With so many different Philips Sonicare electric toothbrushes available it can be overwhelming when buying a new electric toothbrush. This guide is designed to provide you with with an general overview of all the Sonicare models. This guide does not go into great detail on each model but just gives you a quick overview to guide your research.

Common Philips Sonicare features

First lets go over some of the common features found on many of the Sonicare electric toothbrushes.

Smartimer – Also known a KidTimer, this is a simple two-minute timer to help enforce brushing discipline.

Quadpacer – This breaks the two minute brushing time into 4 equal segments. Split your brushing area into four quadrants, start brushing in one and move on to the next when the Quadpacer signals you.

EasyStart – This feature can be activated to slowly increase the power over several brushing sessions. This allows you to get used to a new electric toothbrush when making the switch from a manual toothbrush.

This is the barebones entry model. A decades old design that is still going strong, but has a few issues. Some immediately noticeable drawbacks are its big, heavy body (older style NiMH battery) and loud when operating. It also has a limited selection of replacement brush heads, only standard or compact. These brush heads are also older the e-series, only screwing on instead of snapping like newer models. There is also evidence these older e-series brush heads don’t clean as well as the newer technology.

The main advantage of the Sonicare Essence models are how cheap they are – great as your first electric toothbrush for those that aren’t sure. Even this older style brush comes with the standard Sonicare EasyStart and Smartimer. While you can still find the regular model (Philips Sonicare Essence HX5611) for under $25, we suggest you spend just a little more on one of the newer Essence+ models (Philips Sonicare Essence+ HX3211) to get access to the full line of newer click-on style replacement brush heads.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare Essence or Philips Sonicare Essence+ on Amazon.

Phillips offers an really great electric toothbrush for children called the Sonicare For Kids. These brushes for children are really great as they are fully fledged modern electric toothbrushes at a low price (think less than $50.) Lots of thought was put into how to gear the electric toothbrush for children, coming with several interchangeable stickers to decorate the body and an interactive app that can connect via bluetooth to get children excited for brushing and track their progress. It also comes with it’s own KidTimer to help ensure a full two minute brushing time.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare For Kids on Amazon.

Philips Sonicare 2 Series electric toothbrush is the next step up from the Sonicare Essence line. A durable unit designed specially to remove the plaque buildup on your teeth. With an overall aesthetic similar to the Sonicare Essence line, the main difference being the smaller body which is easier to hold. Compatible with the full range of standard snap-on Sonicare replacement brush heads gives to lots of options to customize your brush to your needs. This model also has the Sonicare standard features of EasyStart, Smartimer and QuadPacer.

Despite still being slightly too large, a little loud, and powered by an older NiMH battery, the Sonicare 2 Series is a good and low cost entry level model of electric toothbrush. This is also the best entry level model if for families as everyone can easily swap out the clip-on brush heads.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare 2 Series on Amazon.

Philips Sonicare 3 Series electric toothbrush is a very similar brush to Philips Sonicare 2 Series. The main difference is it contains a better Lithium-ion battery that increases operating time to “up to” three weeks. The standard brushing mode can also be adjusted with three levels of intensity (high, medium and low) and supports the full line of clip-on Sonicare replacement brush heads. It has the QuadPacer and Smartimer features, but not the EasyStart mode. I assume the low power mode is meant to replace EasyStart. This model also comes with a hard plastic travel case which is a nice bonus.

This model’s’ drawbacks are the same as the Sonicare 2 Series, a little too bulky and a little too loud. Still a fully competent electric toothbrush but the price point might be a little high at around $80.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare 3 Series on Amazon.

The Philips Sonicare HealthyWhite+ marks the first big jump in power and technology in the Sonicare line. Sitting at a step above the Sonicare 3 Series this is the first dip into the higher end Sonicare electric toothbrushes. Still standard are Sonicare’s EasyStart, QuadPacer and Smartimer features, an operating time to “up to” three weeks with the Lithium-ion battery, and compatible with the full line of Sonicare replacement brush heads. But new in this model is the extra White brushing mode along side the standard Clean mode, each with three levels of power. The HealthyWhite+ also has the updated design and refinement reflected in the newer models.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare HealthyWhite+ on Amazon.

This is where the models start to get a little muddy. To be honest there isn’t much that sets the Sonicare FlexCare+ apart from the other models. Very similar to the Sonicare HealthyWhite+, although the Sonicare FlexCare+ removes the three power settings in exchange for more brushing modes. In addition to the standard Clean mode they have added a Gum Care, Refresh, Sensitive, and Massage modes. Combined with the number of interchangeable replacement brush heads available it gives you a lot of options, though the lack of power settings really holds it back. The only other thing of note is the FlexCare+ is one of the few models with the ability to deactivate the QuadPacer.

Find more about the Sonicare FlexCare+ on Amazon.

This is the next big step up in the Sonicare electric toothbrush line, containing the most bells and whistles of any model so far. The Sonicare FlexCare Platinum Connected only comes with three brushing modes – Clean, Deep Clean and White – it also comes with three intensity settings – low, medium and high. It also includes the standard Smartimer mode and the old QuadPacer mode is upgraded to the new BrushPacer mode. This is also the only “adult” Sonicare electric toothbrush that connects to the Sonicare smartphone app. The charging stand also comes with an attached UV brush head sanitizer to clean your brush heads and a detachable charging cord to use when traveling.

This model contains additional sensors in the brush that communicates with the phone app. the data it collects can signal you when too much pressure is detected while brushing. It can also keep track to notify you notifies you when your current brush head should be replaced.

Find more about the Sonicare FlexCare Platinum Connected on Amazon.

The most expensive of all the Sonicare electric toothbrushes, the Sonicare DiamondClean is quite a toothbrush. It contains five different brushing modes – Clean, Deep Clean, Gum Care, Sensitive, and White as well as the standard Smartimer and QuadPacer features. It also comes with three charging options – the really cool wireless charging stand, a glass charger, and a USB travel charger case – and is available in several different colours.

The Sonicare DiamondClean also comes with several different brush heads out of the box allowing you to experiment with what works best for you. While it doesn’t connect to Sonicare smartphone app, it is jammed full of all the other high end features. While not reccomended as a starter brush, an advanced user would be more than happy with the Sonicare DiamondClean.

Find more about the Philips Sonicare DiamondClean on Amazon