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We added a "Other Excellent Blenders" section with models we like, but these models are not enough to be featured.
We added a "Other Excellent Blenders" section with models we like, but these models are not enough to be featured.
We also provide information about more Vitamix blenders that we have tested.
The blender is the only machine in your kitchen that can make beverages with large ice cubes and fruits in 60 seconds. Since 2012, no other blender we have tested can produce silky soup, spoon-like thick smoothies and stable emulsions as reliably as the Vitamix 5200. Yes, it is expensive, but we think its powerful motor, meticulous control and long-lasting reliability make it worth the investment.
This high-performance machine blends more elegantly than any other machine we have tested. Its motors are powered by a thick mixture and come with a seven-year warranty, backed by excellent customer service.
In our tests, from 2012 to now, the overall performance of the Vitamix mixer has been the best. The classic Vitamix 5200 is the only product we have tried that can make creamy peanut butter and thick soups without spraying the molten liquid onto the sides of the jar. It doesn't have any preset buttons, but it does offer the widest range of speeds of any blender we have tested (far wider than the Blendtec Designer 675 at the same price). It is a favorite of many (if not most) professional kitchens and juice bars. We also found that the Vitamix 5200 is one of the most reliable and durable mixers we have tested. If the motor burns out within the seven-year warranty, Vitamix will replace the machine in time.
This Oster Versa model offers the best balance of performance and price we have found. It is not as powerful or durable as the Vitamix 5200, but it has a place in many blenders that are twice as expensive.
*At the time of publication, the price was $153.
The Oster Versa Pro series mixer is the leader in a new generation of more economical and high-power mixers. Compared with mixers of the same price, this 1,400-watt mixer has a greater speed change and a quieter operation; it is also one of the few models with a tamper that is used to blast bubbles in thick mixtures. At 17½ inches tall, it is more suitable for placement on the counter under the cabinet than most other high-performance mixers. We don’t think this is definitely the best blender, it can’t compare with the Vitamix blender in terms of power and longevity (we burnt our Oster after two and a half years), but it does have serious blending skills and a user-friendly design And a reliable seven-year warranty. If you don't want to spend nearly half a cup on a powerful blender, then Oster is your best choice.
As a relatively new product, this blender can make some of the smoothest smoothies, but its speed is not as detailed as our first choice.
*At the time of publication, the price was $180.
If you are not ready to use Vitamix, and you don't mind to trade Oster's longer warranty for more power, choose the 1,800-watt Cleanblend Blender. Cleanblend's powerful motor helps to crush berry seeds and ice cubes, making smoothies and piña coladas that are stronger than Vitamix. The jar of this model is made of thick and durable Tritan plastic with a comfortable handle. Unlike the Oster blender, Cleanblend does not have any preset buttons, and there is not much difference between low speed and high speed. In our tests, Cleanblend's motors hold better than Oster's motors and are still very strong after four years of regular use. But Cleanblend only provides a five-year warranty for this blender, while Vitamix and Oster provide a seven-year warranty. Since Cleanblend has only been around since 2013, we are still uncertain about the company's staying power and the reliability of customer service.
This compact 48-ounce blender is perfect for small kitchens with occasional use or limited storage space.
Not everyone wants to spend $200 on a blender, let alone more than $400. If you want a blender to blend occasional sauces or smoothies, the KitchenAid K150 3-speed crushed ice blender is the best model, priced at about $100. The K150 has a 48-ounce jar and a low profile shape, making it the smallest blender we recommend in this guide. The texture it produces is rougher than any of our other choices, and its motor is hardly that powerful (so it is more likely to burn out if overused). Another compromise you make for the price is the warranty, because unlike our other options, KitchenAid's warranty is only one year. But it is an excellent multi-purpose blender, small enough to fit on the counter under most kitchen cabinets.
This high-performance machine blends more elegantly than any other machine we have tested. Its motors are powered by a thick mixture and come with a seven-year warranty, backed by excellent customer service.
This Oster Versa model offers the best balance of performance and price we have found. It is not as powerful or durable as the Vitamix 5200, but it has a place in many blenders that are twice as expensive.
*At the time of publication, the price was $153.
As a relatively new product, this blender can make some of the smoothest smoothies, but its speed is not as detailed as our first choice.
*At the time of publication, the price was $180.
This compact 48-ounce blender is perfect for small kitchens with occasional use or limited storage space.
As a senior staff writer at Wirecutter, I cover everything from chef's knives to stand mixers, and since 2014 I have tested all mixers that are worth testing. I also have a test kitchen with extensive cooking and entertainment knowledge from working in restaurants and magazines for decades. This guide builds on the work of Christine Cyr Clisset, who is now the associate editor of Wirecutter.
We contacted Jonathan Cochran, a former blender salesperson who now runs the Blender Dude website, and he tested the best Vitamix and Blendtec models (his website has affiliate partnerships with both companies). For our original guide written by Seamus Bellamy, we consulted Lisa McManus, the executive editor of Cook's Illustrated and Cook's Country magazine responsible for equipment testing.
Although there is some overlap in what they can do, blenders and food processors are not interchangeable devices. The countertop mixer is a better tool for making purees, instant sauces, and emulsifiers (such as mayonnaise and balsamic vinegar). It is the only device that can whipped berries and fibrous vegetables into a silky smooth texture. Because the jar of the blender is very narrow and the bottom is usually angled, it creates a vortex that helps the ingredients pass through the blade more frequently than a food processor, resulting in a smoother texture.
Among all the models we have tested since 2013, the Cuisinart custom 14-cup food processor is still our favorite because it is simple, powerful and durable.
With a little effort, you can also puree wet ingredients (such as ketchup) in a food processor, but a donut-shaped container cannot handle liquid like a blender jar-it leaks easily. The food processor is suitable for thick fruit purees such as hummus, and for thicker sauces, such as pesto. But it can't make a good smoothie, and-because you can't control the speed of the blade-it is easy to spray hot soup everywhere. On the contrary, food processors are best for shredding, slicing and grinding. With the right accessories, it can even mix and knead dough. Many people use food processors to chop vegetables, but this device is also your best friend. It can easily grind cheese, cut potatoes into gratin, grind fresh breadcrumbs, or quickly cut butter into flour to make pie Dough.
