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It’s time to step all the way into adulthood and admit it—your life requires at least one great blender. Even if you’re not a smoothie obsessive, and you don’t live somewhere cold enough that making soup is part of your regular meal prep routine, it’s still important to have this clutch appliance on your counter. Blenders are a staple item in every complete kitchen, so if you’re putting yours together, it’s time to get into the blender game.
Blenders are such versatile tools that can be used, yes, for healthy smoothies and silky, pureed soups, but also work for making homemade spreads like nut butter and whipping up frozen drinks like slushies (read: margaritas). Finding an option that can handle both the process of ice crushing, and the heat of blending up a scalding soup is all part of the process. Other specialty features, like two-part lids, tampers (special tool to push ingredients down toward the blades and stir the mixture), and a model with a wide range of speed settings are all elements to look out for based on your cooking needs.
Then there’s finding a blending that isn’t overly loud and isn’t impossible to clean. My personal go-to’s when shopping for a blender: personal jars for blending single-serve smoothies and other custom attachments that make storage easier. If you’re on the market for a blender of any kind, look no further, because we’ve scoured the internet for the crème de la crème when it comes to blending appliances, and below are our recommendations for the best models money can buy.
Understanding the Different Types of Blenders
There are so many different types of blenders, it can be overwhelming at first! Especially if you’ve never spent time looking through the options in this particular category, the sheer volume can actually be very overwhelming! Here’s a breakdown by specific blender type to help you parse what category you are most interested in.
- High-Performance Blenders: One important thing to note is there are a lot of high-performance blenders, models that fall into our best overall and runner-up picks, which tend to be much more expensive than many conventional models. That’s because they include very powerful motors that run at super high speeds, and are designed for chef-grade preparation and restaurant cooking, earning them the “professional” label that indicates that they’re up for tougher tasks. These models can even handle heavy duty functions like crushing nuts, blending up tough leafy greens, and crushing ice for frozen drinks.
- Standard Blenders: A more standard blender isn’t usually equipped to handle these kinds of same heavy-duty tasks, particularly if you want the appliance to have some longevity—tasking a standard blender with intensive tasks makes them break down and run out of steam sooner. Still, standard blenders are great for buyers who mostly just want one around for making smoothies and chopping up a little ice.
- Personal Blenders: The next level down, especially size-wise, is a personal blender, or a much, much smaller appliance that is basically just what it sounds like, big enough to blend something for one person. It's like a single-serving blender, and takes up way less space on your countertop (pro) but isn’t suitable for making anything that comes in a larger batch (potential con). One of the best parts of a personal blender is usually the container you blend in can turn into a portable cup, and the blender base swaps out for a sippable lid. This blender size is also great for smaller amounts of anything, and smaller batched items like sauces and dips. The fact that the blending cup usually has an air-tight lid means it can turn into decent storage or those items as well.
- Portable Blenders: An even smaller version of the personal blender is the portable blender, a battery-operated machine that lets you whip up single-serve recipes almost anywhere. Usually they run on rechargeable batteries and don’t require an outlet to work. This means you could even make your smoothie fresh at the gym after your workout, if the mood hits.
- Immersion Blenders: Since immersion blenders are technically a different type of product—the same goes for food processors and the best juicers—they fall into a different category here. These handheld stick blenders have become incredibly popular in recent years because of how easy they make pureeing soups, baby food, and other sauces. You can stick this blender directly into the cooking vessel—immersing it—so there’s not a lot of messy transferring, and you can partially blend some ingredients while you continue cooking your sauce or soup, if need be.
What To Look For When Buying A Blender
When you’re on the hunt for a common appliance like a blender, a kitchen gadget category that seems to have an almost limitless number of options, it’s important to stay focused. The main elements to keep in mind are its size, speed and power, any special attachments that are must-haves for your own kitchen and cooking habits, and of course, price.
Size
Think about the difference between a blender that can hold three cups and one that can hold up to 14. Take a minute to actually check the capacity on the blender you’re interested in, see if the sizing meets your needs, and go from there. If you have a smaller kitchen and storage is a primary concern, consider choosing a single-serving or personal blender—or even a portable one that doesn’t need to be displayed on the counter. On the other hand, if you enjoy meal prepping and cooking for large groups, a larger model might be the answer.
Speed & Power
While getting the nicest blender in the world with all of the bells and whistles is a tempting proposition, that very likely isn’t the model most people need. A feature-rich blender can be since in theory, but sometimes a more simple model with an effective and powerful grind is what will work best. If you do frequently find yourself undertaking complex tasks like grinding meat and making nut butter—and not just crushing ice—then a professional grade appliance does make sense.
