The best de-icers, compared.
Top pick: Prestone LOYAS244UK 600 ml × 3 Best value: CarPlan Blue Star trigger 500 ml × 2 – About £5.12 for two 500 ml triggers, 4.4 from 3,485 reviews, the lowest price among listings with at least 4.3 and 1,000 reviews. Updated 22.10.2026.
A de-icer is a liquid you spray on the outside of car glass to melt frost, ice or light snow before you drive. In the UK you buy one when the car stays outside and you must see out before you move. Screenwash stays in the washer bottle. Path grit is a different product, covered in the [grit comparison](/hub/diy-supplies/grit). You tell a suitable bottle apart by the job, the format, the maker’s stated temperature and the pack. A morning melt clears ice already on the glass. An overnight film goes on dry glass and is left. A trigger has no propellant and stays warmer in the hand. An aerosol fails when the gas runs out or the cap breaks. The figure on the label is the maker’s floor. The Met Office UK record low is −27.2°C, and the 1991–2020 winter average is 4.09°C. A 300 ml can can empty on one small car. Keep one bottle indoors so you can open the car.
A de-icer is a liquid you spray on the outside of car glass to melt frost, ice or light snow before you drive. In the UK you buy one when the car stays outside and you must see out before you move.
42 products checked · 58 hrs invested · +21,400 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
What are you clearing?
Prestone LOYAS244UK is titled −36°C, 600 ml, pack of 3, at £10.17, with 4.8 from 17 reviews and a listed weight of 1.92 kg. The three saved texts are short: one calls the price good for three, one says it works well, and one says it works quicker and uses less than other sprays that reviewer had. The same product is called cheaper elsewhere, and a second product fault is not described because the texts are so brief. The included-components line says 1 spray can while the title says pack of 3, and the bullets also say aerosol or trigger. A score of 96 is only 4.8 mapped onto 100. Seventeen ratings can swing, which is why this row does not outrank Autoglym’s 4.7 from 1,695. Treat the star line as a thin sample until the page shows a larger United Kingdom count.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a −36°C Prestone three-pack and you will count the cans against the title.
Less suitable: You need a review sample in the hundreds, or one format named in every field.
Specifications
Common questions
What temperature is on the title?
−36°C, on 600 ml cans, pack of 3.
Is it safe for rubber seals?
The listing asks this and does not answer it in the saved bullets.
How many cans should arrive?
The title says pack of 3. The included-components line says 1 spray can.
Autoglym’s DI500 is a 500 ml water-free trigger at £7.00, with 4.7 from 1,695 amazon.co.uk reviews and a stated floor of −50°C. Reviewers say a little clears thin frost without the smear they associate with watery sprays, and that the bottle fits a door pocket without freezing the hand the way a can does. The listing covers windows, mirrors, wipers, door seals and a direct spray into a lock, and it says the formula is sprayed neat. Heavier ice still needs a second coat, and two or three sprays were not enough for every windscreen in the reviews. One bottle leaked and was weak at about −4°C; Autoglym replaced that one, and another arrived damaged enough that the reviewer would not carry it in the car. It is dearer than a supermarket can, and it is not an overnight film. The score of 94 maps the 4.7 star line to 100; the top-pick badge sits here because the sample-adjusted rule prefers 1,695 reviews at 4.7 over a 4.8 from 17.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a water-free morning melt with a large review sample and you will keep a scraper for a second coat.
Less suitable: You want two litres for about the same money, or an overnight film.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used on mirrors and locks?
The listing says windows, mirrors, wipers, door seals and locks, including a direct spray into a frozen lock.
Do I dilute it?
No. The listing says the formula is water-free and is sprayed neat.
Is it safe for rubber seals?
The listing says it is harmless in contact with paintwork, rubber, plastics and glass. That is the listing claim, not a test on this page.
Prestone Rapid is a six-pack spray at £15.49, 4.7 from 616 reviews, with a stated −40°C and a listed weight of 3.99 kg. Reviewers describe a jet they can aim, used on cars and on school buses, and they say it clears frost and frozen rain on cold mornings. The same sample says it runs out quickly, and five of six thin plastic caps arrived smashed in one review. On thick ice it melts a little, dilutes, and stops unless you scrape first; one frost was left as ice that still needed the car to warm up. Fill volume is not printed, so you cannot quote millilitres the way you can on the 600 ml Prestone aerosol. The 4.7 matches Autoglym’s star line on a smaller sample and a higher price, which is why it does not take the top pick. Supermarket offers are mentioned as cheaper when they appear.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want an aimed jet in a multipack and you will check the caps on arrival.
