Ninja Professional Plus Blender BN701: problems, parts and running costs
Checked: 2026-10-02
Summary
The BN701 is a loud, plastic-pitcher blender that crushes ice well but stalls on thick or fibrous blends that need added liquid or stirring. It has no routine consumables, so the yearly running cost is mostly electricity plus eventual replacement of the pitcher, blade or motor base. It is a good buy at $90 or less, still reasonable near $110, and hard to justify above $120.
Common problems and fixes
- Thick and fibrous blends do not circulate — Shouldit scored a plain smoothie 4.6 and a frozen-fruit smoothie 6.5, with kale, oats and berries resisting homogenization; owners fix it by adding liquid and stopping to stir. The stacked blade has no tamper, so this is a design tradeoff, not a defect, and warranty does not cover it. [2]
- Noise — the most repeated complaint in owner summaries and independent tests; no trustworthy decibel figure exists for this exact model, and there is no fix short of judging it in store. Not a warranty matter. [4]
- Plastic pitcher scratches — seen in independent testing and mentioned in owner reports, from normal use with ice and frozen loads. Cosmetic, not covered by warranty. [2]
- Blade tower handling — the removable stacked blade is very sharp and is not locked into the pitcher, so it must be held by the shaft; misuse is not a warranty defect. [7]
- Accessory and revision mismatch — a March 2026 exact-model owner reported that a newer BN701 base connection would not accept BN751 accessories, and SharkNinja publishes no revision suffix; check fit against the actual unit before ordering parts. Not a warranty item. [5]
Parts and consumables
- 72 oz pitcher and lid — $72.99 from SharkNinja in October 2026; replaced only after cracking or leaking, which owners report but too thinly to state a rate. [1]
- Motor base — $94.99 from SharkNinja in October 2026; replaced after a motor or switch failure, which is not common enough to quantify. [1]
- Stacked blade assembly — no reliable standalone price was captured; dishwasher safe on the top rack, but it is not locked into the pitcher. [7]
- No routine consumables — no filters, pods or subscriptions are required. [1]
Yearly running cost
Owners spend nothing on filters or pods. Running cost is electricity for normal household use plus eventual replacement of the pitcher, blade or motor base, and electricity is negligible next to the purchase and parts cost. Not enough data to state a defensible yearly figure.
When it is a good buy
SharkNinja listed the BN701 at $89.99 in October 2026, reduced from $119.99, while Best Buy, Walmart, Staples and Abt clustered at $109.99 the same month. At $90 or less it is excellent for large cold batches; near $110 it is still a good buy for ice and frozen drinks; above $120 the one-year warranty, plastic pitcher and parts prices matter more. Alternatives: a personal blender if you make one daily drink and want less washing; a Ninja BN801-class system if you also want food processing or cups; a Vitamix-class machine if you need a tamper, finer texture on difficult loads and a longer warranty.