Sonicare vs Oral-B: Which Electric Toothbrush is Best?
There are many electric toothbrushes out there and not all of them are made equal. However, when it comes down to the best, it always results in a dueling clash between two of the biggest brands; Oral-B and Philips Sonicare.
We really wish we could tell you which is the best brand, but the problem is that both brands work well and deliver a pearly white shine to your teeth.
So, that’s why we have put together this write-up to see if we can try to separate the two in terms of technology, price, brush head, and a few other categories which we consider important. Then after that, you decide whether you want to go with either Oral B or Sonicare.
Table of Contents
Power & Brushing Technology
One of the most subtle differences between Sonicare and Oral-B lies in their technology.
Sonicare
Sonicare uses vibration technology, also known as Sonic Technology. In this technology, the brush head makes side-by-side movements to remove plaque more effectively. It makes up to 31,000 strokes per minute to provide maximum brushing accuracy.
Oral-B
Oral-B uses the rotation-oscillation action, otherwise known as the Rotary Technology. Here, the brush head spins to make 15-degree movements. It has two different approaches to brushing namely 3D and 2D technology. The former uses 40,000 pulsations and 8,800 oscillations and the latter uses 7,600 oscillations per minute.
Brush Head
Sonicare
Sonicare’s brush head looks like a regular one. Due to this, many believe that brushing with Sonicare’s electric toothbrushes is more comfortable. Its small factor is a good plus, especially in the case of reaching those hard-to-reach areas.
Oral-B
Oral-B has a wide variation of brush heads and their replacement brush heads are actually cheaper than those of Sonicare. Oral-B’s brush heads are known to be longer than Sonicare.
Pressure Sensor
An electric toothbrush’s pressure sensor feature alerts you if or when you’re brushing too hard. This feature can also prevent ruining your electric brush, but more importantly, your teeth.
Oral-B
Many Oral-B brushes have pressures, minus the following two:
- Oral-B Vitality Series
- Oral-B Deep Sweep 1000
Sonicare
Only the Philips Sonicare Flexcare HX6921/02 has pressure sensor technology.
Price
Oral-B
Oral-B brushes are typically cheaper than the ones from Philips Sonicare. Not only that, but Oral-B has plenty of brush head options available, apart from the fact that they’re brushes are quite technologically sound.
Sonicare
So if Oral-B’s brushes are cheaper, why bother with Sonicare, right? Well, that’s because Sonicare provides a more naturally comfortable brushing experience. Sonicare also makes brushing fairly easier with their traditional looking brush heads as well as comfortable head movements. This effect is what made the brand popular, which eventually led it to be priced higher as well, unfortunately.
Design
We may seem to have gone through this already, but just for the sake of humoring you, we’ll cover it anyway.
Sonicare
The Sonicare brushes have a more natural look to them as they appear like the classic toothbrushes that we’ve been using for so long.
Oral-B
These brushes have a more modern look to them and the fact that they have other several brush head designs.
Voltage & Battery Life
Sonicare
These brushes have a much better battery life than the Oral-B ones. In fact, the most advanced models of the Philips Sonicare brushes have as long as 3-weeks of battery life, whereas the advanced model of Oral-B falls to only 10 days.
Oral-B
Oral-B’s brushes only support about 110V, which means they can only be used in the US. To be frank, if you live or are traveling anywhere outside the US, you have to use an adapter. On the other hand, Sonicare’s toothbrushes support both 110V and 220V. So no matter where you live, you can always charge your toothbrush without an extension.
Brushing Modes
Oral-B
Even though both brands have various brushing modes, Oral-B’s brushes have modes than the Sonicare ones.
Sonicare
Sonicare’s most advanced brush, the Philips Diamond Clean, has 5 brushing modes, whereas Oral-B’s most advanced brush, Oral-B black 7000, has 6 brushing modes.
Note: Oral-B’s brushes are a bit louder than Sonicare’s, but it’s actually not that much of a bother at all.
