What is a bamboo toothbrush?
A bamboo toothbrush is a toothbrush with a handle made from bamboo, instead of plastic. The materials for the bristles can vary from brush to brush though, so it's always worth checking if they can be recycled alongside the brush, or whether they need to be disposed of separately.
Are bamboo toothbrushes environmentally friendly?
Bamboo is considered to be a more sustainable resource to use than the plastic used in standard toothbrushes. Bamboo is a green, renewable resource and is one of the world’s fastest-growing plants.
It's also worth noting that, as bamboo toothbrushes are manual, they also save on the energy used to charge electric toothbrushes.
How long do bamboo toothbrushes last?
Bamboo is naturally antibacterial and water-resistant making it an ideal material to use for toothbrushes.
Most brands state that their bamboo toothbrushes will last three to four months which is perfect as dentists recommend changing your toothbrush every three months.
Remember that as the handle on these toothbrushes is wooden, you should avoid leaving them in water to stop mould growing on the base.
How to choose the best bamboo toothbrush
As they’ve grown in popularity, there are so many eco-friendly toothbrushes on the market. Here’s a few points to consider when choosing the best one for you:
Bristles: Think about what sort of bristles suit your teeth best. Bamboo toothbrushes come with a range of bristle materials, all suited to different preferences. For example, you could try charcoal-infused or super soft bristles.
Size: What size head is best for your mouth? Bamboo toothbrushes for adults are typically available with either a small or a large head.
Firmness: Do you need a hard, medium or soft brush? Depending on the sensitivity of your teeth you can opt for either a soft or firm bamboo toothbrush.
What is the best bamboo toothbrush?
Ecograndeur are the brand behind our best overall bamboo toothbrush.
We loved this company for their focus on sustainability with their plastic-free packaging being an especially nice touch. Reviewers are impressed with the medium-soft bristles which are gentle on teeth and also naturally antibacterial. The whole toothbrush handle is biodegradable too, making disposing of these brushes nice and simple, although you will need to separate the bristles.
How we choose our recommendations
Our bamboo toothbrush recommendations are based on our Mumsnet forum users and other highly-rated products from customer reviews from across the internet.
Once we'd visited the Mumsnet forums, noting the bamboo toothbrushes, brands and retailers our trusted users loved, we headed to other review sites to see the makes vetted by experts.
We also noted down which brushes sell best and looked out for products that come with a dentist’s seal of approval too. We spent hours compiling these recommendations before analysing authentic consumer reviews for each brush, to ensure they were fit for purpose and suited to each 'best' award title we gave them.
Why you should trust us
We base all of our product recommendations on unbiased, independent advice that you can trust. We do sometimes earn revenue through affiliate (click-to-buy) links in our articles. This helps us fund more helpful articles like this one.