In short, the blender liquefies and the food processor chops and slices. Depending on your needs, you can choose one over the other, or you may want both at the same time. If you are interested, we also have a guide to the best food processors.
The countertop blender provides the smoothest smoothies, daiquiri, soups and sauces of any style blender you can buy. It is more versatile than a personal blender (mainly used for smoothies) because it can hold more and can handle hot liquids. It is also more powerful than an immersion blender, which is great for mixing soup directly in a pot or making quick mayonnaise, but it won’t produce the velvety texture you get from a good countertop blender.
In other words, the performance and life of a mixer is usually proportional to its cost. High-end mixers are more powerful, designed to mash the thickest mixtures without burning, which is simply impossible for cheap mixers. If you want a kitchen workhorse-a machine that can handle everything from hot soups and sauces to thick frozen mixtures-a full-size, high-power blender is the best choice. How much you should spend to buy one depends on what you will use it for. Below is a breakdown of what each of our choices will do for you.
Get our budget and choose KitchenAid if:
To win our runner-up Oster or our equally excellent choice Cleanblend, if:
Get our top choice Vitamix if:
Or, if you just want to make daily smoothies, you'd better use NutriBullet (we have tested them).
Since 2012, we have researched or tested almost all decent household mixers available, from cheap models as low as $40 to powerful, high-performance models up to $700. In all these tests, we found that the following standards are the most important standards to look for in a mixer:
A good blender should be able to smoothly handle hard items such as fiber kale, frozen berries and ice cubes without burning the motor. The efficiency of the mixer to perform this operation depends on the combination of the length and position of the blade, the shape of the mixing tank, and the strength of the motor. All these three elements combine to form a vortex that pulls the food around the blade.
In our tests, we found that tall cone-shaped tanks with curved bottoms produce more consistent turbulence than short and wide tanks with flat bottoms. However, obtaining better mixing from a taller cone requires a trade-off: a fully assembled mixer may be too tall to fit under a low cabinet. A blender with a wide and short jar is more suitable for countertop storage, but you will sacrifice performance for convenience.
A more powerful motor also helps to produce better turbulence, and a weaker motor is easier to mix thick mixtures. But the rated power of the mixer is not easy to obtain information. Most blender companies only advertise "peak horsepower," which can be misleading if you try to determine the strength of the motor. When you start the mixer, the motor will work at peak horsepower for a fraction of a second to overcome inertia. Immediately afterwards, the motor will drop to its "rated horsepower", which is the power it can withstand without burning out. As explained for the engineer’s cooking, you can roughly estimate the rated horsepower of the mixer by dividing its wattage by 746 (because 746 watts is approximately equal to an electrical horsepower unit). This equation does not consider efficiency, but it does provide a more realistic approximation of the power output of the mixer.
We have found that tall cone-shaped tanks with curved bottoms produce more consistent turbulence compared to short and wide flat-bottomed tanks.
Most of the mixers we tested are equipped with plastic jars. All our picks have jars made of BPA-free Tritan plastic, which is very durable. Many of the low-end mixers we tested did not advertise which material their jars are made of, except for the "BPA-free" instructions. But most of these cans may be made of polycarbonate, which is stronger than Tritan, but also very strong. If the heating is too high, both materials will crack, which is why these jars should not be placed in the dishwasher.
We know that some people prefer metal or glass jars. But you can hardly find a powerful blender with a glass jar, and this may be for good reason. As April Jones explained in her article on cooking for engineers: “Due to high-speed blades and high-horsepower motors, glass is not the safest choice for professional blenders. If metal objects (such as spoons or knives) Accidentally left in the blender, the glass jar may break and may cause injury. Using polycarbonate plastic or copolyester is a safer choice to avoid the risk of glass breaking." The stainless steel jar is durable but opaque, We like to monitor the progress of puree and emulsification without opening the lid.
Judging from buyer reviews, the holy grail of many home cooks seems to be a $50 or $100 blender, which is similar in performance to the $500 Vitamix or Blendtec. But this is not realistic. High-end mixers priced at $150 and above—often referred to as high-performance mixers—provide more power, produce a smoother texture, and generally last longer than low-end, sub-$100 mixers. High-performance mixers can also handle tasks you never want to try in a cheap mixer, such as making peanut butter or milling grains.
In other words, as long as you understand its limitations, cheap mixers will be no problem. Some people want an affordable mid-range blender to make occasional daiquiri or smoothies. Therefore, we have tested mixers of various prices and believe that in most cases, they are good value for money.
We have found that the most common complaints about cheap blenders are that their motors can easily burn out, and their jars can crack or leak. But even higher-end mixers are not impossible to experience burnout. As Lisa McManus, the executive editor of Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country Magazine responsible for equipment testing, told our writer Simos Bellamy in an interview with our 2012 guide, “The blender is in that small space. It’s really hard to do in this. The motor is only this big. If you let it do some difficult things every day, many of them will be exhausted. It’s very stressful to install on a small machine.” That’s why long-term warranty is important Reason, especially if you pay a lot for the mixer. The Vitamix, Oster and Cleanblend models all come with a five to seven year warranty, and—at least for Vitamix machines—we have read a lot of user reviews, claiming that the mixer has a longer lifespan. You can't expect cheap blenders to have this level of performance, which may be why most of them only offer a one-year limited warranty.
Whether you choose a blender with manual control or preset functions depends largely on personal preference. But we appreciate the powerful blender, which has a simple interface, including an on/off switch, a pulse button, and a variable speed dial. These simple controls allow you to quickly adjust the speed or shut down the machine when things get messed up.
