Are you searching for a particular type of blender available in the market? Then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve compiled over 27 options of blenders that have different styles and/or applications…
Check them all out below…
Don’t have time to read? Here’s a quick summary of the products we recommend.
| Product Name | Grade |
| Counter-top Blenders | A+ |
| Personal Blenders | A+ |
| All-in-One | A |
| Immersion | A+ |
| Bullet Style | A |
A counter-top blender is probably the kind you’re most familiar with. They have that classic look of a motor base with a large jar on top. Most are sleek-looking because they always sit out on the counter.
These types of blenders are usually the most powerful because the motors are the biggest.
Think big brands like Vitamix, Blendtec, or Ninja.
If you’ve got the room for it, these are always the types of blenders I’d recommend. If you get the right one (like any that we recommend), they’ll be able to do pretty much anything.
See Also: Blenders with 1000 Watts or More
Personal blenders are similar to counter-top blenders but are a little bit smaller. They tend to come with cups that you can take to-go.
See Also: Best Personal Blender for Crushing Ice
All-in-One
All-in-One blenders are mainly reserved for the Ninja brand. Their Kitchen System (linked above) has all sorts of attachments for blending, food processing, dough making, etc.
These types of blenders also tend to have multiple jar sizes that you can use. So with the Ninja, for example, you can use their large 72 oz jar or their small
To learn more about blender options, you may be interested in our Nutribullet vs. Ninja comparison.
Immersion
Immersion Blenders are ideal for making things like soup. They’re big enough to go into large batches of ingredients.
Since you’re free to move it around with your hand, you don’t have to worry about overloading the jar… There is no jar!
Immersion blenders also shine when doing large batches of dips like hummus or salsa. Once you’ve got all the raw materials in a bowl, you can simply blend and chop to your ideal consistency.
Check out our immersion blender guides…
- Best immersion blenders
- Stainless steel stick blenders
- Immersion blender with chopper options
- Large immersion blenders for deep pots
- Hand blenders with whisk attachments
Bullet blenders are basically the same thing as personal blenders. The only difference is that they tend to be “slim” and kind of shaped like a bullet.
People generally use the term interchangeably with brands like Nutribullet since they’re the company that pretty much coined the phrase.
See Also: Vitamix vs. Nutribullet / Smoothie Blenders with To-Go Cups
Spout Dispensing
If you’ve ever drank from a water cooler, then you’ll know how a dispenser spout works.
Basically, you just press the button downwards or upwards, and viola! The liquid is dispensed right into your cup.
Blenders with dispenser spouts are built just like water coolers in that regard. They’re great if you’re hosting a party. Your guests can grab their drinks right from the blender without the need to pick them up and pour. Pretty neat!
You Might Also Like: How to Make Ginger Shots Without a Juicer (Easy Blender Recipe)
Quiet blenders usually have some sort of sound shield or other dampening devices that makes it a bit easier to blend in a small house or tiny apartment.
Blenders can get kind of loud, so having a quiet blender can indeed make the process a lot more pleasant to use. This is especially the case if you don’t want to wake up any kids or members of the household.
They’re mainly used by cafes and coffee shops that don’t want to have blender motors ruining their ambiance. The Vitamix Quiet One is one of the most popular ones on the market today.
It’s rare to see them for personal use because of the higher price tag.​ Recommended Article: 10 Hand Blender with Whisk Attachment Options That Are a Bargain
are simply blenders that can use some form of mason jar as the blending vessel. We don’t really recommend these, they aren’t that powerful or safe.
But either way, some people like them for the aesthetics.
Juicer Blender combos are basically two-in-one machines that blend and juice. Usually, they aren’t the best choice. That’s just why there aren’t too many on the market today. In our research, we were only able to find three.
They tend to do neither task as well as a single blender or a juicer, but some people like them.
Overall we wouldn’t recommend one. If you want to make juice, just get a normal blender and use a nut milk bag or get an actual juicer.
​Further Reading: How to Clean the Bottom of a Blender (3 Easy Ways)
Looking for one of the best blender food processor combo options? Look no further than the Ninja listed above!
As expected, they come with the normal blender jar but a separate food-processing vessel that attaches to the same base.
They’re convenient for doing larger batches of chopping and even great at making nut butter. It’s also great if you don’t have lots of cabinet space and want one appliance that can do it all.
