Philips Avent Premium Steriliser vs Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced: Which Fits Your Feeding Routine?

COMPARISON · FEEDING & BOTTLES

Somewhere around the third night feed, standing at the kitchen worktop shaking water out of freshly sterilised bottles at 2 a.m., most parents ask themselves the same question: is there a better way to do this? Electric steam sterilisers promise speed, simplicity and peace of mind, but the two names that dominate UK baby registries, Philips Avent and Tommee Tippee, take subtly different approaches to the same job.

The Philips Avent Premium Steriliser and Dryer bundles steam sterilisation with a filtered-air drying cycle, so bottles come out ready to fill. The Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced strips things back to pure speed: five minutes of steam, done. One costs nearly twice the other. Neither is a clear-cut winner for every family, and that is exactly what makes this comparison worth unpacking.

We looked at verified specs, real parent feedback (anonymised, as always) and day-to-day usability to help you decide which steriliser fits your routine, your worktop and your budget.

Lil' Bubba's verdicts

• Best Overall: Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced · 8.5/10 - Unbeatable speed and value for most families
• Best for Convenience: Philips Avent Premium Steriliser & Dryer · 8.0/10 - Bottles come out dry and ready to fill

Quick comparison

	Philips Avent Premium	Tommee Tippee Super-Steam
Price	~£91	~£48
Sterilise time	6 min	5 min
Built-in dryer	Yes (filtered air, ~40 min total)	No
Capacity	6 bottles + accessories	6 bottles + accessories
Sterile hold	24 hours (lid closed)	24 hours (lid closed)
Wattage	650 W	~600 W
Dimensions	30 x 19 x 38 cm	36 x 47 x 29 cm
Our rating	/ 10	/ 10

How we picked these two

We started with the electric sterilisers most frequently added to BubsNest registries and cross-referenced them with parent feedback from forums, retailer reviews and social media. The Philips Avent Premium and Tommee Tippee Super-Steam consistently came up as the two sterilisers parents weigh against each other, largely because they represent the two main schools of thought: all-in-one sterilise-and-dry versus pure-speed sterilise-only. Both are widely available in the UK, both fit six bottles, and both use chemical-free natural steam.

What to look for in a baby bottle steriliser

Sterilisation method. Electric steam sterilisers heat water to produce steam that kills 99.9% of bacteria in minutes. They are the most popular option for UK families. Microwave sterilisers are cheaper but less convenient. Cold-water sterilisers (like Milton) use a tablet solution and need no electricity but take 15 minutes and require regular tablet purchases.

Speed. Most electric steam sterilisers complete a cycle in 5-8 minutes. If you are doing six or more sterilising runs a day, every minute saved adds up.

Drying. Steam sterilisation leaves bottles wet. Some units include a filtered-air drying cycle so bottles come out ready to fill. Others leave you to air-dry or shake bottles out manually. A built-in dryer adds cost but removes a step from your routine.

Capacity. Six bottles is the standard. Check whether the internal rack accommodates your bottle brand, particularly if you use taller bottles like Dr Brown's.

Sterile hold time. Most electric sterilisers keep contents sterile for 24 hours with the lid closed. After that, you need to re-run the cycle.

Maintenance. Hard-water areas mean limescale builds up on the heating plate. All electric sterilisers need periodic descaling, but some designs make it easier than others.

1. Philips Avent Premium Steriliser and Dryer / 10 · Best for Convenience

The Philips Avent Premium is the only mainstream electric steriliser in the UK that bundles steam sterilisation with a filtered-air drying cycle in a single unit. You load your bottles, press one button, and about 40 minutes later everything comes out sterilised, dry and ready to fill. No shaking water out of bottles, no drying rack, no damp teats sitting on a muslin.

It offers three modes: sterilise only (around 10 minutes including heat-up), sterilise and dry (40 minutes), or dry only (30 minutes). The internal rack is modular, adapting to three configurations for small accessories, medium items like breast pump parts, or a full load of six bottles. A drip tray sits above the heating plate to catch residual milk droplets, which helps prevent the burnt-milk smell that plagues some sterilisers.

What parents love

• True one-step convenience. One parent shared: "It saves you so much time. Load it, press the button, come back to dry, ready-to-use bottles."
• Sleep-deprivation proof. Parents we hear from regularly praise the single-button design. One parent of twins told us it was "so simple with just a click of a button, even at 3 a.m."
• Eliminates the drying step entirely. No separate drying rack needed. Everything lives inside the unit between feeds, keeping the worktop clear.
• Generous capacity. Six full-size Avent bottles plus teats, lids and soothers fit comfortably. The modular trays also accommodate breast pump parts.