Less suitable: You want a pump you can judge by eye, or the £7 Autoglym bottle.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used on car mirrors?
The saved listing asks this and does not answer it. The bullets describe a windscreen spray.
Does it leave a residue?
The saved listing asks this and does not answer it. One review says uncleared frost turned back to ice.
What temperature does the listing state?
The bullets say it melts ice down to −40°C.
Prestone’s aerosol six-pack is titled 600 ml × 6 at £15.48, with 4.7 from 115 reviews and a stated −40°C. Reviewers who received a full set say it clears heavy frost with little effort, throws a wider spray than a thin jet, and, in one long-term note, does not freeze back as quickly as other brands they had used. Two reviews say the box contained one can, not six, and the item weight is listed as 660 g, which does not match six 600 ml cans. The listing’s line that no de-icer works faster is the brand’s sentence, not a timed comparison in these listings. Bullets say the spray is safe for paintwork, headlights and rubber; that remains a listing claim. At £15.48 you should open the carton and count the cans before you treat this as a winter’s supply. The 4.7 is real and the sample is 115, which is why the score of 94 does not outrank Autoglym’s 1,695 reviews for the top pick.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a −40°C aerosol and you will count the cans on the doorstep.
Less suitable: You need a pack count the reviews do not dispute, or a trigger.
Specifications
Common questions
Is it an aerosol?
Yes. The title says Prestone aerosol, 600 ml, 6 pack.
Is it safe for car paint?
The bullets say safe for paintwork, headlights and rubber. That is the listing claim.
How many cans are in the pack?
The title says 6. Two reviews say only one can arrived. The item weight is 660 g.
Bluecol’s trigger twin is two 500 ml bottles at £6.00, 10.1 × 5 × 24.5 cm and 1 kg, with 4.5 from 1,143 reviews and a stated −36°C. Longer reviews call it fast on frost and on a stubborn layer, easier in the hand than a cold can, and small enough for a door pocket. Some school-run and evening users say it slows refreezing. One review had to clean a film off the glass afterwards, and another says the trigger leaks onto the hand. A strong smell that lingers is a repeated complaint, and one reviewer says it does little on very thin ice. The sales rank is 1 in door-lock de-icers and 22 in windscreen de-icers, so the page is selling both jobs from the same bottle. At £6.00 it sits just above the Blue Star twin and below Autoglym, without the water-free claim Autoglym prints.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want a twin trigger with a printed −36°C and you do not mind a strong smell.
Less suitable: You need a water-free concentrate, or you want the cheapest twin in the set.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used on car windows?
The bullets say it defrosts windows and glass. The sales rank also lists door-lock de-icers.
Does it leave a residue?
The bullets promise a streak-free shine. One review had to clean a film off afterwards.
What temperature does the title state?
Down to −36°C.
The CarPlan Blue Star trigger twin is two 500 ml pumps at £5.12, with 4.4 from 3,485 amazon.co.uk reviews, and reviewers treat the plastic pump as warmer in the hand than the metal Blue Star can. On thin frost the spray is described as even and quick, and a second bottle kept indoors is a pattern in the praise. The same reviews say thick ice was only thinned, or not cleared, and that slight frost still took a lot of liquid for at least one buyer. A leak through neat packaging is a repeated complaint. The title says trigger while the Item Form field says Aerosol, and the temperature bullet reads down to 15C with no minus sign, so you cannot treat that line as −15°C. At this price it is the best value morning melt in the set if you want about a litre of pump spray and you will check the bottle in your hand is a pump. The score of 88 is the 4.4 star line mapped to 100, not a timed melt.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want about a litre of morning pump spray for £5.12 and you can live with a messy listing.
Less suitable: You need a minus temperature printed on the bullet, or thick ice is the usual morning.
Specifications
Common questions
Is this a trigger or an aerosol?
The title says trigger spray and reviews describe a plastic pump. The Item Form and Container Type fields say Aerosol.
