Touchless faucets for your home kitchen or bathroom are convenient, accessible, and help you save water. They also help keep germs from spreading. Are they worth it? What else do you need to know before you purchase one?
Let’s start with how they operate and take a deeper look at what they have to offer and check in with our plumbing team about whether or not a touchless faucet is the right thing for you.
How Do Touchless Faucets Work?
An infrared sensor on a touchless faucet senses when an object, such as your hand, is in front of it. Then it sends a signal to a valve that opens up the flow of water. When you remove your hand, the signal stops and the water turns off.
These faucets may seem like magic, but they’re actually electric-powered, mechanical systems that include a sensor, a valve, and mechanical elements working together to make water flow or stop flowing. Here’s more about how this technology works.
The Sensor
Most touchless faucets have an infrared sensor that picks up the presence of an object. Once the infrared light touches your skin—or anything else in front of it, like a cup—the light bounces back to the sensor, which converts the reflected light to an electrical signal that it sends to the valve.
Alternatively, you can buy a faucet that operates without an infrared light, an option that can be better for older people since poor circulation can lead to problems activating the infrared sensor. They can also fail to operate if you’re wearing a dark shirt. Since infrared sensors dominate the market, however, we’ll focus on how they function.
The Solenoid Valve
When the valve inside the faucet receives the signal from the sensor, it prompts the valve to pull open and allow water through. Once you move your hand, the sensor stops sending a signal and the valve pushes closed, stopping the flow of water. Some faucets have valves that are pre-set to turn off after a set amount of time.
A solenoid valve is able to send and receive light messages because it’s an electromagnet that actually “transforms electrical energy into mechanical energy,” or motion. It’s pretty mindblowing that light can trigger mechanics like this, allowing us to keep our hands super clean. A cool application for a cool technology.
The Power Source
Touchless bathroom faucets are powered by either an AC power supply (through an outlet in the wall) or by batteries. The ones that plug in often have backup batteries, too.
Some plumbers recommend that you install an outlet under the sink to power the faucet using your home electrical supply so you can install it and forget it. This is something to consider if you have a houseful of people who will be using the faucet on a daily basis, like in a highly trafficked bathroom. If you opt for a battery-powered faucet, how often you’d need to change out the batteries will depend on the faucet’s features and frequency of use.
Our plumbers recommend you use an outlet if possible. If you’re having a faucet put in where no power is available, a battery-powered faucet will work.
Will Touchless Faucets Still Work If The Power Goes Out?
Yes. Residential touchless faucets usually have a lever on them, just like a traditional faucet, that you can use to dispense water instead of using the sensor. If the power goes out, you’ll still be able to operate the faucet. Of course, your faucet also may revert to backup batteries, if the model you choose has them.
What Are The Benefits Of A Touchless Faucet?
Touchless faucets are growing in popularity because they have a bunch of benefits, like reducing the spread of germs and keeping you from having to touch the faucet while your hands are covered in dough. Here’s a closer look at the reasons some people are swapping out their traditional faucets for touchless ones.
Reduce The Spread Of Germs
Because you never need to touch the faucet to get the water to flow, germs go straight down the drain. With a traditional faucet, you need to be wary of touching the handles because they likely have germs from when you touched them before washing your hands or from someone else who used it before you. Anyone using the faucet has to turn off the water with an elbow or a forearm to keep from picking up germs just after washing.
With a touchless faucet, none of that is an issue. It’s especially helpful in the bathroom, to keep germs from waste away from everyone’s hands. In the kitchen, it can keep bacteria from raw foods from spreading or cross-contaminating surfaces.
Convenience
A touchless faucet also makes it more comfortable to cook and clean. If you have batter or dough on your hands or have been cleaning something greasy in the garage, it’s simpler to wash it away and to avoid extra cleanup since you won’t be smearing anything goopy or oily on your faucet handle.
Some touchless faucets go a step further than turning on and allow you to preset the temperature, making it even less likely that you’ll need to touch the faucet directly.
Asked whether they’d recommend a touchless faucet, our plumbing team says the kitchen is the place to start. “That’s what I’m always finding I want,” Tom Redding, our lead plumber, told us. “Because I’m always trying to figure out how to turn the water on when my hands are goopy from cooking. Because I don’t want to have to clean the faucet handle.”
The team also gave a thumbs-up to a touchless faucet in a bathroom, especially one that kids use a lot—for water conservation and safety.
Water Conservation & Lower Water Bills
Because these faucets automatically turn off, you’ll save water. This makes them something to consider if you want to use less water for sustainability and environmental conservation, in order to save money on your monthly water bills, or both.
