Buying guide for best electric toothbrushes
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Dental health comes not only from the right practices and techniques but also from the right tools. An electric toothbrush is more effective than a traditional toothbrush and can, therefore, improve brushing efficiency and results.
Electric toothbrushes come in different styles and may include features like rechargeable batteries or charging cases. The two main types of electric toothbrushes are sonic and oscillating models, which move in different ways and at varying speeds. The best type for you depends on your preference, your gum sensitivity and your price range. Some models may vibrate at specific quadrant intervals to guide your brushing so that each part of your mouth gets equal attention. Brush head size, brushing modes and battery type are additional features to consider.
We did a deep dive into electric toothbrushes and found the Philips Sonicare DiamondClean Smart 9500 Electric Toothbrush to be the best. It features a pressure sensor to keep you from applying too much pressure, as well as five brushing modes and three intensity levels to suit your specific needs.
Which electric toothbrush is best?
Philips Sonicare DiamondClean Smart 9500 Electric Toothbrush
Best of the Best
Product specificationsBattery life: 2 weeks | Brushing Modes: 5 modes plus 3 intensities | Charging Time: 24 hr | Brush Strokes Per Minute: 62,000 | Smart Features: Quadrant timer, pressure sensor, brush head replacement reminder
If you’re comfortable splurging on a top-of-the-line electric toothbrush with all the bells and whistles, we recommend this powerful system by Philips. With five brushing modes, each of which can operate at three intensity levels, plus a variety of brush heads to choose from, this model allows you to fully customize your brushing routine to the individual needs of your teeth and gums. The device has a built-in two-minute timer, as well as a quadrant pacer.
Vibrating at 62,000 brush strokes per minute, this is our favorite electric toothbrush because it can remove up to 20 times more plaque than a manual toothbrush. While the device takes 24 hours to fully recharge via a glass charging base, a single charge can last up to two weeks. It also comes with a charging travel case that allows you to recharge your toothbrush on the go.
The toothbrush has a pressure sensor that lights up on the handle when too much pressure is applied, helping you better protect your teeth and gums. If you want even more feedback on your dental hygiene, connect to the Philips Sonicare app via Bluetooth to get personalized brushing guidance and alerts when it’s time to change your brush head.
Aquasonic Black Series Ultra Whitening Toothbrush
Best Bang for the Buck
Product specificationsBattery life: 4 weeks | Brushing Modes: 4 | Charging Time: NA | Brush Strokes Per Minute: 40,000 | Smart Features: Quadrant timer, two-minute auto-shutoff
This affordable model proves that you don’t have to shell out the big bucks to get an effective electric toothbrush. Vibrating at 40,000 brush strokes per minute, this model is quite powerful despite its low price tag. It operates on four different brushing modes that help you customize your teeth- and gum-cleaning routine to suit your preferences. A quadrant timer helps you even out your brushing, while a two-minute auto-shutoff feature lets you know when you’ve completed your routine.
The kit comes with eight brush heads, which makes it even more cost-effective since that’s approximately two and a half years’ worth of brush heads. The battery life is equally impressive: A single charge yields four weeks of twice-daily use. The ultra-slim lightweight design is less taxing on your arm than heavier models. It also comes with a convenient hard-shell travel case for on-the-go protection.
Oral-B Pro 1000 Rechargeable Electric Toothbrush
Best for Sensitive Gums
Product specificationsBattery life: 7 days | Brushing Modes: 3 | Charging Time: 22 hr | Brush Strokes Per Minute: 20,000 pulsations and 8,800 oscillations | Smart Features: Quadrant timer, pressure sensor
People with sensitive gums may be wary of powerful electric toothbrushes for fear of irritating their gums, but this model is built with sensitive mouths in mind. It’s equipped with three brushing modes, including a sensitive mode and a gum-health mode, in addition to a daily-clean mode. It also uses gum pressure control, which automatically stops brush pulsations when you brush too hard.
The toothbrush offers 20,000 pulsations and 8,800 oscillations per minute to help you remove more plaque than with a manual toothbrush. It has a quadrant timer that alerts you every 30 seconds to change your brushing zone. The round brush heads are designed to better reach crevices that rectangular brush heads might miss.
