Choosing the best juicer overall for your needs can be a bit overwhelming. There are so many different options on the market, and if you have never used a juicer before, it can be very difficult to determine which type you are going to prefer. Some people are focused on efficiency and automation, while others are more concerned about the type of juice. Although there are many models available from a wide range of brands, most of them fit into one of a few broad categories. In this article, we’ll talk about the different types of juicers and their pros and cons to help you determine which is best for your needs.

Centrifugal Juicer

A centrifugal juicer uses two steps to turn produce into juice. It starts by shredding the fruit or vegetable into a pulp. It then spins very quickly, using centrifugal force to pull the juice out of the pulp. Most centrifugal juicers have a tube at the top where you will insert the item you’d like to juice. It goes through metal teeth and ends up in a mesh chamber made of a very strong material, like steel, so the juice can get out while the pulp stays in the chamber. The entire bottom section of the juicer spins, and then the juice comes out of a spout on the side.

Pros

There are many benefits to using a centrifugal juicer. They work very quickly and don’t require much prep time before you make a juice, so they are excellent for those who enjoy juice occasionally and don’t want the hassle of intensive prep. They are also very easy to put together and take apart, so you can start using them almost right out of the box. This also makes them much easier to clean.

Centrifugal juicers are also much smaller than other types of juicers and won’t take up much space in a small kitchen. Additionally, they are the most affordable type of juicer. This makes them the best option for those who are just starting out with juicing.

Cons

The biggest downside to centrifugal juicers is that they can be very loud. If you live with people who would be bothered by the noise or if you have thin walls, this could be a very frustrating problem. Centrifugal juicers also create heat naturally as they process the juice. This can result in a loss of nutritional quality in the juice. It can also make the juice more bubbly. If you are looking for a crisp, nutrient-dense juice that’s similar to a cold press, a centrifugal juicer isn’t going to be the best option.

Best for…

Centrifugal juicers are excellent for juicing larger items or very hard items, like apples or vegetables like carrots and cellery. They are very powerful, and the juicers are large enough that you don’t need to pre-cut the items. However, they also work for smaller, softer items.

Masticating Juicer

Masticating juicers are also called slow juicers, and although they aren’t as efficient as centrifugal juicers, they produce very high volumes of quality juice. They have a short chute from which the produce lands on a screen. An auger then presses down on the fruit or vegetable slowly but powerfully, extracting every last drop from the produce. The excess pulp comes out a dispenser on the side, while the juice comes out through a tube directly beneath the auger. These models make cold pressed juices and can also function as food processors in many cases and many commercial juicers are powerful cold press juicers or masticating juicers, such as the Nutrifaster N450 juicer.

Pros

The biggest benefit of a masticating juicer is that it creates high quality, cold pressed juice. No heat is used during the juicing process, which means the juice retains all its nutrients and tastes very fresh. It also squeezes every last drop out of the juice, so you get a very high juice yield and minimal waste.

Masticating juicers are also much quieter than centrifugal juicers, and they work very well with a variety of different fruits and vegetables. Their multipurpose nature also makes them very useful in the kitchen, since you can use one device for a wide range of tasks. The Omega J8006 Nutrition Center is one such juicer that is highly recommended.

Cons

If you want juice made fast, a masticating juicer isn’t going to be a good choice for you. These types of juicers can take quite a while just to process one item, because they are designed to ensure quality. They also may require more prep time, because they’ll work most efficiently with softer, smaller items. Because they produce such high quality juice, they are also typically more expensive than other types of juicers.

Best for…

Masticating juicers are best for making cold pressed juice. If your main goal with juicing is to make nutritionally dense drinks with a crisp finish, these juicers are ideal.

Triturating Juicer

A triturating juicer is also sometimes referred to as a twin-gear juicer. These juicers use a more complex system than a centrifugal or a masticating juicer to produce very finely processed product. The produce is fed into a chute, where it then is crushed between two gears. The juice is extracted as the produce goes through the gears. This essentially removes prep time completely while producing high quality juice. The juice comes out of one spout while excess pulp comes out from another.

Pros

A triturating juicer has a very high juice yield, so you’ll get the most out of each piece of produce you put in. You’ll see that the remaining pulp comes out very dry, because the machine really squeezes out every last drop. The juice is also very good quality, because the items are ground so finely and there is no heat added to the juice during the process.

Additionally, the twin gear technology is very powerful, so it works well on any type of fruit or vegetable regardless of size or texture. There’s very minimal prep involved, and it works faster than a masticating juicer. Many twin-gear juicers also have food processing functions as well.

Cons

Because triturating juicers grind the produce down so finely, they can be much more difficult to clean than other types of juicers. This can be very frustrating if you like to juice frequently, because you’ll need to spend a decent amount of time cleaning between each juicing session. They are also very large and not very portable, which means they aren’t ideal for people with small kitchens. Additionally, these juicers can be quite expensive because of the high-quality juice that they produce.

Best for…

Because they are so powerful, triturating juicers work well for creating almost any type of juice. They are ideal for people who are very committed to creating high quality juices.

