Manual juicing is an easy way to extract the maximum vitamins and nutrients from your favorite fruits and vegetables. Juicing at home allows you to prepare delicious and nutritious juices that are entirely free from additives like sugar and preservatives. As an added bonus, homemade juice costs a fraction of the price of “healthy” juice you’ll find at your local grocer. Manual juicers are an excellent way to juice small amounts of fresh juice without any waste. They’re also a great tool for getting seed-free citrus juice for your favorite recipes. Some people believe that there are a host of health benefits that come with juicing (like detoxification and weight loss) and although there isn’t a ton of evidence to back up these claims, one thing we do know for sure is that juicing is a tasty way to meet your daily recommended dose of fruits and veggies, quickly and easily. We hope that this list of our top picks for the best manual juicers will have you making delicious juice at home in no time.
1. Editor’s Choice: Zulay Professional Citrus Juicer
This commercial-grade citrus juicer is top quality and comes in a variety of colors. Don’t let the name fool you, you can use this juicer for more than just citrus thanks to its 5” diameter cup that can accommodate lots of different fruits like apples, pineapples, and pomegranates, just to name a few.
The Zulay Professional Citrus Juicer is a professional quality, very efficient manual juicer that can easily extract the maximum amount of juice from various citrus, and other fruits, with no seeds. There is a comfortable firm grip handle that you can use to press juice, ensuring that your hands stay clean.
This juicer is made out of durable cast iron and has an ergonomic design that makes it particularly easy to use. You will be impressed by the Zulay’s powerful crushing capabilities, as it makes easy work of large grapefruits and other tough fruit.
The built-in rubber feet ensure the juicer stays firmly in place while you’re juicing you don’t have to worry about slippage.
The Zulay easily wipes clean and features a stainless steel strainer cup and other detachable parts that are dishwasher safe for easy cleanup.
Pros
- Professional quality cast iron juicer
- Ergonomic design for easy juicing
- Can handle large fruit, and a variety of fruit other than just citrus
- Easy to clean with dishwasher safe removable parts
Cons
- Some customers have complained that this juicer removes too much pulp
2. Runner Up: ROVSUN Hand Press Manual Juicer
This manual juicer is a great runner up to our first pick, coming in at a similar price point and of very similar quality. The reason we didn’t make the Rovsun our top pick is that it leaves a lot of pulp in the juice (which many people don’t like). Other than that, it’s really quite similar.
The ROVSUN Hand Press Manual Juicer is commercial grade with a durable cast iron body and quality stainless steel strainer. What’s great about this juicer is the long and lightweight handle that has a rubber grip to prevent slippage and give your hand a break. Although the lightweight handle is great, you’ll want to use the “safety hat” that the manufacturer has provided to lock it into place so it doesn’t accidentally fall down on you (something that often happens with light handles).
The pressing plate can accommodate a variety of citrus and other fruits for easy pressing, and the clean up is nice and easy thanks to the removable strainer and funnel that you can pop in the dishwasher.
Pros
- Commercial grade with heavy-duty cast iron body
- Stainless steel strainer
- Long lightweight handle with rubber grip
- Easy to use and clean
Cons
- You have to use the safety hat to lock the handle
- Produces a lot of pulp which some people don’t like
3. Best For Wheatgrass: Handy Pantry HJ Hurricane Stainless Steel Manual Wheatgrass Juicer
This juicer does an exceptional job at juicing wheatgrass and barleygrass, as it is designed specifically for this purpose, but it can also handle juicing leafy greens, many fruits and even some vegetables. It can even juice hard things like carrots and apples, thanks to its durable stainless steel construction, so you can use it for more than just wheatgrass juicing.
Handy Pantry HJ Hurricane is constructed fully from stainless steel, which doesn’t just mean that it’s robust and built to last, but it is also non-toxic and rust-proof. Additionally, not only is this juicer easy to use, but it’s also very easy to assemble and clean – it’s full dishwasher safe.
First and foremost, this juicer was designed to be an affordable manual option for juicing anything Wheatgrass and Barley Grass, but it can juice anything leafy such as Kale, Spinach, Collard Greens, Chard, Parsley, and Lettuce. It can also handle pretty much all soft fruit and vegetables, and doesn’t struggle with hard fruits and veggies, so it can be used to juice pretty much anything on a daily basis.
The design uses a simple adjustable clamp for you to secure the juicer with while you’re using it, and it will fit almost any countertop or table. Screw on the clamp tightly to make sure the juicer doesn’t move around while in use, and simply remove and store away when you’re not using it.
As an additional bonus, this stainless steel manual juicer comes with an instruction manual and a recipe booklet to make sure you don’t run out of ideas for healthy, wholesome homemade juices.