When it comes to speed settings, in many ways, less is more. Ideally, a blender has between three and 10 speed settings. Having only two settings isn’t quite enough variance, and more than 10 simply isn’t necessary. What is necessary is a pulse button, which can help you buzz through sticky spots or any fine-tuning of your mixture. The most power you need on a standard blender is about 500 watts, which covers a typical blender workload, i.e. the very standard blending task of making a smoothie.
Special Attachments
If you are going to go the bells and whistles route, consider an appliance that can morph into a gadget that takes on the other tasks you routinely engage in. Even though my kitchen is pretty spacious, I don’t have a ton of counter space, so working with a blender that can double up as a food processor, with an attachment that has sharper smaller blades to cut up vegetables or herbs, and coffee grinder, to crush down coffee beans or spices, is a game changer. Another special attachment that works wonders for space, dishes, and storage are personal cups that let you blend the smoothie in the cup, pop on a lid, and head out. Not only does it save time, it also saves you from cleaning up multiple items.
Best Single-Serve Blenders
This delightfully retro appliance will look darling on pretty much any kitchen counter, and gets first billing on this list because of how dang cute it is. At $169.95 it isn’t the cheapest option, but if you value aesthetic just as much as function, look no farther than Smeg. Best known for their compact, vintage-tingned refrigerators, Smeg makes all kinds of other kitchen hardware, but this tiny blender takes the cake. It comes in a host of pastel colors and is the perfect tool for whipping up a daily smoothie.
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Best Looking Blender
While the above blender from Beast would definitely slot nicely into this category as well, it’s no surprise that it’s Our Place who produced a kitchen appliance so dreamy I want to buy it simply for ~aesthetic reason~. Already well-known for what is arguably the most beautiful pan in existence, the brand has now expanded into even more cookware, tableware, and bespoke appliances like their Wonder Oven (an air-fryer plus a toaster, steamer and many other functions), and Dream Cooker, a gorgeous slow cooker. The Splendor Blender joins the ranks with a sleek and colorful design, very affordable price point ($125), and a 1000 watt motor. Since everything about this brand (and this blender) are in service of looking amazing, it also has self-cleaning capabilities and an add-on accessories package for an extra $65.
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Best Professional-Grade Blender
Remember when I warned you about the price tag on a professional grade blender? Well, this is the kind of costly appliance I was talking about. The Vitamix Professional Series 750 is recommended again and again by all kinds of experts for its five pre-programmed settings and a commercial grade 2.2-peak horsepower motor (!), but it’ll cost you. It’s $699 due to high-end features like the stainless-steel hammermill blades, laser-cut and four inches in diameter. If you’re on the market for a serious blender, this is about as substantial as a blender gets.
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Best Immersion Blender
Everyone from The New York Times to Food & Wine can’t get enough of the Breville Control Grip immersion blender, and I agree with the experts. First of all, it has 15 speed settings, and a textured trigger grip that makes it excellent for pulsing, which is, well, the main purpose of this blender type, at least in my kitchen. It also comes with not one, not two, but three attachments: a whisk attachment, a 2.5-ounce chopping bowl, and a 42-ounce blending container. At $130, this is fairly priced considering those accessories make it closer to three tools than just one.
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Best High Performance Blender
J. Kenji López-Alt has developed something of a cult following, not just for his New York Times food columns, but also his book The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science, and The Wok, a children’s books (it’s seriously good), and also for developing many, many recipes. Which is to say, if López-Alt tells me a blender is high-powered, I’m going to believe him—and you should too. Along with plenty of other food professionals, the chef, recipe creator and all-around food expert swears by the $500 Vitamix 5200. It is a professional grade blender, incredibly high performance (1380 watts, two peak horsepower) and as López-Alt puts it, this blender creates “soups that flowed down my throat like the smoothest silk.” I’m sold.
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Best Portable Blender
This is a small but mighty option for on-the-go blending. Want to make a smoothie fresh at work? Or at the gym? Or at the beach? The Ninja Blast is all you need. It’s a sleek 18-ounce container that pops onto the cordless, handheld motor and can whip up a protein shake (or a margarita) almost anywhere in the world. And because it’s only $59.99, you can even get his and hers options so no one even has to share.
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Best Compact Blender
There’s effortless recharging, and then there’s a blender with a USB cord! If that isn’t evolution, I don’t know what is. This blender lives up to its name and then some with 7.4 volts of lithium ion efficiency that made one reviewer compare its efficiency to her at-home Vitamix blender (more on that later). This appliance has just a single button for simple control, weighs just about two pounds, and is way more resilient than some other competitors in this category. It comes in under $80 too, so if you travel, camp, or boat frequently, it might be a perfect companion.
