Unleash Your Kitchen's Potential: The Definitive Guide to 14 Types of Juicers

Finding the perfect juicer can feel like navigating a jungle of options, each claiming to be the best at transforming your favorite fruits and vegetables into delicious, nutrient-packed juices. 

The confusion doesn't end there. From centrifugal to cold-press, masticating to triturating, the terminology alone is enough to send any health enthusiast into a spiral of uncertainty. 

How do you know which juicer will truly meet your needs, offer the best value for money, and deliver on the promise of high-quality, delicious juices?

In this ultimate guide, we will demystify the world of juicing by explaining 14 types of juicers so you can navigate the juicer jungle confidently and pick the right model.

Let’s dive in.

Types of Juicers by Juicing Method

Let’s begin with the most common type of classification based on the juicing method. The juicing method influences the juicers’ costs and, therefore, your budget. However, it’s important to see juicing as an investment in your health – and we’ll discuss the best models to make that happen.

1. Centrifugal Juicers: The Fast and Furious

Centrifugal juicers, also known as fast juicers, are among the most affordable types of home juicers. They work by spinning fruits and veggies at high speeds, throwing them against a screen to extract the juice. 

While they're the cheapest and fastest option, the juice quality is lower due to more separation and a shorter shelf life. They also struggle with green vegetables and nuts. But if you're on a tight budget, you can find a few high-quality centrifugal juicers.

2. Cold-Press Juicers: Low and Slow

Cold-press juicers, also known as masticating or slow juicers, use a slow-turning auger to crush produce and force it through a sharp screen. This method produces less oxidation and a higher juice yield than centrifugal juicers. Besides, some more advanced models can handle leafy greens, root vegetables, and nuts, so you can get more nutritional benefits. 

Besides, cold-press juicers keep more soluble fibers inside the juice, which has plenty of health benefits, from digestion to weight management, immunity, and cardiovascular health.

However, cold-press juicers are typically pricier than centrifugal ones. If you're looking to maximize nutrients and don't mind spending a bit more, a masticating juicer could be your best bet.

For example, the Forbes-vetted Hurom H400 Easy Clean Slow Juicer features Hurom’s patented Slow Squeeze Technology. That means it operates at low speeds to mimic hand squeezing. This juicing method preserves all the essential nutrients and enzymes, extracts maximum juice yield, reduces oxidation, and maintains the juice’s natural taste. The squeezed juice also lasts in the fridge for 72 hours, so you can batch a high volume of juice without worrying it will go bad.

If you’re curious about how this juicer works, you can watch Forbes’s review directly:

Twin-gear juicers use two gears to chew up produce and push it through a screen. They're believed to extract more nutrients than centrifugal juicers and can make various foods like baby food, nut butter, and pasta. 

Many masticating cold-press juicers use the twin-gear system to maximize nutritional yield. Besides, this mechanism is very quiet, though more expensive.

4. Manual Juicers: The Old-Fashioned Way

Using a manual juicer is a low-tech, affordable option you can use even during a power outage. These hand-press juicers use a simple lever or press to extract juice from citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes. 

Their most significant downside is that you can’t use them to juice a wide variety of produce; they're mostly used for making fresh, nutrient-rich citrus juices.

Types of Juicers by Size and Shape

Evaluating juicer types by size and shape helps you pick a model that fits your space. Besides, the type of produce a juicer can handle often determines its size and shape, so considering these factors together will help you find the perfect juicer for your lifestyle.

5. Vertical Juicers: The Space Savers

Vertical juicers, also known as upright juicers, have a tall, slim design that takes up minimal counter space. They're perfect for small kitchens or those who want to keep their juicer out on the counter for easy access. 

You can find both centrifugal and cold-press vertical juicers. 

Typically, this model is best for juicing fresh fruits and softer veggies, as their design can make it harder to handle leafy greens and fibrous produce.

Pro tip: High-quality vertical juicers like those from the Hurom line can handle a wide variety of produce.

Here’s an example of the newest Hurom H320 Slow Juicer creating a delicious green juice, all while leaving behind bone-dry pulp:

6. Horizontal Juicers: The Greens Machines

Horizontal juicers have a longer, wider design with horizontally positioned augers that allows them to handle leafy greens and fibrous vegetables more easily. This makes them ideal for juicing wheatgrass, kale, spinach, and celery, as well as harder produce like carrots and beets. 

Cold-press horizontal juicers produce high-quality juice with minimal oxidation and a longer shelf life. Most models are also versatile, so you can use them for nut milks, sorbets, or baby food.

The problem is horizontal juicers take up more kitchen space.

Pro tip: We took into account this typical customer complaint and created our own Celery & Greens Horizontal Slow Juicer. We optimized it for juicing celery, wheatgrass, leafy greens, and root vegetables like beets and ginger, but it’s 27% smaller than your typical horizontal juicer and 8x more durable.

7. Compact Juicers: The Tiny Powerhouses

Compact juicers are designed to fit into even the smallest of kitchens. They're perfect for those who want to enjoy fresh juice but don't have a lot of storage space. Compact juicers are best for juicing small quantities of fruits and softer veggies, as their size can make it harder to handle larger amounts or fibrous produce. 

You will also have to cut the produce into smaller pieces, which lengthens your prep time. However, the advantage is getting the nutritional advantages from a juicer with a smaller footprint.

