1Rank 01 of 8 · Best Electric Toothbrushes
Philips Philips Sonicare 5500
Stiftung Warentest's November 2025 winner at grade 1.7 with a cleaning sub-score of 1.3, now €74.99. Its genuine heads are the most expensive part — third-party heads cut the five-year cost by more than half.
8.8BPR score
- €75Price
- €265 with genuine heads / approx. €110 with third-party headsFive-year cost of ownership
- 1 of 8in Best Electric Toothbrushes
- 8.8BPR score 0–10
Review
What this product is
Written after the analysis, from the same sources the score is built on: the manufacturer's documentation, available studies and verified owner feedback.
The highest-scoring brush we could verify, at a quarter of the price of the flagship it beat.
Stiftung Warentest, published 18 November 2025: winner, grade 1.7 "gut", with a cleaning sub-score of 1.3, tested at €90 with 30 test subjects brushing with each model. The runner-up was Philips's own Sonicare 7100 at grade 1.8 and cleaning 1.4, tested at €140 — so the cheaper Philips beat the dearer one.
It is a sonic brush at 62,000 brush movements / 31,000 strokes per minute, with three modes (Clean, White, Gum Care), a two-minute timer with quadpacer, a magnetic charging stand, and roughly two weeks of battery from a non-removable lithium cell. The pressure sensor works by vibrating the handle rather than flashing a light — arguably more useful, since you feel it while brushing rather than having to look. There is no app, which on the evidence is not a loss.
The cost of ownership is where this needs attention. Genuine Sonicare heads run €9.50 to €12.00 each, so 20 heads over five years is €190 — 2.5 times the handle price, for a five-year total of about €265.
Rossmann's prokudent universal heads cost €2.65 and are explicitly listed as fitting DiamondClean, Series 3 and 5, FlexCare, ProtectiveClean, EasyClean and HealthyWhite. That drops the five-year total to roughly €110 — a €155 saving that dwarfs any difference between the handles on this page.
Note that the head interval itself is soft. A 172-participant study found extreme bristle wear produced a plaque index of 1.98 against 1.71 for unworn heads — about 13.6% worse, and below the American Dental Association's 15% threshold for claiming superiority. Scottish guidance says heads should be changed "when obvious signs of wear appear", and UK national guidance specifies no interval at all.
Technical data
Specification
Figures from the manufacturer's documentation, verified against available outside sources. Values we could not confirm are marked as declared.
- Technology
- Sonic / vibrating
- Movements
- 62 000 brush movements / 31 000 strokes per minute
- Modes
- 3 - Clean, White, Gum Care
- Pressure sensor
- Yes - alerts by vibrating the handle
- Timer
- 2-minute with quadpacer
- Battery
- Non-removable Li-ion, approx. 2 weeks
- App
- None
- Genuine head price
- EUR 9.50-12.00 each
- Third-party head price
- EUR 2.65 (prokudent universal)
- Five-year cost - genuine heads
- approx. EUR 265
- Five-year cost - third-party heads
- approx. EUR 110
- Stiftung Warentest 12/2025
- WINNER, grade 1.7 gut, cleaning 1.3, tested at EUR 90
- Price
- EUR 74.99
Component scores
Where the score
comes from.
Four components, equal weight, each on a 0–10 scale and each resting on a named source. The overall score is their mean — the full procedure is in the methodology.
What we liked
- Stiftung Warentest November 2025 winner, grade 1.7, cleaning sub-score 1.3
- Beat Philips's own €140 Sonicare 7100 (grade 1.8) at half the price
- Pressure sensor alerts by vibrating the handle — felt, not just seen
- 62 000 brush movements per minute, three modes, quadpacer timer
- Compatible third-party heads at €2.65 cut the five-year cost to about €110
- €74.99 against a €90 test price
Worth knowing
- Genuine heads at €9.50-12.00 make the five-year cost €265 — 2.5x the handle
- Non-removable battery
- No intensity settings within the modes
- Whether the pressure sensor also reduces motor power is unconfirmed
- The winning grade reaches us via a dental-trade article, not test.de directly
Comparison
How it compares
within the category
All values come from the same analysis and are comparable only within the category Best Electric Toothbrushes.
| Product | Score | Five-year cost of ownership | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Philips Sonicare 5500This product · top score | 8.8 | €265 with genuine heads / approx. €110 with third-party heads | €75 |
| Oral-B iO Series 3Runner-up | 8.6 | approx. €194 over five years | €69 |
| Category average8 products analysed | 7.8 | — | — |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Are third-party brush heads safe to use?
Rossmann's prokudent universal heads are a mainstream own-brand product from a major European drugstore chain, explicitly listed as compatible with the named Sonicare ranges. What you should judge them on is bristle quality and how they feel — ÖKO-TEST found seven of fifteen brushes in one round had under 70% acceptable bristle ends, so bristle finishing is a real variable. At €2.65 against €9.50 you can afford to try them and go back if you dislike them.
How often do I really need to change the head?
When the outer tufts splay beyond the base of the head, not on a calendar. A 172-participant study found extreme bristle wear gave a plaque index of 1.98 against 1.71 for unworn — about 13.6% worse, which sits below the American Dental Association's 15% threshold for a superiority claim. Scottish guidance says change when obvious wear appears; UK national guidance specifies no interval. Gentle brushers routinely get four to six months from a head, and that alone moves the five-year cost more than any purchase decision.
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The same protocol, the same key parameter, the same set of sources.
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