The 10 Best Blenders Of 2022
- Our top picks
- How we picked these products
- 1) E310 Explorian Blender
- 2) 3-Speed Ice Crushing Blender
- 3) My Blend
- 23) NutriBullet Blender Combo
- 5) A3500 Ascent Series Smart Blender
- Breville Fresh and Furious Countertop Blender
- 7) Pro Performance Blender
- Enfinigy Countertop Power Blender
- Foodi Power Blender & Processor System
- 10) SmartPower Duet Blender/Food Processor
- 13) What is the best kitchen knife set on the market?
Those daily trips to the smoothie shop can really add up—not just in terms of money spent, but nutritionally as well. Smoothies from chains like Panera and Starbucks often come with added sugars and fruit concentrates instead of real fruit, which basically cancels out the whole reason you’re having a smoothie in the first place. But which blender is best? And is blending hard for beginners? Whether you want to get the most out of your soups, sauces, and smoothies or you want to live out your wildest Tom Cruise in Cocktail fantasies and whip up delicious mixed drinks, we have all the advice and answers for how a blender can be a real asset to your culinary repertoire.
Got blending on the brain? Check out our picks for the best juicers and food processors.
Our top picks
How we picked these products
Our friends at the Good Housekeeping Institute take their blenders very seriously. Their team of on-staff experts—which includes all types: engineers! data analysts! registered dietitians!—rigorously put everyday products to the test (and then more and more tests) in their New York City-based labs to determine which ones you can trust. To find the best blenders, they tested a wide array of models—doing everything from grinding coffee beans to pulverizing frozen fruits—on all kinds of factors, including ease of use and assembly, cleanability, noise level during operation, stain resistance, and wear-and-tear over time.
1) E310 Explorian Blender
$329.95
You don’t have to be a Practical Magic fan to love a good midnight margarita, but if you want to join the Vitamix coven, there’s no better option than the durable Vitamix E310 Explorian. From grinding coffee beans and whipping up nut butters to, yes, mixing up some classic margaritas, there isn’t much this workhorse of a blender can’t do. (It even has a self-cleaning function!)
The Good Housekeeping Institute was impressed with its “consistently even and smooth” mixtures and “zero leakage from the lid.” One of our favorite features is its sturdy base, which stays put instead of bouncing around on your countertop. As is the case with Vitamix, the E310 Explorian’s price tag is a bit high—especially considering the carafe only has a 6-cup capacity—but we think the intuitive controls, ten variable-speed settings, and professional-grade quality make it a worthy investment.
2) 3-Speed Ice Crushing Blender
$139.99
The J-Lo of blenders, the KitchenAid 3-Speed Ice Crushing Blender is a triple threat with its simple, yet high-quality design, dishwasher-safe jar and lid, and three speed settings (not including the pulse function). The 6-cup pitcher is large enough that you can whip up smoothies and soups without needing to make multiple batches.
The Good Housekeeping Institute noted that it’s not as good at grinding down small particles like strawberry seeds, saying “The smoothie still had a little bit of texture from strawberry seeds, but was still very creamy and thick. The broccoli and leek soup also had a little texture but was just as silky as you would want from a pureed soup.” However, its overall creamy output secures its status as the best performing sub-$100 blender on the market.
3) My Blend
$39.97
Who’s up for a good post-workout protein shake? If your answer is “me, myself, and I,” we recommend the Oster My Blend, which can effortlessly blend drinks right inside the included sports bottle to save you time and cleanup. This blender is as easy to use as any of your go-to exercise gadgets: Add your favorite ingredients to the jar, twist on the blade attachment, blend, and then switch out the blade for the lid to enjoy the fruits (or whey) of your labor.
It may not be great at making green juices, with the Good Housekeeping Institute warning that it “doesn’t perform well with tough leafy greens,” but we think the My Blend is a great gym buddy if smoothies and shakes are your jam.
23) NutriBullet Blender Combo
$135.24
They don’t call the NutriBullet the “countertop magician” for nothing: This powerful small appliance can bibbidi bobbidi blend! Using the extract setting, which blends at various preprogrammed speeds, all your ingredients will be evenly processed, resulting in uniform, velvety shakes and smoothies to enjoy at home or on the go.
In addition to boasting an easy-to-read control panel with large buttons, the high-powered NutriBullet Blender Combo comes fully-equipped with three dishwasher-safe, BPA-free Tritan containers—a 64-ounce pitcher, 32-ounce jar, and 24-ounce cup with a handle—and two to-go lids for the personal blending cups.
The suction cups on the bottom of the base ensure this machine won’t move around and make a mess while in use, but if you want to maintain that mess-free track record, the Good Housekeeping Institute recommends users “remember to unscrew the personal blending cups from the base instead of the blade mounts.”
5) A3500 Ascent Series Smart Blender
$599.95
Whether your household is on the larger side or your home is the go-to spot for birthdays, game days, and every celebration in between, get the party started with the Vitamix A3500 Ascent. This smart blender will upgrade your kitchen to genius-level with its modern features, like user-friendly touchscreen controls and the ability to connect to your phone via an app (which offers a whopping 17 programs to purée baby food and whip up nut butters, as well as chop, froth, grind, and clean).
The Good Housekeeping Institute’s kitchen tech experts were wowed by its performance during testing, noting it did “exceptionally well at grinding coffee beans and blending milkshakes and smoothies.” The Ascent’s accompanying attachments come equipped with Self-Detect technology, which intuitively determines which container is affixed to the base and adjusts the blending settings accordingly.