If you want to handle multiple tasks in the kitchen while stirring, the preset programs for making smoothies, mixing soups, or crushed ice might be great. But we also found that these features rarely provide fruit puree as smoothly as we control the speed and time through manual settings.
In our years of testing, we found a masher—a small plastic rod that allows you to push food into the blade—to distinguish a high-quality blender from a high-quality blender. When the mixer really rotates, air pockets tend to form around the blades, and the rammer allows you to blast them without stopping the machine. The blender that comes with the blender is designed to safely clean that particular model of blade, as long as you use it with the lid open. Using different rammers or other tools that may hit the moving blade is dangerous and may damage the machine. If your blender is not equipped with a stirrer, the only way you should cause the cavitation to burst is to turn off the machine, remove the jar from the base, and stir the mixture with a spoon.
So why don't all blenders have tampering devices? Because forcibly pressing the frozen and thick mixture into the blade will put a lot of pressure on the motor. High-performance mixers that include tampers have powerful motors that can handle this pressure-they are designed for it. But cheaper blenders have weaker motors. If they include tampering devices, people may push these machines to the limit, eventually causing the motors to burn.
We judge each model based on its performance in daily mixing tasks (such as making thick frozen smoothies and hot soups). We also want to see which mixers can emulsify eggs and oil into mayonnaise, and crush nuts into smooth butter. In each blender, we made a thick green smoothie filled with frozen bananas and berries, kale and coconut water. We studied the ability of each mixer to generate a consistent vortex without increasing the burden on the motor or requiring additional liquid. After that, we tasted the smoothie to evaluate the taste, and then we filtered the remaining smoothie through a fine mesh sieve to see how effective the blender crushed hard vegetable and berry seeds.
The blender is a useful tool for making emulsified sauces such as mayonnaise, hollandaise, balsamic vinegar and Caesar dressing, so we tested the ability of each model to emulsify mayonnaise made with one egg yolk. Making a successful mayonnaise (or hollandaise or caesar) depends on the position of the blades in the jar low enough that they start whipping the egg yolks before you add a drop of oil.
In order to understand how the motor handles thick fruit puree, we process raw peanuts into peanut butter. Together with our finalists, we made a few rounds of piña coladas to see how effective they mixed ice cubes into slush.
In addition, we noticed the ease of cleaning of each mixer, the noise of each model, whether any of the motors produce a burning odor when the motor is running, whether the jar is difficult to connect to the base, and how easy the interface is to use.
This high-performance machine blends more elegantly than any other machine we have tested. Its motors are powered by a thick mixture and come with a seven-year warranty, backed by excellent customer service.
Vitamix 5200 provides the best performance you can get in a household mixer. Since 2014, this model has been one of our favorite blenders. It is the classic Vitamix and has always been the standard for professional chefs and blender enthusiasts. It has consistently performed well in our tests and has been recommended by many experts because it beats and crushes food more reliably, thoroughly, and gracefully than most mixers.
Of all the blenders we tested, Vitamix 5200 did not produce the absolute smoothest smoothie-this award went to Blendtec and Cleanblend machines. But when it comes to consistent and elegant performance, Vitamix wins every time. This model is the only blender we have tested that can smoothly blend peanuts and almonds into butter. Other blenders, such as Blendtec, Cleanblend, and Oster, spit out some mayonnaise from the sides of the jar and the center hole of the lid, while the Vitamix moves the mixture smoothly and evenly around the bottom of the blade.
We have found that the Vitamix's variable speed dial has the best range of the blenders we have tried. Its low is very low, and as you advance through each number, the mixing opportunity makes a significant change. In our tests, this speed range makes the Vitamix the best hot liquid mixer: you can start mixing with a slow rotation, and then slowly increase the speed so that the hot liquid is less likely to spray towards the lid and blow up. With the risk of volcanic eruption, we are offline to the combustion unit. In contrast, Cleanblend has a strong start at the lowest setting, which increases the chance of a painful eruption when you mix the hot soup. The same is true for Blendtec Designer 675, which was so powerful in our tests that the soup setting created a whirlwind in the jar.
We compared the Blendtec blender with the Vitamix model in a series of head-to-head tests, and the winner is clear: Vitamix beats Blendtec every time.
The Vitamix blender is essential for breaking air pockets and pushing ingredients down towards the blades while the machine is running. When using a model that has not been tampered with, we often need to stop the mixer to burst the bubbles or scrape the ingredients from the side of the jar with a spatula. In some cases, we must also add more water to the smoothie to make all the ingredients move around the blade without the help of a blender. For all these reasons, the time required to mix Vitamix with a stir bar is approximately half the time required to mix in a Blendtec that does not include a stir bar. By keeping the ingredients moving, we were able to make a smoothie in about 30 seconds.
Vitamix's Tritan plastic jar is stronger than other mixers we recommend, and the grip handle is very comfortable to hold. We also found that the tall, narrow, and tapered jars are very suitable for generating powerful vortices that pull the ingredients toward the blade. This feature helps Vitamix to mix more efficiently than Oster because its wider jar results in much better results than what we get from Blendtec's large block jars. Like most other high-power blender jars, the Vitamix jars (with blades) are very easy to clean: after making a smoothie or similar, you should find that you only need to pour a little hot water, add a few drops of detergent, and mix For about 30 seconds, then rinse the jar.
None of the high-power mixers we tested can be described as quiet, but we found that the noise from Vitamix is much lower than the sharp whine of Blendtec, and it is much quieter than the roar of our runner-up, Oster. Visa.
If the motor overheats, Vitamix will be equipped with an automatic shutdown function to prevent it from burning out. According to our experience, Vitamix should be able to handle many things before reaching that point, but if your Vitamix does shut down, it is best to let the machine rest for an hour before trying to use it again.
