The 5 Best Teeth-Whitening Kits, Tested by Dentists and Grooming Editors

Snow’s Original Teeth Whitening Kit comes highly recommended by Dr. Kevin Sands, board-certified celebrity cosmetic dentist in Beverly Hills, CA. It contains 75 treatments, which means you get more than six months supply. Packaged inside is a LED mouthpiece with blue-light technology, two whitening serums and a third one with extra strength to remove the deepest of stains.

We love that this kit has four adapters to connect to your phone or other USB device, so there’s no battery pack or charging needed (a great option for city workers or travelers). The rules are simple: apply the serum after brushing your teeth, gently insert the tray for 9-30 minutes, and then rinse your mouth and the device. After just a few days of using this teeth-whitening kit, we notice our teeth were a couple shades lighter. Like everything else, the key to seeing results is consistency.

More: A Guide to Improving Your Oral Health

Linhart’s home kit received a stamp of approval by Dr. Kunen. “For those looking to replicate a chairside whitening experience, this is closest you will find,” she says. “This whitening system was custom designed by high-end cosmetic dentists in New York City and utilizes the same whitening gel they use in their office on their patients.”

The collection includes 4 syringes of 35% carbamide peroxide whitening gel, and LED whitening light to activate the gel, and a milder whitening gel to help maintain your results. After a few weeks of use, one of our testers claimed, “this is the brightest my teeth has ever been.”

Crest Whitestrips were one of the first at-home teeth-whitening products that were accessible to the masses. To this day, they’re still recommended by dentists including Dr. Kunen. “The design of strips instead of trays takes away the need for a pre-made whitening tray,” she says. “The concentration of the product ranges from 6.5% – 14% peroxide, so those patients who have higher sensitivity may have an easier time with [this option].”

If you want to keep things simple and still achieve powerful results, using the strips is one of the best strategies. We’ve been wearing them for over five years now and have seen huge difference from our first week of treatment. And they’re super easy to put on and take off. What’s more: the strips can be picked up at your local drugstore.

Zimba’s whitening strips are targeted towards those with sensitive teeth. Their offering is slick (no gel or goop) and arrives in 10 different flavors. Plus, they contain hydrogen peroxide, which will help whiten your teeth even faster.

Believe it or not, the results were pretty instant using these strips. Within two days, we were able to spot a lighter shade of our teeth. There were no signs of discomfort or irritation on our gums. It also didn’t hurt that there was a pleasant taste from the spearmint flavor.

Opalescence has been a long time favorite among the dental community, which includes Dr. Pia Lieb, DDS. Previously, the brand sold syringes of their gel to pipette into a whitening tray, but their new Opalescence GO comes with prefilled disposable trays.

Our testers were impressed by the color improvement of their teeth after using these trays for three months. To see a significant change, we suggest going with the 15% strength version. While it did cause some slight sensitivity, that feeling eventually wore off after brushing with a gentle toothpaste.

Unlike most products that effectively remove teeth staining, Lumineux omits hydrogen peroxide from its whitening strips. Instead, the brand’s formula infuses natural ingredients such as dead sea salts, mint, essential oils, and aloe vera. On the brighter side (no pun intended), this option lifts stains without messing with your enamel.

During our testing, we found that the strips’ efficacy was lower than other kits that we’ve tried. That’s not to say they didn’t work, but be prepared for more applications to see the best results.

Ingredients

The most efficient at-home teeth-whitening products contain a chemical agent such as hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide, according to Dr. Kevin Sands, board-certified celebrity cosmetic dentist in Beverly Hills. “[It] will react with the molecules that caused the stains, breaking them down all together or into tiny, less visible particles that are less visible or invisible leading to a brighter, whiter smile,” says Sands.

Type

• Gel: Typically whitening gels are packaged in most kits and applied directly to your teeth as well as custom and store bought trays. To whiten your teeth, it’s made with key ingredients such as hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide.
• Whitening Strips: Designed for at-home application, the strips allow users to whiten their teeth without needing professional assistance. You simply peel the upper and lower strips from plastic backing liner and apply them to both your top and bottom row teeth.
• Pens: This type is generally used as a quick fix as opposed to the ultimate whitening solution. Structurally, they’re thin plastic tubes, housed with a whitening gel and applied to the teeth with a brush head.
• LED-powered devices: Using light, these devices aim to further amplify the whitening power of the concentrated hydrogen peroxide film on the teeth.

Duration of Use

At-home teeth whitening kits are used for the ongoing day to day removal of stains your teeth acquire from mostly colored liquids. That said, each product is recommended to be used for a specific amount of time in order for your application to be effective. For the best results, read the instructions closely and follow the directions as each whitening regimen varies.

The length of time your teeth remain brighter varies, and it’s influenced by how often you drink trigger beverages such as coffee, tea, dark soda, red wine or whether you smoke. “The results vary from person to person, depending on how receptive one’s teeth are to the bleaching gel,” says Dr. Kantor. “People whose teeth have more of a yellow/brown tone usually bleach better than people with gray tones in their enamel,” he says.

And while at-home products generally contain a weaker percentage of hydrogen peroxide than in-office teeth-whitening products do, they can still work. That said, a higher percentage of chemicals might not be better for you. “If you are a patient who tends to have more sensitivity, select a teeth-whitening product that has a lower peroxide concentration (15 percent or less), or select a product that doesn’t use peroxides as their chief whitening ingredient,” says Dr. Kunen.

Teeth-whitening products always work best when the tooth surface is clean and free of debris, Kunen says. So brush and floss before you whiten with whatever product you choose.

• Dr. Heather S. Kunen, DDS, MS is an orthodontist and Invisalign specialist in New York, NY
• Dr. Kevin B. Sands, DDS is board-certified celebrity cosmetic dentist in Beverly Hills, CA
• Dr. Pia Lieb, DDS is a board-certified cosmetic dentist in New York, NY