Ninja vs Vitamix--comparison?

[TwoBees]

The Ninja system is significantly less expensive than the vitamix. How do they compare? I'm looking at the Ninja $100 professional blender.

[AnnieW625]

No idea, but I felt the $170 Complete Ninja Kitchen at Target the other day and the base felt really cheap, the Vitamix is solid. IMHO I don't need everything the complete Ninja kitchen will do and in general I'd rather pay more for one quality product with settings I know I will use vs. paying less for more and then having more stuff I general. I don't own either system though so I am probably not the best person to answer your question.

[JBaxter]

I have the $99 ninja from Costco. Its all I need. I'm not going to make my own wheat flour or rice flour. I make smoothies and it blends the frozen stuff I use just fine. I make frozen cocktails in the summer and it works for that. I just can see spending another $250 just so I dont "see" berry or spinach particles in my smoothie. I've never made cream soup and don't care for it. I guess if I was going on a liquid diet it may be worth it for me. I'm happy with my ninja.

[MSWR0319]

DH got the Ninja for Christmas. I'm not sure which one, since MIL bought it, but it seems very solid to me. DH loves it and uses it mostly to make smoothies with frozen fruit and fresh veggies. He has made Pineapple sorbet in it though which was pretty thick. I'm very impressed with it and he loves it. I don't think we'd even consider spending the extra for a Vitamix. I just made a pretty creamy potato soup last night, I should have tried it in the Ninja.

[bostonsmama]

We like our Ninja Complete Kitchen System (although not the one w/ the individual cup). My friend bought one around the same time and told me she thought the tall pitcher was WAY more effective than the short one. I though that was weird b/c the reviews on amazon said the smaller pitcher worked best when 2/3 full or better. I was using the smaller pitcher with good to great results, but I found the best results with the taller pitcher. Friend thinks it's the extra 2 blades...and it works well with only 16-24oz in it, far from 2/3 full (since I usually just make smoothies for DD & I).

I find the base of my unit to be extremely solid. I couldn't justify (in my budget) the Vitamix, but I would love one. It does seem to make things smoother (from demos I've tasted at Costco when I go w/ family), but my DD doesn't mind, and I'm glad that she doesn't have texture aversions.

[daniele_ut]

I have the Ninja Mega Kitchen System and feel no need to spend more on a Vitamix. I got mine at Kohls because we needed it the same day and it was $160 plus tax after the 30% off. If you buy it direct from Ninja online the price is the same, younpay shipping,but you get a 5 year warranty instead of 1 year. Dh is a music teacher and I am a SAHM right now so there wasn't any room in the budget for a blender that cost twice as much or more. The Ninja does everything we need it to do.

The Single serve cups make smoothies a little smoother than the 72 oz jar but both work very well. We also use the big jar to make ice into snow for snow cones. I make smoothies with ice, frozen fruit, etc all the time and the single serve cups blend things smoothly in about 30 seconds. The big jar sometimes needs more time.

This blog has some great reviews of the different models and she also did a side by side video with the Vitamix. She said after doing the comparison that the Ninja could have gotten her smoothie smoother but it needed more time and she was trying to do an exact side by side. So, the Vitamix works a little faster.

http://testkitchentuesday.com/

ETA here is the post with the comparison: http://testkitchentuesday.com/2013/02/18/ninja-vs-vitamix-green-drink-showdown/

[lhafer]

I've had the Ninja Kitchen system in the past, and found it was sufficient enough for my needs. THen I made a smoothie one day, and apparently didn't put the lid on properly, and the spin shaft (that the lid sits on) literally ate a hole through the lid.

I took it back and got a Vitamix. I happen to LOVE my vitamix. I prefer my smoothies extremely smooth, so I am particular about that. The ninja did a good job of making smooth smoothies...but not compared to the Vitamix.

For the majority of people, I would assume the Ninja would be just fine. I am particular about my smoothies. I can even tell a difference between smoothies I get at the gym where they use a Blendtec. I prefer my vitamix.

My husband, who pretty much died when he saw how much the Vitamix was LOVES it. It even is willing to take it on trips with us to use in leu of other blenders. And all we do is make smoothies with it - I haven't tried ice cream or soup or dips.

So it was worth it to us. But if the Ninja hadn't broken like it did, I would probably still be using it. Since I had been thinking about the Vitamix for a long time anyway, and decided to try the NInja first - I just took it as a sign I was supposed to get the Vitamix from the beginning! ;)

[wellyes]

My $100 blender was good enough for smoothies for me. But the Vitamix makes ones my kids will drink, even sneaking in greens and seeds.

I believe Costco sells both, so, you could even buy them both and do a side by side test. Return the loser.