One thing that eases the shock of spending more than $400 on Vitamix is the comfort of knowing that it has a seven-year warranty. We called Vitamix's customer service department and learned that the approximate time between filing a claim and receiving your blender back to normal operation (or certified refurbishment) is approximately 6 to 10 days. You can purchase a three-year extended warranty for 5200 for an additional fee. If you purchase a new Vitamix from the company website or a certified third-party retailer (such as Amazon), you have 30 days from the date of purchase to purchase the extended warranty directly from Vitamix at a price of $75. After 30 days, you can purchase an extended warranty until the original warranty expires at a price of approximately $120.
If you choose a certified refurbished model, you can save some money on Vitamix. Jonathan Cochran of Blender Dude highly recommends them. "My choice for'good value for money' is still the certified refurbished (Blendtec) and certified refurbished (Vitamix) models. I personally checked hundreds of them, and for all intents and purposes, they are comparable to new models with significantly lower prices. There is no difference," he told us. The certified refurbished Vitamix comes with a five-year warranty, with the option to extend the warranty for three years for an additional $75.
We have used the same Vitamix 5200 in the test kitchen for five years, but the results are very good. It did burn out in the end, but only after we used it extensively during many tests in this guide and other guides. Nevertheless, it easily surpassed Oster, and before we pushed it to the limit, it made more (better) batches of nut butters and super thick smoothies. Since our Vitamix was still under warranty when it burned out, we contacted customer service and the representative replaced it in time.
For many years, I have also used Vitamix at home, and it is still my favorite home blender. I tested the runner-up Oster for six months and found some obvious differences: Vitamix can handle more without causing exercise stress, and Vitamix is much better tamper-proof than Oster, which is really difficult Put it down there.
Over the years, other Wirecutter employees have expressed their love for their Vitamix mixers. Former special project editor Ganda Suthivarakom has been using her products without problems since 2015. She said: “I like the vegan recipes where I can make a lot of cashew cream without the need to soak the nuts beforehand.” Own Vitamix since 2018 Chris Heinonen, a senior contributor at Chris Heinonen, guessed that he "used it more often than all my mixers in the past." Put it under the upper shelf above the counter...so I’m reluctant to put it aside, and once it leaves, I don’t use it anymore." That is, other people tell us how much they are Appreciate the large capacity of Vitamix.
We know that for many people, the biggest problem with Vitamix 5200 is the high price. At around US$400, it is at least twice the price of our runner-up Oster Versa Pro series blender. In the past, we even chose Oster as our first choice due to its relatively affordable price. But after many years of testing the Vitamix and using it in our test kitchen, we think it is indeed worth the investment. It is more durable and effective than any other blender we have found, and if you plan to use the blender regularly, it will make your life easier. Also, consider the cost of buying a smoothie instead of making it at home: the price of a smoothie in the morning ranges from $5 to $13, so in two to four months, you will pay the same amount as 5200. In contrast, Vitamix, will last at least seven years (it is much more than smoothies).
The Vitamix 5200 is more than 20 inches high and is a large appliance-too large to fit under some kitchen cabinets. But none of the other high-power mixers we tested was much smaller. Although Oster is a few inches shorter, its base is also stronger. If size is an issue for you, Vitamix will produce other shorter mixer series (described below). But we found that the tall and narrow shape of the 5200 mixing tank is one of the components that help this machine produce such an effective vortex.
Finally, the Vitamix 5200 does not have any presets, only a variable speed dial. However, even if you can press a button and let your blender work well through the smoothie making program, it is not essential. In any case, you may be close to the blender in order to use the tamper to move the object, and it is not difficult to adjust the dial if you feel the need to adjust. It is also easy to get good results with Vitamix without any presets.
The 5200 is not the only blender in the Vitamix selection-if you want the blending power of the 5200 but strongly prefer presets, or if you need a shorter tank to fit your space, please consider researching other models. In other words, the original 5200 is still our favorite, because every new Vitamix mixer is equipped with a squat tank, which does not mix small amounts like the tall cone tank of the 5200. (This is a chart that breaks down the characteristics of the different Vitamix series; 5200 is part of the Legacy series.)
We are currently testing our approach through the Vitamix product line. Here are our thoughts on the models we have seen so far:
Compared to our first choice, the Vitamix 5200, the Vitamix 5300 has the same 64-ounce capacity and speed control knob, but lacks the ultra-high-speed switches available on the 5200. In the test, we found that the low-profile jar of the 5300 failed to maintain the vortex like the narrow cone of the 5200. In addition, for smaller capacities (2 cups or less), the 5300's tamper resistance will not extend down enough to burst air pockets. We had to add more liquid to the thicker mixture, such as mashed dates and hummus, because the blender did not cut it. 5300 is part of Vitamix's C series, as well as 5200 and Explorian models. One advantage of the C series mixers is that, despite their expensive prices, they can all be used with the original tall cone tanks, which you can buy for $150. If you buy a new Vitamix now, it may not seem like a big deal, but if you have a C-series mixer and find yourself struggling to mix small volumes, you need to think about it.
The Vitamix Ascent 2300 and 2500 series mixers are similar to the 5300 in terms of mixing capacity and basic functions-graded speed dial, pulse switch and on/off button. The 2000 Ascent series models have larger control knobs and digital timer displays than other models. The difference between 2300 and 2500 is that the former is only manual, while the latter has three mixing programs in addition to the manual mixing function. Like all the thin Vitamix mixers we tested, these Ascent models are not as elegant or effective as the 5200 when mixing smaller volumes. Unlike the thin C series mixers (5300 and Explorian), the Ascent model does not accommodate the original tall tank.
The Vitamix Explorian E320 available at Costco is 99% similar to the 5300. The Vitamix customer service representative told us that these two mixers have the same motor base, jar, mixer and functions. The main difference between the mixers is that there is a small on/off switch directly under the control panel of the 5300. Most importantly, E320 is only available as part of a package containing two personal cups and an adapter.