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Best Blender for Smoothies
Since so many people mostly use blenders for making delicious kale and berry smoothies (My secret ingredient is apple juice, you can thank me later), it only makes sense that we let you know the appliance to get if that’s your jam. The unanimous pick for this category has got to be another Breville selection, the Fresh and Furious Countertop Blender. It has nine task controls, including one specifically dedicated to smoothies, a timer, surgical grade steel blades, and an LCD display. It goes up to 1100 watts and even comes with a juicing cone, so you can get all your ingredients as fresh as they need to be. The catch? It’s $200, so you better be making those smoothies at least every other day to get your money’s worth.
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Best Blender for Ice Crushing
How do you know this blender is serious about ice? I mean, aside from the epic name? Hamilton Beach has installed not one but two patented technologies into this machine. The first of which is their thick, curved Ice Sabre® blades, augmented by the second unique feature, the Wave~Action® System, which continually forces the mixture back down onto those specialty sabers. Ice doesn’t stand a chance, but if you have other needs, there’s also 14 other functions on this machine. And it’s all very affordable at just $45, making it one of the cheapest blenders on the list.
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Best Affordable Blender
Since Black + Decker are better known for power tools than kitchen appliances, it might not surprise you that this model is equipped more for speed and strength than finesse. Still, for $50, it’s the perfect starter blender to get you going. It’s got 700 watts behind it, a six-quart glass pitcher, four speeds, and dishwasher safe blades. It’s actually one of the few blenders on our list to feature a dual opening lid for easier pouring.
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Best Blender for Hot Liquids
Since it’s in the name, that will give you a slight tip off that this blender was designed to take the heat. It’s a Ninja blender, so you know it’s going to be durable, powerful, and sizable. But this one was designed with soups and other hot liquids in mind. It comes with its own tamper, a1400-peak-watt motor and high speed blades (that can handle ice as well as the heat), and it also has an 800-watt heating element for infused drinks and soups. That means you can keep cooking meat or protein as you chop it finer, or melt chocolate and cheese for fondue while it purees. The possibilities are endless! Just use any of the 12 Auto-iQ programs to do the work for you, and thank the power of technology. That fancy heating element might’ve tipped you off that this is a pricier option, at about $175. But if temperature is important to you and a big part of your cooking style, this is the way to go.
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Best Blender with Multiple Attachments
It’s easy to look at the price tag here and get sticker shock, but when you consider it’s more like three or four appliances in one, it’s easier to justify the $900. Aside from the base with the motor in it, the system includes the blender pitcher and the food processor attachment, multi-use blades that work with both, and four different discs that create small shreds and thin slices, large shreds and thick slices, juliennes, and veggie sticks. A couple of bowls and lids, and storage for each of the discs are also included in the massive kit. While this set is mostly recommended for professional and gourmet chefs, if you’re really passionate about blending and chopping and want to get the best tools, this is the crème de la crème.
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FAQs
What Is The Best Blender Model?
The best blender for you is going to be based more on its primary use than one specific brand. It really depends on what you want to use a blender for. Immersion blenders are perfect for making soups and other things like sauces where you need more control. Single serve blenders are great if you live alone and are mostly cooking for one, portable blenders work well if you’re constantly on the move when cooking.
Get organized about the functionality you most need from your appliance, and then start looking in specific categories. Of course, there are great all-purpose blenders too, so if you know you want a great generalist appliance, look for machines that play up their versatility.
What Brands Make The Best Blenders?
When you’re looking for a full-size blender to perform a variety of tasks in the kitchen, there are some tried and true contenders who have been consistently top-rated for years. A great blender tend to come from a brand that has a great reputation for well-built products, and this is an appliance where factors like convenient-to-use and versatility rank high—meaning a pick that can handle a variety of recipes, including smoothies, shakes, soups, and dips etc.
Some of the top picks over the years have routinely included products from Vitamix, Wolf Gourmet, and Breville as good high-end brands. Ninja and KitchenAid also tend to rank really high as most recommended brands for full-size blenders in the mid and budget price ranges. A growing category in the market is personal blenders, which are great for smoothies and also tend to have more of a focus on design. In that category, Smeg is a wonderful pick. Finally, Ninja is among the best personal blender brands, and so is NutriBullet.
If you’re looking for more home advice and inspiration, or want more tips on building out your repertoire of kitchen tools, make sure to browse through our home edit and explore all our favorite home products.
