5 Best Anchors for Plaster Walls – What You Need To Know

An ongoing challenge for many homeowners or office buildings is finding the right anchor to use on a typical plaster wall.

There is nothing quite as frustrating as finding the perfect spot to hang a heavy picture frame or mirror, and then realizing there is no stud behind the wall to support your decoration.

Anchors and anchoring screws were invented to help solve this problem.

But just like any product these days, there are so many different models and options that it is hard to know where to start.

We have compiled a list for you of the 5 best anchors for plaster walls along with a buying guided that we hope will be helpful in helping you make a decision.

5 Best Anchors for Plaster Walls (as of April, 2024):

1. Screw-it SIAK Anchors for Plaster Walls – Editor’s Choice Review

What if you could have the holding power of the zinc coated molly units without the extra tools or the need to pre-drill?

The Self Drilling Drywall Anchors with screws do just that.

With no pre-drilling and a rust-proof zinc exterior, these are simple no-nonsense wall anchors.

How It Works

You can then the screw can easily insert into the anchor. After use, you can easily unscrew the screws and anchors for re-use later.

Recommendation

This is our top recommendation like we mentioned up top. Simple, sturdy, and able to hold up to 50 lbs. each, these little anchors and screws truly hold their own weight.

They are perfect for an old plaster wall as you do not need to worry about the thickness of the wall like you do with a molly bolt.

Main Features

• No hole preparation required
• Constructed from durable zinc to last for years
• Can be easily removed
• Deep thread design provides strong engagement, locks into many sizes of drywall (⅜”, ½”,⅝”) for maximum holding power
• Starts easier than other self-drilling drywall anchors
• Large Anchor holds up to 50 lbs, good for heavier applications such as big pictures, shelves, and artwork
• Mini Anchor holds up to 40 lbs, leaves smaller footprint, good for applications where anchor needs to be hidden
• Kit includes 25 Large Anchors, 25 Mini Anchors, 25 #8 X 1-¼” screws, 25 #6 X 1-¼” screws

2. The Container Store Elfa Anchors for Plaster Walls – Pricey but Easy To Use Review

Coming to you from the Container Store, these high-quality plastic anchors are sleek, easy to use, and unlike other plastic anchors, they are reusable after each use.

Made to be used on plaster or drywall, you can install these with a #2 Phillips Screwdriver.

Recommendation

We recommend these for lighter jobs as their weight rating is a bit lower than some of the other anchors reviewed here.

Main Features

• These are designed to work with products from The Container Stor
• To be mounted on drywall or plaster of chipboard w/thickness from 9-26 mm / 3/8-1”
• Can install with just a #2 Phillips Screwdriver
• Dimensions – 14 x 75 x 14 mm
• Comes in a 5-pack

Elfa Assembly instruction, Wallhang:

3. Hilitchi H-JS-406 Anchors for Plaster Walls – Strength When You Need It Review

The Hilitchi Long Hollow Wall Drive Anchor Kit comes with 3 different sizes of wall anchors.

This should cover most light-duty home projects you may run into.

With their unique design, they keep the screw from stripping and will not break during the installation process.

How it Works

You would need to pre-drill the hole where you want them. Then place the anchor inside of the pre-drilled hole.

Unscrew the screw a bit from the anchor, and then use a screwdriver to press the screw down while tightening the screw into the anchor. At this point, the anchor will split and expand.

Recommendation

We recommend this kit for several reasons. The Hilitchi has a 100% guarantee on their product and will replace any piece of the kit for free within 90 days of purchase.

Main Features

• Great holding power
• Strong hardness
• No rust
• Wide application
• Installation quick and easy
• Improve work efficiency

4. Sutemribor STBR-zhongkong-bihu-48P – For Heavy Duty Projects Review

The Sutemribor is a classic molly bolt wall anchor kit.

The idea behind the molly bolt is it expands as you drive the screw in but can also collapse as you screw the screw out so they can be reusable in the future.

This kit in particular ranges up and down the scale of size allowing you to do lightweight anchoring up to heavier duty.

How To Use It

You will need to pre-drill a hole in the desired location. Then you will insert the anchor into the hole.

After that, you pull the screw head towards you, which forces the anchor to expand against the back of the wall and then reinsert the screw, you tighten up the screw to affix the anchor to the backside of the wall.

Recommendation

The Sutemribor kit is perfect for those that are doing a lot of different types of projects. It may be too much for the average DIY’er but would be adequate for a handyman that needs various sizes.