It comes with a charger stand that fully recharges the toothbrush from empty in 22 hours. A single charge can last up to seven days.
Philips Sonicare Power Flosser & Toothbrush System 7000
Best Full Kit
Product specificationsBattery life: 2 weeks | Brushing Modes: 4 | Charging Time: 24 hr | Brush Strokes Per Minute: 31,000 | Smart Features: Quadrant timer, pressure sensors, Bluetooth connectivity to mobile app
If you want the maximum benefits from your dental hygiene routine, consider adding an oral irrigator into the mix. Also known as a water flosser, an oral irrigator uses a powerful yet gentle stream of water to clean in between your teeth where a toothbrush can’t reach. This all-in-one kit, which we rated highly after testing it, offers the best of both worlds, combining the Philips Sonicare ExpertClean 7300 electric toothbrush and an oral irrigator in a single, convenient device.
The toothbrush operates in four brushing modes and delivers 31,000 brush strokes per minute that left our teeth looking and feeling sparkling clean. It has a built-in quadrant timer to help you brush all areas of your mouth evenly. A pressure sensor will alert you if you’re brushing too hard. Plus, it has Bluetooth connectivity, so it can sync up with a mobile app, allowing you to track your progress and brushing over time. The app will also remind you when it’s time to change your brush head.
The power flosser uses an X-shaped stream of water, which covers more surface area between your teeth and gums than most oral irrigators. This allows you to get a faster, more effective and gentler clean than manual flossing. It also has a large 600-milliliter water reservoir, which gave us three cleaning sessions from a single tank when we tested it.
Philips One by Sonicare Battery Toothbrush
Best for Travel
Product specificationsBattery life: 30 days | Brushing Modes: 1 | Brush Strokes Per Minute: 13,000 | Smart Features: Quadrant timer
Although some electric toothbrush models come with travel cases, others are better suited for only at-home use. In such cases, you’ll find it useful to invest in an affordable travel-friendly electric toothbrush. Weighing just over 8 ounces, this lightweight model has a super slim design in a sleek travel case that makes it easier to fit in most toiletry bags than other electric toothbrushes.
It operates on a single AAA battery, which yields approximately 30 days of use. Should your battery run out while you’re on the go, it’s easy to replace without any charging time. Though it’s not as powerful as most other models in terms of vibrations per minute, it’s still much more effective than a manual toothbrush. It has a convenient quadrant timer to help you track your brushing routine and ensure you give equal attention to all areas of your mouth.
This bonus pack comes with three brush heads, which give you a combined nine months of brushing.
Oral B iO Series 5 Rechargeable Electric Toothbrush
Best Mobile App
Product specificationsBattery life: 2 weeks | Brushing Modes: 5 | Brush Strokes Per Minute: NA | Smart Features: Pressure sensor, Bluetooth connectivity to mobile app, two-minute timer and brush head replacement reminder
If you’re concerned about your dental hygiene, this electric toothbrush has AI-app integration to help improve your brushing. During testing, the app took us less than two minutes to set up, and it kept a record of every time we brushed, assessing our brushing behaviors and providing feedback so we could see what we missed.
Featuring a rounded head that looks and cleans more like a tool at the dentist’s office, it has five smart modes and alerts you when you need to replace the toothbrush (more can easily be ordered online). A pressure-sensor light turns green when you’ve achieved the perfect pressure level, so you never irritate your gums. We found the advertised two-week battery life to be accurate, and it comes with a charger, a replacement brush head and a carrying case.
Overall, this toothbrush left our teeth feeling smooth and clean every time, and its handy smart features make it well worth the money.
How we analyzed the best electric toothbrushes
After conducting intensive research to narrow down our short list of top products in this space, we did a deep dive into user reviews to be sure that these products are worth your time and money. We used expert guidance to make sure we picked the best products with the features that matter most. We paid special attention to how powerful the electric toothbrushes were and whether they featured a timer and pressure sensors to alert you if you’re brushing too hard.
What the professionals say
We consulted Dr. Steve McConnell, owner of the Marin Center for Restorative and Cosmetic Dentistry in Novato, CA, and Courtney Casper, a registered dental hygienist at the same practice.
