The Best Grout Removing Tools For Wall And Floor Tiles

A hand rake is the cheapest way to get old grout out, and the Acehome Pro is the one we'd pick up first. The blades are tungsten carbide and shaped specifically for grout, rather than being a general-purpose scraper.

Six replacement blades come in the box, and each is held by two screws, so swapping a blunt one is quick with a small screwdriver. The angled handle keeps your knuckles off the wall as you work along a line, and there's a finger groove on the grip that stops your hand slipping when it gets damp.

Like any hand tool, it relies on elbow grease. That's fine for a shower surround or a splashback but slow going on a large floor.

The VITGO200VT is Vitrex's dedicated electric grout remover, and it takes most of the effort out of raking. Vitrex lists it at 7,100 strokes per minute, with three speeds selected on the body so you can slow it down near tile edges and speed it up along long straight runs.

Two interchangeable tips come in the box, which lets you match the tip to the width of the grout line. It's a fairly basic tool with no clever extras, but it does the one job it's built for.

The thing that stood out in our testing was the noise. It's loud, and in a small bathroom with hard tiled walls the sound bounces around the room, so ear defenders are a good idea if you're going to be at it for a while.

An oscillating multi-tool with the right blade fitted is a fast way to clear grout, as long as you're steady with it. The XXGO set gives you four diamond blades, and XXGO says they fit most multi-tools on the market, though it's worth checking the fitting against your own tool before ordering.

The diamond edge grinds through wall and floor grout alike, and it will also tackle other hard materials once the grouting is done. The catch is control. A multi-tool removes material quickly, so one slip can scratch the glaze, and the blade is a little wide for very narrow joints.

Before buying, look through the blades that came with your multi-tool. Plenty of sets already include a grout blade.

Draper has a long-standing name for well-made hand tools, and the 49420 scraper feels a step up from the cheaper rakes on this list. Its tungsten carbide blade is wider than most hand tools here at 4.9mm, which suits the wider joints between floor tiles, and it's zinc plated to stop it corroding in a damp bathroom.

The soft grip is what we appreciated most while testing it. Raking grout is repetitive work, and a comfortable handle makes a real difference to how your hand feels by the end of a long session.

It costs noticeably more than the other rakes and scrapers in this roundup. You're paying for build quality rather than extra features.

For a few cracked joints around a basin or a single row behind the taps, there's no point spending much, and the Vitrex 2420 is about as cheap as a decent grout rake gets. It still comes from a recognised brand, which counts for something at this price.

The blade is tungsten carbide edged, so it cuts properly into cement-based grout. The handle is nylon with a textured section at the top for your thumb, which helps when you're pushing the blade along a vertical joint.

There's only one blade and no spares in the pack. Once it goes blunt, the tool has done its job, so treat it as a rake for small repairs rather than a full room.

The Oypla Grout Out is a cheaper way into electric grout removal than the Vitrex VITGO200VT. Oypla quotes a no-load speed of 6,000 RPM, with five stroke settings on the body so you can turn it down on soft grout or delicate tiles.

Two interchangeable tips are included, and the grip is shaped to be held for a while without your hand cramping. One practical detail we like is the 2.5 metre power cable, which gives you enough reach to work around a bath or along a floor without dragging an extension lead into a wet room.

Its build quality isn't up to the Vitrex. For occasional regrouting that's an acceptable trade, but it's not the tool we'd choose for regular, heavy use.