Alternatively, you can opt for the second type, a “sonic” or “ultrasonic” brush. These have heads that vibrate very quickly, at frequencies that buff the tooth surface, break up plaque and force toothpaste through the gaps between your teeth and around the gum line. This makes them more effective at cleaning around and in between your teeth where plaque and tartar tend to build up. Ultrasonic toothbrushes are even faster, creating millions of sound waves per minute to push a special “nano bubble” of toothpaste into your teeth and gums, helping to clean and protect them with even greater efficiency.
What features should I look out for?
Battery life is the biggie. It’s now unusual to get an old-school NiMH battery that runs out in less than two weeks and takes most of a day to charge, but they still exist. More modern lithium-ion batteries will give you two to four weeks of brushing – or more – without a recharge, and will take anywhere between three and 12 hours to reach full capacity.
That’s a significant difference. However, some toothbrushes drain their batteries faster than others, so if you haven’t got a convenient power socket in or near the bathroom, then you might want to look at a model that can handle a few weeks without a refuel.
Modes are increasingly a big deal, giving you different speeds and patterns optimised for whitening, deep cleaning or sensitive teeth and gums. It’s not clear that all of these make a huge amount of difference, but having a slower, gentler mode that you can switch to a faster, more intense mode can be useful when you’re getting used to a new brush.
Otherwise, it’s worth looking out for pressure sensors that can warn you when you’re pressing too hard while brushing – or not hard enough. Plus, a brushing timer that sends a pulse through the brush when it’s time to stop brushing (usually two minutes), or time to move to another quadrant of your mouth (roughly every 30 seconds).
Bundled extras such as a travel case can also come in handy, particularly if it allows the brush to charge in situ via an adaptor or a USB cable. Finally, you should check if the handle is comfortable to hold. Some of us can’t get on with a brush that’s too chunky or too thin, and you might want something with more grip around the handle.
Do I need a Bluetooth-enabled toothbrush?
Bluetooth-enabled “smart” toothbrushes are growing in popularity. They work with companion apps that time your brushes, keep a diary of your activity and provide oral hygiene tips or snippets of news. The more advanced models have sophisticated pressure and motion sensors to allow them to track your brush’s progress around the mouth and make sure you’re reaching every corner, and not skimping on the back teeth or the areas behind your teeth.
These features are fun and can be genuinely useful if you sometimes neglect your dental workouts. The apps from Oral-B and Philips have had some time to mature, and they can guide you towards a better technique that could keep your teeth and gums healthier for longer. All the same, these features aren’t essential, and not everyone is prepared to take their smartphone to the bathroom twice a day or check their app to monitor their brushing. If you can develop a good routine that covers all your teeth and around the gums, then you arguably don’t need a smart brush.
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What about replacement heads?
The upfront cost of buying a brush isn’t the only expense you’ll have to consider: you’ll also have to buy replacement heads two or three times a year. These generally come in packs of two, four or six, with the standard Oral-B heads the cheapest, and those used in Philips Sonicare and Oral-B’s iO-series brushes coming in at a higher price – typically from around £15 for two, or £25 for four.
To make things more complicated, brush heads come in different types designed for different dental requirements, so you’ll find Sonicare heads for gum care, deeper cleaning or plaque defence, and Oral-B heads with slightly different brushing actions. Any Sonicare head can be used with any Sonicare brush, but Oral B’s standard heads can only be used with its Pro-series brushes, while its iO heads only work with iO series brushes.
If you want to save some money, you’re not restricted to the manufacturer’s own heads. A few smaller, third-party manufacturers make Sonicare- or Oral-B-compatible brush heads, which usually sell for much less than the real deal. Philips and Oral-B will tell you that you’re not getting the same quality or clean from these cheaper heads, but in our tests some have been perfectly effective.
We’ve included links to compatible brush heads in the reviews below, so you can stock up when you run out.
How we test electric toothbrushes
To test electric toothbrushes, we use them twice a day over a period of at least one week, making sure we get a feel for how they handle and perform when cleaning. During the test period, we will try any specific brush modes and attachments, and install any apps required to get the most out of built-in smart features. For at least one of those brushes, we will use plaque-disclosing tablets to check that all areas of the teeth are getting a proper clean (allowing for a little user error). To check battery life, we also leave the toothbrush running while standing up and time how long it takes for the battery to run down. We then divide this figure by the four minutes per day recommended by dentists to get an accurate idea of how many weeks and days a single charge should last.
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