Best Electric Toothbrush for Kids: A Review Guide

I know many people who themselves use an electric toothbrush, but not their kids. There’s a common misconception that they’re not suitable for children. In fact, once your child is 3 years old, they absolutely can use an electric toothbrush. It can really help children get their teeth clean. So I’ve had a look at what’s available and have found the best electric toothbrush for kids. Take a look!

The Best 3 Electric Toothbrushes for Kids

Clean teeth all around with our top 3!

Why Buy an Electric Toothbrush for Your Kids? 

Electric toothbrushes for kids are more gentle than the adult version, but still only suitable once a child reaches 3 years of age. At this point, it’s up to you the parent, to choose between a regular manual toothbrush and an electric toothbrush for your kids. Personally, I’ve always gone for an electric toothbrush. You can get just as good a result with a manual brush but only if done correctly. And most kids don’t manage this do they? There’s definitely a tendency in my house to side sweep over the teeth with a manual brush! 

• Built-in timers to make sure your kids are brushing for long enough. And some of them reminds you when to change where you are brushing so your child isn’t just doing one part of their mouths! 
• The brush does the work for you.  I definitely think children find it easier to get the “electric brushing” technique right. They don’t need as much dexterity to make sure all of their teeth get a great clean, as the brush does a lot of the work for them.   
• Changing the head not the brush. This feature comes with the higher end brushes. And although they cost more in the first place, you can save money in the long term by not replacing the entire toothbrush when the head is worn out. 

Getting a great brush every time is possible without an electric toothbrush for sure. But equally, it’s easier with one. So if you’re considering investing in an electric toothbrush for your child or children, take a look at the options to think about below.

What to Look Out for When Buying an Electric Toothbrush for Kids

There are two things to decide upon first, and once you’ve considered this you’ll find it much easier to select the type of electric toothbrush you want. 

• Do you want an Electric Toothbrush with Replaceable Heads?  There are two types of brush on the market. Those that come with replacement heads (or for which you can purchase replaceable heads). And those that, once the head is worn out, so is the brush. You can usually replace the batteries with these brushes, but not the heads. As you’d expect, brushes with replaceable heads are more expensive. These are basically kid-specific electric toothbrushes that should last your child as long as your own electric toothbrush lasts you. It comes with rechargeable batteries and 
• Cleaning Technology. Whereas extras such as timers and brush speeds are useful. The most important difference between toothbrushes when it comes to cleaning is how the brush actually cleans teeth. On the market, there are two kinds. The Rotation Oscillation vs. the Sonic brushes. Rotation Oscillation uses a circular motion, rotating one way and then the other to clean teeth. Sonic uses ultra-sonic waves to move the bristles at an extremely high frequency. Which is better? There have been many studies, but no conclusive answer. Basically, they both use different methods to achieve the same results. Clean teeth. So it’s down to personal choice. 

Whichever you decide, remember buying an electric toothbrush doesn’t automatically mean your kids will have clean teeth. You still need to make sure they spend the same amount of time brushing their teeth every day. And there is a bit of a learning curve for children moving to an electric toothbrush. The different technique needs to be learned! And remember to change the head every 3-6 months, depending on how much pressure your child uses. The more pressure, the more frequently you need to change the brush head.

Detailed Reviews of the Best Electric Toothbrushes

There really wasn’t a lot to choose from between the top two. But for me, the Philips Sonicare edged it. Perhaps because I’m used to this type of brush as I’m a sonic girl rather than a rotation oscillation girl myself!

Philips Sonicare for Kids Connected Sonic Electric Toothbrush, HX6321/02

So this brush, as we talked about earlier, uses Sonic clean. But this isn’t what got it the vote. I agree with the many studies that have shown there’s very little to choose between the two technologies in terms of end result. It was the total package that secured this product the number one slot. It has a lot of features, but none of them are gimmicks!

Features

• Free interactive app that educated and gets kids excited about brushing.
• Fun rewards for successful brushing sessions.
• Keep track of brushing time even when you don’t use the app

• Patented Sonic technology with 500 brush strokes per second.
• KidTimer helps make sure that they manage the 2 minutes of recommended brushing time.
• 8 Fun interactive stickers for customization 

• Rechargeable.
• Replaceable heads. 
• 2 speeds for brushing. Loved this feature, especially for younger children as the faster speeds of electric toothbrushes can be a little too full on for little ones!

What’s Good About It?

This toothbrush is a simplified version of the Sonicare adult’s electric toothbrush. So 2 settings rather than 5 (that’s plenty for kids!) and 500 strokes per minute rather than 1000 (again, more than enough!) It’s a great toothbrush, a 2 minute timer with the full quadrant routine for an even brush. Used right, this brush will suit any child from 3 and up. A great product. 