Vitamix added the Explorian series E310 variable speed mixer to its lineup in 2017. We chose not to test this model because we think it is not of high value. Although it is usually three-quarters of the price of the Vitamix 5200, the cost difference is proportional to the E310's smaller mixing tank (48 ounces and 64 ounces) and the shorter warranty period (five and seven years). On the E310, Vitamix also replaced the switch to switch the machine from variable speed to high power with a pulse switch, thereby eliminating the option of one-button high power mixing. If you have limited storage space in your kitchen, you might like the E310 because of its shorter height (about 17 inches tall, while the Vitamix 5200 is about 20 inches tall). However, if you plan to spend money on a Vitamix blender, we still think that spending a little more on the 5200 is the best choice.
This Oster Versa model offers the best balance of performance and price we have found. It is not as powerful or durable as the Vitamix 5200, but it has a place in many blenders that are twice as expensive.
*At the time of publication, the price was $153.
We believe that you cannot exceed the value of the Oster Versa Pro series blender. It is not as powerful as the Vitamix 5200, but it is about half the price, and it beats most other blenders in the same price range in making silky smoothies, purees and mixed cocktails. It has one of the best combinations of variable speed and preset speed that we have found, and its settings are more intuitive than those of other models we have tried. It also provides features such as tampering and overheat protection, which are usually only available on more expensive blenders. We think Oster is not as durable as Vitamix (ours burned out after two and a half years). But it does provide a seven-year warranty, which is a good choice if you are not ready to buy a Vitamix.
Oster passed almost all the challenges we put forward to it. Although compared to Blendtec or Cleanblend, it fails to get the absolute smoothest drink texture — it leaves the whole raspberry seed in the smoothie and makes a slightly grainy piña colada — but its smoothie It is still much smoother than any result from a low-priced blender. As long as Oster has about 2 cups of nuts available, it can make a good nut butter (although slightly crisper than the batch we made in Vitamix). It lifted up a velvety puree. The only thing Oster is really difficult to do is to make mayonnaise. In four attempts, we can only perform emulsification once.
We found that Oster is easier to control than other mixers at similar prices, thanks to its wide speed range. Although not as changeable as the Vitamix, the Oster is much faster than the Cleanblend. Although it has a variable speed dial, it seems to have only two settings: high and higher. In contrast, Oster's low speed is sane enough that you can start making a batch of soup without letting hot liquid shoot out from the side of the jar (Cleanblend problem).
Oster is our only blender that has both manual speed control and preset programs for soups, dips and smoothies. This makes it more versatile than the more expensive entry-level models of Vitamix and Blendtec, which only have variable or preset speeds, respectively. To get the presets of Vitamix, or the variable speed "touch slider" of Blendtec models, you need to spend more.
The tamper that comes with Oster is a bit too short and has a strange shape. Compared to the smooth cylindrical rammers of the Vitamix and Cleanblend models, the Oster rammer has three flat plastic sheets that intersect in the middle. But this design is enough to burst the bubbles and help move things like peanuts around the blade, so it's better than no tampering.
Like other high-performance mixers, this Oster model is a powerful machine. The base occupies 8 x 9 inches of counter space. But at a height of 17.5 inches from the top of the lid, Oster is more suitable to be placed on the counter under most kitchen cabinets than Vitamix or Cleanblend, both of which are more than 19 inches high.
In addition, like all other high-power mixers we tested, Oster will make a loud sound when you turn the motor all the way to maximum-much louder than Vitamix, but not as annoying or sharp as Blendtec. Currently, this is just the way of a high-performance blender.
Like Vitamix, if the motor is in danger of overheating, the Oster will shut down. If Oster's overload protection stops the motor, you should let it cool for 45 minutes and then press the reset button on the bottom of the base before running the blender again. This procedure can reduce the risk of permanent burning of the motor.
Oster Versa passed almost all the challenges we posed to it.
If it burns out, Oster provides a seven-year limited warranty that covers "material and workmanship defects", including motors and Tritan tanks. This policy is roughly the same as the insurance coverage of Blendtec and Vitamix, which provide eight and seven years of warranty for their models, respectively. According to our experience, Oster's customer service is courteous and will quickly resolve any problems with the mixer within the warranty period.
However, if you think that Oster Versa will provide the longevity and performance of the Vitamix 5200 at a fraction of the cost, think again. The biggest flaw of the Oster model is its durability: We have found through personal experience that the Versa may burn out after two to three years of moderate to frequent use (see our long-term test instructions for this model below). We saw some reviews on Amazon (and comments from our readers) that mentioned the same problem. But Oster honored its seven-year warranty, and a replacement part was soon sent out (we received it in about a week). Although we have tried 3 successful calls and customer service during the busy holiday shopping season, we assume that the hiccups are caused by the unusually high volume of calls at that time of the year.
Compared to the Vitamix, the mixing tank, lid, and controls on the Oster also feel cheaper. But considering that the price of this blender is usually nearly $250 lower, we are satisfied with the low-quality hardware.
For three years, we have used Versa twice a week to make smoothies and soups on average, and it has never stopped during that time-although we occasionally smelled a faint burnt smell from the motor when we stirred thick smoothies . However, when we officially tested the three-year Versa in the 2017 update, the motor permanently stopped working: within one minute of our mixing nut butter, the overload protection cut off the motor. We should let the motor rest for 45 minutes before restarting, but we only let it cool for 10 minutes before our second attempt-that was when the motor was completely burned out. However, our mixer is still under warranty, and Oersted quickly sent a replacement.
Erin Price, Wirecutter's audience development manager, uses Oster Versa and has no complaints so far. She told us: "I have owned the Oster Versa since 2016 and it is still very strong (although it has been in it for a year). I mainly use it to make smoothies, and it handles ice and vegetables well. ."
As a relatively new product, this blender can make some of the smoothest smoothies, but its speed is not as detailed as our first choice.
*At the time of publication, the price was $180.
If you are willing to get a shorter warranty from a new company, the cost of the 1,800-watt Cleanblend Blender is about the same as the Oster Versa, and it can produce finer purees. In our tests, it blended smoother smoothies and piña coladas, more than twice the cost of many blenders. This model is equipped with a durable Tritan plastic tank and a stirring rod to help you move thick mixtures while stirring. Cleanblend does not have any preset buttons, and its speed is not as subtle as Vitamix, but its interface is simple and intuitive to use. From our long-term testing, Cleanblend's motors are durable and can handle arduous tasks such as nut butter better than Oster. It also enjoys a full five-year warranty.
