Magic Bullet Blender Review 2024 – Compact But Effective

Around about the time I hit 40 it became clear that I was going to have to do something to up my intake of fruit and vegetables. I was really starting to feel the slowdown, and couldn’t carry on pretending I was still in my 20s.

One of the easiest ways to hit this goal is to throw a lot of the good stuff into a blender and then glug it down – even if you have to do so with a grimace!

There’s one kitchen appliance that’s proved astonishingly popular in recent years and you’ve likely heard of.

In this review I’m going to take an in-depth look at the classic Magic Bullet – as well as some alternatives you might like to consider instead.

(Want to learn more about juicing and blending? Take a look through my collection of guides and reviews.)

Before You Buy A Blender

Before shopping around for bullet blenders it’s worth keeping the following things in mind:

Motor Power – The more powerful the motor is, the better job it will do of blitzing tougher ingredients like frozen fruit, nuts and ice. A more powerful motor will make more noise, however. If you’re only using soft fruits like strawberries, bananas and so on, you don’t need a lot of power under the hood!

Cup Capacity – How big a serving do you typically like to make? Small blenders use the cup itself as the blending jar, and so you’ll want at least a couple of cups with suitable lids. Check how many pieces you get in each set.

Ease of Use – Most small blenders have a pulse setting. As long as you press the cup down, the blender does its thing. Others allow you to push the mug down and then lock it in blending mode.

Recipes – Many blenders come with a recipe guide, but some are certainly better than others. If you’re just getting started with this side of kitchen life, look for one that comes with a hefty starter guide.

About The Magic Bullet Blender

You’ve watched the infomercial, you’ve seen every influencer under the sun sing its praises, and so you’ve surely heard of the Magic Bullet by now.

It’s not all marketing bluster though. The bottom line is that this micro blender really does deliver as an easy to use, zero fuss appliance for preparing smoothies in your home kitchen.

The Magic Bullet has become one of the most popular personal blenders on the market for a reason, and it’s inspired an entire industry of similar devices.

It’s not the perfect solution for everyone though. In this review I’ll be putting this blender through its paces to see where it shines – and where it falls a little flat.

(This article includes affiliate links. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.)

Who Is The Magic Bullet For?

If you’re looking for a small micro blender that won’t break the bank, then I think there’s a lot you’re going to like about the Magic Bullet.

If you plan to make one or two simple smoothies or shakes each day, the Magic Bullet gets the job done very quickly and with very little fuss. It’s a super-simple personal blender, but that’s part of the pitch!

Handily, it also comes with its own recipe book, which will give you plenty of inspiration for discovering your new favorite smoothies.

It’s very easy to clean too, as most elements are dishwasher safe. This personal blender is all about convenience.

Who’s The Magic Bullet NOT For?

Power drinkers who need more flexibility and power when they make their smoothies will find the Magic Bullet a little wanting.

If you like to use tougher ingredients – such as frozen fruits – the Magic Bullet frankly struggles to blitz these down to a really even texture.

As this is a low-cost blender, you also shouldn’t expect it to give you many years of good service.

The Magic Bullet comes with a standard single year warranty, and I reckon you’ll get a maximum of two years use from it.

Pros

• The Magic Bullet is a very compact personal blender. It easy to take on the go, or you can stash it away in even the smallest kitchen cupboard.
• An affordable appliance that represents good value for money all-round.
• Extremely easy to use, even if you have very little experience of preparing smoothies.
• Many of the elements are dishwasher safe, which makes maintenance of this blender simple.
• The Magic Bullet comes with two standard cups out of the box, along with a third cup with a handle.
• Although all blenders make a little bit of noise, I think the Bullet is one of the quieter machines of its kind.

Cons

• You won’t be able to make massive smoothies with this thing. By design the serving sizes are quite small.
• From the cups to the power base, the Magic Bullet is largely made of plastic. It feels quite durable, but you shouldn’t expect it to last forever.
• The Magic Bullet really struggles with large chunks of ice, tough ingredients, and frozen fruit in particular. You’ll still find plenty of seeds in your fruit smoothies.
• Has a relatively weak motor compared to something like the Nutri Ninja. It can take a little longer to really pulverize your smoothies.
• It’s not great for blending hot foods. With that said the cups are microwave safe, so this is quite a clever way of preparing a quick soup for lunch!

About The Design

The Magic Bullet’s small enough to be used as either a countertop blender that you leave out all the time, or one that you tuck away in a cabinet.

Cross Blade & Flat Blade

There are two different blade attachments for the Magic Bullet blender.

The first is what’s known as a flat blade. This is ideal for items like coffee beans and spices.

The second is called a cross blade. Use this four-pronged attachment when you want to blitz down things like fruit and veggies.

