Oral-B Pro 4000 vs 5000

Detailed Comparison: What’s the difference between the Oral-B Pro 4000 and Pro 5000?

As the summary above describes there are few differences between either of these two brushes.

If you sit both side by side you would be hard pressed to tell any difference unless you take into consideration the box contents. The 2015 Pro 5000 with Bluetooth does have a small Bluetooth icon on the brush handle and this would be the determining factor between the 4000 and 5000.

The 2014 edition has no such determining mark.

Both models are the same size, weight, dimension and have the same feel in hand.

They are slim and comfortable to hold with a gloss white plastic body to the rear (with some grips) and royal blue rubber strip that runs down the face of the brush handle which makes the brush look smart and offers additional grip.

An accented white power button stands out and offers a great feedback when pressed.  It is difficult to accidentally activate the brush.

Above and below this button are enhanced grips to stop the brush slipping out of the hand.

On the neck of the brush is a pressure sensor that will illuminate red when the brush detects too much pressure during the cleaning cycle.

Take a look at the box contents and you will find that the Pro 5000 comes with same 3 brush heads as the 4000.  A CrossAction, 3D White and Sensitive head, which fit well with the cleaning modes.

A charging stand and brush head holder/storage compartment is included with both.

The 5000, both 2014 and 2015 model comes with a travel case which is handy if you find yourself taking your brush with you a lot of the time.  The hard plastic case protects the brush, and up to 2 brush heads in transit.

The Pro 5000 2014 model also comes with a Wireless SmartGuide that that Pro 4000 does not.

With the 2015 model of the 5000, the SmartGuide is not included, instead the brush itself has been equipped with Bluetooth connectivity.

Differences between the 5000 models and which one to opt for will ultimately be your decision. Over time the newer model with Bluetooth will likely become the more easily available unit. We really like the 2014 model though.

Why?

This is because of the SmartGuide.  The oval shaped object is much the size of a portable travel clock and comes supplied with batteries and an adhesive pad so it can be mounted on a wall if required.

It acts as a clock showing the time, but when the 5000 brush is activated, the display shows a timer, a star rating, an animated face that gives feedback on your performance, a graphic to identify the cleaning mode you are on and a quadrant indicator.

Whether you are 20 or 60 this guide can be very useful.  It can encourage as well as be a motivator for cleaning your teeth properly.

The removable batteries last about 3 months on average.

The 2015 model on the other hand offers Bluetooth connectivity.

If you are not familiar with Bluetooth, it is a wireless technology that shares data between 2 computing products.  In this instance,the brush and your Android or iOS smartphone or tablet.

Your tablet or smartphone must have the Oral-B app installed and after a short pairing process the brush can be programmed and cleaning data transferred between the two.

You see all the information you would if you had the wireless SmartGuide, but this is electronically logged within the app.  This then allows you to create calendar logs of your activity and track performance and improvements.

You can set specific routines and more.

The benefit here is the brush will retain data of up to 20 cleans, so you do not need to have the brush paired each time you use it.

If you have the app open whilst cleaning your teeth you get news, tips and more displayed on screen based on your configuration.

We have mixed feelings about Bluetooth in a brush.  Whilst it is very current and showing progression, for the vast majority there is no need or desire to log cleaning performance.

I also felt, as much as I love technology, the app distracted me from actually cleaning my teeth properly. I felt the need to hold the phone and clean my teeth whilst reading the tips when normally, a quick glance at the SmartGuide is much easier and less distracting.

As some comparison to Bluetooth, both models do also offer a feature known as ‘sound connectivity’. Similar to Bluetooth in what it offers, but less reliable. For more information see our post on Oral-B Sound Connectivity.

Both have built in timers to assist with the 2 minute clean along with a quad pacer that alerts you to the 30 second intervals.

Both have a 7 days battery life (based on one user cleaning twice a day for 2 minutes) and both give you a warning of the battery status via a colour coded illumination of the battery icon.

As you would expect, the two come with a standard 2 year warranty which can be extended to 3 years, if you register the brush online.