In our tests, Cleanblend made some of the smoothest smoothies, which outperformed Oster or even Vitamix in this regard. When we strain Cleanblend's kale and berry smoothies, there are hardly any raspberry seeds in our fine mesh sieve; the only blender that does a better job is Blendtec. In the blend of silky piña colada, Cleanblend also ranks second, second only to Blendtec. We are here to talk about mixed drinks suitable for restaurants.
For mixing other things, Cleanblend has some limitations. Its speed range is not as wide as Oster or Vitamix. It can enter high gear even at setting 1. In our soup test, it sprays hot liquid onto the lid. Although Cleanblend is better at making mayonnaise than Oster, the motor of this model also seems to generate a lot of heat; its mayonnaise is obviously hot. Like our other choices (except KitchenAid, our budget choice), Cleanblend comes with a tamper, but the bat is a bit short. Although it is suitable for most tasks, do not try to make a nut butter with less than 2 cups of nuts, because once the nuts are finely ground, the shorter masher will not reach the mixture.
In our tests, Cleanblend produced some of the smoothest smoothies.
In our long-term testing, Cleanblend's motor appears to be more durable than Oster's, although we are not sure if it matches the tried-and-tested Vitamix motor. In our 2017 test, the Cleanblend and Vitamix mixers that we have used for 4 years can pass two rounds of nut butter without stopping. The same test blew up our three-year-old Oster. In other words, Oster provides a seven-year warranty for the Versa Pro series blender, but Cleanblend only provides a five-year total warranty.
For an additional $75, you can extend the warranty period of the Cleanblend blender to 10 years. This is a huge value when you consider that the blender (including ten years of coverage) is still about $200 cheaper than the Vitamix. If you want to find the overall outstanding performance of Vitamix at less than half the cost, you can't find it here (or anywhere else), but when you compare these numbers, Cleanblend is a good choice.
However, access to Cleanblend's customer service is only possible via email or a form on the website, which may not inspire confidence in some people. Both Vitamix and Oster have a customer service phone number that can connect you to a representative. Although Cleanblend seems to be more durable than Oster, Cleanblend is such a new company that we have no confidence in the long-term reliability of its mixers.
The Cleanblend base occupies 9½ x 8 inches of counter space, which is roughly the same as our other high-performance options (our budget choice KitchenAid is smaller). At 19 inches above the top of the lid, Cleanblend is taller than Oster, but its clearance under most kitchen cabinets is only slightly larger than Vitamix (close to 20 inches). In addition, like all other high-performance mixers we tested, Cleanblend is loud. But compared to the thunderous roar of Ninja Chef and the sharp whine of Blendtec, Cleanblend's voice sounds much easier.
Veteran writer Michael Sullivan has used the old version of Cleanblend at home for about four years, and he said that he has never encountered a problem. He extracts about six times a month to make smoothies, sauces, soups, or occasionally to make emulsions such as mayonnaise. He even crushed ice several times inside, and he said it has never stopped so far.
When we were testing, Wirecutter staff writer Sabrina Imbler used Cleanblend in her home for more than a year. She uses it three to four times a week and has never experienced stagnation or burnout. She told us: "[My] only small complaint is that sometimes the blender rattles on the base, which makes me a little wary, but it's not bad other than that. I only use it for smoothies and mixed drinks, from Not used for any nuts, but it can crush ice quickly. This is also the perfect size for two smoothies. I tend to use the medium speed range because I rarely need the highest speed, and the lowest speed is not very demanding for me It works. And I really like that it's a dial instead of a number button-if my stuff doesn't mix quickly, it's easier to [start]."
This compact 48-ounce blender is perfect for small kitchens with occasional use or limited storage space.
If you only mix smoothies, daiquiri or soup occasionally, you don't need an expensive high-power mixer. KitchenAid K150 3 speed crushed ice mixer will meet your needs. This blender offers a low profile and 48 ounce blender jar, which is the most compact of all our options. In our tests, K150 proved to be sufficient to mix a thick smoothie, but it was not that it was stopped and started several times, or we had to add more liquid to get a consistent vortex. It cannot puree hard berry seeds like our preferred product, nor can it produce velvety smooth frozen beverages. However, the K150 has a powerful motor that can handle most simple mixing tasks.
KitchenAid K150 offers three speeds and pulse settings for crushing ice. For frozen drinks and smoothies, the second speed seems to be the best position, because this is where we have the least air pockets. As with most blenders at this price, you need to add more liquid to mix smoothies and frozen beverages with the continuous vortex; otherwise, you need to stop a few times to break the air pockets. Overall, we are satisfied with the drinks made by K150. The piña colada is a bit icy but not offensive, and the smoothie is what we would expect from a $100 premium blender: it tastes great, with whole berry seeds and small spots of kale.
When you turn on the K150, the blade will automatically start slowly and accelerate to the set speed. This function is very suitable for safely stirring hot liquids such as thick soup. But it is still important to take precautions when mixing hot food, such as starting at a low speed and securing the lid with a folded dish towel.
We were pleasantly surprised to find that K150 allows us to make a small batch of mayonnaise with one egg yolk and half a cup of oil. We don't think that the wide square base and relatively short blade span of the jar allows us to emulsify such a small volume.
As the name suggests, the KitchenAid K150 3-speed crushed ice mixer can indeed crush ice. We are not talking about professional-grade fluffy shaved ice, but if you want to make some snow cones on a hot summer day, it can solve the problem.
The K150 is light and compact, making it ideal for users who want to store the blender in a cabinet. It also has a low profile (15 inches), allowing it to be easily installed in the standard gap between the kitchen countertop and the upper cabinet (18 inches). But the pitcher is small, only 48 ounces, and it does not have the comfortable rubber grips on our other paddles.