What temperature is printed?
The bullet says the de-icer operates down to 15C. The raw line has no minus sign, so do not read it as −15°C.
Can it be used on car mirrors?
The listing asks this and does not answer it. The use line is exterior glass.
The CarPlan Demon Ice two-pack is two 1 litre triggers at £8.00, model CDI002, 2.28 kg, with 4.3 from 480 reviews, a cherry scent and a stated −20°C. Reviewers say the bottles melt ice quickly, and one person who sprayed every night turned ice to slush. A night coat before a short shift left the car clearer for some; rain and a longer gap left ice in the morning for others. The pump is a separate complaint from the liquid: triggers clog, feel stiff, or throw only a mist, the weak spray wets hands, and one bottle leaked onto a hand. Thicker ice needs repeat coats. Compared with the £15.49 Demon Ice row, this title states 1 litre × 2 and the weight matches two litres more closely. It is the clearer pack if you want the night-film job, and it is still not a substitute for a morning clear after rain.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You can spray dry glass in the evening and you want two litres of Demon Ice for £8.
Less suitable: You need a morning-only melt with a larger review sample, or your nights are usually wet.
Specifications
Common questions
Can I spray it the night before?
The bullets say a night-before coat prevents freezing. Several reviews still found ice in the morning, including after rain.
Is it safe for car paint?
The listing asks this and does not answer it in the saved bullets.
What does it smell of?
The bullets say a cherry fragrance, and reviews agree.
CarPlan Demon Ice on this listing is a cherry-scented trigger sold as a night film and a morning melt, at £15.49, with 4.2 from 2,517 reviews and a stated −20°C. Reviewers who used a light evening coat before a short shift found the car clearer, and some say thick ice melted quickly when they sprayed it as a de-icer. The preventer job is the weak half: ice still formed after rain, a generous 3pm coat was gone by the end of a long shift, and several people call it a better melt than a film. The nozzle is a fine mist that blows away, and one bottle leaked in the box so only about half the liquid remained. The title says 1 litre (pack of 1) (6) while the item weight is 1.08 kg, so you should not assume six litres. The best-seller line sits in antifreeze and coolants; the product on the page is still a glass spray. At £15.49 against the £8.00 two-litre Demon Ice row, you are paying for the larger review sample, not for a clearer pack count.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want the heavily reviewed Demon Ice listing and you will confirm the litre count on the page before you pay £15.49.
Less suitable: You want two labelled litres for £8, or a morning melt with no night-film claim.
Specifications
Common questions
How many litres are in the box?
The title says 1 litre (pack of 1) (6). Item weight is 1.08 kg and the part number is CDI001. Do not assume six litres.
Does it have a scent?
Yes. The bullets say a cherry fragrance.
Is this coolant?
The best-seller rank is in antifreeze and coolants. The title is a glass ice preventer and de-icer. Do not pour it into the coolant.
Quebec’s pair of 600 ml aerosols is £8.99, 4.2 from 574 reviews, stated −20°C, with a 1.37 kg pack and the United Kingdom as the country of origin. Ordinary frost is called fast, and one reviewer found less smell than their previous brand. The criticisms are specific: the spray uses more liquid than a pump because of the propellant, thicker ice remains after a heavy coat, and below about −6°C one person needed three goes. Two reviews describe a brown or off-yellow spray that showed on paint, including a white car, and the liquid foams rather than running off. Broken or ripped lids appear in the reviews, and one de-ice used a whole can. A bullet names an aerosol while the Item Form field says Liquid and Contains Liquid Contents says No. You are buying a large-can morning melt at a mid price, with a colour complaint you should treat as real until a fresh can proves otherwise.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You want two large cans around £9 and you will watch the spray colour on the paint.
Less suitable: You want a pump, or you need a stated floor colder than −20°C.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used on car mirrors?
The bullets name the windscreen, windows and the rear-view mirror.
Does it prevent ice from forming?
The bullets claim it helps prevent re-freezing down to −20°C. Reviews still needed a scraper on thicker ice.
Is the spray colourless?
Two reviews describe a brown or off-yellow spray that showed on paint.
