An airless sprayer works by pumping paint at a very high pressure, up to 3,000 psi, through a hose and out a tiny hole in the spray gun tip. The tip is designed to break up the paint evenly into a fan-shaped spray pattern of tiny droplets.

Do airless sprayers use more paint?

Airless paint sprayers are extremely popular, but also tend to waste more paint on average than other types of spray guns. Your run-of-the-mill airless paint sprayer will waste up to 40% of the paint that you use, and even more if you aren't operating the spray gun properly.

Is airless paint sprayer better?

Airless sprayers can also handle thicker paint better than compressed air or high volume low pressure (HVLP) sprayers. All paint sprayers should be handled with care, but be especially mindful with an airless sprayer, which works under very high pressure.