In the early 2000s, nothing would get my prepubescent self more excited than slurping an entire jumbo-size Coca-Cola Icee between mouthfuls of buttery popcorn while watching the latest blockbuster from the comfort of the soft, sunken chairs of my local movie theater.
Though I rarely go to the movies these days, I still manage to get my slushy fix with an occasional poolside piña colada or a glass of frosé during happy hour. Clearly, the appeal of a frozen drink has yet to wear off for me, so when I saw the new Ninja Slushi—and the promising results of folks using it on TikTok to make slushies at home—I knew I had to put it to the test. Senior editor Marguerite Preston, who oversees Wirecutter’s kitchen testing, agreed.
Since the Slushi launched in July, it has sold out multiple times, despite its hefty price tag. (It retails for $300, which, we will say, makes it nearly half the price of some of its commercial competitors.) After testing this appliance to make a variety of frozen drinks, we’ve concluded that, despite being a novelty item, the Slushi actually works quite well most of the time and is easy to use and clean.
It’s worth the splurge if a nostalgia-inducing, ice-cold drink is what you crave. However, not all Slushi drinks are created equal.
This professional-quality frozen slushy maker is great for entertaining and surprisingly easy to clean. But it’s not great for making dairy-based drinks.
During testing, I used the five presets—slush, frozen juice, spiked slush, milkshakes, and frappé—to make Coke slush, frozen raspberry lemonade, frosé, strawberry milkshake, and pumpkin-spice frappé. Marguerite used the slush, spiked slush, and frappé presets to whip up a Dr. Pepper slush, frozen margaritas, and a frozen chocolate-milk cold brew.
