Buyer’s Guide to Sonicare Electric Toothbrushes

The other week we put together a buyer’s guide to Oral-B Electric Toothbrushes, this week we have a guide to Sonicare toothbrushes. We’re going to navigate through all the Sonicare toothbrushes and brush heads and talk about their features (highlighting the unique ones) and prices to see which have the most to offer.

Sonicare Toothbrushes

Diamond Clean (retail price – $219.99)

Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: Snap-On
Brushing Modes: 5 brushing modes
Features: Easy start – gently increases power over 14 uses, USB charging Case and charging glass, Smart Timer with Quadpacer – Alerts you every 30 seconds to change quadrants and again when you have reached 2 minutes
Flexcare + (retail price – $189.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: Snap-On
Brushing Modes: 5 brushing modes
Features: Easy start – gently increases power over 14 uses, UV sanitizer accommodating two Sonicare brush heads, Smart Timer with Quadpacer – Alerts you every 30 seconds to change quadrants and again when you have reached 2 minutes
Flexcare (retail price – $169.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: Snap-On
Brushing Modes: 3 brushing modes; 2 brushing routines
Features: Easy start – gently increases power over 14 uses, UV sanitizer accommodating two Sonicare brush heads, Smart Timer with Quadpacer – Alerts you every 30 seconds to change quadrants and again when you have reached 2 minutes
HealthyWhite (retail price – $129.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: Snap-On
Brushing Modes: 3 brushing modes
Features: Easy start – gently increases power over 14 uses, Smart Timer with Quadpacer – Alerts you every 30 seconds to change quadrants and again when you have reached 2 minutes
EasyClean (retail price – $89.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: Snap-On
Brushing Modes: 1 brushing mode
Features: Easy start – Gently increases power over 14 uses, Smart Timer with Quadpacer – Alerts you every 30 seconds to change quadrants and again when you have reached 2 minutes
Essence (retail price – $114.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 20 2 minute brushings or about 10 days of brushing time
Brush Heads: Twist-On
Brushing Modes: 1 brushing mode
Features: EasyStart – Gently increases power over first 12 uses, Smart Timer – Alerts you when you have brushed for the dentist recommended 2 minutes
Xtreme (retail price – $29.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: N/A
Brush Heads: Twist-On
Brushing Modes: 1 brushing mode
Features: 2 AA batteries

Sonicare Brush Heads

DiamondClean Brush Head
DiamondClean brush heads are Sonicare’s newest Snap-On brush heads and come in standard and compact sizes. What is so special about them is that have a diamond shaped bristles pack together in a higher density bristle field (44% more bristles in the standard size and 23% in the compact size) to help sweep away more plaque. From what I can gather, it appears that the claims of better cleaning with the DiamondClean toothbrush have more to do with the brush head than that particular model of toothbrush so you might try this brush head on another model and get a similar result. The one problem I see is that bristles are advertised as medium-stiffness, which can be harsh on the the gums and exposed tooth roots and cause toothbrush abrasion if you are not careful.
ProResults Brush Head
The ProResults brush heads have angled, radial trimmed bristles that are 10% wider angle than typical brush heads and are designed to squeeze around teeth better. They have standard and compact sizes.
Sonicare Sensitive Brush Heads
These come in Snap-On and Twist-On and have the same design as the ProResults brush heads, but are 25% softer so they are good for people predisposed to gum recession.
e-Series Brush Heads
These are the Twist-On brush heads that go with the old-school Sonicare toothbrushes and have an angled neck to reach back teeth. They have standard and compact sizes.

What Sonicare Toothbrush Makes the Most Sense to Buy?

Naturally, there are lots of online sales and deals out there which might make certain options more sensible. However, based on what I can gather from the Sonicare website and other sources the Sonicare EasyClean is the best deal because it has all the necessary features and can accept all the Snap-On brush heads. If you are looking to upgrade to some cooler features, I would opt for the FlexCare model with the UV sterilizer for brush heads. The 3 brushing modes and 2 brushing routines are identical to the 5 brushing modes of the FlexCare +, but the FlexCare is a bit easier on your wallet. Although UV sterilization of toothbrushes hasn’t been shown to make a significant difference in oral bacteria, it might hold some benefits for individuals with extremely high caries risks or aggressive gum disease since it will keep the toothbrush head a bit cleaner.

Options for Kids

Sonicare also makes an electric toothbrush specifically designed for kids. The cool part about this toothbrush is that it has some neat features like the KidTimer and KidPacer to encourage kids to brush well for the dentist recommended time.
Sonicare Toothbrush for Kids (retail price – $59.99)
Speed: Up to 31,000 brush strokes per minute
Battery Life: 42 2 minute brushings or 3 weeks of brushing time
Brush Heads: 1 short brush head for ages 4-6 and 1 tall brush head for ages 7+
Brushing Modes: 2 Kid-friendly power modes adapts to different ages providing a gentle cleaning that’s ideal for different ages. There is a low mode for ages 4 and up and high mode for ages 7 and older
Fun Features: KidTimer – Increases brushing time slowly over 90 days, building towards the dentist recommended 2 minutes, KidPacer – Fun sounds encourage kids to brush the front and back of both upper and lower teeth