Wall anchors, how to pick the right one for your wall

May 19, 2025

Wall anchors, and how to pick the right one

A mirror comes off the wall at two in the morning and everybody blames the screw. The screw is almost never the problem. What failed is the anchor, or the fact that there was not one, because a plastic plug out of the back of a flat pack packet is not a fixing, it is a suggestion.

The rule worth remembering is this. The anchor holds the wall. The screw holds your thing to the anchor. If the wall lets go, it does not matter how good the screw is.

First, work out what your wall actually is

This is the whole decision, and it takes about ten seconds. Knock on it.

Solid. Brick, stone or concrete. You get a dull thud and your knuckle stops dead.
Hollow. Plasterboard or gyprock over a timber or steel frame. Lighter knock, and it sounds like there is a space behind it, because there is.
Old and unpredictable. Lath and plaster, horsehair render, double brick that somebody has retrofitted. Around here there is plenty of it, and it wants a careful hand and a test hole somewhere it will not be seen.

A stud finder or a magnet is worth the two minutes as well. If you can hit a stud behind plasterboard you may not need an anchor at all, and screwing straight into timber framing beats every anchor on this list.

The four types, and what each is for

Hollow wall anchors

These go into plasterboard and expand behind it as you tighten the screw, so the load is spread across the back of the sheet rather than concentrated on a hole. They come in sizes matched to the thickness of the board, which is why there are half a dozen of them on the shelf rather than one.

Toggles

A spring toggle has wings that fold flat to go through the hole and spring open behind the sheet. Plastic butterfly toggles do the same job for lighter loads. Toggles are what you want for the heavier things on a hollow wall, because they grab a much bigger area of board than anything that only grips the hole.

Masonry anchors and sleeve anchors

For brick, stone and concrete. You drill a hole with a masonry bit, the anchor goes in, and as the screw or bolt tightens the sleeve expands and grips the sides of the hole. Solid and predictable, and this is the one for anything heavy on a solid wall.

Chemical anchors

An injected resin that sets around a threaded rod in the hole. Overkill for a picture and exactly right for a handrail, a heavy bracket or anything going into hollow block or crumbly old brick where a mechanical anchor has nothing to bite on.

Matching the anchor to the job

Pictures and light frames on plasterboard. A small hollow wall anchor is plenty.
Shelves and ledges. Toggles, or hit the studs if you can find them.
Heavy mirrors and vanities. Masonry anchors into brick, or straight into studs with proper screws.
Televisions, bike racks and anything that swings or takes a knock. Sleeve anchors into a solid wall, and do not compromise on this one.

The other two things that decide it

Drill the right size hole. Too small and you damage the anchor forcing it in. Too big and it never grips. The size is printed on the packet and it is not a suggestion either.

And spread the load. Two fixings well apart hold far better than one in the middle, and a bracket with four holes in it has four holes for a reason.

If you are not sure, bring in a photo of the wall and tell us roughly what the thing weighs, and we will work it out with you at the counter. That is a two minute conversation and it beats a broken mirror.

Shop related products

Macsim 6-18 x 25mm Drywall Screws. Bugle head needle point screws for plasterboard work.
Macsim 8-10 x 32mm Chipboard Screws. General purpose timber screw for brackets and battens.
Macsim 8-10 x 45mm Chipboard Screws. Longer, for getting a proper bite into framing.
Macsim 10-10 x 75mm Chipboard Screws. Heavy gauge for the jobs that carry real weight.
Katana 18V Cordless Hammer Drill. The hammer setting is what gets you into brick without a fight.

Did you know we stock the anchors themselves in store, loose, and they are not on the website. Hollow wall anchors in five sizes, plastic butterfly toggles in 12mm and 19mm, spring toggles in 3mm and 5mm, MacDrive anchors, masonry drill bits, and Soudafix chemical anchor for the heavy work. Give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what is on the shelf, or come in and describe the job. There is more in the fasteners and fixings range online.