Although blenders are often associated with smoothie making, they're versatile and handy tools in any chef's kitchen. The best blenders can handle everything from silky puréed soups and smoothies to frozen drinks like margaritas and slushies, and even spreads like nut butter and hummus. Features like a two-part lid, a tamper, and a wide range of speed settings help make a blender versatile enough for any recipe. If you make a lot of puréed soups and sauces, you may want something that can also process hot ingredients. Plus, good blenders aren't extremely loud and don't make cleanup difficult. Some even come with additional accessories, like extra personal jars for blending single-serve smoothies.
We've tested 130 blenders, and below are our recommendations for the best models you can buy. If you prefer a smaller blender, the best personal blenders and the best bullet blenders are mainly intended for making smoothies and are usually more compact and less expensive. The best immersion blenders are designed for blending hot ingredients directly in a pot or pan, but they aren't as effective for other recipes. If you're looking for other kitchen appliances, check out our overview of the best microwaves and the best large-capacity air fryers.
Quick Look
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Best Blender
Multi-Purpose9.3Build Quality9.0Main Jar Capacity48.0 oz (1,420 ml)Noise6.6Hot BlendingYesSmoothies (Single Serving)9.0Smoothies (Multiple Servings)8.5Ice Crushing8.7See all our test resultsSoups8.7The best blender we've tested is the Vitamix Propel 510. This sturdy blender performs just as well as some more expensive options from Vitamix and other brands, and is a great choice for multi-purpose use. It comes with a 48-ounce jar and has simple controls, including a pulse switch, a wide range of manual blending speeds, and a few automatic blending programs. It's a fantastic option for blending smaller portions, like single-serve smoothies, and recipes like nut butter or hummus. It easily crushes ice and quickly makes a smooth blend with bigger batches of fibrous ingredients as well.
While its capacity may be a bit small for some uses, you can purchase additional jars separately, including a 64-ounce pitcher for larger batches and a personal jar for single-serve smoothies. However, it's a fairly loud blender. While it's not as ear-splitting as the loudest blenders, if you use your blender frequently or simply want to minimize noise as much as possible, it's not ideal.
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Best Upper Mid-Range Blender
Multi-Purpose9.2Build Quality9.0Main Jar Capacity48.0 oz (1,420 ml)Noise5.7Hot BlendingYesSmoothies (Single Serving)9.1Smoothies (Multiple Servings)8.7Ice Crushing8.4See all our test resultsSoups8.8The Vitamix Explorian E310 is a good option if you want something more affordable. This blender also comes with a 48-ounce jar, but features a simpler design, lacking automatic blending programs and a screen. It's just as good as the Vitamix Propel 510 for blending small batches of ingredients, such as single-serve smoothies. While it's a little slower at blending big batches, it still makes a nearly perfectly smooth puree with fibrous additions like fruit and leafy greens in big batches of soups or smoothies. It also produces snow-like crushed ice, and its smaller jar helps it process recipes like nut butter or hummus more quickly, without stopping and scraping.
However, it's noticeably louder than the Propel. Additionally, its lack of blending programs and digital display means you have to manually monitor and stop it. That said, it still offers a wide range of speed settings and a fantastic build quality. Its jar and 2-part lid are dishwasher-safe and easy to clean by hand.
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Best Mid-Range Blender
Multi-Purpose9.1Build Quality9.0Main Jar Capacity68.0 oz (2,011 ml)Noise5.7Hot BlendingYesSmoothies (Single Serving)9.1Smoothies (Multiple Servings)9.2Ice Crushing9.4See all our test resultsSoups9.5The best mid-range blender we've tested is the Braun TriForce Power Pro JB9041BK. It has a large 68-ounce capacity, and some variants also include a 20-ounce personal jar for smoothies. This model provides you with extensive control over your blend, featuring 10 manual speed settings and seven automatic blending programs, as well as additional customization options through texture settings. The Soup program heats ingredients as they blend, so you don't have to transfer the contents back into a pot.
Because of its large capacity, this blender outperforms the pricier Vitamix Propel 510 and Vitamix Explorian E310 when it comes to blending big batches of smoothies. It takes a little more work to make nut butter, but the end result is very smooth. The major downside, however, is that it's quite loud when compared with our top pick. For a quieter pick, opt for the KitchenAid K150 instead, which produces smooth blends but requires more user intervention and takes longer to do so.
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Best Budget Blender
Multi-Purpose8.9Build Quality8.0Main Jar Capacity48.0 oz (1,420 ml)Noise7.0Hot BlendingYesSmoothies (Single Serving)9.0Smoothies (Multiple Servings)8.5Ice Crushing8.8See all our test resultsSoups8.7The best budget blender we've tested is the Chefman Obliterator. It has a streamlined design and comes with a 48-ounce jar, which is a bit small for a full-sized blender, and a travel jar. This model also excels at blending fibrous ingredients in both large and small batches. It also features an Auto Blend mode, which is rare for a blender in this price range, allowing for more hands-off operation. On the downside, it's quite loud and struggles to process nut butter, requiring frequent stops to scrape the jar. Luckily, it's easy to clean, with a dedicated Clean program and dishwasher-safe components.
