While Oral-B’s rotary brushes dominate the electric toothbrush market, they’re not the only option. Philips and Colgate have long offered their own Sonic toothbrush tech, and they’ve been joined by a gang of smaller manufacturers. Sonic toothbrushes work in a different way to Oral-B’s brushes, and some people prefer the way they look and feel. Some even find that they’re better at cleaning in-between the teeth and around the gumline, or in the hard-to-reach corners of the mouth.

There’s very little in the way of unbiased scientific research to push the case either way, but if you would rather use a sonic toothbrush, there are some great examples out there that you can trust to take care of your teeth and gums.

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All sonic toothbrushes follow the same basic design. In the body there’s a metal rod driven by a high-speed vibrating motor, and when this clicks into place inside the brush head, the brush head vibrates at speeds of up to 62,000 movements per minute, depending on the brush.

The vibrating head and bristles don’t just clean the surface of your teeth, but also propel microbubbles of fluid across the gumline and in between your teeth, shifting any food debris and helping break down any plaque. This keeps your teeth squeaky-clean and your gums nice and healthy, although some floss and mouthwash will still help you maintain an effective dental regime.

Philips is widely seen as the technology leader with its Sonicare line of brushes, but we’ve also found several smaller brands that make excellent alternatives. As you move through the price range, you’ll generally find that you get higher speeds, quieter and more efficient motors, slimmer handles, and a longer battery life. Keep going, and you’ll also find additional features including Bluetooth connectivity, built-in sensors, and smart app support or a built-in screen. You don’t necessarily need these features to give your teeth a good, consistent brush, but they can help.

With any electric toothbrush, heads are a big deal. Philips manufacturers a range of different heads aimed at specific dental needs, ranging from the basic Plaque Defence and ProResults head to the Whitening heads, Optimal Gum Care heads, Intercare and A3 Premium All-in-One heads. Some other brushes may be compatible with Philips heads, but on others you’ll get a basic head with high-quality DuPont bristles, but nothing special. On the plus side, they’ll often throw in a replacement head or two, and you may find the heads cheaper to replace in future.

Also, keep an eye on the accessories. You’ll usually get a charger, but premium models will also throw in a travel case, a more sophisticated charging stand and other bonus items. We’re also seeing a growing number of toothbrushes where the charger – or the toothbrush itself – takes power from a standard USB socket, which can save you packing a separate charger or power supply when you’re away from home.

Price: £18 | Buy now from Amazon

Light, slim, and powered by two AAA batteries, the ProClinical 150 makes a great travel toothbrush, and would have been an even better one had Colgate bundled a case or even a plastic cap to go over the brush head. The small size and compact head makes this an easy brush to work with, especially for younger brushers. It’ll squeeze into every corner of the mouth, while the quiet 20,000 motions per minute motor is easy to deal with if you find more powerful brushes disconcerting. The batteries seem to go on forever, and you can replace the heads with Colgate’s Deep Clean refills when they wear out, roughly every three months.

If you’re looking for a toothbrush for everyday use, then you might want to up your budget. The ProClinical 150 gives you a better clean than a manual toothbrush, but not the kind of in-depth clean you’ll get from rechargeable sonic brushes, nor the same smooth, polished feel on the surface of your teeth. What’s more, while you get a two-minute timer, there’s no battery indicator or even any extra cleaning modes. However, you’ve got to love the simplicity, and those with more sensitive teeth or gums may prefer its easy-going manner.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 1; Battery type: 2x AAA; Accessories included: Brush head; Battery life: Approx 2-3 months; Warranty: Not stated

Price: £40 | Buy now from Amazon

We’ve long had the Sonicare 3100 as the best Philips brush for those not bothered by extra brushing modes and smart brush bells and whistles. This hasn’t changed with the new version, which has slimmed down for a more comfortable handle, and switched to a USB powered charging cradle from the old 2-prong shaver socket adaptor. This is arguably more convenient for everyday charging and travel, but you’ll have to budget for a separate charger in the unlikely event that you don’t have a spare one handy.

As before, the 3100 is compatible with the full range of Sonicare heads, and now supports BrushSync tech, with an LED indicator that lets you know when the head needs changing. What’s more, the clean isn’t far behind what you’d expect from Sonicare brushes twice the price. Sure, you only get 31,000 motions per minute where the top of the range models hit twice the speed, but your gnashers still come away feeling clean across the surface, and you get a nice, deep sweep along the gumline and between the teeth. You’ll have to pay more for extra cleaning modes and the battery life – just over 60 minutes – is disappointing, but this is still the best entry-level brush.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 1; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: Brush head, USB charger; Battery life (tested): 65 mins; Warranty: 2 years

Price: £50 | Buy now from Argos

While there are dozens of cheap sonic toothbrushes for sale on Amazon, not all have the elegant design and rock-solid build quality to stand up to with the best from Oral-B or Philips. The Ordo Sonic+ is an exception, thanks to a mix of great design, good technology and some interesting options.

You can buy the brush and buy heads as normal, but Ordo also runs subscriptions, where you can have a new brush head and two tubes of toothpaste for £10 every 1 to 3 months, or a bigger bundle including toothpaste, mouthwash, floss and interdental brushes for £15 every 1 to 3 months. This isn’t for everyone – most of us would rather stick with our own favourite dental products – but it’s a nice way to make sure you have everything you need at a reasonable cost.

