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Head-to-head · Best Garden Hoses

Eley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ft vs Stanley FatMax BDS6650 Professional Grade Water Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.

Which is the better buy? Side-by-side on rating, price, strengths, and watch-outs — with the published ratings we averaged to get there.

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The short answer

Eley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ft comes out ahead by a clear margin (4.5 vs 3.0). The gap is mostly about Buyers replacing a hose for the last time who will pay double for the best measured kink resistance in the category and a ten-year guarantee — read the strengths below before deciding.

Eley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ft
Higher ratedRanked #3 in Best Garden Hoses
Eley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ft
3 sources$113.23

Two outlets that test hoses for a living rate this the best one made. Wirecutter calls it their upgrade pick and reports more than two years of near-daily use without being able to make it kink, plus the fastest bucket-fill time they measured at 55 seconds. TechGearLab scored it 89 out of 100, the highest in their twelve-hose test, with 9.0 for construction. Eley backs it with a ten-year no-leak warranty and a -40 to 165 degrees F range. It costs $113.23, weighs 0.15 lb per foot, and comes in one unlovely grey.

Strengths
  • — Wirecutter's upgrade pick and, in their words, "the best hose we've ever tested" after more than two years of near-daily use without a single kink
  • — Highest score TechGearLab recorded in a twelve-hose test at 89 out of 100, including 9.0 for construction quality
  • — Filled a five-gallon bucket in 55 seconds in Wirecutter's flow test, the fastest hose they timed
Watch-outs
  • — $113.23 for 50 feet, which Wirecutter notes is a little over twice the cost of a comparable rubber hose
  • — Only one colour, and a Wirecutter tester's reaction on seeing it was "that thing is kinda ugly"
  • — TechGearLab measured 0.15 lb per foot and listed "heavy" as one of only two cons
$113.23 · Buy at eleyhosereels.comFull review →
Stanley FatMax BDS6650 Professional Grade Water Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.
Ranked #6 in Best Garden Hoses
Stanley FatMax BDS6650 Professional Grade Water Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.
3 sources$50.44

The FatMax is a pro-grade hose built around Orbit's three-ply PolyFusion process, rated to 500 PSI burst and freeze-tested. Popular Mechanics measured the highest flow rate of any 5/8-inch hose they tested and drove a 4,500-pound truck over the fittings without damage. Gardening Products Review, who used it in a garden for months, scored it 3 out of 5 after the collar bent the hose into a permanent out-of-round kink that restricted flow, and their household threw it out. That split is why it ranks last here.

Strengths
  • — Popular Mechanics recorded the highest flow rate of any 5/8-inch hose in their test at 587.3 gph on their spec table
  • — Its swivel grips protected the fittings when Popular Mechanics drove a 4,500-pound truck over them
  • — The Spruce named the 100-foot version most durable after six months of use and praised the consistent water pressure
Watch-outs
  • — Gardening Products Review scored it 3 out of 5 and their household abandoned it: "my wife because so frustrated with this hose... that she threw it away"
  • — Documented hose-reel failure: the collar bent the hose over the drum into a permanent out-of-round kink that restricted flow
  • — Kinking gets worse in heat; the same reviewer warned it "would not be the best hose for you if you live in a hot area"
$50.44 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →

How they stack up

Eley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ft

The Eley posted the highest raw score in TechGearLab's test, ahead of the Dramm ColorStorm Premium Rubber Hose and the Teknor Apex zero-G, and it carries the longest published warranty of any hose here at ten years. It is also the most expensive by a wide margin and roughly twice the weight per foot of the zero-G. Against the Briggs & Stratton 8BS50 and the Stanley FatMax BDS6650, both of which testers got to kink, the Eley's stiff polyurethane wall is the entire point: it bends into wide loops instead of folding shut.

Stanley FatMax BDS6650 Professional Grade Water Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.

The FatMax's 500 PSI burst rating is the second-highest here, behind only the Teknor Apex zero-G, and Popular Mechanics measured the best flow of any hose they put a stopwatch on. It is also the only hose in this guide carrying a published editorial rating below four out of five. Where testers could not induce a kink in the Flexzilla Garden Hose with SwivelGrip or the Dramm ColorStorm Premium Rubber Hose, the FatMax took a permanent one at the collar, and unlike the Briggs & Stratton 8BS50 it did not recover.

Specs side-by-side

SpecEley 5/8-Inch Polyurethane Garden Hose, 50 ftStanley FatMax BDS6650 Professional Grade Water Hose, 5/8 in. x 50 ft.
Diameter5/8 in (0.875 in OD)5/8 in
Length50 ft50 ft
MaterialReinforced polyurethane, non-marking coverThree-ply PolyFusion polyurethane and PVC
Coupling MaterialLead-free forged brass, crush-proof, hexAnodized aluminum, titanium-coated, 3/4 in. female hose thread
Working Pressure150 PSI80 PSI
Burst Pressure450 PSI minimum at 75 degrees F500 PSI
Weight7 lb dry, 14 lb filled7.8 lb measured by Popular Mechanics
Temperature Range-40 to 165 degrees F—
Available Lengths6.5, 12, 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, 175, 200 ft—
Warranty10-year no-leak, no-fail—
Flow Rate—587.3 gph measured by Popular Mechanics
Model Number—BDS6650
Weather Rating—Freeze tested, UV resistant
← See the full ranking of best garden hoses