With so many vape brands available, it can be hard to know where to start. In fact, I still get emails almost daily from new brands I’ve never heard of before.

But after 17 years in the industry, testing hundreds of devices and listening to feedback from thousands of customers, we’ve found that a handful of brands consistently deliver when it comes to quality and reliability. And when you’re inhaling something into your lungs, quality matters.

That doesn’t mean quality has to be expensive. While high-end devices can cost over £100, you can still find dependable options from the top brands below for under £10.

So whether you're just starting out or looking to upgrade, here are our top ten vape hardware brands, based on hands-on testing, long-term experience, and real-world performance.

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Top 10 Vape Brands Detailed Breakdown

1. Vaporesso: Best Overall

Vaporesso brings luxury to the vape market with well-crafted devices with a fine finish. They certainly have some might behind them, being a subsidiary of Smoore — the largest vape manufacturer in the world.

With pod kits, pod mods, and mod devices to choose from, Vaporesso has produced many stand-out devices over the years. Their award-winning Xros Series has also proved popular with staff and customers alike for fantastic flavour and options for a wide range of vapers — from the beginner-friendly Xros Mini to the more advanced Luxe series kits.

2. Elf Bar: Disposable Style Flavour

Launching in 2018, Elf Bar saw a meteoric rise to fame during the disposable boom of the early 2020s. Producing the world’s most popular range of single-use vapes, they quickly became a household name.

This popularity is due to a number of factors — including their strong, sweet flavours, great MTL inhale, and innovative flavour-enhancing QUAQ coil technology. Elf Bar now offers incredible reusable alternatives like the AF5500, Dual 10K, and 4-in-1 prefilled pod kits.

3. IVG: Most Popular Big Puff Kits

Although IVG is now a global brand, the company originally made its name in the UK with bold e-liquid flavours that quickly won the hearts of vapers across the country.

Following the huge success of the IVG 2400, IVG continues to dominate the big puff and prefilled category with advanced models like the IVG Smart Max 10K and the colossal IVG XL 35K.

4. Innokin: Innovative & Reliable

When I hear the name Innokin, the word reliability comes to mind. Over the years, Innokin has consistently produced high-quality vapes — and some devices can last for years before needing replacing.

Innokin has also been a great innovator, introducing market-leading coil technologies, eco-friendly initiatives, and high-capacity devices like the Innokin Kwik 35K.

5. Oxva: Award-Winning Pod Systems

If you’re searching for a high-quality, compact, but easy-to-use vape device that produces great flavour, there’s a good chance you’ll come across an Oxva Xlim series kit or their latest prefilled innovations like the Tasteflex SL 12K.

6. Smok: Clouds & Flavour

In the early days, Smok were known for their huge mods tailored for cloud chasers. Today, they cater to a broader audience with powerful box mods and sub-ohm kits like the Smok Mag Solo and Smok Morph 2.

7. Aspire: Enduringly Popular Vape Devices

Aspire has produced enduring classics like the PockeX as well as modern, stylish pod solutions like the Aspire Gotek X pod kit that offer supreme ease of use and futuristic design.

8. SKE: Minimalist Style, Maximum Flavour

SKE made waves with crystal-like aesthetics and rich, concentrated flavour profiles. They now feature fantastic prefilled alternatives like the Sikary Tako SP6000, SKE Bar 15K, and Crystal Bar 600 pods.

9. Lost Mary: Something for Everyone

Since early 2022, Lost Mary has rapidly grown into a global powerhouse. Known for standout flavor and QUAQ coil tech, they provide exceptional options like the BM600, BM600 Turbo, and BM6000 box kits.

10. Uwell: Best Pod Systems for Flavour

The creator of the legendary Caliburn series, Uwell continues to deliver some of the purest flavor performance on the market through continuous engineering refinements.

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Explore our complete lineup of featured high-performance kits, big puff systems, and advanced mods:

The Future of Vaping Brands

There remain dozens of brands in the vape market. It’s quite possible that we will see more great brands popping up, but for the most part, there’s likely to be rationalisation in the market. Each brand is only as good as its latest devices, so expect to see intense innovation and competition as each one tries to out-compete the next.

Looking to narrow down your choice of vape hardware even further? Explore our full collection of Trending Pod Vape Kits or check out our range of legal Prefilled Pod Kits.