Electric toothbrushes tested by K-Tipp: Three quarters are good to very good
27/11/2025
Translation: machine translated
Have you ever heard of bristle rounding? It determines whether and how good an electric toothbrush is. At least in the tested by K-Tipp and Kassensturz.
Electric toothbrushes clean more thoroughly than manual toothbrushes. Experts agree on this. By hand, you can achieve around 500 brushing movements per minute, compared to several tens of thousands with electric brushes. However, there are big differences between the various models, as the test by Kassensturz and K-Tipp shows - especially when it comes to the bristles.
What was tested?
What was tested
The testing institute ipi in Stuttgart scrutinised twelve electric toothbrushes for K-Tipp and Kassensturz, in some cases even under a microscope. For the most important test category - bristle rounding - tufts of the brush heads were enlarged a hundredfold. A sufficient grade was only awarded if at least two thirds of the bristles were well rounded.
The other test criteria:
- Battery life/charging time: How many two-minute brushing sessions at maximum power do the toothbrushes manage on one battery charge? How long does it take for the battery to charge?
- Robustness: How well do the toothbrushes withstand up to 20 drops onto a steel plate from a height of 80 centimetres? How waterproof are they and how much force is needed to pull bristles out of the brush head?
- Handling: How well do the brushes reach difficult areas of the mouth? How loud are they?
Very good
The test winner is the «X Ultra S» from Oclean. It scored very good or good in all categories and received a Swiss school grade of 5.6, closely followed by the electric toothbrush from Waterpik (grade 5.5). It also receives the overall rating «Very good», although it performs below average in terms of battery performance, as Kassensturz writes. You can brush your teeth 27 times on one battery charge with the Waterpik brush.
Good
Half and therefore the majority of the brushes tested received a «Good» with scores between 5.4 and 4.9. You won't find the «purchase tip» from K-Tipp - the model from Dentamed - here, but you will find the «Wave ABS» from Laifen.
Colleague Stefanie has also tested a Laifen brush and is very enthusiastic:
Finally, two brushes each from Oral-B and Trisa have also been found to be good.
Sufficient
The «Sonicare 5300» from Philips narrowly misses out on the «Good» rating. However, with a score of 4.7, it is just a tenth short. If only the bristles were a little rounder (score 4).
Inadequate
Philips proves that it can be even worse: The «Sonicare 9000 Diamond Clean» - the most expensive in the test at a price of almost 150 francs - receives a 2.5 for bristle rounding, the worst score ever. Even the good to very good performance of the battery, handling and robustness are of no use: «Unsatisfactory».
The «Eco Vibe 3» from Happy Brush also fails (grade 3.6). It failed the drop test. According to Kassensturz, it showed a crack in the housing after just four falls.
Colleague Martin is highly satisfied with this very brush. He didn't drop it several times on purpose either, as he revealed to me.
Last but not least, another model from Oral-B receives the overall rating «Unsatisfactory». The decisive factor for this brush is the poor battery. It had to be recharged after just nine brushing sessions during the test, as K-Tipp writes.
Saviour for Philips
My wife and I switched to electric toothbrushes about five years ago. We use the test loser from Philips on a daily basis. We've never had any problems, either with our gums or anything else, and wouldn't want to be without it. This does not mean that I doubt the test results from K-Tipp and Kassensturz, I am just giving a personal impression.
Manual or electric: How do you brush your teeth? Tell the Community and me in the comments.
Header image: Patrick Vogt
I'm a full-blooded dad and husband, part-time nerd and chicken farmer, cat tamer and animal lover. I would like to know everything and yet I know nothing. I know even less, but I learn something new every day. What I am good at is dealing with words, spoken and written. And I get to prove that here.
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