Types of Brooms and Their Uses

01

Indoor Brooms

Indoor brooms are typically designed with finer, softer bristles intended to pick up dust, crumbs and light debris from smooth flooring such as tile, laminate or wood. These brooms are usually lighter in weight and narrower than outdoor varieties, making them easier to manoeuvre around furniture and into corners.

Many indoor brooms use synthetic bristles such as nylon, which are durable and resistant to moisture, though natural fibre indoor brooms are still available and preferred by some users for their gentler action on delicate flooring finishes.

02

Outdoor or Yard Brooms

Outdoor brooms, sometimes called yard brooms or push brooms, are built with stiffer, coarser bristles capable of moving heavier debris such as leaves, sand, gravel and dirt from paving, driveways and concrete surfaces. They are generally wider than indoor brooms, allowing for faster coverage of larger areas.

Some outdoor brooms are designed with an angled head that can be pushed as well as swept, which is particularly useful for clearing larger open areas such as patios or courtyards. The handle is often longer as well, reducing the need to bend over while working.

03

Besom Brooms

The besom broom is one of the oldest and most recognisable traditional designs. It consists of a bundle of twigs, often birch, bound tightly around one end of a straight wooden handle, typically made from hazel or a similarly sturdy wood. Besom brooms are still made by hand in some regions and are valued both for practical outdoor sweeping and for their traditional, rustic appearance.

Because the twig bristles are relatively coarse, besom brooms tend to be used outdoors on paths, gardens and lawns rather than on fine indoor flooring.

04

Broom Corn Brooms

Broom corn brooms are made from the dried seed heads of a sorghum variety grown specifically for broom making. The fibres are stitched or wired to a wooden handle in flat or round configurations. Flat broom corn brooms, sometimes called kitchen brooms, are a familiar sight in many households and are well suited to general indoor sweeping across a range of flooring types.

Round broom corn brooms, sometimes called whisk or warehouse brooms, are often used for heavier duty sweeping in garages, workshops or storage areas.

05

Push Brooms

Push brooms feature a wide, flat head attached at an angle to a long handle, designed to be pushed across the floor rather than swept back and forth. They are commonly used in larger spaces such as warehouses, garages, factory floors and outdoor paved areas, where covering ground quickly matters more than detailed precision.

Push broom bristles range from soft synthetic fibres for indoor use on smooth floors to stiff, coarse bristles designed for rougher outdoor surfaces.

06

Whisk Brooms

A whisk broom is a small, short-handled broom designed to be held in one hand, typically used for spot cleaning small areas such as stairs, upholstery or tight corners that a full-sized broom cannot easily reach. They are a useful supplementary tool rather than a replacement for a standard broom.

07

Choosing the Right Broom

When selecting a broom, consider the surface you will be sweeping most often, the type of debris you typically need to clear, and whether the broom will be used mainly indoors, outdoors, or both. A household that sweeps mostly smooth tile floors will benefit from a soft-bristled indoor broom, while a home with a large paved yard may get more use out of a stiffer outdoor or push broom.

Many households find it useful to keep more than one type of broom on hand, reserving a soft indoor broom for daily use and a coarser outdoor broom for garden paths, driveways and patios.