CarPlan’s Blue Star aerosol is six 300 ml cans at £11.40, 3.9 from 46 reviews, stated −20°C, with a listed weight of 2.12 kg. Some reviewers say it works quickly, one household says a six-pack lasted the winter, and there are repeat buys from earlier years. The failures are sharp: one spray emptied a can and the other cans were the same, one order of six arrived as three, and two cans had broken lids. At 300 ml a single can is the size that can die on one small car. The colour field reads 300ml, which is a fill note, not a colour. Rank 5 in windscreen de-icers does not repair a 3.9 from 46. If you already prefer the Blue Star pump, this can is the format those reviews moved away from because it goes cold and runs out sooner.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You specifically want the Blue Star can and you will test one can before you rely on the carton.
Less suitable: You want the warmer pump, which is the £5.12 Blue Star trigger twin in this set.
Specifications
Common questions
Can it be used on mirrors?
The listing asks this and does not answer it. The use line is vehicle windscreens.
What temperature does it state?
As low as −20°C.
How many cans are in the pack?
The title says six 300 ml aerosols. One review received three, and another found cans empty after one spray.
ANGIX sells two 500 ml triggers at £7.99, stated −15°C, 1.1 kg, with 3.7 from 41 reviews. Buyers who had wanted a fridge or freezer defroster then found a windscreen spray, and they call it only okay on car glass. One short review says a heavily iced box cleared in about 10 minutes; other texts say the same liquid did nothing in a freezer, so you should not buy it as an appliance product. Pictures looked like three bottles to one buyer; the title is two. The trigger is criticised as too sensitive, leaking in the boot, and one review is the single line that it does not work. At £7.99 it costs more than the CarPlan Blue Star twin and the Bluecol twin, on a much smaller sample and a milder stated floor. It belongs in the table as a car spray that the listing has confused with a freezer job.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You have already checked the title is a car de-icer and you want a stated −15°C twin.
Less suitable: You are defrosting a freezer, or you want the larger Blue Star review sample at £5.12.
Specifications
Common questions
Will it defrost a fridge or freezer?
No. Reviews say it is a car windscreen de-icer and was useless for a freezer.
How many bottles are in the pack?
The title says two 500 ml triggers. One review expected three from the pictures.
What temperature does the title state?
Effective down to −15°C.
Goodyear’s six-pack of 300 ml cans is £9.99, with 3.4 from nine reviews and no temperature on the saved bullets. One reviewer calls it what you need if the vehicle is left outside. Two of the three saved texts call it rubbish: a whole can ran out halfway round a Honda Jazz, and the nozzle does not dispense the full can. The item weight is 275 g and the dimensions are 23.5 × 5.2 × 5.2 cm, which do not describe six 300 ml cans. Bullets name glass, the windscreen and locks, and a pH-neutral paint claim; the saved reviews talk about the windscreen running out, not a lock. Nine ratings are too few to treat 3.4 as a stable line. It is the weakest morning-melt sample in this set, at a price above the Blue Star trigger twin.
Pros
Cons
Best for: You already hold this carton and you will test one can on a small area before a hard frost.
Less suitable: You are choosing a first bottle from this set and you want a stated temperature and a large review sample.
Specifications
Common questions
Does it work on frozen locks?
The bullets name locks as well as glass. The saved reviews talk about the windscreen running out, not a lock.
What temperature does it state?
The saved bullets do not state a temperature.
How large is each can?
Each can is 300 ml, in a pack of 6. The item weight is listed as 275 g.
The twelve scores are the amazon.co.uk star lines stored for these listings, mapped to 100 and shown here divided by 10. A 4.7 becomes 9.4. This is not a timed melt or a cold-chamber test. The top pick is not the highest star map. It is the Autoglym 500 ml trigger, because a 4.7 from 1,695 reviews is preferred to a 4.8 from 17. Best value is a different product: the lowest price among the remaining listings with at least 4.3 and 1,000 reviews, the CarPlan Blue Star trigger twin at about £5.12.
Amazon star line
40%The displayed score is the amazon.co.uk stars divided by 5, scaled to 100, then divided by 10. A 4.7 is 9.4. It is not a laboratory melt.
Review sample
25%A 4.8 from 17 reviews does not outrank a 4.7 from 1,695. The top pick uses that sample rule. Best value also needs at least 1,000 reviews.