Just make sure you buy the 15 piece set if you want to make use of that flat blade attachment. It’s not available in the smaller 11 piece set, and I don’t believe you can purchase accessories separately.

Motor Power

The Magic Bullet operates using a 250 Watt motor which makes it one of the weaker devices on the market.

It also does much to explain why the Bullet struggles so much with frozen or hardened ingredients. It’s part and parcel of trading power potential for size unfortunately.

It will tackle these rougher ingredients if you insist, but the motor can overheat if you’re not careful.

If there’s one benefit of this weak motor though it’s the reduced operating noise. All blenders make at least a little bit of a racket, but the Bullet is quieter than many of its competitors.

It’s also worth stressing here that the power base is the one part of the Magic Bullet blender that can’t be put in the dishwasher!

Cups & Go Lid Accessories

Three different cups are included in the box along with the blender itself.

The first short cup has a capacity of 12 oz, while the other two max out at 18 oz. One such tall cup has a handle as well, which you might find more comfortable.

These are quite small serving sizes, but not unusually so given that this is designed to be a compact blender. It does mean you won’t be able to pack a huge selection of ingredients into your smoothie though.

One tip to keep in mind here is that you can always prepare three smoothies one after another, and then just store them in the refrigerator to drink later.

The full piece set includes two regular lids to aid with preparation and storage, as well as one flip top lid. This makes it easy to sip your way through your smoothie.

The Magic Bullet also comes with two different “shaker” lids. The first of these has smaller holes which work best if you’ve been blitzing dry ingredients like herbs. The latter has larger holes for appropriate ingredients.

Specifications Of The Magic Bullet

Here’s a handy breakdown of the full design specifications for the Magic Bullet blender:

• Size: 4.01 x 4.48 x 11.61 inches
• Weight: 4.7 lb
• Motor: 250 Watt
• Capacity: 12-18 oz
• Color: Silver
• Material: Plastic
• Warranty: 1 Year

Durability

Although the Magic Bullet blender is sturdy enough, it does feel a little cheap. That, of course, is reflected in the price tag so it’s hard to complain too much.

The machine comes with a standard 1 year warranty. If you really look after it, and don’t punish it too hard with tough ingredients, I think you can expect to get around two years of usage from the Bullet.

Ease of Use

The Magic Bullet is extremely easy to use, and the recipe guide included with the machine is a great source of inspiration too.

• Add the ingredients to your preferred cup.
• Screw the appropriate blade onto the top of the cup.
• Fix the cup to the blender base.
• Push down on the cup to pulse blend, or push and twist to lock it into hands-free blending.

Once you’ve achieved the consistency you want, you remove the cup from the base and unscrew the blade “lid”.

Just be aware that the Magic Bullet blender has no speed settings at all. You either pulse the ingredients manually, or set it to blitz.

Performance

How does the Magic Bullet blender stack up when it comes to tackling individual tasks though?

Smoothies

If you like smoothies and plan to use the Magic Bullet exclusively for this purpose, you’re in luck.

The Bullet performs really well if you’re working with lots of softer ingredients and leafy greens. It’s quick, efficient, and even the rather weak 250 Watt motor does a good enough job of blitzing everything down.

The bottom line is that simple smoothies using soft ingredients are fine. The Magic Bullet really can’t handle heavy lifting though. If that sounds like it could be a problem for you, take a look at my alternative recommendations towards the bottom of this review.

Frozen Drinks

As you’ve probably guessed by now, the Magic Bullet blender is not a great option for making frozen drinks.

If you try to do this, you’ll find you have to add an awful lot of water just to keep the ingredients circulating around the blade.

Ice & Frozen Fruits

Once again, the Magic Bullet blender doesn’t do a great job of prepping this sort of ingredient.

You’ll probably get away with blending small quantities of ice on an occasional basis, but know that you’re working that motor overtime.

That will inevitably reduce the lifespan of the Bullet, and you’re probably better off investing in one of the alternatives.

Coffee

I’d typically recommend buying a separate dedicated grinder for your coffee beans, but the Magic Bullet does a pretty impressive job of grinding them down to a usable size.

You just add your beans to the blender, screw on the flat blade attachment and run it for around thirty seconds.

You won’t be able to achieve the kind of specific coarseness you need for different coffee brewing methods, but it will do in a pinch.

Herbs

This is the kind of ingredient the Magic Bullet absolutely loves to chew through. Once added to the blender you should pulse grind it very gently, and keep checking the consistency as you go.

Cleaning & Maintenance

The Magic Bullet is as easy to clean as it is to use in my opinion.

With the exception of the power base, all of the components are dishwasher safe.

I will lend a word of caution here, however.

Although the low cost is one of the biggest selling points of the Bullet, the plastic build means it is a little prone to cracking.

It doesn’t take too much effort to clean the cups out using warm water and plain dish soap. That’s a gentler way of looking after them, and if you’re really feeling lazy you can just soak them for a little while.