Ninja is a brand that excels at making these products well. Their Mega Kitchen System is an excellent and affordable choice.
See Also: Best Blender for Cauliflower Rice
Blender bottles aren’t really blenders at all, but rather plastic bottles that come with metal “balls” to shake up the ingredients. They can’t really make smoothies, but they’re good for making quick things like protein shakes on the go. Just don’t lose the metal ball when you’re washing it!
Stainless Steel jar blenders are just like they sound. They’re blenders that have stainless steel jars rather than plastic ones.
This usually makes them easy to clean. You also don’t have to worry about leaching plastic and smells sticking to the jar. They tend to be less functional than high-quality plastics but have an element of added durability.
I wouldn’t specifically recommend one unless you’re going for a particular aesthetic.
Blenders with plastic jars are the norm. It’s what most brands use for their blender containers because they’re affordable and durable.
Many plastic jars are even heat-stable – like Vitamix since it’s designed to make hot soup.
I highly recommend a plastic jar blender over the other materials. Glass is fragile, and stainless steel simply isn’t that useful.
See Also: Black Blender Options That Looks Great
To Go Cups Included
There are lots of different types of blenders that come with to-go cups. The two that first come to mind are Nutribullet and Ninja. With their models, you can blend directly into the cup and take it with you on the run. Basically like the personal blenders that we’ve already mentioned.
But even Vitamix is getting into the to-go cup market these days. Their S-series blenders are just as convenient as other models but tend to be a bit more expensive. For that reason, they aren’t as popular as the Nutribullet and Ninja.
But keep in mind that some blenders include to-go cups as accessories, even if you can’t take them on the go. Be sure to double-check that you can blend with them if that’s a feature that you’re looking for.
Designed For Hot Liquids
Hot liquid blenders are designed with two things in mind…
- Jars that can withstand heat
- Venting capabilities to let steam out
And yes, they absolutely need both.
Without a heat-stable jar, you’d leech plastic into your blends, and the jar might also melt. Not good.
If your blender does not have venting capabilities, then it may even explode as the pressure builds up inside the container. Never try to blend hot liquids in a blender that wasn’t designed to do so.
There have been some horrible accidents as a result. If you’re looking for a guide on the best blender for hot liquids, check our list if you’re looking to buy one for your soups, coffee, and other hot beverages.
Commercial
Nowadays, there isn’t much of a difference between commercial and home blenders in terms of power. Even the cheap blenders you can get for your home are just as powerful.
The main difference is the warranty. Manufacturer terms state that you can’t use home blenders in commercial settings. This is because a commercial blender will be used for more, which significantly decreases the blender’s lifespan.
You’re paying for the commercial warranty when you get a commercial blender. One big retail brand is Waring which competes with Vitamix for space in restaurant kitchens.
For Sauces
If you’re going to be blending a lot of sauces, you need a blender that’s suitable for the job.
Ideally, you want one that’s capable of doing hot liquids too, but that’s not entirely necessary because you can always heat up the sauce after.
But if you are going to do hot sauces, just make sure it has a vented lid and jar that can handle it.
The main thing is that the blender is powerful enough to remove chunks if you want something completely liquefied but also flexible enough to keep things chunky for texture.
First, it’s required that a sauce blender has variable speed.
See Also: Best Blender for Making Sauces
Variable Speed Control Interface
We just touched on variable speed control, so let’s define what it is and how it works. Variable speed control is a knob, dial, or button-set that lets you gradually adjust the speed of the blender blades.
Some new models sometimes even have a touchscreen slider for this purpose.
In my opinion, the best way to do this is the knob method. It feels far more initiative and natural to move the speed of the blades. For that reason, I am a huge fan of the Vitamix Classic interface.
Ice Crushing Capable
Believe it or not, not every blender is great at crushing ice. As a matter of fact, if you put heavy-duty ice cubes in the wrong blender, you may break the blades.
Most of the top blender brands are fully capable of crushing ice when there’s liquid involved. But you need to be careful when you’re trying to crush ice WITHOUT liquid. That’s when you really put the motor and the blades under stress.
The majority of counter-top Ninjas, Vitamix, and Blendtec’s can handle ice no problem, but the personal-sized ones may struggle a bit. I tested ice crushing in the Nutribullet, and while it got the job done, I’m not eager to do it again because it put stress on the machine.