Pros
- Can be used to juice a variety of different things
- Easy to use and clean
- Durable and built to last
Cons
- Crank is difficult to turn – requires a lot of upper body strength
4. Best Value: Geedel Slow Masticating Juicer Extractor
This little juicer is a steal of a deal and can handle juicing a variety of different fruits and veggies with ease.
The Geedel Slow Masticating Juicer Extractor is excellent quality for the price. This juicer has been designed for ease of use, less waste and maximum juice yield. Light, compact and durable, the Geedel juicer is made out of quality BPA free plastic to ensure total food safety.
All of the components of this juicer are detachable which makes it particularly easy to clean and store.
This juicer can handle a variety of fruits and vegetables, including tougher items like apples, celery and carrots, and comes with 1-month free trial and 1-year limited warranty.
Pros
- Easy to use, disassemble and clean
- BPA free durable, lightweight plastic
- Can juice a variety of fruits and vegetables
Cons
- This juicer requires a lot of manual labor to make vegetable juice
What Is A Manual Juicer?
Juicers get nutrient-rich fresh juice from fruits and vegetables. Manual juicers, unlike electric juicers, don’t rely on electricity to produce juice, instead, they rely on your physical strength. Usually, there is a crank, lever or handle that you can use to manually crush, press, and squeeze fruits and veggies to extract their juice. Manual juicers are convenient because they’ll work just about anywhere, and they’re usually pretty easy to transport, clean and disassemble. They also do a great job at preserving the nutrients in your juice and because of this, many die-hard juicers prefer them over expensive electric juicers.
Types Of Manual Juicers
Not all manual juicers are the same. Some, for instance, can handle things like leafy greens, and others can only handle citrus. It’s important to understand the various different types of manual juicers available so you can make sure you purchase the right one based on your juicing needs.
Examples Of Different Manual Juicers:
Handheld Manual Juicers
You probably have one of these in your kitchen, and it’s commonly referred to as a citrus press. These little handheld juicers extract juice from small citrus by placing the fruit into the press and manually squeezing it to extract the juice without the pulp and seeds.
Jug Reamers
I feel like everyone’s grandparents have one of these and they’re used predominantly to juice citrus. Usually, there are just two pieces, a jug to collect the juice, and a lid with a juicing cone and slits to allow the juice to drain into the jug. To use one of these you usually cut citrus fruit in half and rub it on the juicing cone, twisting and pressing until the juice has been extracted and has collected in the jug. You have probably used one of these before to make fresh orange juice.
Table-Top Hand Press
These manual juicers use a pull-down compression system to operate. When you pull on the juicers lever a metal pressing plate applies even pressure across whatever produce you have inserted. These juicers produce a lot of juice and are less work due to the thoughtful design.
Hand Crank Strainers
These juicers sort of look like a meat press, oddly enough. To use this juicer you simply mount it your countertop, then add your fruits and veggies to the chute at the top. As you rotate the crank on the side of the machine the produce moves down through the chute where it is crushed, causing it to drip out of the bottom of the machine. All of the pulp gets separated and is extruded from the opposite end.
Things To Consider When Buying A Manual Juicer
What Can The Juicer Handle?
Manual juicers are great for making smaller quantities of juice using soft fruits, leafy greens and some soft veggies. If you’re looking to make large batches of juice using hard or super fibrous vegetables, you’re definitely better off purchasing an automatic juicer that can handle juicing large quantities of these types of items on a regular basis.
How Easy Is The Juicer To Use?
Some manual juicers are easier to use than others. Some have a ton of parts, and they can be a pain to assemble and clean. Each juicer will have unique juicing instructions, for instance, some will require you to pre-cut the fruit etc. It’s important that you take the time to research how to assemble and use the various juicers you’re considering buying so that you know how much effort will be required from you to use, clean and assemble them.
How Much Juice Can it Produce?
Different juicers produce different amounts of juice. If you want a manual juicer that can produce a lot of juice, make sure you’re considering one that clearly states that it can produce a high yield.
How Easy Is It To Clean And Store?
One-piece juicing units tend to be easy to clean. Some juicers have a lot of parts and require you to disassemble them completely for a thorough clean. Make sure you understand how easy your new juicer is to clean, and what is required of you to clean it properly. Is it dishwasher safe? This is always something to consider. Depending on the size of your juicer, you might need to disassemble it to store it, if this sounds like a pain, and you don’t have the counter space for it to live on your counter full time, consider purchasing a smaller unit, or one that is very easy to disassemble.
Final Thoughts
Not all manual juicers are the same, and picking the right one really comes down to your personal juicing needs. Some juicers are best for just citrus, while others can offer a lot more variety. When researching a new manual juicer, pay special attention to how easy the product is to use and clean, the types of fruits and veggies it can juice, and how much juice it can produce. Once you get the hang of juicing your own produce you will quickly reap the benefits of adding more nutritious fruits and vegetables to your diet. We hope that this list of our top picks for the best manual juicers makes it easier for you to find the right juicer for you.