On the other side of the coin, this product also features heavily on the interactive side to get your children involved in their brushing routine. It has Bluetooth (I know, a toothbrush!) which is designed to sync with its app that teaches children how to brush effectively and regularly. So this frees your time up, as you don’t have to constantly supervise each brushing session. Although I’d recommend you still do for younger children! The app is iOS and Android compatible and is really easy to use.  ?

What Could Be Improved?

I’m struggling here! I guess it just comes down to price. If you’re going to get this brush for your kids, you’re going to have to pay for it. And it isn’t cheap. But you do get a lot for your money and I would absolutely recommend it.

Oral-B Pro-Health For Me Rechargeable Power Toothbrush

A great electric toothbrush for Kids. As it’s Braun, it uses the Rotation Oscillation method of cleaning and does a great job. It really is a flexible choice. It has a waterproof handle with fun designs, is compatible with multiple toothbrush heads, and has a brushing timer.

Features

• Waterproof handle with fun designs – aimed at the tween market
• Brushing Timer of 2 minutes
• 2 Sensitive Clean refill toothbrush heads but compatible with a variety of Oral-B heads. 

• Rechargeable
• Brushing Timer of 2 minutes
• Sign up for replacement toothbrush heads and automatically receive the heads at the interval you select. Saving you time and you get free shipping! 

• Indicator bristles

What’s Good About It?

A great clean. I love the fact that you can choose appropriate heads for your child. Including options for kids with braces, which can make brushing teeth tricky. The indicator bristles are a fantastic feature, as is the timer and head subscription package. Saving money has to be a good thing, right? All around a great clean and brilliant brush. 

What Could Be Improved?

The only thing I’d like to see to improve this brush is a slower speed setting. The brush is designed for the tween market, hence the appropriate setting for this age child. However, if you want to buy one brush and multiple heads for your children to share the brush, this product may be less appropriate if you have younger children. If you don’t, then really there’s nothing not to like about this product. A great toothbrush!

Colgate Kids Battery Powered Toothbrush, Branch, Extra Soft

Firstly, this brush comes in a range of different character options. Sponge Bob, Transformers, Monster’s High, Minions, etc. The one you choose, will most likely not be your choice, but your child’s! So, these toothbrushes are a lot cheaper than the others in our top 3. This is because, they, unlike the other two, only last as long as a regular manual toothbrush. While the batteries can be changed, the heads can’t. So you want to be paying less for these! But you do still get a great clean. The oscillating head and extra soft bristles do make cleaning easier than with a manual brush. The batteries can be changed. But be warned, if the battery needs replacing, it’s likely that the head is worn out. This brush is a different proposition from the others in this category, but can still do a great job and make brushing fun for your kid!

Features

• Small oscillating head with extra soft bristles
• Easy on-off button
• Slim handle, so easy to hold for small hands

• The brush lays flat for easy toothpaste application
• Comes in a variety of colors and characters

What’s Good About It?

I think this is a great electric toothbrush perhaps as an introduction to electric toothbrushes in general. Kids can be fussy. Are you worried about buying a relatively expensive electric toothbrush for your kid, only for them to turn around and decide they “don’t like it”? If this sounds like your child, then a more temporary and cheaper option could be a less expensive way of seeing if your child will switch to electricity. I’ve also got friends whose parents have purchased these brushes to keep when the grandchildren come over. It will last a LONG time as is not used as frequently, and you’re assured of a better clean. They are fun, easy to use, and give a really great clean. 

What Could Be Improved?

For the money you’re spending, I think nothing could be improved. These brushes are great electric toothbrushes but are a different type of product to the replaceable head types. And for me, they aren’t supposed to compete. They give a brilliant clean at an affordable price point. And they’re fun too!

Final Verdict on Best Electric Toothbrush

This product review has no losers. Each of these top 3 is a great product, for different reasons. In the end, Philips Sonicare came out on top of the Oral-B Pro Health For Me, for two reasons. Firstly because of its two-speed setting. And if you are going to be buying a toothbrush for children aged 8 and up, this is less of a consideration as the Oral-B product’s speed is designed for this age range. I like to think about value for money, and with the multiple speed setting, I can see the Philips Sonicare being more flexible for families with multiple aged children sharing brushes with different heads.  And secondly, because of its quadrant timer. So your child is prompted to change between the four sections of their mouth. Whichever you go for, you’re guaranteed a great clean and all three have fun options to hopefully encourage your kids to get brushing the right way for life!