Are you a fan of extra-thick smoothies? Would you like to be able to make them from home instead of having to buy them elsewhere?
If that sounds like you, we’ve found what you’re looking for. We’ve gathered a list of the best blenders for thick smoothies.
Quick Summary
Best Blenders for Thick Smoothies
Cleanblend Blender
This Cleanblend model is one flexible blender. Because it can make such a huge variety of foods, it could potentially replace a few different appliances in your kitchen.
Smoothies are just the tip of the iceberg here. You’ll also be able to use it for juice, ice cream, frozen alcoholic drinks, soups, sauce, and more.
Part of the reason why it’s so versatile is the food-grade stainless steel blade system it has. Combined with its astounding 1800-watt motor, it’s no wonder this blender has the power to pulverize anything.
You’ll be getting a little extra if you choose this Cleanblend. It comes with a complimentary tamper and spatula, so you can guarantee smooth blends by pressing stubborn chunks into the blades.
Pros
- It has a high-watt motor to blend anything.
- Versatile.
- It’s a food-grade stainless steel blade for cutting through ingredients.
- Complimentary BPA-free tamper.
Cons
- It can be expensive.
- It doesn’t come with serving-size cups for smoothies.
- There are no pre-programmed smoothie settings.
Related Article: Best Blenders for Occasional Use
Ninja Professional Countertop Blender
With 1100 watts and a vertical blade, the Ninja Professional Countertop is one efficient blender. The smart vertical blade design allows it to easily reach more of your ingredients and crush them.
The high amount of wattage, on the other hand, means it has the power to pulverize even difficult ingredients, like ice cubes.
Furthermore, it comes with two 16-ounce cups with to-go lids. These cups and lids allow you to take your healthy smoothie creations wherever you go without any risk of spilling.
When you’re all done blending for the day, the container and cups are safe to put in your dishwasher. That saves you the time to scrub them all out by hand.
Pros
- Dishwasher-safe parts.
- Powerful motor.
- Blades go up a column in the middle to reach all your ingredients.
- Massive pitcher for making batches.
- It includes two 16-ounce smoothie cups with lids.
- It has a single-serve setting for when you’re making a smoothie for yourself.
Cons
- The vertical blades can wear out over time.
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Oster Pro 1200
Are you searching for a blender that’s especially easy to use? The Oster Pro 1200 is a great choice when you require a user-friendly blender.
The main reason for this is its pre-programmed settings. At the touch of a button, you’ll be able to make smoothies, chop food, or make dairy-free milkshakes.
If you want to personalize the texture or exercise more control over blending, you can use the four additional speed settings.
Regardless of which blending method you use, you can rest assured all chunks will be chopped up. The Oster Pro 1200’s blades alternate spinning back and forth, so foods fall into them.
Pros
- Attractive brushed nickel base.
- It’s Dual Direction Blade Technology to add blending power to the blender.
- There are three pre-programmed settings, including a smoothie button.
- A glass jar can hold up to 6 cups for making batches.
- It comes with a 24-ounce smoothie cup.
- The blades are 50% larger than in previous Oster models, so they reach more food.
Cons
- A few customers have said it can be difficult to locate replacement parts.
NutriBullet High-Speed Blender/Mixer System
This blender was created to make the nutrition of a homemade smoothie accessible to anyone. The NutriBullet High-Speed Blender/Mixer System even comes with an assortment of cups you can blend right into.
Creating the healthiest smoothies is simple with this blender. Just add ingredients to any cup, twist the blades into the bottom, and put it on the base.
You can also be confident this blender can handle your toughest ingredients. Nuts and spinach alike can be blended to a silky smooth texture for an enjoyable smoothie.
This is because of its cyclonic action blending that spins your food around the blades in a vortex. However, this isn’t just good for blending – it’s also good for extracting nutrients.
That means you’ll end up with the vitamins and nutrients from each ingredient in your smoothie. Each drink will be as nutritious as the last.
Pros
- A compact design can fit on any counter.
- Cups are all dishwasher-friendly.
- Simple operation.
- Cyclonic action blending extracts nutrients from ingredients.
- The cups are made from BPA-free and durable plastic.
- Includes a recipe book for ideas.
Cons
- It does not have a pre-programmed smoothie button.
- You can’t make large batches at once in it because of the size of the cups.
Read Also: Best Blenders for Pina Coladas
Ninja BL480
If you were wondering whether or not there was a Ninja brand blender designed specifically for smoothies, the BL480 is your answer.
A little like the NutriBullet, this blender has extractor blades created to draw the vitamins and nutrients from your favorite ingredients. Because of this, you can be certain that each smoothie will be jam-packed with healthy nutrients.
Its powerful 1000-watt motor means that this Ninja can slice through food effortlessly even though it’s small. It can even crush ice within seconds.
You’ll also get an 18-ounce and 24-ounce cup with this Ninja. Both of them come with sealable lids to transport or store your beverages.
Pros
- Easy to use, with only four different buttons.
- Powerful 1000-watt motor.
- Includes two cups with sealing lids.
- The blades are designed to extract nutrients from your food.
Cons
- The cups are smaller, so they can’t make multiple servings in one blend.
- It does not have a pre-programmed smoothie button.
Recommended Article: Best Blenders for Raw Vegetables
KitchenAid 5-Speed Diamond Blender
Do you have a favorite color or decorating scheme you use in your kitchen? Then this KitchenAid model could be the perfect touch of color you’re looking for.
You can get it in a huge range of colors – 24, to be exact. So whatever color you’re looking for, you can probably find a version of this blender in that color.