Check out these personal blenders for ice crushing.
Nut Butter Capable
If you’re looking to make nut butter (almond, cashew, peanut, etc.), not every blender is going to do the job.
Ideally, you want something with a wide jar, a tamping device, and a powerful motor and blades.
Nuts are hard to blend through, so anything that’s not up to snuff will result in motor burnout or nut butter that’s extremely chunky, and you don’t want that.
Getting a blender that can grind nuts is expensive, but it’s worth it. You can save a ton of money by making your own almond butter at home.
Are you interested? You’ll want to see these nut butter blenders.
Cashew Cream Capable
Cashew cream is not nearly as difficult as making nut butter. This is because you can soak the cashews beforehand to make them super soft. You can even use a bit of water or plant milk to make sure that the softened cashews get liquefied.
If you don’t want to spend a fortune on a blender, that’s great news.
You’ll find several cheap options on our blenders for making cashew cream guide, including the Nutribullet, which is my blender of choice for the job.
Making flour in a blender is not as tricky as making nut butter, but it’s not as easy as making cashew cream. It requires far less processing time than turning something into butter, but because you’re blending it dry, you’ll still need a powerful motor. You won’t have any liquid to assist you in the process.
That said, a blender for making flour has to be somewhere in the middle of the road. I’ll use a small Nutribullet or Ninja for soft flours like oat flour. But if I’m doing rice flour or chickpea flour, you better believe I’m pulling out the Vitamix.
Capable of Making Nut Milk
Making nut milk in a blender is far easier than you think. Like cashew cream, the nuts are soaked, which means they are soft and easy to liquefy. You can make nut milk in almost any blender, but you’ll need to have a nut milk bag to strain off the pulp of the nuts.
There’s no blender currently that has a built-in straining mechanism.
I make small batches of oat milk, almond milk, and cashew milk, all in my Nutribullet.
If I’m making a big batch, I’ll pull out my Vitamix, but there’s no need to go for something high-end for this application if you don’t have the budget.
Do note: if you want to be efficient, it’s easier to make big batches, so getting a blender with a large jar like the Vitamix pictured above might be best.
See our guide: Best Blender for Almond Milk
Designed for
When you get them from Starbucks, Frappuccinos seem like icy drinks, but they aren’t nearly as frozen as you think. You don’t need to do any heavy-duty ice crushing if you’re making frapps at home, just a few cubes here and there.
That said, you don’t need anything powerful for this. A good Frappuccino blender can be as simple as the basic Magic Bullet.
See our top blenders for making Frappuccinos here.
If you’re making frozen daiquiris, you better be sure that your blender can crush ice.
It’s also nice to have something that has a large enough jar. Because if you’re making daquiris, then you’ll probably be entertaining, right?
For this, a Ninja, Vitamix, or Blendtec is a great choice. Ninja if you’re on a budget, the other two if you’re not.
You can find our recommended models for daiquiris here.
Spice Grinders
Almost any blender can grind spices, but there are also smaller options that are designed more specifically for the task. Imagine, trying to grind a small leaf of spices in a huge Vitamix jar. It does work, but it’s not always that practical.
Some of the smaller options even come with convenient storage containers so you can put the spices in your cabinet when you’re done.
See our picks for spice grinding blenders here.
Tamper Tool Included
A tamper tool is a plunger device that you can push into the top of the blender while it’s running. It’s an extremely convenient way to keep the food moving towards the blades. If your blender does not have a tamper, it makes it very difficult to blend stuff that doesn’t have a lot of liquid.
This is because the blades tend to push solids away rather than bring them in. A tamper ensures that this doesn’t happen because you can simply keep pushing things towards the blades until they become liquefied.
See our guide: Top Blenders with Tampers
For more blender options, check out our article on the best Vitamix alternative.
Take Our Blender Quiz – Find the Right Blender for You
Now that you’ve learned all about the different types of blenders, it’s time to take our quiz!
Answer a few questions below, and you’ll get a personalized blender recommendation that suits your budget and lifestyle….
BONUS: If you like incorporating tofu into your vegan recipes, make sure you remove the excess moisture from it by using a tofu press. Not only will this improve the texture, but it will also make the tofu more flavor dense. If you want to make your extra tofu awesome, you’ll want to check out our best tofu press guide.
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!