Dr. McConnell and Casper agree that electric toothbrushes are better instruments, in large part because they’re less “technique-sensitive” than manual brushes. Electric toothbrushes give more consistent results because they can clean teeth more thoroughly with less effort.
We asked the pros which type of electric toothbrush they recommend: the oscillating type that mimics human brushing action (though much faster) or the sonic type that creates tiny, rapid vibrations.
Both Dr. McConnell and Casper say that sonic toothbrushes tend to work better because they're similar to the microsonic scaler equipment used in a professional dental office. Microsonic scaler technology removes both the biofilm (goo) and calculus (hard deposits) on teeth.
That being said, it’s not a hard-and-fast rule that sonic electric toothbrushes are better than their oscillating counterparts. With modern operating modes and brush-head technology, some oscillating electric toothbrushes are equally efficient.
Key features to consider
While electric toothbrushes are not complicated machinery, there are a few features to consider before buying one.
Brushing technology
There are a few types of brushing technologies to choose from, each with its own advantages.
- Oscillating-rotating: These toothbrushes have small, round heads that rotate and oscillate (generally 5,000 brushstrokes per minute) around each tooth to remove plaque. They’re known for being particularly effective at reducing plaque and preventing gingivitis.
- Sonic: Sonic toothbrushes use high-speed vibrations (30,000-plus times per minute) to agitate fluids in the mouth, cleaning along the gumline and in hard-to-reach areas. They are generally considered gentler than oscillating models.
- Ultrasonic: These use ultrasonic waves to clean the teeth at vibrations that are so high they are beyond the audible range. They can be extremely effective at breaking down plaque bacteria.
Battery life
There are two ways to power an electric toothbrush.
- Rechargeable: Most electric toothbrushes are rechargeable, with their battery life ranging from a week to several weeks on a single charge. They often use a charging base that can also serve as a stand, which will take up at least a couple inches of space on your countertop.
- Battery-Powered: Some models use disposable batteries, which can be less convenient but beneficial for travel.
Timers
Dentists recommend brushing your teeth for two minutes twice daily, so most electric toothbrushes have a two-minute timer to ensure you brush for the recommended time. Many include a quadrant timer that signals when to switch areas of the mouth.
Pressure sensor
A pressure sensor alerts you or stops brushing if you are brushing too hard, which can protect your gums from abrasion.
Brush head variety
All the big names in electric toothbrushes sell a variety of brush heads that work with their brushes. In addition to standard brush heads, you’ll find brush heads for sensitive teeth, orthodontic work, extra whitening, extra plaque removal and many others.
Brushing modes
Depending on your needs, you may want to look for a model with some or all of these modes.
- Standard Clean: Suitable for daily cleaning
- Sensitive: Lower speed for gentle cleaning that’s ideal for sensitive teeth and gums
- Gum Care: Provides gentle stimulation of gums
- Whitening: Polishes to remove surface stains
- Deep Clean: Longer, more thorough cleaning sessions
App connectivity
Some advanced models connect to smartphone apps via Bluetooth, providing real-time feedback on your brushing habits, personalized coaching and tracking over time.
Tips and tricks for better brushing
- Brush twice daily, for two minutes each session.
- Use a soft brush head to avoid irritating your gums.
- Hold your toothbrush so the bristles are at a 45-degree angle to your teeth.
- Don’t scrub your teeth. It doesn’t take excessive pressure to remove plaque, and you are likely to damage or inflame your gums.
- Brush along your gumline, not just across your teeth.
- Replace your brush head at least every three months or more often if the bristles look worn or frayed.
- You don’t need a lot of toothpaste — a pea-size dab is enough. Add more to your brush if necessary.
- Rinse your mouth thoroughly after brushing, and don’t swallow toothpaste.
- Follow your nightly brushing routine with flossing for the best oral hygiene.
- Thoroughly rinse your toothbrush after every use, and store it upright to dry, preferably with a cover.
- See your dentist at least twice each year to catch problems early on, such as tooth decay, gum disease, jaw problems or oral cancer.
- After finishing a meal, wait 30 minutes before brushing your teeth. Your mouth becomes more acidic while eating, and this acidity makes brushing harsher on your enamel.