Fortunately, this blender also has the power to match its sleek looks. It has an Intelli-speed motor control that can sense what you’ve put into it and keep the right speed to blend the type of ingredients you’re using.
On top of that, its huge 60-ounce blending jar is one sturdy container. It can resist breaking, scratching, or staining.
Pros
- It comes in 24 different colors.
- Durable die-cast metal base.
- The BPA-free pitcher is resistant to scratching, shattering, or staining.
- Capable of making larger batches to share.
- The motor can sense what kind of contents you’ve put in and maintain the appropriate speed during blending.
Cons
- No pre-programmed smoothie setting.
- It doesn’t include a smoothie cup.
- Some customers have said its base is a little too heavy.
Further Reading: Best Blenders for Small Quantities
Blendtec Total Classic Original Blender
If you’re looking for an especially powerful blender, this Blendtec could be the answer. It has an amazing 1560-watt motor.
But aside from the motor, it also has an intriguing element to its blade design: they’re 80% thicker. Because they’re thicker than blades in other blenders, they’re ten times stronger.
Because of that, the Blendtec Total Classic can slice and dice anything you put in it. Even your trickiest smoothie components, like ice or leafy greens, will come out of this blender velvety.
As a bonus, it can even heat your ingredients. That means it can make you a comforting bowl of hot soup when you’re feeling under the weather. If you’re looking for a blender that works best for soups, hot beverages, or coffee, you might want to look at our list for the best blender for hot liquids.
Pros
- Can heat your food.
- Strong motor.
- The blades are 80% thicker for increased durability and power.
- It has a self-cleaning cycle.
- Capable of blending up to 3-4 servings at one time.
- It has six pre-programmed buttons, including a drink button.
Cons
- It does not include a single-serving smoothie cup.
- It can be expensive.
Vitamix 5200
If what you want is a top-of-the-line blender, you can’t do much better than this Vitamix 5200. A bundle of neat features leads to it being one of the best options for just about any kind of blender.
To start with, it has hardened stainless steel blades that are both long-lasting and strong enough to crush all kinds of foods. With this model, you can expect your smoothies to be consistently silky and chunk-free.
For another thing, it has an integrated cooling system. Unlike many other blenders, you won’t need to worry about this one overheating during heavy use.
It also includes a tamper. With the tamper, you can push your foods into the blades, guaranteeing that no chunks are left behind in your mix.
And when you’re all done for the day, clean-up couldn’t be any easier. You need to add some water and a drop of dish soap, then run the Vitamix for 30-60 seconds for a quick self-clean.
Pros
- Can make large batches in one blend.
- Capable of warming your ingredients for you.
- It’s hardened stainless steel blades for increased blending power.
- Self-cleaning.
- The cooling system keeps it from overheating.
- Includes a tamper to ensure each blend is smooth.
Cons
- It does not come with a smoothie cup.
- No pre-programmed smoothie button.
What to Consider When Buying a Blender for Thick Smoothies
Power
If you’ve used blenders for smoothies before, you’ve probably dealt with the struggle of ensuring all the ingredients are crushed. Whether by scraping down the sides, pulsing, or pushing food into the blades with a tamper, you may have done everything you could to get a thick smoothie.
It will make it significantly easier for you if your blender is especially powerful. There are two main things you can consider when it comes to blending power: the design of the blades and the motor.
Some blades are built to pulverize ingredients even better. These might be thicker, more durable, larger, or even vertical blades.
As far as the motor goes, look into the watts or horsepower it has. The more it has, the stronger it is, and the more easily it will be able to slice through any of your components.
Pouring Spout
A blending pitcher with a spout will make it a simple matter to transfer your smoothie to a cup to drink from. This is especially important if you’re making a big batch to share or if your blender doesn’t come with a smoothie cup you can blend into.
However, this isn’t necessarily as big an issue if your blender has smoothie cups that double as blending containers. With these types of blenders, you can just drink right from the container when you’re done.
Cleaning
A thicker smoothie can lead to a more stubborn mess. That’s because the sides and blades will get coated in the mixture more easily than if the smoothie were thinner.
It’s worth considering how simple the maintenance of the blender will be after use, especially when it comes to thick smoothies. Look for blenders with self-cleaning cycles or those that have parts you can put in your dishwasher.
These factors could save you a lot of time you would otherwise spend scrubbing it out by hand.
Extras and Attachments
Some blenders come with extras or attachments that simplify the blending experience. Examples of extras and attachments that could be useful for making a thick smoothie are smoothie cups and tampers.
Because you’ll be using less liquid in a thick smoothie, your blender will need to work harder to reach all ingredients. That’s where the tamper comes in handy – you’ll be able to use it to herd all your foods into the blades, so you don’t have pieces in your smoothie.
A few blenders even come with smoothie cups that you can blend directly into. This is something to pay attention to if you want to make smoothies for just yourself often.
Additionally, you can check if your blender will come with lids for the cups. Sometimes, these lids even seal so that you can store your smoothies for a period of time.
Wrap Up
While all the blenders on this list are great for making a thick and nutritious smoothie, if we had to choose one, we’d choose the Vitamix 5200. This blender is truly top-notch, and its hardened blades will make short work of your most stubborn foods.
We also love the self-cleaning cycle it has. It saves you the hassle of washing the pitcher out by hand after each use.
However, the NutriBullet is a fantastic inexpensive alternative. It’s designed for pulling nutrients from your food, and the blending containers double as cups that you can drink right out of afterward.
Hey, I’m Joey. I’ve been cooking since I was a little kid and love everything about it. You can find my writing about food, kitchen appliances (such as blenders) and much more. Thanks for stopping by!