Job and format
20%Morning melt and overnight film are different jobs. A trigger has no propellant. An aerosol fails when the gas runs out or the cap breaks.
Price for the pack
15%Best value is the lowest price among the remaining listings with at least 4.3 and 1,000 reviews. That award is a different product from the top pick.
Buy the job before the temperature headline. A de-icer on amazon.co.uk is a morning melt or an overnight film, in a trigger or an aerosol. The figure on the label is the maker’s floor, not a normal British forecast. A 300 ml can can empty on one small car. These listings were not timed in a cold chamber.
A de-icer is a liquid sprayed on the outside of car glass to melt frost, ice or light snow. UK buyers are drivers who park outside and must see out before they move. Screenwash stays in the washer bottle. Path grit is a separate product. Start with the job. A morning melt clears ice already on the glass. An overnight pre-icer is a film on dry glass. In this set only Demon Ice is sold as both. The night method is to shake, spray dry glass and leave the film.
Highway Code rule 229 expects all windows, lights, plates and mirrors clear. Construction and Use regulation 30 says the glass must not obscure the view. A cleared letterbox on the driver’s side is not that.
The Blue Star trigger bullet says down to 15C with no minus sign. Treat it as unsigned. A stated −40°C or −50°C is a formula claim, not the Met Office winter average of 4.09°C.
Demon Ice is sprayed on dry glass and left. MyMotorWorld’s limit is that rain washes the film off. A morning melt and a scraper still belong in the car.
The first check is the job. A morning melt clears ice already on the glass. An overnight film goes on dry glass and is left there. In this set only Demon Ice is sold as both, and rain removes that film. Format is next. A trigger has no propellant and stays warmer in the hand. An aerosol throws a jet and fails when the gas runs out or the cap breaks. Format only means trigger or aerosol, not the night film. Pack size decides how many mornings you get. A 300 ml can can die on one small car.
The temperature on the label is the maker’s floor, from about −15°C to −50°C here. Autoglym states −50°C on a water-free 500 ml trigger that is sprayed neat. Bluecol states −36°C. Prestone rows state −40°C or −36°C. Goodyear’s saved bullets state no temperature. The Met Office UK record low is −27.2°C and the 1991–2020 winter average is 4.09°C, so a very low figure does not prove a faster melt. Then read the sample. The displayed score is stars mapped to 10.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You need a morning melt and a scraper, and you want a large review sample. The Autoglym De-Icer 500 ml is the top pick at about £7.00, score 9.4, a water-free trigger stated to −50°C, with 4.7 from 1,695 reviews. Thin frost is where reviewers use a little. Thick ice still needs a second coat. It is not an overnight film.
You can coat dry glass the night before a short shift. The CarPlan Demon Ice 1 litre × 2 is about £8.00, score 8.6, stated −20°C, with 4.3 from 480 reviews. A light coat helped some short shifts. Rain and a longer gap left ice in the morning. The other Demon Ice title does not state a clear litre count.
You want about a litre of pump spray and you will check the bottle in your hand is a pump. The CarPlan Blue Star trigger twin is best value at about £5.12, score 8.8, with 4.4 from 3,485 reviews. Reviewers keep a spare bottle indoors. Thick ice was not cleared for some of them. The temperature bullet prints 15C with no minus sign.
The top pick is the Autoglym De-Icer 500 ml at about £7.00. It scores 9.4: a water-free trigger, sprayed neat, stated −50°C, with 4.7 from 1,695 amazon.co.uk reviews. Thick ice still needs a second coat. Best value is the CarPlan Blue Star trigger twin at about £5.12, two 500 ml pumps, 4.4 from 3,485 reviews. Its bullet prints 15C with no minus sign, so do not read that line as −15°C. The Prestone three-pack scores 9.6 only because 4.8 from 17 reviews maps to the top of the star scale. That sample does not take either badge. None of these scores is a timed melt.
CarPlan Blue Star trigger 500 ml × 2
About £5.12 for two 500 ml triggers, 4.4 from 3,485 reviews, the lowest price among listings with at least 4.3 and 1,000 reviews.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Updated 22 October 2026.
This page contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures already stored for this set. This is not a laboratory test. Links use the tag pcuk26-21.