As for the brush itself, it feels and works much like a mid-range Sonicare toothbrush, with four brushing modes designed for cleaning, whiting, sensitive teeth and a gum massage, and a nice, slim handle with a grippy, rubber feel. It switches itself off when the usual two-minute brush is done, and pulses every 30 seconds during use to remind you to brush another quadrant. Battery life is brilliant, with enough charge to get you through a good month of brushing before recharging via the USB cradle. Whether or not you fancy the subscription, this is a great sonic toothbrush at a very competitive price.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 4; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: Brush head, charging cradle, travel cap; Battery life (tested): 2hrs 27mins; Warranty: 1 year

Price: £60 | Buy now from Brushd

Two things make the Brushd Electric Toothbrush compelling. First, the toothbrush heads are completely recyclable; just stick them in the pre-paid postal bag and Brushd will take care of the rest. Second, this is one very stylish toothbrush, with a comfortable, rounded shape and a rather lovely eggshell blue colour. The rounded base means it won’t stand upright on a shelf, but Brushd bundles in a magnetic charging cradle you can attach to the bathroom wall, which connects to a USB power source through a Type-C socket.

You get three brushing modes – Clean, Sensitive, and White – with the Sensitive mode particularly easy going. The Clean and White modes give you a more in-depth clean, similar to what you’d get from a mid-range Sonicare brush. Just be aware that there’s no pressure sensor to stop you brushing too softly or too hard, and the brush shuts off automatically when your two minutes of brushing time is up. Battery life is roughly in line with the Philips Sonicare at just under 70 minutes, but that’s still more than enough to get you through a month of use without a recharge.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 3; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: 2 brush heads, wireless charger; Battery life (tested): 68 mins; Warranty: 1 year

Price: £75 | Buy now from Amazon

Can’t stretch to one of Oral-B’s iO Series brushes? Don’t panic. It’s not the only brand with an OLED display and a quiet, magnetic motor. In fact, you could describe the Oclean X Pro Elite as an iO Series/Philips Sonicare mash-up. Like the Oral-B, it has a 0.96-inch colour OLED touchscreen with which to monitor your brushing, along with Bluetooth connectivity and a smartphone app. Like the Sonicare brushes, its brushless magnetic motor keeps the brush head vibrating 42,000 times per minute. As well as four modes (standard, delicate, whitening and gum massage), you can also set the duration and the intensity of your brush, giving you plenty of ways to customise your routine, while the screen gives you feedback on where you’re brushing and how long you’ve been brushing for.

Oclean’s controls and software aren’t quite as polished as Oral-B’s. The OLED touchscreen can be unresponsive, while the app simply tracks the frequency and efficiency of your brushing, and sometimes struggles to make a stable connection to the brush. The iO Series brushes do a better job of actually monitoring where you’ve brushed and where you haven’t. As a toothbrush, though, the Oclean is a real contender; it’s quiet but surprisingly powerful, working effectively along the gumline and doing a fine job of keeping the teeth feeling fresh and clean. As a bonus, you can charge it using nearly any wireless charger – not just the USB pad provided – and the battery lasts for over 160 minutes. That’s enough to maintain your routine for a solid 40 days or more.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 4; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: One brush head, charger, magnetic wall mount; Battery life (tested): 167 mins; Warranty: 2 years

Price: £84 | Buy now from Amazon

Given that it doesn’t have the smart app features or Bluetooth connectivity of the X Pro Elite, it’s hard to work out at first why the Oclean X10 is a tenner more expensive. However, the new Maglev brushless motor and lithium ion battery give it double the battery life of the other model, while the larger colour OLED display and improved visual feedback mean you don’t need to reach for your smartphone. Instead, the built-in sensors and display tell you where you’ve brushed and for how long – and even recommend a catch-up plan if you continue brushing. You also get five modes – Clean, White, Massage, Sensitive, and Polish – plus five intensity settings for each, and switching between them using the two buttons is easier than on the X Pro Elite’s tiny touchscreen.

When it comes to cleaning, the X10 is noticeably quieter than rival brushes, particularly on its Sensitive and lower-intensity settings, yet it still does an excellent job of cleansing, polishing, and moving debris from in between the teeth. And while you need to plug the USB cable into a socket at the bottom of the handle to charge it, a single three-hour charge lasts for up to 60 days, with a week’s worth of brushing barely making any impact on the battery meter. If you’re not bothered with smart features but want a superior sonic toothbrush, the X10 is right up there with the best.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 5; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: One brush head, USB Type-C cable, magnetic wall mount; Battery life: 240 mins predicted; Warranty: 2 years

Price: £160 | Buy now from John Lewis

Philips’ ExpertClean 7300 is arguably the best sonic toothbrush you can buy without paying over £200 – and you can often find it for around £100 during seasonal sales. Like the top-of-the-range DiamondClean models, it works with the Sonicare app to track your brushing and dish out reminders, guidance, and tips. It can tell you whether you’re not brushing for long enough or you’re applying too much pressure, and with three different cleaning modes – Clean, Gum Health and Deep Clean+ – it’s easy to vary them or find the ideal mode for you.

It’s a very comfortable and well-designed brush as well, with pulse alerts to help you keep track of your brushing if you’re not using the app, and a clear battery indicator to let you know when it’s running down. Not that this is too much of an issue; Philips states that the battery should last you three weeks of brushing, and our tests put that on the conservative side.

Plus, while you don’t get all the extra brushes or charging glass of the flagship model, it does still come with a handy USB charging case, which makes this a fantastic toothbrush both for home and for travel. It’s still not what you might call cheap, but it’s a premium brush at a price you might find easier to swallow.

Key specs – Cleaning modes: 3; Battery type: Li-ion; Accessories included: 2 brush heads, charging travel case, charger; Battery life (tested): 1hr 33mins; Warranty: 2 years

Buy now from John Lewis

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