With the classic molly bolt system and the rust-resistant zinc plating, this is a quality wall anchor kit.

Main Features

• Zinc plated steel
• Total 48 pieces per kit
• Molly bolt drive hollow drive wall anchor screw
• Size: 4x32mm, 4x60mm, 5x52mm, 5x65mm, 6x52mm, 6x65mm
• Made of high quality zinc plated carbon steel, rust resistance and corrosion resistance, durable enough for you to hanging items
• Perfect for Gypsum cardboard, gypsum fiberboard, creteboard, fiber cement board, hard fiberboard, partition walls, hollow bricks, prefabricated panels, etc

5. Glarks GLSMO-4 – Perfect For Plaster Review

These zinc-plated carbon steel molly bolt screws are designed to be heavy duty wall anchors.

Perfect for hollow plaster walls, they utilize the same hollow sleeve molly bolt system as the Sutemribor kit does.

42 pieces may be too much for the average person and this kit requires the use of an insertion tool so it takes a bit more than usual hardware.

Design Elements

Recommendation

If you are ok with pre-drilling and some of the extra steps it takes for a molly bolt anchor screw, then this is a great kit to have.

Main Features

• Made of high quality zinc plated carbon steel
• Size: 4x32mm, 4x60mm, 5x52mm, 5x65mm, 6x52mm, 6x65mm
• Zinc plated on the surface can keep them from rust and corrosion
• Heavy-duty hollow drive wall anchor expansion when installing, providing strong bearing capacity and safety
• Widely used in drywall, hollow block, plaster, tile
• Perfect for hanging curtain rods, lamps, photo frames, coat racks, power switches

Best Anchors for Plaster Walls – Buying Guide

Why Anchor Screws For Plaster Walls

Ideally, when you are hanging something on a wall such as artwork, picture frames, or book shelves, you are able to use a stud to help give your hanging job support.

Unfortunately, studs are few and far between and sometimes not even close to where you need them to be. Using screws in drywall or plaster leaves very little stability just on their own. Hence, the invention of the anchor.

Plaster oftentimes is quite hollow on the inside, is usually older, and therefore presents a unique challenge when it comes to choosing the right anchors.

Different Anchor Designs

There are a few different styles and designs for anchors that are important to keep in mind. First off, you have the plastic sleeve style.

These require a predrilled hole the width and depth of the plastic sleeve. After you pre-drill, you then insert the plastic sleeve into the hole.

Then, you insert and begin to tighten the screw. As the screw goes in, it expands and pushes the plastic out the create an expanding anchor no the back of the wall.

The next is the hollow drive molly bolt system of anchoring. These are often zinc covered steel. Again, you will need to pre-drill and have a good handle on how thick the wall is.

That way, you can get the pivot points of the hollow sleeve through to the other side of the wall.

Once inserted into the pre-drilled hole, you pull on the head of the screw out towards you so that the back of the molly sleeve catches and expands onto the back of the wall.

Then you tighten the screw in to keep the whole system in place.

Finally, the self-drilling anchor system. This one is by far the easiest as no pre-drilling is required. Once installed, these hold quite well. You simply drill a hole into the wall with the anchor itself, then insert the screw into the anchor.

Since these tend to be made straight from zinc, they can easily break during insertion so it is important to be aware of that. These are ideal for plaster walls as sometimes it can be hard to know what the thickness of plaster walls are.

These anchors, as opposed to molly bolts, do not need to be exact on thickness in order to work well.

How To Choose The Best Anchoring Kit

The best way to choose an anchoring kit is to know what it is you really need out of it. If you are going to be anchoring lighter things, then perhaps plastic would be better.

If you know the thickness of your walls, then a hollow drive molly bolt system is ideal for heavy-duty needs.

If you do not know the thickness of the plaster of your walls, do not want to do any pre-drilling or use special tools, then the self-drilling option is great for heavy duty holds as well.

How to Install Self-Drilling Drywall Anchors : Wall Repair:

Conclusion

You have great plaster walls and bookshelves or frames that you want to hang up. With plaster, there are certain challenges such as the age of the plaster, the thickness of the walls, and the weight of the unit that you want to hang up.

We hope that the buying guide helped give you clarity when it comes to thinking about anchoring units and help you think through exactly what your needs are. Above, we also listed out several options to choose from and provided many different styles and options.

When it comes to a good overall anchor for plaster, we prefer the Self-Drilling Anchor Kit With Screws over other solutions.

At the end of the day, you need to get what is good for you though and that often means getting crystal clear on what you need first.