Wheatgrass Juicer

These are juicers that are designed specifically to use with wheatgrass. They come in both electric and manual versions. The manual versions have a chute at the top and a handle on the side that you’ll rotate to squeeze the juice out of the wheatgrass. Electric versions typically work very similarly to masticating juicers. If you love juicing wheatgrass, however, there are actually many benefits to getting a manual one.

Pros

A manual wheatgrass juicers is small and portable, and very quiet. There’s no fussing with batteries or trying to find an outlet. They are very easy to clean and require minimal prep work. They also tend to be very durable, so they are a good investment for your kitchen if you like working with wheatgrass. They are easy to put together and very intuitive to use. They also tend to be much more affordable than any other type of electric juicer.

Cons

There are a few cons to using a manual wheatgrass juicer. The first is that it does require some effort on your part, which can be tedious. They also don’t have a very high yield, and you may find that you have to run the grass through the juicer a few times to get all the juice out. This can be frustrating if you are trying to make juice quickly.

Best for…

Wheatgrass juicers are really a specialty item, specifically made for wheatgrass. They don’t work very well for juicing other products. They are good for the juicing enthusiast who already has a large electric juicer and wants something specifically for their wheatgrass, which doesn’t always juice well in a centrifugal juicer.

Single Auger vs. Double Auger

There is a significant difference between a single auger and a double auger juicer. A single auger juicer has only one auger or gear and extracts juice with a grinding or chewing motion. This action does not break the cellular structure of the fruit or vegetable hence keeping the enzymes intact, thereby making the juice full of enzymes and nutrients. This kind of juice packs all the natural ingredients without disturbing them at all. Juicers with single augers are cheaper as compare to double or twin auger and does not require much effort at the time of feeding the fruits into the machine as it uses a ‘self fed’ system due to the presence of a single gear.

A double auger juicer is a high-end juicer and is comparatively costlier. It uses two gears, which are situated at a distant of less than 1 mm apart. It uses a crushing, rubbing, grinding and pounding motion to extract juice from the pulp. This action does break the cellular structure thereby releasing the deep-seated enzymes and nutrients. Thus, juice produced by a double auger is more nutritious than that of a single auger juicer. However, a double auger juicer requires patience as it takes a lot of time to feed the juicer at the time of juicing due to the minimal distance between the two augers.

Speed and Power of a Juice

i) Speed

As far as speed is concerned, a slow juicer is better than a fast juicer. A slow juicer practically chews the pulp to extract the juice and hence ensures maximum juice extraction from the pulp. Also slower juicers do not rotate at high speeds as compared to high speed juicers, which rotate at high speed producing a lot of heat; this heat destroys a lot of enzymes from the juice thus making it less nutritious.

ii) RPM

As far as RPM is considered, slow RPM is better than a high RPM. A juicer with high RPM rotates the pulp at a higher speed to extract juice; this rotation exposes the juice to air thereby oxidizing the juice. Oxidation of juice leads to a loss of nutrients and helpful enzymes. However, a juicer with low RPM does not rotate the pulp but they use a chewing motion to force out juice from the pulp thereby maintaining the nutrients and enzymes.

Maintenance Friendly

It is important to choose a maintenance friendly juicer as it is used every day. While selecting a juicer for yourself you should keep in mind the warranty period of the machine. The juicer should have a good warranty period so that if you encounter a problem, somebody from the company reaches out to help you.

It must also be kept in mind that the service centre is nearby so that you can take your machine to the service centre easily should you face an issue. A juicer should also be easy to clean. Most of the juicers come with parts that can be detached and cleaned separately, buying such a juicer will be more convenient than buying one, which is tedious and requires a lot of effort to clean.

Form, Size and Looks

A juicer is an appliance that you use every day, therefore it is necessary that the machine looks attractive and stylish. However, one should not compromise with the features of the machine just for the sake of looks. Nevertheless, there are a lot of machines available in the market which look stylish and are loaded with features.

Size is also an important factor while choosing a juicer, you should go for a juicer that is lightweight and is not bulky. Often we need to carry the juicer from one place to another thus; it becomes feasible to choose a lightweight juicer.

Price

It is a common misconception that a costly juicer is better than a cheaper juicer. It is believed that higher price means higher quality and higher performance; however, this is not entirely true. While buying a juicer one must keep in mind their needs and preferences and not the price. If a person needs to extract juice faster he must choose a single auger juicer as it yields juice faster, but a single auger juicer is quiet cheap. This proves that the price of the juicer is not relevant; it is the function and the features that matter.

Juicers are user-friendly machines and help the user in many ways. Utmost care should be taken while choosing a juicer. A juicer should yield large quantities of juice, should work quickly, should be easy to clean and should retain the enzymes in the juice. Therefore, the next time you buy a juicer, keep the above points in your mind and buy the best juicer for yourself without much hassle.

Parting Words

Each of these types of juicers has their benefits and their downsides, so the one you ultimately purchase will depend on your needs and preferences when it comes to making juice. There are quality versions of all four of these types of juicers on the market, and it’s worth investing in a juicer that has been reviewed well and can promise good performance. If non of the above types interest you a simple manual juicer might be what you are looking for? or maybe a dedicated citrus or lemon juicer? Check out our specific guides to each type of juicer to learn more about the best options on the market and find a juicer that fits your specifications and your budget.