Vitamix 5200 Blender – Is It The Best Blender?

The Vitamix blender is one of the most popular blenders on the market, especially among raw foodies, smoothie lovers and the health conscious.

In fact a strong, quality blender is essential if you’re looking for ways to improve your nutrition, so owning a good quality blender like the Vitamix is a really great start!

✅ In a hurry? Go check out the reviews on the Vitamix 5200 here.

Owning (and of course using) a blender means that you can create great tasting concoctions out of things that you may not really like eating. For example I add lots of leafy greens and sprouts to my smoothies – more than I’d ever eat in a salad!

I also add seaweeds such as Dulce flakes that I really don’t like the taste of. But in a smoothie I can disguise the taste with other ingredients. It means I’m getting great nutrition and lots of it, but in a form that’s partially pre-digested (by being blended it makes it easier to digest) and with flavours that I love!

I currently own a very overworked Sunbeam Café Series blender that I bought when we returned to Australia. I’ve used my blender a lot since I bought it.

It gets thrashed to be honest.

In a house with several adults that regularly consume juice, smoothies and other such healthy stuff, it earns its keep – believe me!

With my return to a predominantly raw vegan diet, my old blender is now getting used even more, and I fear for its continued ability to do my bidding.

Don’t get me wrong. My old Sunbeam is a great blender for the price I paid, and it has handled most of the jobs I’ve thrown at it fairly well. But I’ve been considering what sort of blender I will eventually buy to replace it, and well… to be honest, I’ve been drooling over the Vitamix blenders and trying to decide if I should buy one and which vitamix is the best to buy.

Which Vitamix blender is best for me?

I’ve looked at the Vitamix blender off and on in the past because, let’s face it, they’re an amazing machine. Vitamix have set the benchmark for all the other brands of blender on the market, but at the time of writing this, no others seem to be able to match that benchmark, let alone beat it.

My recent investigations into the Vitamix brand of blenders have led me to the Vitamix 5200.

So I’ve decided to do a bit of a Vitamix review to help me in my research and to really see what this blender has to offer, so let’s get started.

So just what are we looking for in a blender?

1. A really strong motor – we want a motor that can handle anything. I remember using a blender that my Mum and Dad owned a few years ago. I was trying to make hummus in it – you know – cooked chick peas, olive oil, lemon juice and spices. Nothing tough about that, but this pathetic excuse for a blender was overheating and really struggling!

I ended up taking it all out and mashing it up by hand as I was scared that the burning motor smell that was coming from it might mean I was going to kill it.

As for my own current blender, it does pretty well, but it still leaves bits of unblended stuff in my not so smooth smoothies, and it does struggle a little at times.

2. Variable speeds – for most jobs, a really fast speed is what you want but sometimes slower is better when using a blender, so being able to adjust the speed while not essential, is definitely handy.

3. Tough blades – the blades have to be strong so that we can blend nuts and seeds and hard things. You never know, we might decide that we want to eat ground avocado seeds!

4. A large container – there is no point in having a blender with a small container. We need at least 1.5 or preferably 2 litres. That way we have enough capacity for most jobs we might want our blender to do.

5. A clear container – so that we can see what’s going on.

6. A strong container – so that it lasts and can handle the treatment it’s going to get blending ice and other hard objects as well as heat and cold.

7. A Plunger – this is really handy for pushing ingredients down towards the blade when they get stuck.

8. A lid that seals well – to keep liquids inside the blender while blending – where they should be.

9. Easy cleaning – that speaks for itself really – who wants appliances that are hard to clean?

10. Easy operation – we don’t want anything in the kitchen that we need a license to drive!

11. A good warranty – when a company puts a good, long warranty on a product it’s like putting their money where their mouth is. They KNOW their product is good. Plus it’s always great to have peace of mind knowing that if something does go wrong, it will be fixed.

If you rush in and buy a blender based on price, chances are you’ll get a piece of kitchen equipment that will join the others in the cupboard collecting dust because it doesn’t do what you want it to.

So, does the Vitamix 5200 meet this list of requirements?

Is the Vitamix 5200 motor strong enough?

This is a tough, grunty 2.2 horsepower motor which is exactly what you want in a blender. As you’ll see when you read the feedback on this machine it’s not quiet, but the sheer power of this blender and the speed at which it blends makes up for that.

You want a motor that can blend whatever you want it to blend. The Vitamix 5200 will have everything blended and silky smooth in a matter of seconds!

The motor on the Vitamix 5200 is thermally protected. This means that it’s a cool running motor that is designed to handle the toughest blending jobs with the blades reaching speeds in excess of 200mph.

As an extra feature it does also have an automatic cut off to protect the motor from overheating.

Is this Vitamix blender variable speed?