In addition to buying this blender as-is (base, 48-ounce jar and lid), you can also bundle it with two individual mixing cups for about $50 more. We have not tested the personal mixing cup, but we will try and report as soon as possible. KitchenAid also plans to release a K150 version with glass mixing jars, but we prefer plastic mixing jars because they are durable.
At the time of writing, K150 seems to have some inventory issues after Black Friday shopping. We were told that the inventory should be replenished in a wider range of colors sometime in January 2021. KitchenAid K150 comes with a one-year warranty, excluding accidents, drops, misuse and abuse.
Wirecutter staff writer Sarah Bogdan owns K150, and she and her roommates use it to make smoothies several times a month. She said it can mix fruits well, but she hopes it can mix better with the vegetables she adds (such as kale and spinach). However, her roommate who insisted on eating peanut butter, bananas and protein powder had no problem with this. Cleaning is a bit difficult, but she also realizes that this is true of any full-size blender.
If you find that your blender is having difficulty handling ingredients, don't be afraid (within reason) to use the blender to move the mixture around the blade. Also, make sure that there is at least 25% water in the blender jar. Although a high speed will help to process a smoother mixture, a lower speed (PDF) may also help the ingredients begin to circulate when they are not moving. When you follow the recipe, it is also good to add the ingredients in the order listed; blender recipe books tend to have a specific order (for example, Vitamix usually lists ice as the last ingredient).
To limit the risk of hot liquid spraying from the top of the mixing tank, always start with a low setting and slowly increase the speed (usually, the preset will do this automatically). Never fill tanks with hot liquid filling lines. In order to better reduce the risk of the lid popping out, please put a dish towel on the lid and hold the lid firmly by hand while stirring.
Hand wash the mixing jar with warm soapy water instead of washing it in the dishwasher. This will help extend the life of the jar. In our own tests, we found that the best way to clean the blender cup is to use a bottle brush or brush; adding processed water and a little soap to the blender jar will help loosen hard ingredients such as peanut butter, and the rest should be Finished by brush.
We will continue to test more mixers, including Nutribullet Smart Touch, which is the second generation model of the three-speed Nutribullet full-size mixer we mentioned in the "Other Premium Blenders" section. Compared to its predecessor, Smart Touch has additional features, including four hybrid programs and a digital display. We are also testing the Vitamix Ascent 3500 — the most expensive and feature-rich model offered by Vitamix. The Ascent 3500 has five mixing programs, touch screen controls, and Bluetooth connectivity, allowing you to choose from more mixing options through the app on your phone (although we are not sure how much this will help the mixer).
If you are looking for a powerful and attractive blender, the KitchenAid Pro Line series blender is a good choice for aesthetically conscious chefs. It looks good when not in use-a good thing, because this mixer weighs 22 pounds and should be placed on the countertop instead of being lifted in and out of the cabinet. In our test, it blended a silky smooth texture (although not as easy as Vitamix 5200), but it did not perform well in emulsification. After several years of long-term testing of the KitchenAid Pro Line mixer, Wirecutter's associate editor Christine Cyr Clisset said she really likes it. Christine uses Pro Line to make smoothies every day and finds the preset blending program useful in busy working mornings. (Although she did admit that she added enough liquid to the smoothie so that they can be mixed without using a blender.) Christine also often stirs the soup in the Pro Line blender, with satisfactory results.
Braun Triforce Power Blender is a beast. When we compare it with other high-power paddles, Braun Triforce produced a super smooth smoothie in record time—less than a minute. But we think it almost blends too well. Triforce smoothies are liquefied and don't have the creamy and sorbet-like body we get from other choices. It is so powerful that it shoots out some food through the hole in the lid, and sprays our countertops and backsplashes with smoothies within 5 seconds of removing the tamper and replacing the lid. Nonetheless, all these powers are a good nut butter. We like Braun's backlit control panel with variable speed dials, six mixed settings and pulse buttons. We think this is a good blender, if not a bit too powerful.
We were impressed by the performance and price of the Nutribullet full-size mixer. Like Braun, Nutribullet tends to mix the body and milk fat in a smoothie, which produces a more liquefied (but undeniably smoother) result than our budget choice KitchenAid K150. On the first attempt, Nutribullet also emulsified mayonnaise. It has not passed our nut butter test, but we have yet to find a $100 blender that can crush nuts into a paste. After carefully considering whether to make it our new budget choice, we decided to postpone and test Nutribullet for a long time to evaluate its durability. In the next few months, I will personally use Nutribullet at home and report.
Knife manufacturer Zwilling now has a series of small kitchen appliances, including Enfinigy Power Blender. This blender failed the first round of testing because it took two minutes of mixing and vigorously mashing to get a decent 20-ounce smoothie—enough to make my hands sore for two days after the test. The jar is too wide and the tamping device is too clumsy to hold a smaller volume-we don't even think 20 fluid ounces is "small". We do like Zwilling’s streamlined backlit control panel, which uses just one dial to switch between six mixing programs and 12 speed settings. But the icons are small and may be difficult to decipher for some people.
The KitchenAid K400 blender is more powerful than the KitchenAid K150 (our budget choice), but not enough to guarantee a price increase of more than $150. In our tests, the K400 is almost inferior to the cheap Oster and Cleanblend blenders in blending fiber kale.
Will Blendtec Designer 675 blend? Yes, but not as good as our first choice. Even though Blendtec's video marketing campaigns cleverly (and sometimes a little sinister) mix everything together, from the rake handle to the iPhone, we found its blender needed (we also tested the Total model in 2012). Although in our tests, Designer 675 killed it when making smoothies and mixed drinks, its lack of tampering limited its usefulness. It cannot make peanut butter (a masher will help), and the preset speed of the soup is frightening, and the hot liquid is flying wildly around the jar. We do think this particular model is very beautiful, with a glossy black luminous base. If you want something that looks smooth on the counter and can make very smooth mixed drinks and smoothies, then this is an excellent blender. But we believe that such an expensive mixer should perform well on more than just these two tasks. For more information on how Blendtec can compete with the Vitamix 5200, read our article on testing two mixers directly.
