A basic manual toothbrush will always beat an electric on things like price, charge and portability, however, there’s a reason dentists recommend you go electric in the morning.
Quite simply, the performance of a powered brush head can’t be beaten and the rapidly moving bristles can make up for the inadequacies in technique that we all suffer from when we manually brush. They can more effectively remove debris and bacteria on the surface, in between teeth and at the gum line to leave behind clean, healthy teeth.
Electric brushes can be broadly broken down into sonic and oscillating, which refers to how the brush head is powered and how it cleans the teeth. Sonic brushes use vibrations, with tens of thousands of pulses every second; while oscillating brushes rotate clockwise and anti-clockwise at similarly high speeds.
They will both get the job done, so which technology you choose often comes down to personal preference. Although, according to our testing group, an oscillating brush is closer to the sensation of manual brushing, while sonic products feel very powerful in the mouth.
Of course, one of the main advantages of electric brushing is the advanced functionality in terms of different brushing modes for different results (sensitive, whitening, etc.), timers to let you know how long you’ve been brushing for, pacers to let you know when to move on to a different area and even dedicated apps that help you improve technique.
However, all that tech is useless without the battery life to back it up, which is why we were keen to know how the advertised charge time stood up in real life testing, brushing for the recommended two minutes, night and day.
A good electric toothbrush should be able to provide teeth with a satisfying, deep clean without being too harsh on gums and offer value, effortless charging and portability; so, here’s a run-down of the brushes we feel are well worth retiring your manual for.
How we tested
We handed all our brushes over to a family of five, all with very different brushing needs. Within the family there was gingivitis, a brace wearer, and the need for some whitening, and all the testers admitted that they rarely had a clean bill of health after a trip to the dentist.
We asked them all to rate the brushes on how thorough and comfortable the cleaning action of each product was and how confident the brush made them feel that their teeth were being deep-cleaned, so that their next trip to the dentist wouldn’t be so traumatic.
Suri electric toothbrush
There are some sustainability issues with electric toothbrushes, as plenty of them end up in landfill, which is why staying away from inferior products with short shelf lives is particularly important. However, the Suri wellness brand is attempting to address the issue head on with its first sonic brush, which it claims is the world’s most sustainable toothbrush.
The brush’s plant-based head and bristles combine with a recyclable aluminium body, so carbon footprint credentials are well established. While the slim aluminium handle not only adds to the sleek styling (which we thought was one of the nicest designs on test), but also translated to excellent ergonomics, without any slipping, even when the handle was wet. The 33,000 vibrations per second performed an efficient clean, particularly in between the teeth, so the brush might be particularly suited to users with gum disease.
Lined up against the other brushes we were testing, the Suri was significantly smaller, making it easier to manoeuvre in the mouth and adding to the overall portability, which is already very good thanks to a sleek UV-C Led self-cleaning case. We were also impressed with the Suri’s battery, which lasted for almost a month without a recharge. It’s available to pre-order now for spring delivery.
Brushd electric toothbrush
This is another eco-friendly, sonic brush that ships with recyclable brush heads, which are then shredded, melted and made
new products when you’re done with them.
In terms of its design, the Brushd is all about the curves and we really liked the look and feel of its fully-rounded, cigar-shaped handle, which was very comfortable to use. The round end does mean you won’t be able to stand the brush up on its own in your bathroom, but it comes with a wall-mounted holder to keep it stored, or there’s a free-standing separate ceramic holder that you can buy for £4.99 (£4.99, Brushd.co.uk)
The three brushing modes cover clean, sensitive and whitening and there’s an interval timer to guide you around your mouth during your two minutes in front of the mirror. We also eked a little more out of the brush than the advertised 30-day battery life.
It’s worth mentioning that the brush is designed to be used with toothpaste tablets (these foam up after you bite down on them ) which could be an advantage when travelling as the tablets are compact and airport security friendly, so you just have to decide how many you’ll need.
Philips sonicare 9900 prestige
For a premium product, Philips haven’t packed the 9900 itself with lots of buttons and lights. Instead it relies on you going into the accompanying app to tailor your brushing routine and pin point which of the five modes is best for you. This means that the brush has a very clean look on your bathroom shelf with just one prominent power button, and in-hand it feels well balanced as you move the brush around your mouth.