This is a variable speed blender. You can easily adjust the speed to achieve a variety of textures. The dial can be rotated at any point during the blend, so you’re in complete control.

..and what about the blades? Can they go the distance?

The Vitamix 5200 has hardened stainless-steel blades. The blades in this machine are made from aircraft grade stainless steel, and are designed to handle the toughest ingredients which means it’s tough enough to handle pretty much anything you can throw at it (or in it) including nuts, seeds and ice cubes and even avocado pits!

Ok, so how about the container? Is it clear, strong and large enough?

The container on this blender is a clear 64-ounce non-toxic polycarbonate container. So this container is a good size (almost 2 litre) and being made from polycarbonate means that is contains no BPA – that’s the not so human friendly chemical that hit the news a while back because of it being in plastic baby bottles.

The container is clear so that you can see what’s going on and it’s virtually unbreakable (unlike my Sunbeam blender which has a big crack in the base of the container).

It also has a non drip spout.

It comes  with a plunger – right?

The Vitamix 5200 does come with a plunger (also known as a tamper) that can be used while the machine is running to push ingredients down into the blade.

It is designed so that there is no danger of the plunger hitting the blades, and as I said above this is a really handy tool to have when ingredients get stuck and don’t want to move. What often happens is that the stuff down the bottom of the container is being blended, but further up the ingredients are stuck and not moving.

Using a tamper saves having to turn the blender off each time this happens to open it up and push down stuck ingredients.

Does the lid seal in liquids?

The lid has a simple locking mechanism to lock it on to the container and it has spill proof vents to allow the safer blending of hot foods.

The vent stops any pressure build up which can be dangerous and cause burns.

There is also a plug in the lid that can be removed when blending to add more ingredients. The plug is also marked with measurements to allow it to be used as a handy measuring cup.

Is it easy to clean and simple to use?

The Vitamix 5200 is designed to be easy to clean. Just pop some water in and turn it on for a short burst. That usually does it.

Does the Vitamix blender have a warranty?

It sure does. The Vitamix 5200 has a whopping 7 year full warranty!

The Vitamix has strength and durability that you definitely won’t find in a cheaper blender, or (from what I’ve uncovered during my research), even in many other blenders in the same price range. It’s like the ‘Rolls Royce’ of blenders I guess.

However the fact that it’s arguably the best blender on the market isn’t all it’s got going for it. There’s more! The Vitamix 5200 is not just a blender. It really can do the job of several kitchen appliances, which is gives us another reason to take a really close look at this machine. (This was what impressed me when I first came across the Vitamix).

The Vitamix 5200 can be used to make HOT soups and sauces!

Yep, that’s right – I said hot.

Put the ingredients in your Vitamix and turn it on. Leave it to run for a few minutes and you’ve got steaming hot soup or sauce!

For example, to make a silky smooth cheese sauce, put in your milk, butter, flour (grind that first before adding the rest of course) and cheese. Pop the lid on and turn it on. The sound that the machines makes changes once the sauce is ready.

No stove required. Hot, smooth, satiny cheese sauce and not a burned pan or lump in sight. That’s pretty cool!

Your Vitamix 5200 can also be used to grind flour from wholegrains, or grind fresh linseed meal, coffee beans and even to make bread or pizza dough. Just grind your grains into flour, add water, yeast and sugar and then make your dough right there in the Vita mix blender.

Use it to crush ice, make frozen ‘slushy’ drinks, chop cheese, make coleslaw, emulsify salad dressings, blend pesto and even make cold compost fertilizer for your plants!

What should you expect to pay for the Vitamix 5200?

Most of the prices I’ve seen for the Vitamix have been around $500. The cheapest I’ve found has been at Amazon where the price is under $400.

Vitamix 5200 Reviews – What others are saying

This particular Vitamix has received rave reviews and has over 5000 reviews. It has been rated 4.5 stars out of 5 on Amazon and almost 90% of reviewers have given it 5 stars.

Here are some of the comments to date:

I found very few complaints on this blender. There are a small percentage of negative reviews. Some look to be user error and others may have just got a bad machine which happens I guess, but most people on Amazon are raving about their 5200.

Where can you buy the Vitamix 5200?

The Vitamix 5200 is available from Amazon for less than $400, which from what I can tell comparing prices with other online merchants, is the best price available. Amazon also offer free shipping which means Amazon currently have the best deal available.

✅ Click here to view on Amazon.

Where can you read more Vitamix 5200 reviews?

The best place to read more reviews from people who have actually bought and use this Vitamix blender is Amazon. Click here to read more.

I hope my research has helped you. I haven’t decided yet if this model Vitamix is the one for me, but if I do buy it I’ll be writing my own review so stay posted!