Reviews You Can Rely On

Nutri Ninja DUO Blender Review

This appliance is a solid choice for those who wish to make personal-sized blended drinks or shakes
gearlab tested logo
Nutri Ninja DUO Blender Review
Credit: Ninja
Price:  $180 List
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Manufacturer:   Ninja
By David Wise and Austin Palmer  ⋅  Jun 3, 2022
52
OVERALL
SCORE
  • Smoothies - 30% 4.4
  • Ice - 20% 8.1
  • Convenience - 20% 6.4
  • Pureeing - 15% 3.4
  • Grinding - 15% 3.2

Our Verdict

While the Nutri Ninja DUO didn't score particularly well against the rest of the models we reviewed, this product stood out for the handful of attachments that it comes with. It also did great at crushing ice with its triple-blade configuration, and even though this appliance did relatively poorly in our Smoothie metric when using the full-size pitcher, it did significantly better when we used the personal-sized cups. For those looking for the best way to take their smoothies or blended drinks on the go, the Ninja Blender DUO is a great choice.
REASONS TO BUY
Tons of accessories
Good at crushing ice
REASONS TO AVOID
Subpar at fruit smoothies
Struggled with pureeing
This blender has been discontinued as of 2022.

Our Analysis and Test Results

nutri ninja duo blender - the nutri ninja ninja blender duo with auto-iq.
The Nutri Ninja Ninja Blender DUO with Auto-iQ.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Performance Comparison


To find out which blender came out on top, we bought the best models available today and pitted them against each other in our head-to-head reviewing process to pick our winners. We rated each blender in five weighted metrics — Smoothies, Convenience, Grinding, Pureeing, and Ice — with the Ninja's results elaborated on in the following sections.

nutri ninja duo blender - when making smoothies we preferred using the personal cups instead...
When making smoothies we preferred using the personal cups instead of the pitcher.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Smoothies


By far the most important of our rating metrics, our set of smoothie tests take credit for 30% of the total score for each blender. We used four different drinks to rank and score these kitchen appliances, judging the quality of an Oreo shake, green smoothie, berry smoothie, and a hearty fruit and oat smoothie produced by each blender to determine scores.

The Nutri Ninja didn't particularly impress, but we noted that it did exceptionally better with the personal blender cups vs. the main pitcher. However, the smoothies created with the personal blender cups were not factored into the scores.

nutri ninja duo blender - the still leafy and watery green smoothie of the ninja duo with...
The still leafy and watery green smoothie of the Ninja Duo with Auto-iQ.
Credit: Austin Palmer

This blender started off with an average performance when mixing up a healthy green smoothie.

The texture of the smoothie was a little on the watery side, with an inconsistent flavor profile throughout. This smoothie just didn't taste as good as the drinks produced from the top-notch blenders, like the Vitamix 5200. There were also flakes of veggies throughout, with plenty of material caught when we strained the sieve.

nutri ninja duo blender - a bunch of leafy bits that did not get blended up very well.
A bunch of leafy bits that did not get blended up very well.
Credit: Austin Palmer

This product did quite well at blending an Oreo malt, though the texture was grainier than the malts created by the higher-end blenders. Unfortunately, the performance of the Nutri Ninja dropped severely in our fruit smoothie tests.

The berry smoothie was of very poor quality, lacking the smooth texture of the top blenders and failing to obliterate the seeds, with plenty caught in the sieve.

nutri ninja duo blender - most of the seeds from the berries are still intact.
Most of the seeds from the berries are still intact.
Credit: Austin Palmer

In the fruit and oat smoothie assessment, the Nutri Ninja delivered one of the worst scores of the entire group. The finished drink was exceptionally chunky and practically undrinkable, with odd chunks interspersed throughout. However, the performance was much better when we tried this test again with one of the personal blender cups.

nutri ninja duo blender - the ninja duo created more of a slushy textured margarita.
The Ninja Duo created more of a slushy textured margarita.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Ice


A pair of tests comprise our Ice metric, worth 20% of the overall score. We ranked and scored each appliance on how well it could crush ice alone and its prowess at blending the perfect margarita. The Ninja actually did very well here. This model did an excellent job at crushing ice, pulverizing a full pitcher in less than 15 seconds without any struggle.

The Ninja also did quite a good job at blending a margarita, creating a drink with a consistent slushy texture.

