For enthusiasts of smoothies and smoothie bowls, the blender is the most expensive piece of kitchen equipment to invest in.

Even though these household appliances are getting more and more pricey these days, a good one will be worth it’s weight in gold.

While budget and premium blenders are manufactured for the sole purpose of blending ingredients of your recipes into a smoothie, they are not made equal.

Most people should be able to intuitively understand that by just comparing their price points.

Making a bigger upfront investment will result in better long term results and longevity.

But more importantly, can save you from mental breakdowns suffered from working with low quality blenders even before you finishing making that detox drink.

Some of the common problems with low end blenders include:

• Difficulty in cleaning and maintenance
• Unevenly blended smoothies
• Break down immediately after warranty periods
• Premature wearing out of blades
• Motors that constantly jam
• etc

Please keep in mind that I’m not saying that you need to buy a thousand-dollar blender in order to make a good smoothie.

What I’m suggesting is that a $200 dollar blender will outperform a $20 one anytime on any day of the week. And by the time the latter has to be condemned, the former will continue to go on serving you without any fuss for years to come.

It’s just like shoes. A cheap one will not last 6 months with constant wear. But a quality one will last for years to come and continue to look new. Justifying it’s high price tag.

So it will be down to how you calculate the economics of all these and evaluate the tradeoffs.

Blenders are after all, used to mix healthy drinks for a healthier body. So I have little issues in deciding that spending a little extra money to buy a good one will be worth it.

Here are some of the biggest factors to consider when buying a good blender.

1) Base

As blenders for smoothies will be swishing and swooshing about in operation, it is inevitable that the machine will be subject to forces trying to shake it about.

While all blenders will have stability during operation in mind when the product was in the initial design phase, the degree of stability is another matter altogether.

Even though I have heard of traditional blenders that take off during usage, I have never witnessed one toppling over in the midst of blending.

Nevertheless, I can see that these things definitely have the potential to do so if the base is not as solid and heavy as it can be.

A sturdy base should be made with heavy-duty stainless steel or heavy gauge plastic.

This helps the machine stay rooted while the vibration force is kept in check to prevent it from moving about the counter.

Buttons on the base would also preferably be flat.

This ensures that food debris do not collect on the groves. Making cleaning easier.

2) Motor

It goes without saying that the motor is what makes the machine a blender instead of being just an oversized jug.

If you have ever had the experience of putting frozen fruits, vegetables, or even ice into the blender and seeing them jammed inside due to an incapable motor, this is simply because the motor is not powerful enough.

For thorough blending, a motor has to have at least 350 to 500 watts, and at least 120 volts of torque power packed under the hood.

The higher they get, the more the blender means business.

Those that come with less powerful motors have a tendency to burn out faster due to the resistance that the motor is unable to handle.

Sometimes, foodstuff that gets caught in underwhelming blenders even cause the machines to move about, or even jump!

3) Speed settings

Conventional blenders come with at least 2 essential speed settings.

But modern day performance blenders can come with much more than 2. There are even those that come with full maximum control via the use of a speed dial.

A variable speed enables the homemaker or drink master to adjust required speeds for different needs.

For example:

• Basic mix
• Puree
• Liquefy
• Pulse
• Ice crushing
• etc

Anyway, a blending 101 tip is to start with low speed rotations and slowly working it up to higher speed.

These small appliances need to be operated manually and are not yet smart enough to be left alone to complete their tasks.

For maneuverability and flexibility, a modern blender should consist of at least 3 speed settings available.

4) Jug specifications

The jug is sometimes referred to as the carafe or pitcher.

Many people who are new to this still think that there is a standard shape or size to the jugs, especially for models meant for consumers.

This is absolutely untrue.

Here are the main characteristics of jugs and what they do.

Size

The size of the jug determines the amount of servings it can make.

The average blender has a capacity able to contain approximately 5 to 6 cups.

This means that if you know that you will be making beverages in amounts more than that, you need a bigger piece of equipment.

Or if you will be doing single servings only, there’s no point getting a blender that comes with a monster sized jug.

The general advice is that unless you are absolutely sure that a small jug is all you need now and in the future, the safe choice is to go with a middle to big one.

Shape

The shape of a blender can be wide, narrow, tall, short, etc.