What to know before you buy

• Non-Avent bottles may not fit cleanly. Parents report that bottles from other brands sometimes need to be angled or leaned inside the rack. If you mix bottle brands, check compatibility first.
• Limescale builds up quickly in hard-water areas. Several parents note that the heating plate needs descaling more often than expected, regardless of whether you use filtered water.
• Premium price. At around £91, it costs nearly twice as much as sterilise-only alternatives. One parent felt it had a somewhat "plasticky feel for the money."

Best for

• Exclusively bottle-feeding parents who want bottles dry and ready to fill
• Parents of twins or multiples running through six or more bottles a day
• First-time parents who want one appliance to handle everything
• Families already using Philips Avent bottles and breast pumps

2. Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced / 10 · Best Overall

The Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced takes the opposite approach to the Philips Avent: it does one job, does it fast and keeps the price down. Five minutes of natural steam, 99.9% of bacteria killed, done. No drying cycle, no extra modes, no frills. For many families, that simplicity is the whole point.

It runs on just 80 ml of water and costs roughly 24p per month in electricity. The cool-touch exterior means the outer body stays safe to touch during and after the cycle, a genuine reassurance if you have a curious toddler in the kitchen. The two-tier stackable tray organises bottles and accessories neatly, and the easy-lift handles let you remove trays without steam burning your fingers. Contents stay sterile for 24 hours with the lid closed.

What parents love

• Fastest cycle on the market. One parent told us: "Six sterile bottles ready before the kettle had even boiled twice. At 3 a.m. that speed is everything."
• Brilliantly simple to use. A parent shared that even when completely sleep-deprived, the single-button, four-part design was "impossible to get wrong."
• Safe around young children. The cool-touch exterior gives parents peace of mind when a toddler is nearby. Several parents highlighted this as a genuine differentiator.
• Practically free to run. At roughly 24p per month in electricity, it costs less than a single pack of cold-water sterilising tablets.

What to know before you buy

• No drying function. Bottles come out wet. Parents tell us that shaking out water and waiting for bottles to air-dry, especially at night, is the biggest drawback. One parent noted they "expected at least a basic drying element for the price."
• Regular descaling required. The manufacturer recommends descaling every 14 days. Parents in hard-water areas report that the heating plate can discolour after just a few cycles.
• Taller bottles may not fit. If you use Dr Brown's or similarly tall bottles, check the internal height before buying. One parent described discovering this after purchase as "a really annoying surprise."

Best for

• Parents who want the fastest possible sterilising cycle
• First-time parents looking for simple, foolproof operation
• Small kitchens where worktop space is at a premium
• Families on a budget who do not want to pay extra for a dryer they may not need

What about other sterilisers?

The Milton Cold Water Steriliser (from around £22) is the NHS-trusted classic. No electricity needed, just a sterilising tablet and a 15-minute soak. It is the cheapest entry point and ideal for travel, but the ongoing cost of tablets and the soak time make it less convenient for heavy daily use. We carry the Milton in our catalogue if you want to compare directly.

The MAM Microwave Steriliser (around £62 as a set with bottles) is a good option if you already use MAM bottles and have a microwave with enough internal space. Microwave sterilisers are compact and affordable, but they obviously cannot run without a microwave and they do not have a drying function.

If you want UV sterilisation rather than steam, keep an eye on the Nuby UV Steriliser range, which has picked up multiple UK parenting awards. UV sterilisers use no water and no heat, so there is nothing to descale and nothing to dry. They are a genuinely different technology worth exploring if steam sterilisers do not appeal.

How to choose

If your top priority is having bottles come out dry and ready to fill with zero extra steps, the Philips Avent Premium Steriliser and Dryer is the only mainstream option that delivers that. It is particularly strong for Avent-ecosystem families and for parents of multiples who are cycling through bottles constantly. The trade-off is a higher price and a 40-minute combined cycle.

If you value speed and simplicity above all else, and you are happy to shake bottles dry or leave them on a rack for a few minutes, the Tommee Tippee Super-Steam Advanced is the smarter buy. It sterilises a minute faster, costs nearly half as much, and the cool-touch exterior is a genuine safety bonus. For most families, this is the one we would reach for first.

Neither steriliser is a bad choice. The real question is whether the built-in dryer is worth an extra £40-50 to you. If you are doing six-plus bottles a day and hate the air-drying step, it probably is. If you are more relaxed about it, save the money.

Add it to your Nest

Whichever steriliser you choose, you can add it straight to your free BubsNest registry so friends and family know exactly what you need. One less thing to think about.