Pro tip: A lot of compact juicers are very affordable because they’re low-quality. As a result, they won’t be able to squeeze juice from your fruits and veggies very thoroughly, and you won’t get as many nutritional benefits. Besides, they may also not be very resistant.

To avoid that, consider the Hurom H310.

This juicer has a 4-inch diameter, 15.5-inch height, and a 7.9-pound weight. Thanks to quality materials that last 8 times longer than traditional plastics, it’s also backed by an impressive 10-year warranty.

8. Commercial Juicers: The Workhorses

Commercial juicers are designed for heavy-duty juicing. They have a larger feeding chute and a more powerful motor, allowing them to handle larger quantities of produce easily. Depending on the model, wide juicers can be either centrifugal or masticating. 

They're perfect for those who juice frequently or want to make large batches of juice at once. Wide juicers are also ideal for juicing harder produce like apples and carrots, as their powerful motor can handle the tougher fibers. However, they’re the most expensive types of juicers you can consider.

Types of Juicers by Feeding Mechanism

Understanding different juicers’ feeding mechanisms allows you to pick the right one for your efficiency and batch production needs.

9. Wide-Mouth Juicers: The Time Savers

Wide-mouth juicers have a large feeding chute to accommodate entire fruits and vegetables. This means less prep time and more juicing because you don't have to spend minutes chopping your produce into smaller pieces. 

They're perfect for those who are always on the go and want to make their juice with minimal effort. They’re also great for batch juicing.

Our H320 model is worth mentioning as an example again because it’s so easy to throw multiple fruits and veggies inside:

But here’s what we didn’t mention before about this model.

The Hurom H320 is a self-feeding juicer with a built-in auger to push produce through the feeding chute. This means you can simply drop your fruits and veggies into the juicer and let it do the rest without manually moving them through. 

Self-feeding juicers are ideal if you want a more hands-off juicing experience or have limited hand mobility. 

10. Small Chute Juicers: The Nutrient Extractors

Small chute juicers have a smaller feeding chute that requires produce to be cut into smaller pieces before juicing. While this means a bit more prep time, the smaller pieces allow for a more thorough and efficient extraction of nutrients. 

The slow, gentle juicing process also results in less oxidation and a higher-quality juice with a longer shelf life. Small chute juicers are ideal if you want to maximize your juice’s nutritional value and don't mind spending a little extra time on preparation.

Hurom HAA Slow Juicer is another great example from our product line to understand how these types of juicers work:

Types of Juicers by Produce Used

Before buying a juicer machine, consider what you’ll use it for. Do you typically drink orange juice in the mornings, do regular detox juicing, or would you prefer a varied juicing routine? We’ll help you consider all those issues in the sections below.

11. Citrus Juicers: The Sunshine Squeezers

Citrus juicers are specifically designed to extract juice from oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits, and other citrus fruits. They come in various styles, from simple handheld reamers to electric juicers with spinning cones. 

Citrus juicers are perfect for those who love a refreshing glass of OJ in the morning or want to add a splash of lemon to their cooking. They're also great for making fresh citrus cocktails like margaritas and sidecars.

Pro tip: Manual and centrifugal citrus juicers leave a lot of pulp in your juice. If you want a pulp-free glass of orange juice instead, consider one of Hurom’s cold-press juicers.

12. Greens Juicers: The Leafy Legends

Greens juicers are designed to handle leafy greens like kale, spinach, and wheatgrass. These tough, fibrous veggies can be a challenge for traditional centrifugal juicers, but cold-press greens juicers use a slow, gentle crushing action to extract every last drop of nutrients. 

Hurom’s Celery and Greens juicer is especially perfect for squeezing all the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants from your leafy greens. However, greens juicers can also handle other produce like carrots, beets, and apples, so they’re a versatile choice for any health-conscious juice lover.

13. Soft Fruit Juicers: The Berry Best

Soft fruit juicers are designed to handle delicate fruits like berries, grapes, and tomatoes. These juicy gems can be easily crushed by the high-speed blades of a centrifugal juicer, but the typical result is a foamy, oxidized juice. 

Cold-press juicers, on the other hand, produce a smooth juice that doesn’t oxidize as fast. That’s because their slow juicing method preserves the delicate nutrients in soft fruit. They're perfect if you love the sweet, refreshing taste of berries or want to make homemade tomato juice. 

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Besides, some soft fruit juicers have special attachments for making smoothies and frozen desserts.

14. All-Purpose Juicers: The Jack-of-All-Trades

All-purpose juicers can handle a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. They can juice everything from apples and carrots to kale and wheatgrass, making them a great choice for those who like to mix things up. 

All-purpose juicers can be centrifugal, but a versatile cold-press juicer is the superior choice. They're perfect for those who want the flexibility to juice whatever produce they have on hand without multiple specialized juicers. Basically, you can let your creativity run wild and create your own energizing juice recipes.

Pro tip: These are the best juicers for convincing fussy kids to get more nutrients from a variety of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

Which Type of Juicer Will You Pick?

This article took you through 14 types of juicers, discussing different juicing methods, sizes, shapes, and feeding mechanisms.

At the end of the day, the best decision is to pick a high-quality juicer that fits your goals.

So, use your juicing needs as a lens to analyze different juicers, but don’t compromise juice quality and durability.

At Hurom, we take all our customers’ feedback and needs into account to devise top-quality, user-friendly juicers. So, compare our juicers to find the one that suits you best.