Best Ultrasonic Jewelry Cleaner Machines

Buying guide for best ultrasonic jewelry cleaners

Written by Sian Babish

Updated November 2021

Jewelry often marks a milestone. It can celebrate or commemorate weddings, graduations, and anniversaries, just to name a few occasions. Major jewelry is also memorable for the price. When you make a large investment like that, it’s a sound idea to have the right tools to care for your item through the years.

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners use soundwave technology to dislodge dirt, grime, and grease from your favorite pieces. They have tanks that hold a cleaning solution in which you can fully immerse your jewelry for thorough yet gentle cleaning. In fact, jewelry isn’t the only thing you can clean with them. An ultrasonic jewelry cleaner is also ideal for certain baby items, dentures, coins, and even small tools.

The incredibly versatile ultrasonic jewelry cleaner is available at several price points, so there are plenty of models that are affordable within any budget.

Not every piece of jewelry is safe or recommended for cleaning in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner. Some stones and settings are far too delicate to handle the pressure and ultrasonic waves, so it’s best to handle these pieces individually without a machine. If you want to know for sure, defer to a professional jeweler as well as the cleaner’s user guide to see which types of jewelry are best.

Key considerations

How does it work?

An ultrasonic jewelry cleaner takes jewelry care and cleaning to the next level with high-frequency sound waves at about 18 kHz. Once your items are fully immersed in the cleaning solution, a concentrated vibration blasts away dirt, grime, grease, and other buildup. As soon as the cleaning cycle completes, which could include UV sanitization and steaming, simply remove your jewelry from the tray and dry it with a lint-free cloth. The remaining solution can be emptied, and the tray can be rinsed and returned to the ultrasonic jewelry cleaner.

What it can and can’t clean

• Can: Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners are ideal for cleaning gold, silver, diamond jewelry, and waterproof watches. You can also clean some eyeglasses, depending on the type of lenses and frames you have. Dentures are also a popular item to be cleaned with these machines, as well as other oral hygiene instruments, like toothbrushes and metal toothpicks. Coins, small tools, and certain plastic baby toys can also be cleaned.
• Can’t: You should avoid cleaning soft stones such as opals, emeralds, and turquoise in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner. Pearls can easily scratch and break off a strand as well. For a definitive list of other soft stones, you can refer to the Gemological Institute of America, as well as the user guide for your machine.

Capacity

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners, especially ones for home use, have tanks with a capacity of between seven and 20 ounces. Models around the 7- to 10-ounce range are generally considered to be compact, and they sometimes break down into smaller pieces for travel. The average ultrasonic jewelry cleaner capacity is approximately 20 ounces, which is ideal to fit a decent volume of jewelry and a pair of eyeglasses. There are other models that accommodate well over 20 ounces, but these models are much more expensive and are typically geared toward retail use.

Solution

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners can work just with water, a diluted soapy mixture, or a special jewelry cleaning solution. Although it’s largely based on your preference as to how deep you’d like to clean your jewelry, certain metals, gems, and finishes require particular solutions. Some of the companies that make ultrasonic jewelry cleaners also manufacture solutions to use with their products, and you’ll often find a sample included in the box.

Features

Materials

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners are generally constructed with similar design elements. The exterior of the machine is hard plastic, as are the interior trays. These are on par with the plastic used for other small appliances, so they’re sturdy and have some weight to them. The tank on the inside is made of stainless steel and resembles a mini sink. Stainless steel is an ideal material because it holds up to prolonged use, and it’s incredibly easy to keep clean.

Advanced cleaning settings

Timed cleaning: Basic models only feature one time setting for cleaning, so you’ll have to continue resetting these if you want your items to spend longer in a cleaning cycle. More advanced models offer between three and 20 time settings to choose from, which are often categorized by the type of jewelry or the extent of cleaning. Timed cleanings could range anywhere between 90 seconds and 30 minutes.

Extra cleaning features: Besides the basic ultrasonic cycle, some models offer additional cleaning features to achieve a deep clean. Some models include a UV sanitizer to combat bacteria, and others have a steam cycle that dislodges grime from hard-to-reach areas. There are also some ultrasonic jewelry cleaners that feature various temperature settings, though these can be tricky unless you know which jewelry responds best to an increased temperature. In this case, it’s recommended to wash certain pieces separately to play it safe.

Specialized trays

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaners have grated trays, and in more advanced models, they have additional trays or attachments to accommodate watches, rings, and small earrings. These specialized trays secure these oddly shaped items, so they don’t bounce around in the tank. Watch holders are among the most common, as these trays secure the watchband to ensure the glass face doesn’t shatter and internal parts aren’t corrupted.

UV sanitizer

Some ultrasonic jewelry cleaners are equipped with UV sanitizers. The UV light targets many types of bacteria, including E. coli, staph, and salmonella, which are resistant to average cleaning solutions. It’s a premium feature that drives up the price, but it’s a decent investment if you plan to clean everyday items like dentures, some baby toys, and even keys.

Ultrasonic jewelry cleaner machine prices

The ultrasonic jewelry cleaners we examined were priced between $25 and $200.

Inexpensive: Models on the low-end range between $25 and $40 and generally have only one cleaning setting.

Mid-range: These models cost between $40 and $100 and are equipped with multiple cleaning cycle settings and tray accessories.

Expensive: Once you reach the high-end ultrasonic jewelry cleaners between $100 and $200, you’ll get UV sanitizers and a more thorough cleaning through unique steam and polish options.

Tips

• It’s strongly recommended to wash dentures in a separate cycle from your other items.
• Regularly cleaning your shaving blades in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner will extend their use. It also keeps them free of bacteria, reducing the risk of infection if you cut yourself.
• Depending on the size, you can give a deep cleaning to some of your metal utensils, like bottle openers, which are frequently used but not necessarily cleaned after each use.
• Keys come into contact with plenty of surfaces, so place them in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner to de-gunk them every now and then.
• The Gemological Institute of America is the authority on gemstones. Not only do they offer recommendations on how to clean various stones, they are a resource where you can obtain more information about long-term care for unique gemstone jewelry in your collection.

After spending time at a park or on vacation, it’s a good idea to give your jewelry a good cleaning. It’s easy to pick up dirt in grime in public places, especially new areas, so post-vacation sanitizing is always a smart choice.

FAQ

Q. Can I clean my retainer or clear braces (Invisalign) trays?
A. It depends on whether the manufacturer says it’s safe to clean them. It’s always good to defer to your orthodontist on this one. However, we did find several reports that consumers were able to clean them in models that have settings for extremely delicate jewelry.

Q. Can I clean both plastic and metal eyeglass frames in my ultrasonic jewelry cleaner?
A. While these machines are often designed to include eyeglasses, pay attention to the recommended settings to avoid permanent damage. If you have plastic frames, it is recommended to clean them manually. Metal frames, on the other hand, fare well in the cleaners. If they’re painted, however, you can get occasional chips and scratches in the paint during a cleaning cycle. It’s recommended to use the correct cycle for eyeglasses, and if it’s not indicated, opt for the most gentle one available.

Q. Can I clean my manicure tools in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner?
A. Many people do, and in fact, you can even spend a little more to get a model with a UV sanitizer to keep tools as clean as possible. However, if you have poor-quality manicure tools, such as ones with metal parts that are not secured in plastic handles, they could fall apart in the machine. To get the most out of your manicure as well as jewelry cleaner, you should invest in a quality manicure kit with well-constructed tools.