Underpinning all this is the usual powerful sonic performance that we’ve come to expect from the Sonicare range, that effortlessly delivers a deep clean. The complexity of the app means that there’s no need to keep switching out your brush heads, and instead there is an all-in-one head that simply does the app’s bidding.
If you’re a particularly brutal brusher, the 9900 has a couple of features that can really help your routine as it will warn you if you’re brushing too hard, and, if you still continue to press too hard the brush will take matters into its own hand, pausing for a second and then powering down to a gentler mode. Battery life was excellent too, with two weeks of brushing available from a single charge.
Oral-B iO9
While we wait for Oral-B to launch the iO10 later this year, there’s still plenty to attract you to the current iO brush with its pleasing design and LED graphics that denote which one of the seven modes you’re currently in.
The oscillating action feels like it’s cleaning the teeth very thoroughly, although if you have sensitive teeth it’s definitely worth cleaning in that mode to make sure you aren’t aggravating teeth and gums. Our brace-wearing, teenage tester found that the oscillating action seemed to produce much better results for clearing and cleaning braces compared to sonic brushes, with the action of the brush head particularly suited to loosening food left behind after eating.
Oral-B’s excellent app backs up the brush’s performance, so if you do have time and are interested in utilising all the tech that’s packed into the handle to improve your technique you will be able to really fine tune your brushing regime to get the most out of the brush and value for money.
Ordo sonic +
In terms of design, the Ordo looks similar to a Sonicare brush and it performs like one too with the 40,000 sonic pulses per minute that it delivers giving a very satisfactory clean. There are four brushing modes to choose from and a timer gives you plenty of control over how the brush performs. We really liked the W-shaped profile of the bristles in the head too, which seemed to make it easier to get to all the exposed tooth surfaces.
The brush head also has a cross in the middle of the bristles, made from silicone, which helps whiten and polish the teeth as you brush, and all our testers felt that this addition was very effective in getting rid of longer term stains. However, there is no pressure sensor, so if that’s something that you particularly need in order to brush efficiently, then this might not be the brush for you. But the battery life was even better than claimed – roughly four weeks, rather than three.
Spotlight oral care sonic toothbrush
There’s a lot to like about this sonic brush, starting with the price, which also includes three replacement heads. Unobtrusive design and a nicely proportioned handle means that it looks and feels like a premium brush, and its three brushing modes will be enough to deliver on a range of oral hygiene goals, whether that’s keeping your dentist happy at your next check-up or gradually whitening teeth for a healthy smile.
In operation, it doesn’t feel harsh on gums although there’s no warning light to tell you that you’re brushing too hard, which might be a concern if you’re usually a little heavy handed with your dental hygiene. It’s also fitted with a quality battery, and we found that the brush only needed one top-up charge in the month that it was on test.
Philips sonicare one
There’s a lot to like about this sonic brush, starting with the price, which also includes three replacement heads. Unobtrusive design and a nicely proportioned handle means that it looks and feels like a premium brush, and its three brushing modes will be enough to deliver on a range of oral hygiene goals, whether that’s keeping your dentist happy at your next check-up or gradually whitening teeth for a healthy smile.
In operation, it doesn’t feel harsh on gums although there’s no warning light to tell you that you’re brushing too hard, which might be a concern if you’re usually a little heavy handed with your dental hygiene. It’s also fitted with a quality battery, and we found that the brush only needed one top-up charge in the month that it was on test.
Philips sonicare one
This new offering in the Sonicare range is a triple-A battery powered brush that combines the usual Sonicare brush head and w-shaped bristles with a very sleek, contoured handle that’s very pleasant to hold and offers good grip. Offering a two-minute timer and pacer and one mode of brushing, this is a simple, effective and very portable brush that still offers the deep clean that we expect from Philips sonic technology. Younger brushers will most-certainly like the bright colours that this one is available in too.
Oral-B iO6
A little further down in the iO range comes the 6, which we still really like because it offers many of the features of the flagship brushes in the range at a less bruising price point.
It is a little chunkier to hold than its stable mates, but this might actually suit some brushers who find the slender designs a little slippery while brushing. The signature, round oscillating head is powered by five brushing modes and the brush still links up with Oral-B’s excellent app, which can give you insights into your brushing performance, as long as you put in the time with it. Pressure sensor, timer and pacer all give real-time feedback as you brush, and the battery life is enough to get you through a week of cleaning before you have to think about docking it on the charger for a couple of hours.
