our survey. Solely 61% of tech buyers would suggest the retailer to others – the bottom proportion of any retailer within the survey.
Home equipment Direct and Over Clockers dawdled on the backside of the desk too, attaining unremarkable buyer scores of 64% and 66% respectively.
Over Clockers, which specialises in gaming programs and computer systems, left some buyers dissatisfied when it got here to supply, with one in eight (12%) saying their expertise was damaging on this entrance – a poor efficiency matched solely by Boots Kitchen Home equipment.
- Discover out extra:what to do if an internet order would not arrive
That are the perfect family equipment retailers?
In case you’re available in the market for a washer, oven or vacuum cleaner, the desk under reveals the 5 finest shops to go to. However if you wish to understand how 33 of the UK’s greatest equipment retailers – together with Amazon, Argos and Currys – did in our survey, go to our information to the finest and worst residence home equipment shops.
High of the family home equipment desk
Backside of the family home equipment desk
Outcomes based mostly on a September 2021 survey of 11,632 folks (4,161 Which? Join panelists and seven,471 members of the UK public). *Buyer rating based mostly on a mixture of buyer satisfaction and chance to suggest the retailer.
- Discover out extra: Why low cost grocery store kettles and toasters generally beat branded
John Lewis comes high
John Lewis got here high of our residence home equipment desk following one other rollercoaster 12 months, with bulletins on retailer closures and redundancies countered by a number of information tales about the way it plans to shake up its enterprise mannequin.
John Lewis was the one retailer to be named a WRP for each tech and residential equipment objects for the second consecutive 12 months. It achieved a full home of 5 stars for all of the measures we requested tech buyers about, whereas residence equipment clients awarded it 5 stars for nearly as many measures.
John Lewis was carefully adopted in our desk by Euronics, which scored 85%.
The retailer, which is definitely an affiliation of over 600 impartial electrical shops, missed out on turning into a Which? Advisable Supplier as a result of its returns and defective items insurance policies do not match the excessive requirements our researchers search for when selecting retailers to suggest.
- Discover out extra:easy methods to get the perfect value when purchasing on-line
The worst residence equipment retailers
Even the lowest-scoring equipment retailers in our survey achieved not less than three stars out of 5 for each measure we requested buyers about, and a few did higher than that.
Equipment Metropolis acquired 4 stars for many components. Over a 3rd (34%) of its clients known as its worth for cash glorious, and 31% stated the identical relating to product high quality. Some buyers informed us that the retailer supplied them reductions when ordering a number of merchandise.
Virtually 4 in 10 (38%) Boots Kitchen Home equipment buyers felt its product high quality was glorious and 40% of Home equipment Direct clients felt the identical manner.
- Discover out extra:Which? Black Friday insider’s information
How a lot does it value to get a washer put in and delivered?
The value of a washer will hardly ever be the entire quantity you may pay – most individuals must get it delivered and put in, and these companies aren’t free.
The distinction between the quantities retailers cost may be fairly substantial, and may greater than cancel out any financial savings you’ve got made on shopping for the machine itself from one retailer quite than one other.
The desk under outlines how a lot you’ll be able to anticipate to fork out to get your new washer delivered and fitted and your outdated one recycled.
- Discover out extra:finest washer offers for 2021