However, there were a few chunks of ice that didn't fully get crushed interspersed throughout.

nutri ninja duo blender - everything but the motor base is dishwasher safe!
Everything but the motor base is dishwasher safe!
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Convenience


Equivalent to Ice, our Convenience metric also merited 20% of the total score. We judged how easy it was to use and operate each blender, scoring attributes such as how easy it was to clean each blender, whether or not it is dishwasher safe, and if there are preset functions. The Nutri Ninja DUO scored reasonably well.

This blender's lid, pitcher, and blades are all dishwasher-safe, and the lid and pitcher aren't too much work to clean manually. However, the three tiers of blades are quite difficult to clean by hand and are the perfect recipe for cutting your hand if you aren't careful.

nutri ninja duo blender - you'll need to take great care when hand-washing these blades on...
You'll need to take great care when hand-washing these blades on Ninja blenders. They're easy to remove and extra sharp!
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

You also need to be sure to properly dry all the pieces of this blender, as there is practically no ventilation on the base and the underside of the pitcher definitely has the potential for growing mold if put away wet.

nutri ninja duo blender - before storing make sure all parts are completely dry, you don't...
Before storing make sure all parts are completely dry, you don't want mold ruining your smoothies!
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

This model has a digital timer and a handful of preset functions.

nutri ninja duo blender - the ninja duo has an easy to use and read interface.
The Ninja Duo has an easy to use and read interface.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

These are clearly labeled with text, making it a breeze to use them. The lid is very easy to remove from the pitcher, and this blender is on the quieter side, only measuring in at 84.9 dBa in our test, compared to closer to 90 dBa for the loudest models.

nutri ninja duo blender - if you are hoping to get a piping hot, well blended tomato soup out...
If you are hoping to get a piping hot, well blended tomato soup out of this blender, you might want to look elsewhere.
Credit: Austin Palmer

Pureeing


Taking credit for 15% of the total score, our Pureeing metric tested how well these products could make almond butter, mix tomato soup, and heat it. Unfortunately, this metric proved to be a difficult one for the Nutri Ninja, with a relatively poor performance.

This kitchen appliance did a poor job of mixing almonds into a smooth and creamy spread, instead creating an extremely undesirable thick and grainy mixture. This blender did somewhat better when pureeing the soup, but not by much, leaving whole garlic cloves intact at the end of its Auto-iQ puree cycle. It also didn't really heat the soup; it only reached a temperature of about 78°F.

nutri ninja duo blender - the ninja duo doesn't create enough heat for the nuts to release...
The Ninja Duo doesn't create enough heat for the nuts to release their oils, creating a very subpar nut butter.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Grinding


For our final rating metric, we evaluated how each blender did when tasked with grating hard parmesan cheese, grinding corn kernels into corn flour, and creating powdered sugar. The Nutri Ninja again did quite poorly here.

This blender failed to achieve a fine grind when making powdered sugar, leaving plenty of intact granulated sugar behind. However, none of the sugar burned or melted into the blades. This grated parmesan this blender produced was middle-of-the-road. It was relatively evenly grated, but it wasn't the finest blend, and there were some residual large chunks.

The Ninja Blender DUO finished out with a relatively poor showing, only milling about 10% of the corn kernels to the point where they would pass through the sieve.

nutri ninja duo blender - the ninja duo did very poorly at grinding corn meal, even leaving...
The Ninja Duo did very poorly at grinding corn meal, even leaving whole seeds intact.
Credit: Austin Palmer

Should You Buy the Nutri Ninja DUO Blender?


The Nutri Ninja didn't do particularly well in most metrics and definitely wasn't one of our favorites. However, we have to admit that the personal smoothie cups are an extremely fast and easy way to grab a smoothie to go, and created better smoothies than the blender's large pitcher. If you generally only use a blender for personal smoothies, you may enjoy this model.

What Other Blenders Should You Consider?


For an affordable blender that scores much higher across the board than the Ninja DUO, take a look at the NutriBullet Blender. This model excels with smoothies, pureeing, and ice and is much cheaper than the premium models. If you have the money to spend, however, we recommend the Cuisinart Hurricane Pro or the even pricier Vitamix A2500 Ascent Series, which is sure to tackle anything you toss its way.

David Wise and Austin Palmer