How strong of a pressure washer do you really need for driveway/sidewalk upkeep?

I have an electric 1750PSI for around the house. It wipes dirt and mildew right off of concrete, fence, deck, etc. Will even splinter wood fence if you hold it in an area too long.

You'd be surprised what the small electric ones can do. I bought a Greenworks from Lowes last year that is only 17 or 1800 psi and it cleans concrete well.

Mine is a 2800 PSI and it works great as an all around pressure washer. I use it on the house, deck, driveway and sidewalks.

Every once in a while I'll run my truck up on ramps to get to some of the underside of my Chevy, but stay away from seals, rubber boots, etc.

Just about anything will do what you are looking to do. It is more of a matter of how fast you'd like to get the job done and how much concrete you really have to keep up.

If you have to make long runs then electric may not make sense as that is another cord you have to drag along with the others.

Also, renting may make more sense.

It's tough to offer much advise without knowing just how big of a job you'd be looking to tackle through the years.

A 1500 to 1700 PSI pressure washer will likely accomplish most of what you need. But consider those tasks will take much longer than it would if you had a 3,000 PSI machine.

I have a Subaru 3100-ish PSI pressure washer I bought from Costco. I used to borrow a 1700 PSI electric pressure washer from a friend. It would get the job done, but there really is no comparison on the upgrade to something with 3,000 PSI. It reduced my time to do everything in half. With the electric one, I'd have to go over some tough spots several times and that isn't the case with the new pressure washer.

I have one of the little electric ones, too. It works just fine for keeping the driveway/sidewalk clean. Sure, might not be as quick, but I balance that with the time wasted starting/maintaining a gas version. Electric is easier for me to use, smaller to store, and light enough that I can move without assistance.

Whatever you get go to Sam's and get one of these Power Fit Surface Cleaner. This will cut you sidewalk/driveway cleaning time drastically. Worth every penney. Sometimes they have it for like $59.99.

At least 3100 psi and 2.7 gpm.
Get any lesser and you'll regret it...

I picked up a used heavy duty Mi-T-M 3000psi/3.5gpm, rebuilt the pump myself, got new 3/8" hose and accessories for it. Way more than I need but the extra capacity makes basic cleaning chores a breeze.

You can get by with low PSI and a cheap surface cleaner. I have a 3500 PSI machine, but I use nozzles with a larger orifice to lower the PSI to about 2500 so that it does not damage the concrete