The 7 Best Electric Toothbrushes for Cleaner Teeth
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Updated Sept. 19, 2022: This piece was updated to reflect current pricing, including sales and details specific to each electric toothbrush.
Brushing your teeth may not be the most exciting part of your day, but it’s certainly one of the most important—good dental hygiene and is essential for heart health and for overall wellbeing. But it’s easy to skimp on the dentist-recommended routine of flossing, two minutes of brushing, and swishing around mouthwash. The good news? Investing in a good electric toothbrush can make it easy to improve your oral hygiene habits. And for the highly competitive among us who want the whitest teeth possible, some models even have apps that allow you to compete against yourself for your best brush yet.
Check out quick reviews below of the top five electric toothbrushes, then keep scrolling for more helpful buying info and full reviews of those models plus other high-ranking options.
The Benefits of Electric Toothbrushes
You probably grew up using a manual toothbrush, which worked well enough to prevent your teeth from rotting out of your head, but these are definite advantages to investing in a motorized brush. Vibrations and oscillations from the brush head are more effective at removing plaque. Built-in timers keep you brushing for a full two minutes, and smart sensors help make sure you scrub your entire mouth with the correct amount of pressure. Some electric toothbrushes also have special features to whiten your teeth or floss while you brush. Although they're way more expensive than your $2 toothbrush from the pharmacy, these electric models can help improve your brushing technique.
How We Selected and Rated Them
We researched expert sources such as Wirecutter and Good Housekeeping, and consulted 52,000 consumer reviews to select the top toothbrushes on the market today. Our Consumer Score represents the percentage of customers who rated the product at least four out of five stars on various sites.
For more great additions to your powder room, check out our picks for the best bathroom trash cans, bath mats, and bathroom sinks.
—BEST OVERALL—
Oral-B Pro 1000
Consumer Score: 92% gave it 4 stars or more
Great reviews and high-ticket features for a reasonable price
With the Oral-B Pro, we could let its average 4.7-star rating from more than 72,500 reviewers speak for itself. But we won’t. Besides having a reasonable price of around $50, this rechargeable electric brush has all the features of brushes twice the cost, including a pressure sensor to make sure you don’t brush too hard and a two-minute timer. Although this brush only has one mode, the body is compatible with other brush heads, so you can change them out for a whitening head or softer bristles depending on your needs.
—BEST SMART—
Hum by Colgate
Consumer Score: 90% gave it 4 stars or more
Trendy colors and easy-to-use features
This modern brush makes your oral hygiene routine feel almost like a luxury. It comes in a pastel case that matches the color of the brush and can carry up to two brush heads. There are three modes for brushing—normal, sensitive, and deep clean—and you can switch between them while you brush. If you are looking to improve your brushing technique, connect the Hum to the Colgate app, and it will show you how well you cleaned your teeth. If you don’t get 100 percent the first time, it will offer encouragement and even let you earn rewards. Not looking to earn a personal best before bed? You can also use it without the app, and it will buzz every 30 seconds so you know to move on to a different quadrant of your mouth.
—QUIETEST—
Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 4100
Consumer Score: 89% gave it 4 stars or more
Easy to clean with several brush head options
The volume level of a motorized brush is certainly not as crucial as its cleaning ability, but a loud motor could be a dealbreaker for early birds or night owls—particularly if your bathroom is within spitting distance of the bedroom. This Philips brush has more going for it than a quiet sonic motor as well. In addition to a two-minute timer and a number of compatible brush heads, it also has a smooth, ridge-free design that makes it easier to wipe clean.
—BEST PREMIUM—
Oral-B iO Series 9
Consumer Score: 95% gave it 4 stars or more
All the bells and whistles for a top-tier price
Want that dentist-level clean feeling? Well, this brush gets you pretty close. Among its features are a pressure sensor with LED indicator lights, a magnetic drive motor, and 3D teeth tracking on the Oral-B app. Equipped with all that, your teeth are left feeling squeaky clean. Plus it has seven—yes, seven—different modes including daily clean, whitening, gum care, sensitive, intense, super sensitive and tongue clean. While most of us probably don’t need all of these settings, it is an easy choice for those that want the best of the best—and are willing to spend $300 to get it.
—BEST CHEAP—
Philips One by Sonicare
Consumer Score: 87% gave it 4 stars or more
The attractive entry-level option
This is a great choice for those who are on the fence about giving up their regular toothbrush and going electric. For just under $25 at the time of this writing, Philips One by Sonicare gives you a chance to see how you feel about having your teeth vibrate before breakfast. It takes one AAA battery and comes with a carrying case and one brush head, plus it's available in several attractive color options and a rechargeable model for about $12 more.
—SLEEK AND STYLISH—
Quip
Consumer Score: 90% gave it 4 stars or more
A sophisticated design that’s great for travel
If you are concerned with having a stylish, clean bathroom, chances are you stow away your toothbrush in the medicine cabinet every night. Even if you don’t care much about the looks of your toothbrush, we can all agree that the Quip is well-designed in terms of both form and function. It comes in four different metallic colors, including copper and slate. Although its bristles don’t spin to clean your teeth, this battery-operated brush gently vibrates and has a built-in timer that alerts you every 30 seconds to switch sides of your mouth.
It’s also a great brush to use for travel, because it’s not much larger than an average manual toothbrush, and the mirror mount doubles as a travel cover. In addition, Quip offers a refill subscription, so you will get a new head and battery for just $5 a month.
—FLOSSES AND BRUSHES—
Waterpik Sonic-Fusion
Consumer Score: 83% gave it 4 stars or more
Optimizes your time and gum health
Although we all may nod our heads nervously and mumble "yes" when our dentist asks whether we floss regularly, chances are the Tooth Fairy would not be impressed by our technique. The Waterpik Sonic-Fusion takes away the hassle of daily flossing and gives you an easy path to better gum health. It has three settings: brush, floss, or brush and floss—which allows you to do both at the same time—eliminating the need to use floss after brushing. The unique water flossing system can even be used with your favorite mouthwash to give you an extra clean feeling.
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