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If your wipers don't move the rain off your windshield like they used to, it may be time for an upgrade.

We've all been there—happily driving along when suddenly you're hit with torrential rain unleashed like a power washer from the skies. In those intense, white-knuckle moments, you lose visibility. The car in front of you disappears, and the rain's roar silences your music. You flip that windshield wiper stalk to the max speed and let the wipers go to work, flinging off water in a mad frenzy. Almost immediately, visibility returns—as does the circulation to your fingers. Indeed, visibility is a driver's most important tool.

Since a good set of windshield wipers is essential for every vehicle, we set out to determine the very best wiper blades on the market today. To find them, we ordered a set from major brands such as Rain-X, Bosch, and others. We then tested them with varying simulated rain settings and noted ease of installation, unusual squeaking, streaking, and residue left behind. After getting sprayed by our homemade rain simulator more times than we would've liked, we have the results.

So if you're noticing any squeaking, streaking, or otherwise poor operation from your current vehicle's wiper blades, it's time to replace them. A new good set of wipers will improve your visibility, keeping you, your passengers, and other drivers around you safe. Here are our picks for the best wiper blades you can buy for your vehicle.

Note: Each vehicle's wiper blades will be different. Make sure to research which blades fit your vehicle. The easiest way to do this is to call an auto parts store, but if you want to purchase blades elsewhere, always verify the size you need. We found the "Fits Your Vehicle" function on Amazon isn't always accurate, so verify via a second source just to be sure.

The Rain-X Latitude Water Repellency is our pick for the best wiper blade. First and foremost, the Rain-X rain repellent is legit. This hydrophobic coating on the blades works very well and improved visibility immediately. We watched beads of water slide right off the windshield, which was especially helpful during light rain.

The Latitude Water Repellency was also quiet, left no streaks, and the price point is attractive. The only knock we have is the locking clasp on the hook-style adapter is very hard to open—we had to pry it with a screwdriver. But hey, that means it'll hold the blade on securely. For excellent wiper blades that won't break the bank, these are the best choice.

For cheaper wipers that still perform, the Trico Flex did very well during our testing. They lack any sort of rain repellent but remove water well regardless. We didn't see any streaking or chattering, and installation was quite easy.

The Flex wiper blades lack any sort of locking clasp, but we didn't notice any looseness during operation. For the price, you're getting a solid, no-frills wiper blade that'll adequately remove water from your windshield.

If you're willing to drop some extra dollars on a set of wiper blades, the Rain-X Silicone Endura is the way to go. The specially designed silicone blades are built to last twice as long as conventional rubber wiper blades.

We found the Endura removed water exceptionally well right from the get-go. Even while dry, it didn't leave behind any streaks. Better yet, the Endura features a locking clasp to keep everything extra-secure. The price is the only thing keeping these from being our top choice.

With so many different wiper-arm styles out there, including good adapters is essential for wiper-blade companies. We found that Goodyear's adapters were the best and easily interchangeable.

The blade isn't bad either—no streaking or chattering, and they worked well on low, medium, and high. There's also a locking clasp as a bonus. If you've got a funky-style wiper arm, this is your best bet to find the correct fit.

If you really want to skip the headache of swapping adapters, figuring out sizes, and questionable brands, just get a set of OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) wiper blades. We recommend calling your vehicle brand's dealership and ordering a set from there, but you can also find a bunch on eBay.

They're tailored to fit your exact vehicle, and installation is a breeze. The only downside? OEM wiper blades can get expensive, depending on the vehicle. But for ease of installation, you can't beat 'em.

The Trico Platinum is a good wiper blade, but it doesn't really shine in any one particular area. The adapters swap out without much struggle, it's quiet, doesn't leave streaks, and removes water well on all three speeds.

The Platinum also comes in a pair-pack, which makes the price seem a bit more reasonable. It does everything you need a wiper blade to do. The Platinum is a solid wiper blade—just not the best.