According to a 2016 study by California State University, Sacramento, two different touchless faucets saved 32% and 54% of water compared to a manual faucet (the difference between the two touchless faucets was due to the types of aerators they were fitted with). A 2023 study in a university setting calculated savings in water consumption at more than 23% and specified that the cost savings could be even more in a residential setting.
Overall, it’s clear that touchless faucets save a lot of water and money.
Accessibility
Touchless faucets turn on with a wave of your hand. So it’s simpler for young children to turn them on. Depending on how tall your sink is, the sensor will likely be closer to a young child’s hands than certain types of handles.
Older people may also find them simpler to use, though some users report that some have a learning curve and may need to get used to the new technology.
Touchless faucets that are ADA-compliant are designed to make them easier for people with disabilities to use. According to federal laws and regulations on accessible design, the sensor on an ADA-compliant faucet will be easy to reach and that parts will be “operable with one hand and shall not require tight grasping, pinching, or twisting of the wrist.” (Section 309.4.)
Smart Home Compatible
Some touchless faucets are compatible with smart home technology, meaning you can connect them to your home automation system. This could allow you to use voice commands with your faucet (“Give me two cups of 74-degree water” or “fill the parakeet’s water cup”), preset your faucet to dispense at a specific temperature, reduce water flow, and track water usage. Smart faucets might also be more accessible to people who are young, older, or who have limited mobility.
What Do I Need To Know Before Buying A Touchless Faucet?
Before you buy a touchless faucet consider that they:
- Cost more to purchase than traditional faucets.
- Cost the same to install as a traditional faucet. Even though these faucets have high-end features, they install almost exactly like a traditional faucet.
- Need a power source. For the life of the product, you’ll need to invest in batteries or in a power outlet installation and the electricity it takes to run it.
- If your touchless faucet isn’t working, it may need to be calibrated. Our lead plumber, Tom, says touchless faucets may not work the way you want them to right out of the box. If a plumber installs your faucet, they should calibrate to make sure the settings are set right for you.
Are Touchless Faucets Worth It?
It depends on who you are. Some people say they’re just fine sticking with a traditional faucet and monitoring their water usage by not letting the water run and promptly cleaning messy faucet handles. Others say the higher price is more than worth it for the sake of accessibility, cleanliness, and convenience.
Before you make a decision, consider monitoring daily use. How often do you and others use a particular faucet? Is it constantly on and off or does it sit idle most of the time?
You can also think about your lifestyle. How often do you cook and how ambitious are the meals you make? Do you work on cars, motorcycles, or bicycles a lot? Do you do a lot of messy crafts? Are any members of your household limited by age or disability? The answers to these questions will help you decide whether it will be a good choice for you to invest in a touchless faucet.
2026 Faucet Trends: The Future Is Now
Touchless faucets have been growing in popularity for years and the trend is increasing as people opt for hands-free and smart technologies at home. They simplify cleaning up by turning on with just a wave of your hand. If you’re upgrading to smart appliances, a touchless, smart faucet will mesh with the voice command feature, making it simple (and fun, actually) to turn the water on and off.
Touchless faucets are also trending because they fit the aesthetic—and the moment: sleek, modern designs, matte and brushed metallic finishes, and eco-friendly features are in demand. Since touchless faucets come in loads of styles, it’s easy to find one that fits in with what you want when you upgrade.
Sources
2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, ada.gov (Accessed November 11, 2025)
Everything You May Like To Know About Infrared Water Faucets, electronicsforu.com, T.K. Hareendran, April 29, 2017 (Accessed November 10, 2025)
Harmon, A. (2016, April 15). Do automatic water faucets actually save water? A comparative test of manual and automatic water faucets at California State University, Sacramento.
How Does a Touchless Bathroom Faucet Work, airdelights.com (Accessed November 9, 2025)
Infrared Sensor Principle, Types and Circuit, renkeer.com, November 11, 2024 (Accessed November 14, 2025)
- Koushik B., Venkata Subramanium, C., D. Muthu, D. (February 2017) International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET) Volume 8, Issue 2. Study Of Feasibility For Adopting Touchless Faucets, Low Flow Aerators And Sensor Urinals In Academic Institution, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu.
Smart Faucets: What to Know, familyhandyman.com, Mikayla Borchert,
Oct. 16, 2024 (Accessed November 10, 2025)
Touchless Faucet Buying Guide: Everything You Need to Know, signaturehardware.com (Accesses November 9, 2025)
Touchless Faucet Pros and Cons, drurydesigns.com (Accessed November 9, 2025)
Our Expert
Tom Redding is the lead plumber for Capital Heating, Cooling, Plumbing & Electric. In addition to repairs, he designs and installs complex plumbing and mechanical systems.
Our Company
Capital Heating, Cooling, Plumbing & Electric has been serving the South Sound in Washington state for three generations. Our highly trained technicians deliver top-notch service and the latest in home systems innovations.