The 5 Best Blenders - Summer 2021 Reviews

The Vitamix A2500 is the best full-size blender that we've tested. This extremely well-built blender has a dial with 10 speed settings and several preset modes, including a self-clean program. Its 64-ounce jar comes with a two-part lid, which allows you to add ingredients or use the tamper mid-blend.

It performs very well for several uses since it produces snow-like crushed ice, amazing smoothies, and fantastic almond butter. You can also use it to blend hot ingredients for soups and sauces. It's easy to clean by hand, or you can put its jar, lid, and blade assembly in the dishwasher. It's also Bluetooth-compatible, which allows you to access more presets through a companion app, like 'Baby Food' and 'Spice Grind' modes.

Unfortunately, there aren't any extra accessories that come with it, like personal jars or a food processor. Also, some may find the timer feature disappointing because it acts more like a stopwatch by keeping track of how long the blender's been running instead of stopping it after a set time. That said, this premium model is a great choice if you're looking for a multi-purpose blender.

The best personal blender we've tested is the Ninja Foodi Power Nutri DUO. It's well-built and comes with two 24-ounce jars with matching to-go lids, so you can easily take your drink with you to work or the gym. There's also a 14-ounce 'Power Nutri Bowl' included with rotating arms inside it that push food towards the blades.

It has a few different modes that act as timers, and you can also set it to blend continuously. You can use any of the jars to make a silky smoothie in less than a minute. It crushes ice into a snow-like consistency and makes smooth, spreadable almond butter. When you're finished with it, it's easy to clean by hand, and you can also put the jars, lids, and blades in your dishwasher.

Unfortunately, like many personal blenders, you can't blend hot ingredients. Also, it only has one speed setting, and it's one of the loudest models we've tested. Otherwise, it's a versatile option and a great choice for mixing up single serves of your favorite smoothies or frozen drinks.

The best immersion blender that we've tested is the NutriBullet Immersion Blender. This blender is decently built, with a long shaft that can blend ingredients directly in your pot or dutch oven. It has a pretty fast maximum speed compared to the other immersion blenders we've tested, and its speed dial offers lots of different settings to help you get the best possible blend.

You can use this blender on hot ingredients to make soups and sauces. It also makes a good smoothie, and it can incorporate fibrous ingredients like kale into the mix for a smoother blend. It's also easy to clean, and most messes come off after rinsing the shaft with soap and water.

Unfortunately, while this blender can crush ice, it struggles to make a snow-like blend because the ice can start to build up behind the blades. It's not dishwasher-safe, and it doesn't come with a jar to blend in, which can be inconvenient for some users. That said, it's still an impressive choice for making soups.

The KitchenAid K150 is the best blender in the budget category that we've tested. This affordable full-size blender has a great build quality and a versatile performance. It comes with a 48-ounce main jar with a two-part lid that allows you to add ingredients without stopping the blender.

You can use it to make great almond butter, and it can blend hot ingredients for foods like soups and sauces. It has a dedicated pulse/ice crush mode and can produce bar-quality ice in roughly two minutes. It's usually easy to clean by hand; you can also put the jar and lid in your dishwasher, but the lid has to go on the top rack.

Unfortunately, there are only three speed settings, so you don't have many options for fine-tuning the blending speed. It also struggles to fully process raw kale in smoothies, which results in an alright but slightly grainy drink. That said, if you're looking for a multi-purpose blender, this one offers solid all-around performance at a budget-friendly price.