Powerful Smoothie Blenders| Best Low-End, Mid-Range and High-End Blenders

Countertop Blenders

• These machines will mix, puree, chop as well as crush ice.
• Pitchers are either plastic or glass and hold 4-8 cups of liquid
• These blenders offer multiple speed levels, depending on what consistency you want.

Handheld/Immersion Blenders

• Long, skinny, handheld appliances that you submerge in the food/drink you are making.
• Can be handy for mixing smoothies because there are less parts to clean up, but you have to hold the button down the whole time-annoying!
• Not quite enough power to effectively crush ice.

There's no doubt that smoothies are extremely good for your health and offer numerous benefits. When it comes to buying the best smoothie blender, you can spend very little,($60 to $100), for basic blender models (Hamilton Beach, Oster) or a lot of money ($400 +) on high end blender models like Vitamix or a Blendtec blender. There are also a lot of good mid-range smoothie blenders like the Ninja professional blender, Breville or KitchenAid. Here's the thing: having a high end blender doesn't necessarily mean that your blender is better quality or that your blender will last longer than cheaper blender models.

Some things you want to consider before buying a new blender:

• Glass or plastic pitcher? Glass is generally stronger and scratch resistant. Some plastic pitchers are stronger than others and not all plastic pitchers are dishwasher safe.
• Is base mouth of the pitcher base wide enough to fit all your fruits and veggies?
• How big do you want the pitcher to be? Most blenders hold anywhere from 4 to 8 cups of liquid.
• Do you want your smoothies to be thick or juice-like? In order to achieve a nice, thick and consistent (no lumps) smoothie, you'll want to look for a blender that finely blends all the ingredients.
• If you want a blender that finely grinds seeds, you're better off getting a high end blender like a Blendtec or a Vitamix.
• Is the blender easy to clean? Sometimes having blades that don't detach make it harder for you to clean. Some blenders offer a self cleaning option.
• How much power? Blenders range from 500 to 1000 watts. More power doesn't necessarily mean a better or even the best smoothie blender.
• Most smoothies offer three to 16 speeds, but the best blender doesn't necessarily need to have a lot of speed options.
• Aesthetics: do you want your blender to stay on your counter top? Some smoothie blenders more offer more attractive features than others like a stainless steel finish, touch-pad buttons (which are easier to clean than push buttons) and special lighting (LED) features.

Let's get right to it, shall we? The Hamilton Beach 56221 Smoother Smart Blender is quite a popular machine that can handle smoothies quite well, even though this blender is priced very low.

The Pros

• It's the best blender (or one of the best) because it's easy to operate-only one touch of a button to make the perfect smoothie.
• It's 700 watts
• The pitcher is made of a sturdy glass and the spout makes it easy to pour.
• Easy to clean
• Power cord tucks back into the blender
• Comes with a 3 year warranty

The Cons

• This machine will not give you a thick consistency of smoothie. The thick parts of the smoothie get stuck to the sides of the pitcher.
• It's loud, some have compared the sound to that of a power drill.
• The lid is hard to remove and smoothie gets spilt when using the lid spout
• Doesn't handle ice or frozen fruit very well
• Takes a long time to make a smoothie
• Doesn't finely blend through seeds

The best blender doesn't need to break the bank and there are quite a few strong blender contenders. First off, the Australian-made Breville Hemisphere Control Blender packs a good punch for earning the title of best blender and there are many bells and whistles in this blender.

The Pros

• The "hemisphere control" part of this blender makes it impossible to blend unevenly. Extra wide stainless steel blades are contoured to sweep along the base of the jug and push ingredients up while central blades pull ingredients down.
• Really easy to clean and the pitcher is dishwasher safe.
• The measurement markings on the pitcher are really easy to read.
• The blender motor is not too loud
• Nice looking and well designed blender
• The cord tucks into the base of the blender

The Cons

• Some consumers have complained that the blender motor stalls after 3 or 4 seconds into the cycle and this is after approximately 3 months of daily use of the blender.
• Not durable: motors dying and parts coming off after a year of use.
• The pitcher leaks
• The timer seems to over-complicate the whole process.
• Does the same job as a $80 blender
• Doesn't finely blend through strawberry and blackberry seeds (seems like this is a job for a high-end blender)

The Ninja Professional Blender is a powerful machine, with 1000 watts.

The Pros

• Very powerful and can handle loads of veggies and fruits
• Easy to clean: You don't even need to disassemble it.
• Works well for fresh, soft fruits

The Cons

• Doesn't blend consistently, leaving a grainy texture to your smoothie.
• Doesn't handle ice and frozen fruit well
• Unreliable and cheap parts: lids have melted, pitchers have broke ect.
• Everything sticks to the sides of the pitcher

Should I buy a Blendtec blender or a Vitamix blender? Here are some comparisons:

Vitamix 750 Professional Series

• 2.2-peak-horsepower motor and wide blade radius
• 2-piece santoprene rubber lid with a removable plug for adding ingredients while use
• Stainless steel blade construction
• 64-oz. carafe is BPA-free Eastman Tritan® copolyester

Blendtec Home Blender

• Commercial-quality 1,560-watt countertop blender with 3 HP direct-drive motor
• 2-prong stainless-steel blade spins at up to 29,000 rpm; ice-crushing guarantee
• 2-quart square blending jar; secure-fitting lid; user guide and recipes included
• Measures 7 by 8 by 15.5 inches; 3-year motor-base warranty; 1-year jar warranty; lifetime coupling-and-blade warranty

When it comes to making the perfect smoothie every time, a high end blender really does it all. The Vitamix has earned top ratings from Consumer Reports, which is a win-win situation for people on the market to buy a really good green smoothie blender, pricing aside.

The Pros

• Not only can you make perfect smoothie, you can also make nut butters, juice any vegetable, make soups and sauces.
• The container is larger than other blender pitchers
• Lasts for a long time, even with daily use.
• This model is much less noisy than other blenders
• Easy to clean
• Parts are made of durable materials:stainless steel blades and PVC plastic BPA-free housing in stainless steel.

The Cons

• There was a recall of Vitamix 64-ounce low-profile blender containers sold from April 2012 to August 2013; however, the problem has been fixed now.
• It's pricy
• Hard to read the measurement lines on the pitcher
• The blades are extremely sharp
• You have to use the tamper to make your smoothime you can't just walk away after hitting the smoothie button.
• Honestly, the only complaints were about the price and the recall issue (which is now fixed)

Remember the "Will it Blend" series where an iphone was successfully blended into a pulp? That's the Blendtec Blender, a Commercial-quality 1,560-watt countertop blender! Blendtec is also a top choice for green smoothie blenders because the consistency you get is so smooth and uniform.

The Pros

• Easy to clean- only 2 blades to clean(Vitamix has 4)
• Doesn't sit too high on the counter top and can easily be stored under cabinets
• High quality, powerful motor
• The blades are blunt (but just as effective)
• You can simply hit the smoothie button and walk away- no tamper needed.
• Cheaper than the Vitamix Professional (save yourself about $200), but just as good

The Cons

• With daily use, over time, the seals will break and the pitcher needs to be replaced. Blendtec has a 5 to 7 year warranty on the pitcher and will replace it if the seals break.
• With continued use, the lid wears and needs to be replaced, but a replacement lid won't cost you anything with the warranty.