If you prefer a larger-capacity option for making large batches of soup or smoothies, consider the Calphalon ActiveSense. It comes with a 64-ounce main jar as well as a personal jar for taking blended drinks on the go. Processing big batches of fibrous ingredients like broccoli, kale, and lentils is easier with this model than with the Chefman, and the results are exceptionally smooth. Unfortunately, it isn't as well-built as the top picks here; it has wiggly buttons on the motor base and can move around on your counter when processing tougher ingredients.
If you're looking for a budget-friendly blender, our list of the best budget blenders has more recommendations.
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Best Quiet Blender
Multi-Purpose9.1Build Quality9.0Main Jar Capacity48.0 oz (1,420 ml)Noise7.5Hot BlendingYesSmoothies (Single Serving)9.1Smoothies (Multiple Servings)8.2Ice Crushing8.7See all our test resultsSoups8.6No blender is exactly quiet, but the roar of some super loud models makes them much less appealing. The Vitamix Ascent X4 is a good option if you want your blender as quiet as possible. This well-built blender comes with a 48-ounce jar, and like the Vitamix Propel 510, performs particularly well with smaller batches and recipes like nut butter. This more expensive model blends thicker recipes and bigger batches more slowly, but it's also noticeably quieter.
Its controls include six automatic blending programs and a +15-second button. Like all Ascent X blenders, it also features a tamper holder, which can be attached to the side of the motor base or removed if not in use. The jar is dishwasher-safe and quite easy to clean by hand. It also shares the Propel's fantastic build quality, with a stainless steel shell, although, unlike that model, it lacks cord storage. You can purchase a few additional jars for the X4, including a 64-ounce jar for increased capacity. However, it's worth noting that Vitamix doesn't currently sell a personal jar for its 'Ascent X' blenders.
Also, while it's very quiet for a blender, it's not as quiet as the pricier Vitamix Ascent X5. This blender offers a few more features over the X4, like more blending programs, but it performs essentially identically. It's also the most expensive Vitamix by far, and for most people, the extra cost won't be worth the small difference in noise level. However, if you're prepared to shell out nearly $1,000 for a blender, it's quieter and performs very well with just about any recipe.
If you're looking for a quieter blender in a different price range, check out our full list of the best quiet blenders.
Notable Mentions
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Ninja Mega Kitchen System [BL770, BL770AMZ, BL771]:
The Ninja Mega Kitchen System is a mid-range blender that comes with personal jars for single-serve smoothies. The Ninja's personal jars make it easy to blend and take one on the go, but it doesn't blend fibrous ingredients in its main jar as smoothly as the Vitamix Explorian E310.
See our review -
Vitamix 5200:
The Vitamix 5200's 64-ounce jar is tall and narrow, which can help blend very small batches of ingredients. It's easy to use for processing recipes like nut butter, so it's a good option if you want a 64-ounce jar and make a lot of dips and spreads. However, both the Vitamix Propel 510 and the Vitamix Explorian E310 process fibrous ingredients faster.
See our review
Recent Updates
Jan 12, 2026:
We've made minor updates to the text and checked that our picks are still in stock.
Dec 11, 2025:
We've replaced the Breville the Fresh & Furious with the Braun TriForce Power Pro JB9041BK as the 'Best Mid-Range' pick because it performs better overall. We also made some minor changes to the text for clarity.
Nov 10, 2025:
We replaced the Vitamix A3500 with the Vitamix Propel 510 as our pick for the top blender, because the A3500 has been discontinued. We've also removed the Black+Decker Quiet Blender with Cyclone Glass Jar as the 'Best Cheap Blender' because it's now the same price as our budget pick.
May 08, 2025:
We've replaced the Calphalon ActiveSense with the Chefman Obliterator as it performs better overall at an even more budget-friendly price. We also made some small changes for clarity.
Apr 08, 2025:
We've made small edits to the text and verified that our recommendations are still in stock and represent the best options.
FAQ
What is the best blender model?
It depends on what you want a blender for. Deciding on the type of blender you need is a good place to start; we have a guide for that. Some important considerations include whether you usually blend single or multiple servings, whether you make a variety of recipes or mostly blend smoothies and other drinks, and whether you want to blend hot ingredients.
What are the best blender brands?
The best full-size blender brands consistently make well-built, convenient-to-use, and versatile products that can handle a variety of recipes, including smoothies, shakes, soups, and dips. Vitamix, Wolf Gourmet, and Breville are good high-end blender brands. Ninja and KitchenAid are among our most recommended brands for full-size blenders in the mid and budget price ranges. For personal blenders, it's important that the design and performance work well for smoothies. Ninja is among the best personal blender brands, and so is nutribullet.
What blender is best for hot and cold?
You need a full-size blender with a vented lid or an immersion blender to blend hot ingredients. Most personal and portable blenders can't hot blend because they don't allow steam to escape, which can cause dangerous splattering when you remove the lid. Some blenders can blend hot ingredients but not heat cool ingredients, like the KitchenAid K400 and the Oster Pro 1200. If you want a blender that can heat ingredients, look for models with a heating element, like the Ninja Foodi Cold & Hot Blender, or a blender that can heat ingredients with friction from the blades, like most Vitamix blenders.
All Reviews
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best kitchen blenders for most people. We factor in the price, feedback from our visitors, and availability.
If you'd like to choose for yourself, here's the list of all our blender reviews. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. While no option can be the best blender for everything, most are good enough to please almost everyone, and the differences are often not noticeable unless you really look for them.