Electric Breast Pumps

More expensive, but also more efficient for frequent use

Inexpensive manual breast pumps work well if you don't plan on breast-feeding for very long, or plan on only occasionally having to pump. But if you're heading back to work and need to plan out your pumping and feeding schedule, paying more will get you a faster, more efficient electric breast pump.

There are two basic types within this category: mini-electric pumps, which express milk from one side at a time, and double electric pumps. Both save moms from having to pump by hand, which can be tiring and tedious. Double breast pumps are much larger than mini-electrics and much more expensive, but in exchange they save time by expressing both breasts at once. The baby gear authors of "Baby Bargains" describe double pumps as the best option for working moms and note that they're also more comfortable than mini-electrics.

Electric pumps are designed to be portable and can be plugged into an electrical outlet or powered by batteries. Many double pumps come with carrying bags or backpacks to make them more portable and discreet for the workplace.

Mini-electric pumps are more compact and less expensive, but in general, they don't get great reviews. Although it seems like they'd be a good compromise between a slow manual pump and a fast double pump, some users are frustrated that they don't work faster. We did find good reviews for one single-side model, the Medela Swing (*Est. $135). Moms posting comments to BabiesRUs.com, Target.com and Amazon.com love the Swing's small size and portability, noting that it's best for occasional use. A handful, though, complain about leaked milk, poor suction and poor design. The Swing, like a number of Medela breast pumps, operates in two phases -- a faster stimulation phase followed by a slower expression phase, designed to mimic how a baby nurses. The Medela Swing breast pump comes with a power cord, but you can also use batteries. It's worth noting that an inexpensive and well-reviewed double pump, the Ameda Purely Yours (discussed below), doesn't cost much more than the Medela Swing.

Another mini-electric by Medela, the Single Deluxe (*Est. $60), does less well in hundreds of reviews on Amazon.com and Target.com, where many users complain that it's noisy, inefficient and breaks easily. Overall, moms are split down the middle on the Medela Single Deluxe.

User reviews pan the now-discontinued Evenflo Comfort Select Single and its replacement model, the Evenflo Comfort Select Performance Single (*Est. $35). Moms on Target.com and Amazon.com say the Evenflo's mini-electric breast pump is noisy and loses suction.

Double breast pumps, though more expensive, are preferred over single-side pumps by moms. Two models get the most love from reviewers: the Medela Pump In Style Advanced (*Est. $280) and the Ameda Purely Yours (*Est. $160, pump only). The Pump In Style Advanced is an update of the similarly popular Pump In Style Original, which has been discontinued and is no longer widely available. The Medela Advanced, like a number of Medela models, is supposed to simulate the way an infant nurses. For the first two minutes of a session (or until the mom's milk lets down and she pushes a button) the pump operates in what Medela calls stimulation phase, with faster bursts of sucking. The pump then switches to its expression phase, with slower and more forceful pressure.

The Pump In Style Advanced is the most widely reviewed of double electric pumps, by both expert reviewers and lactation experts as well as by moms. The vast majority of Amazon.com contributors give it the maximum of 5 stars. Reviewers praise its speed at expressing milk and say it's easy to clean. Most describe the model as quiet, though a significant minority say it's noisy, so the noise level appears to be subjective.

Aside from a handful of complaints about broken motors, the bulk of the remaining criticisms we found have to do with the pump's packaging. The Pump In Style Advanced comes with a variety of carrying bag styles, including a shoulder bag, a backpack and a messenger bag. Some users complain that the backpack is poorly made and too small to contain all the parts, and others say the messenger bag doesn't close well. (It's worth noting that only the messenger bag style allows the owner to remove the pump from the bag, for moms who wish to use it by itself.) Another group of reviewers say they don't like the fit or comfort of the breast shields that come with the Pump In Style Advanced. (Alternate sizes can be purchased separately.) On the whole, though, Medela gets high marks both for its customer service and its product.

Medela also sells a pricier, hands-free double breast pump called the Freestyle (*Est. $360). It's not as widely reviewed as the Pump In Style Advanced or the Ameda Purely Yours, but it tends to fare pretty well in reviews we could find. The Freestyle breast pump features the same two-phase expression as the Pump In Style Advanced, and has a small, lightweight pump with digital display that can be removed from the black tote bag it comes with, as well as a rechargeable battery that promises three hours of pumping. It also has a memory feature that remembers your favorite settings. Online reviewers like the fact that it's lightweight, while a few complain that it's noisy or that they had to replace the breast shields that come with the unit, which they found uncomfortable. Bra adapters and a belt allow users to pump without having to hold anything, but some reviewers, including three Washington Post staffers, say this is difficult to set up and use. Many reviewers talk of skipping the hands-free option with the Freestyle -- some even using a separately purchased hands-free pumping bra.

The Ameda Purely Yours (*Est. $160, pump only) has fewer online reviews than the Pump In Style Advanced, but those who do post comments about it tend to say they love it. It gets high marks on Amazon.com, Epinions.com and Diapers.com. In addition to being cheaper than the Medela Pump In Style Advanced, the Purely Yours is lighter, though some online reviewers complain that their units are noisy. Purely Yours is known for a special feature: a diaphragm that sits between the milk and the tubing, guarding against the small possibility of milk or condensation getting in the tubes, thereby eliminating the need to clean them. This protects against the possibility of breast milk being contaminated by moisture or by airborne contaminants. One disadvantage of the Ameda Purely Yours, according to the authors of "Baby Bargains," is that it is sold in fewer retail outlets than Medela, making it harder to get replacement parts. (They can, of course, be ordered online.) On the other hand, Ameda's customer service gets high marks in consumer reviews. Most reviewers and experts say the Purely Yours combines value with a good price, and for those reasons the model's pump-only version is our Best Reviewed top budget double pump.

The Purely Yours can be purchased alone or with a shoulder bag (*Est. $210) or backpack (*Est. $240). A more expensive version, the Ameda Purely Yours Ultra (*Est. $290), has more suction and speed settings and comes with extras including flanges in three sizes, plus a shoulder bag and insulated tote. We weren't able to find many consumer or expert reviews for the Ultra, but what little we found was mostly positive.

The Philips Avent Twin Electronic breast pump (*Est. $250), formerly known as the Avent Isis IQ Duo, is recommended by several experts, but is not widely reviewed by consumers, making its real-world effectiveness hard to assess. The Avent Twin Electronic is known for its customization; users pump the handle to achieve the desired suction pattern, and then the pump's electronic memory takes over, mimicking the rhythm. The pump also has massage cushions that are supposed to stimulate production. Comments on Amazon.com, where we found the bulk of this pump's user ratings, indicate that most people find the Avent Twin Electronic comfortable, efficient and easy to clean, and like its customization. Some complain that it can be difficult to set up and prone to spills. The Avent Twin Electronic comes with a shoulder bag, cooling pouches and four bottles in two sizes.