I think the blades also benefit from – careful – washing by hand too. Just make sure to dry them off thoroughly once you’re done.

This extra care and attention will do a good job of extending the Bullet’s life beyond the rather limited 1 year warranty.

Alternatives

There are some excellent alternatives to the basic Magic Bullet. You don’t have to stretch the budget much further to get a much more powerful motor either.

NutriBullet NB9-1301S Pro 13 900W

The classic, original NutriBullet is perhaps the most direct competitor to the Magic Bullet.

The standout comparison feature is a significantly more powerful motor at 900 Watts. That gives it much more oomph when it comes to tackling tougher whole foods. I think it does a better job of making purees and butters as well.

The blender cup is significantly larger as well, with a maximum 32 oz capacity. You do only get the one cup with this machine though.

It’s as easy to use as the Magic Bullet. Just add the ingredients, twist the lid on and blend. Cleaning’s similarly simple too, as all the parts – minus the base – can be added to the top rack of your dishwasher.

Pros

• 900 Watt base packs an impressive punch for a blender of this size.
• Rapid blending. Even the roughest ingredients get demolished in a minute or less.
• Quieter than many other blenders.

Cons

• Recipe book isn’t as good as the one that comes with the Magic Bullet blender.
• Lid needs to be secured tightly to prevent leaking, which makes it tougher to remove afterwards.
• Just the one – large – blender cup is included with the machine.

Ninja Nutri Pro Compact Personal Blender

Ninja’s made a big impact on juicing and blending in recent years, and the Nutri Ninja Pro blender is another appliance with a 900 Watt power rating.

Like the NutriBullet, it absolutely annihilates pretty much anything you can throw at it and handles ice particularly well. That’s handy if you want to use the blender for frozen drinks (cocktails anyone?)

You get two blender cups with this unit as well. The first holds 18 oz, while the second tall cup holds 24 oz. I think that’s quite a nice balance between the other machines I’ve reviewed so far.

Again, all the parts except the base can be run through the dishwasher.

Pros

• Another very powerful 900 Watt motor which really delivers.
• A great option if you use protein powders.
• Many owners report having years of good service from this blender.

Cons

• Silicon seal requires careful cleaning as it can get moldy over time.
• One of the noisier blenders I’ve reviewed at this end of the market.
• Disassembly for cleaning is a little harder than with the Magic Bullet.

Ninja Personal Blender 700 Watt

The second Ninja blender I’ve reviewed for this article features a slightly less powerful 700 Watt motor. That does reduce the cost of the appliance somewhat though, without sacrificing too much strength.

With this model you get two 16 oz cups out of the box. That’s one less than you’ll get with the Bullet, but they are at least a little larger.

It’s dishwasher safe, and you also get a 30 recipe guide book to help you get started.

Pros

• Adjustable blending speed.
• 36 inch power cord makes it easy to situation this appliance anywhere in the kitchen.
• “Sip & Seal” lids are really well designed for comfortable drinking.

Cons

• Cups are surprisingly tricky to clean, with lots of hiding spots for pulp.
• Sealing ring requires regular, manual cleaning.
• Blender requires continues pressure. You can’t lock it in.

Verdict

The Bullet definitely has its limitations, particularly when it comers to blending ice, hard ingredients and frozen produce.

If you’re going to mainly make smoothies using fresh ingredients though, I think this blender is an excellent option for every day use.

It’s fast, it’s very convenient, and you can take it anywhere. It does what it does very well, and at a price point that’s accessible to everyone.

Just make sure it can handle what you plan to throw at it first, and consider one of the alternatives I’ve recommended if you need something with more motor power. You might find the basic NutriBullet more useful in that case.

Click here to learn more about the Bullet blender, and find out how its many owners have been getting on.

Frequently Asked Questions

Finally, here are the answers to some of the most common questions people have about the Bullet:

Is the Magic Bullet Blender any good?

It has its limitations, but as an entry level blender it represents very good value for money. You’ll struggle to smoothly blend tough ingredients, but for juicing and blending soft fruits and vegetables it’s very capable.

Which Is Better, NutriBullet or Magic Bullet?

It’s a balancing act.

If you need a more powerful motor, the NutriBullet is better. You do get a larger mug as well, but you only get one of them out of the box. I don’t think the recipe book is as useful either.

You’ll need to weigh up which aspect of each machine is more suitable for your own circumstances. They both have their pluses and minuses!

Is a Magic Bullet better than a blender?

That depends very much on your own situation.

If you only drink the occasional smoothie, the Bullet takes up much less space in the kitchen and gets the job done capably enough.

If you’re passionate about making everything from home made baby food to salsa, sauces, desserts and more, you’ll want a dedicated blending set. These will give you all the blades, attachments and containers you could possibly need.