Of course this is a toothbrush and the purpose is to clean the teeth.  Both come with 4 cleaning modes.  These are Daily Clean, Gum Care, Sensitive and Whitening.

The different modes are best used with different brush heads, which thankfully come included in the box of these premium-mid range brushes.

You can if you like use any of the brush heads on any of the different cleaning modes, but the 3D White works best with the Whitening mode as the Sensitive brush head works best on the sensitive mode.

To better understand the modes and how they differ, read our Oral-B cleaning modes article.

If changing from a manual brush, either of these will offer an enhanced cleaning experience and will make your oral health better.  As good as a brush is, it still requires the human hand to move it around the mouth, so to perfect the clean make sure you are cleaning your teeth properly.

As both brushes are part of Oral-B’s Pro series, there is the option, should you wish to change the brush heads at any time to one of a series of different brush heads offered by the company.

There are 6 main types of brush head, these are:

• TriZione
• Precision Clean
• CrossAction (Supplied with the Pro 2000 & 3000)
• 3D White
• FlossAction
• Sensitive (Supplied with the Pro 3000)

2 other specialist heads also compatible include the Ortho and Interspace/Power Tip.

Each brush head has advantages and disadvantages and are engineered to work better with certain cleaning modes.

See our Oral-B brush heads comparison for a detailed look at all the brush heads. The following table also briefly summarises the capabilities of each brush head:

Does one clean better than the other?

All this talk of how to clean, the cleaning modes and brush head options may have you thinking one does a better job than the other.  The real answer is no.  The clean offered by each brush is identical.

When we reviewed the Pro 4000 we gave it a rating of 4.  The same rating was given to the 2015 Pro 5000 with Bluetooth in our review, while we gave 3 stars to Pro 5000 2014 model in our review here 

Is one better priced than the other?

Generally speaking, the Pro 4000 is the cheaper of the two brushes.

At the time of writing the Pro 4000 is available for about £55* and works out at about 8p per day whilst the Pro 5000 is £79*, at costs 11p per day over a 3 year period.

It is possible at times to get the 5000 for much cheaper, we have seen it available for less than the 4000.

Just be careful to pick the retailer offering the price you are happy to pay.

Conclusion & which one should I buy?

This is the hardest comparison we have had to write and coming to a conclusion is extremely difficult.  Both are very capable brushes and we can’t really fault them.  But we think there are better options.

Unless you want or need the added benefits of the 4000 or 5000 then the Pro 2000 which is lower in the range would be better  (see it here on Amazon).  If you do need or desire the more advanced features and box contents, spend a little more to get the Pro 6000 (see it here on Amazon) which is higher in the range but offers more for really not much more money.

Ultimately drawing a conclusion between the two, the Pro 5000 gets the crown as it is more suitable for a broader range of users and if you really can get it for the same price as the Pro 4000 it makes sense to.

We still prefer the older 2014 model with the wireless guide (see it here on Amazon), but the 2015 model with Bluetooth  (see it here on Amazon) is more readily available and generally cheaper (always good to save money if you can).

Either brush is available from a wide array of stores from high street pharmacists to online retailers, the prices of these brushes can vary considerably.  Typically there is about £20-25 difference between the two with the Pro 4000 often found for about £55*, some 50% less than its recommended retail price of £109.99

On reading this you may have found neither is right and there are many brushes from Oral-B you could consider, maybe you would like to compare these brushes using our Oral B Comparison Tool.​

Ultimately, whatever brush you decide upon, it is you who needs to make the decision; but do so based on which is best for your needs or the end user, if you are purchasing on behalf of somebody else.

Only pay the price you are happy with and do not be led into buying something if it is not right.

Hopefully we have presented the facts and made the whole decision process that little bit easier.

If you found this useful, have any thoughts and opinions from going through this choice process yourself of have used either brush and want to comment, please do using the comments section below; what you have to say could be of real benefit to somebody else.

​*Please note any prices stated below were correct at the time of writing and may have changed by the time you come to buy. We always recommend checking the prices of several retailers before you make a purchase.