We tested Blendtec Total Blender in the 2012 review, but found that it could not compete with the Vitamix we tested at the time. The lid feels very fragile, and the panel controls of this model look cheap.
Breville Super Q is a fully functional blender. In our tests, with its squat tank and powerful motor, the Super Q behaved very similarly to the Blendtec Designer 675, throwing the smoothie into the lid from the side. Once, when I opened the cap to add more liquid, Breville sprayed a little smoothie on my face. Super Q can crush hard food, but Vitamix can also do this for less money-and there is less drama in the jar. When we make peanut butter, Super Q also generates a lot of heat-so much so that when we noticed steam coming out of the jar, we had to stop the test early. Although Super Q blends the smoothest piña coladas and comes with many extra goodies (a 68-ounce jar, a personal mixing jar, a preset mixing program and a vacuum accessory that should slow down the oxidation of raw food), we don’t think It is more than $100 more expensive than Vitamix, especially because most of these goodies will only mess up your cabinets.
In our test, Cuisinart CBT-1500 Hurricane has difficulty handling food. Mixing thick smoothies and peanut butter requires adding more liquid, starting and stopping a lot, and tapping the jar on the counter. However, unlike the more powerful Cuisinart CBT-2000 Hurricane Pro, it did make mayonnaise on the first try. But without Hurricane Pro’s Turbo button (see below for more details), this model is just another mid-range blender.
The performance of Cuisinart CBT-2000 Hurricane Pro is similar to Cuisinart CBT-1500 Hurricane, except that it does not make mayonnaise (we only achieved emulsification in the third attempt). We did find the Turbo button useful for making beautiful purees. But again, since there is no tampering to destroy the air pockets, this mixer requires a lot of work to produce a uniform and smooth puree.
The Ninja Chef CT800 1,500 watt mixer is the company's first high-performance model, and there is no blade set in the entire tank. Instead, the ninja chef's blade is located at the bottom of the jar, just like in a normal blender. The performance of this model is also better than its predecessors. But it is very loud, and our top picks-Vitamix, Oster and Cleanblend-still blended smoother smoothies in our tests.
In terms of price, the Ninja Master Prep Professional is a good blender, but we don't think it can compare with any of our other choices. It does a very good job of making smoothies, mixed bean paste and mixed margaritas, but the design for making mayonnaise is terrible (the motor is installed on the top, so you can't drip anything into the jar). The stacked blades are also very sharp and difficult to clean. The Ninja Master Prep Professional comes with three mixing tanks of different sizes; we think it adds up too much and will only mess up our cabinets in the end. In general, the machine feels really cheap.
Ninja Professional Blender 1000 does not perform well. The green smoothie we made in this blender has a strange confetti-like texture. The mayonnaise made by this model is particularly loose, which means it is stirred in too much air. Every time we run this Ninja blender, we will smell a strong, burning engine smell. The jar is difficult to put on the base, and the lid is also difficult to clamp. In addition, the base is large and bulky, and it feels cheap.
The uniqueness of the Instant Pot Ace 60 cooking blender is that it has a heating element at the bottom, so it can cook and puree food (some high-power blenders also claim to "cook" soup, but they can only do this by friction One point). After a lot of testing, we found that this seemingly beautiful feature is not practical. We made a nice broccoli cheese soup and a smooth butternut squash puree, but we had to mix them longer than the program set to get a creamy texture. We are disappointed to find that we cannot adjust the temperature or stir-fry in the machine, because if the liquid in the jar is not detected, the heating element will not start. Therefore, Ace does not produce the subtle difference that you get when you start with a little caramelization. The heating element also introduces another possible point of failure into an appliance that is already easily burned out.
Compared to most budget-grade blenders we have tested, Ace whipped smooth peanut butter and did a better job of crushing ice cubes and tough kale leaves. But it is big and loud, and its glass jar is heavier and more durable than our selection of Tritan plastic jars. The wide bottom of the jar also makes it difficult for Ace to form a strong vortex (instead of throwing the ingredients into the jar).
The 1,800-watt Hamilton Beach professional mixer performed well in our tests. When we use manual speed, the digital readout of the blender shows a countdown timer, which is helpful because the instruction manual recommends not to run the motor continuously for more than two minutes. However, when bubbles appear, the pre-programmed settings are not effective in keeping the mixture moving. In addition, the on/off button slopes upward on the top of the base, so it is susceptible to food and dirt over time.
Braun PureMix is a small, tamper-free blender, it did not leave us any impression, it has a fragile kettle and a lightweight base. PureMix is difficult to mix our smoothies, we need to add too much liquid to the mixture, so that the texture is too thin-bad! We disqualified Braun after the first test.
The smoothies made by Waring Commercial Xtreme are particularly smooth and feel very fulfilling. But in the end it did not perform better than the ones we picked from Vitamix, Oster or Cleanblend. If we were willing to pay so much for the mixer, we would choose the refurbished Vitamix 5200. We do like that Waring has a metal can, which you can buy for this machine.
Mid-priced blender (subscription required), test kitchen in the United States
Andrew Gebhart, Ry Crist, From smoothies to pesto to almond butter: 13 blender reviews, CNET, August 22, 2014
Interview with Lisa McManus, Executive Editor of American Test Kitchen Equipment Testing
Jonathan Cochran, author of Blender Dude blog, interview
J. Kenji López-Alt, Vitamix and Blendtec and Breville: Who is the best high-end mixer? , Serious Eats, December 16, 2014
Lesley Stockton (Lesley Stockton) is a senior writer responsible for covering all things cooking and entertainment for Wirecutter. Her expertise is built on a lifetime career in the culinary world-from restaurant chef and caterer to Martha Stewart's food editor. She is very happy to leave it all behind and become a full-time kitchen nerd.
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