Some are even pear shaped! I kid you not.

Wider jugs can process and churn ice more efficiently, even in the absence of liquid.

Square shaped jugs are also generally accepted to be a better mixer of ingredients compared to round and circular ones.

Material

Common and popular material for blender jugs are glass, plastic, and stainless steel.

Glass is by far the most aesthetically pleasing to the eye. They feel strong and premium. It’s dishwasher safe and easy to clean. But the trade-off with going this route is that glass can be fragile and delicate. In my opinion, it’s just not a good compliment to a robust and active piece of machinery as is a blender.

Plastic is the most common and does the job very well. On top of that, it is a material proven to be durable and lightweight. The problem is that polycarbonate plastic can feel cheap to the touch. And it is prone to scratches. It also don’t do well with ice processing.

Metal jugs, in particular stainless steel, has slowly and surely etched it way to the preferred choice of top-of-the-line branded blenders. They have most of the best attributes with little weaknesses. It’s no wonder they are the most expensive of the three.

Lid

The lid plays the critical role of keeping all the colored ingredients secured in the jug. The importance of this feature is often ignored by buyers. For this reason, they should be heavy with a firm tight fit to the jug’s opening. Loose lids can entice your blender to splash and splatter juice all over the countertop with glee.

Finally, you might want to purchase extra jugs so that you have ready replacements should the one you are using cracks or breaks.

5) Blades

Blades should be made of premium grade stainless steel.

This is so that it can achieve a high level of performance and resistant to corrosion like rust.

The blades of a blender is one of the key focal point of manufacturers, spending a lot of time, money and resources into the research and development of it.

The details of the design can be as meticulous as the degree in which the blades tilt.

Other aspects that makers pay particular attention to include:

• Number of blades
• Interlocking gears
• Shape
• Material
• Rotation speed for optimal performance
• Assembly
• etc

Assembly can be a specific concern of homemakers with the thought of housekeeping chores on the back of their minds.

This is a fair reason to be mindful of assembly, or the lack of it.

While being able to take the blades apart allows for the most thorough of cleaning, keep in mind that blender models capable of disassembly can be prone to leaks when re-assembly is not done right.

However, do note that a lot of high-end blenders are semi self-cleaning. Meaning there is no need for disassembly of the blade. All that needs to be done is fill the jug with warn water and activate the cleaning function.

6) Cleaning

It might be jumping the gun to read through the cleaning instructions before you even buy a blender. But looking into it can help you determine whether you would be willing to commit the time and effort into maintaining it.

You might have to use soapy water, do rinsing, wipe it with cloth, etc. Things that you don’t like to spend too much time on…

For this reason, I would only go for models that are fully self-cleansing or semi self-cleansing.

7) Appearance

While the focus should be on performance, having a superior and deluxe blender that looks the part is definitely desirable.

There are even people who make a purchase decision solely based on looks.

Because different individuals will have different tastes and personal preferences, I will leave it to you to decide what is beautiful.

I just want to mention that if you are using it in a place with high exposure like the cafe or coffee house, maybe you should get one that has mass appeal.

8) Accessories

The amount of accessories that come with a purchase is not a measure of how good the blender really is. But the more the merrier.

Some common accessories include:

• Blender plunger
• Cups and glassware
• Replacement kits
• Cleaning brush kit
• Recipe books
• Accompanying mobile apps
• etc

Again, don’t let accessories skew a buying decision. They are good to have, but usually not essential.

9) Warranty

The minimum length of time for manufacturer’s warranty should be 1 year by default.

Sellers who are confident about their products and willing stand by them might offer longer warranty periods.

Don’t buy a blender that don’t come with a warranty.

Depending on which retailer you purchase them from, there might be add-on options to purchase extended warranty.

If you are buying a premium blender, it would be worth the extra few bucks to acquire more protection.

This is why I like purchasing these things from Amazon as they do offer such buying options.

Which blender to buy?

I have already provided detailed information on what factors to look out for and consider when evaluating which blender to buy.

So you have to weigh up all the factors, review and decide for yourself.

However, I would share with you one which I am currently using with no regrets.

I have no reservations in recommending the Vitamix 5200 Blender.

It’s just an awesome machine that ticks all the boxes.

Good luck, and have fun shopping for your blender.