You can also purchase additional accessories like food processor and personal blending cup attachments. Boasting an easy-to-grip handle, this blender’s 64-ounce container may be hand-wash only, but it fits snugly on the base and comes with a dishwasher-safe lid that’s a breeze to secure and remove.
Breville Fresh and Furious Countertop Blender
$199.95
Go from living your life a quarter mile at a time to living life in the fast lane with Breville’s The Fresh and Furious Countertop Blender, which features a 50-ounce carafe and multiple blending options. The green smoothie button produces a concoction that has everything you want in a green smoothie—what the Good Housekeeping Institute called a “smooth and creamy texture with no sign of fibrous kale or spinach”—and all the stuff you don’t, like grit and small chunks of… whatever cruciferous vegetable you’re using.
Plus, its regular smoothie function takes just one minute to yield some creamy results, which is definitely faster and cheaper than driving to your local Jamba Juice.
With a self-clean function and dishwasher-safe jar and lid, even clean-up is easy (though the 50-ounce jar can be prone to staining). Whether you’re making a smoothie or soup, you can count on The Fresh and Furious’great performance and even better price to get you to the finish line.
7) Pro Performance Blender
$549.95
This blender is powerful enough to produce creamy shakes and velvety smoothies thanks to its 10 (!) different speed options. Boasting a sleek design that fits under most cabinets, the Wolf Gourmet Pro Performance Blender has the power (and four pre-programmed settings) to crush ice and create everything from delectable soups to smooth purées.
The Good Housekeeping Institute also loved the innovative emulsion cap, which “allows you to add oil to the blender at an optimal pace to get a great emulsion in sauces and dressings” to ensure they’re fully homogeneous. The Gourmet Pro comes complete with a lightweight jar that has a comfortable handle, but do note that it’s hand-wash only.
Enfinigy Countertop Power Blender
$299.95
From effortlessly puréeing a loaded baked potato soup to evenly grinding coffee beans, it’s safe to say that where there’s a Zwill, there’s a way. The stylish Zwilling Enfinigy Countertop Power Blender performs as great as it looks—it can even whip up a creamy green smoothie in under a minute!
Made “using the same engineering as Zwilling J.A. Henckel’s high-quality German knives,” according to the Good Housekeeping Institute, this machine’s high-carbon steel blades can easily cut through everything from leeks to broccoli florets.
The downside: Only the lid is dishwasher-safe, but the jar is easy to hand-wash, which the Good Housekeeping Institute attributes to “its minimalist design.”
Foodi Power Blender & Processor System
$149.20
Save dough while you make dough with the Ninja Foodi Power Blender & Processor System. This small appliance performs double duty as its Smoothie Bowl Maker attachment yields thick, creamy nut butters and smoothie bowls while its Dough Blade attachment produces everything from sweet cookie dough and brownie batter to smooth and tacky pizza dough.
Boasting super strong suction cups on the base to prevent it from shifting around while blending, the Ninja Foodi is as easy to use as it is to clean with dishwasher-safe jars, lids, and blades.
That being said, you’ll need to be careful to remove the sharp blade attachment before cleaning, as the Good Housekeeping Institute found it “does not lock into the base, which caused it to fall out when the jar was upside down”—ouch!
10) SmartPower Duet Blender/Food Processor
$64.95
Can’t decide between a food processor or a blender? Get the best of both worlds with the Cuisinart SmartPower Duet Blender/Food Processor, which comes with dishwasher-safe accessories like a 40-ounce glass carafe, food processor work bowl, and removable two-ounce measuring cup on the blender jar lid. From chopping and shredding to pulsing and puréeing, there’s not much this two-for-one special can’t do.
Though the Good Housekeeping Institute’s test panel determined it was “not the most high-powered blender,” the SmartPower Duet’s ease of use, versatility, and cleanability (not to mention, the seven blending and food processing settings) secures its status as a crowd favorite.
13) What is the best kitchen knife set on the market?
Blades: The sharper the blades, the better the blender, right? Actually, that’s not so. Because blades tend to dull over time, you should focus more on the strength of the blades rather than the sharpness. This not only extends the longevity of your appliance, but it also makes it stronger and safer to clean.
Size: Depending on how often you use your blender and where you plan to store it, size could end up being a pretty significant deciding factor. Each size has its pros and cons: Compact, lightweight models are easier to stow away in a cupboard, but they’re also more likely to bounce around while in use. Meanwhile, larger models don’t have that same small footprint or level of portability, but you can count on their durability. Furthermore, you should take height into account—after all, the last thing you want is to bring home your shiny new blender, only to find it’s too tall to fit under your kitchen cabinets. If you come to the conclusion that a full-size blender may not be a good fit for your kitchen, that doesn’t mean you have to lose out on all the convenience and tasty treats blenders have to offer. Check out our recommendations for the best immersion blenders as a compact alternative.
Glass vs. Plastic: You can’t go wrong with either glass or plastic, but there are definitely pros and cons to both. Glass is heavier, more attractive, and very durable, but a lot of high-powered blenders don’t use glass containers because they’re not guaranteed to be completely shatterproof. However, if you really love the idea of glass, we suggest finding a model with a glass carafe that’s been thermal-shock tested, which means you can take it straight out of the dishwasher and blend up a milkshake. Plastic, meanwhile, is more lightweight and less likely to crack, but it’s also more likely to stain or retain odors. If you do choose to go the plastic route, check out options made from Tritan plastic, which is BPA-free and strong enough to take a beating from a blender’s high-powered blades.
Wattage: In some cases, the higher the wattage, the more powerful the appliance. While this isn’t necessarily the case for every blender, wattage is still a factor you want to keep in mind—in conjunction with a machine’s overall design—when gauging a blender’s performance.