The Bosch Evolution has earned high praise for its contour fitment, and we agree. The blades left no streaking and were quiet on all three speeds. And hey, they feature a locking clasp—our favorite! Unfortunately, you only get to enjoy all those perks once the blade is on; that's the hard part.

We struggled to fit these on a normal J-style wiper arm. There's a certain angle you need, and we wish we had three hands to install them properly. Finally, after 15 minutes and a skinned knuckle, we got it on. Everything else was great, but the installation issues were a big knock for us.

The Trico Sentry was really the only wiper blade that performed poorly in our testing. Right from the outset, we noticed an occasional streaking issue on the driver's side, paired with a faint squeak in drier conditions. These would inevitably get worse throughout the life of the blade.

In addition to those issues, we found the blades are difficult to remove when you decide to swap them out for something better. We just can't recommend these when there are options out there that perform better.

To properly test these wiper blades, we wanted to simulate different wet-weather conditions as accurately as possible. So, naturally, we used a garden hose! Since the garden hose at the Car and Driver garage has multiple settings, we were able to simulate light, medium, and torrential rain.

Now that we had the precipitation set up, we hopped in the driver's seat to operate the wipers themselves. We alternated between intermittent, medium, and high wiper speed on each level of simulated rain—running each speed for 30 seconds. Once we cycled through the water levels, we ran the blades for 30 seconds on a dry windshield and noted any noises or streaks.

We then compiled our results based on ease of installation, water removal at each speed, squeaks, chatters, streaking, adapter quality, and, finally, price. Once the tests were complete, we felt satisfied that each wiper blade was tested and judged equally in every area of concern.

Expensive wiper blades can make for a good investment, especially if the costs reflect added features like rain repellent or silicone blades. If you can justify the larger cost up front, they're typically worth it. However, there are cheaper wiper blades that do the job just fine—they just lack some key features that improve operation.

Bear in mind, if you live in a dry, arid region such as Phoenix or Las Vegas, premium wiper blades aren't nearly as critical to safe driving as they would be if you live in, say, Portland or Seattle. It's your car and your call.

Silicone blades are built to last up to twice as long as conventional ones, and that durability can help them perform better than rubber blades in demanding conditions. However, silicone blades are still more expensive than normal rubber.

The big advantage to silicone blades is they stay pliable in winter and tend to not freeze to your windshield. In climates where that's common, you know how valuable that can be.

This can be easily done in your vehicle's owner's manual. Just flip to the wiper-blade section, and it should plainly lay out the size you need. Calling a dealership for OEM wiper blades is the safest way to ensure you buy the correct blades, and calling an auto parts store works as well.

If your vehicle has a specialized wiper arm, you'll need to verify that a wiper blade is compatible with that style. They usually tell you which styles work on the packaging and feature an adapter that will fit on your vehicle.

A good rule of thumb for this is every 12 months. But because noticing worn wiper blades is pretty easy, this is really up to you. If your wiper blades start streaking, squeaking, chattering, or just not removing water like they used to, it's time to replace them. If you use your wiper blades on rough ice before it has melted, this will seriously decrease the lifespan of your wiper blades, so keep that in mind.

Car and Driver and its sibling publications at Hearst Autos represent three of the most influential automotive publications in the world. With the legacies of Autoweek, Car and Driver, and Road & Track behind us, the Hearst Autos Gear Team doesn’t need to worry about our bottom line. Our picks and recommendations of products and gear are based on testing and knowledge, not hype.

For consistency, this test was conducted in an environment that provided equal testing procedures for each product: the Car and Driver garage. We tested the wiper blades on each wiper speed and with varying rainfall amounts. We then graded each wiper blade on ease of installation, water removal at each speed, squeaks, chatters, streaking, adapter quality, and, finally, price.

Upon tallying up our findings, we agreed that our test was fair, legitimate, and provided the most complete information for us to recommend our picks.

Read more about our product testing and evaluation process here.