Waterpik Complete Care 5.0 Review

Cleaning

This model fell towards the lower end of the pack in terms of cleaning performance, but still delivered what we would consider an above-average, or slightly above-average, performance.

Comfort

The handle of this model is predominantly matte, with a glossy front. The brush felt good to hold in the hand, a nice, comfortable, balanced toothbrush.

The Waterpik was also a favorite due to the feel of the brush when in use, once again tying for the top score. The brush head comes standard with extra soft bristles, oscillating at 31,000 movements per minute. This model does not have a soft or gentle mode for those with sensitive gums, but it does have a massage mode that appears to be less aggressive than the standard cleaning mode.

For noise, this brush proved a bit of a conundrum. It measured in at one of the loudest when it came to the sound meter, at 71 dBa. This measurement was taken about 2" away from the mouth. However, this was ranked as one of the quietest by our testers when actually in use. This means that it may bother the people you cohabitate with, but not you at all. This could be due to the actual frequency and tone of the sound not being very intrusive to the human ear, or some different phenomena occurring due to bone conduction through the back teeth of the person using the toothbrush.

Ease of Use

Continuing the trend, this product once again fell in the middle of the pack during the evaluation of its ease of use, earning a slightly above-average score of 6 out of 10. This brush doesn't quite fall under the minimalistic design as the other toothbrushes, due to the integrated water flosser on the charging base. This obviously makes the base incredibly stable, given its size compared to other models.

The brush head on this model snap on and off quickly, with this model offering 3 different modes to choose from: clean, whiten and massage. The Waterpik also features the 2 minute timer with quad pacing to help with even brushing for the dentist recommended amount. One aspect of this brush that we were not the biggest fan of was the difficulty in cleaning it. We sprayed each toothbrush with a solution of toothpaste dissolved in water — endearingly dubbed “toothpaste gruel” by us — and then attempted to clean it off. We found that this model of brush had lots of gaps and crevices that proved difficult to clean.

Battery Life

The toothbrush lasted for 100 minutes of continuous use before the battery was completely depleted. It also features a low battery indicator to notify you when it is time to charge.

Value

The Waterpik Complete Care 5.0 is one of the most expensive toothbrushes that we reviewed. Nevertheless, this model can be a great value due to the integrated water flosser, if you are a person who regularly uses, or is looking to start using, one of these devices.

Conclusion

The main reason to purchase this brush is its standout feature: an integrated water flosser. Period. This brush scored essentially in the middle of the pack of our electric toothbrush review in all metrics, and there were better-performing toothbrushes in every rating metric, especially when considering the price. However, none of the other models offer such a compact, integrated system with the flosser included, which sets this one apart and provides solid motivation to purchase it for the group of consumers who place a high value on water flossing.