Oral-B Cross Action Electric Toothbrush Head, with CleanMaximiser Technology - Pack of 4, White

These are Oral-B's own Cross Action replacement heads, four to a pack, in white. Cross Action is the head Oral-B ships with most of its mid-range rotating toothbrushes, so if your handle came with a round head carrying angled bristles and a band of green fibres, this is very likely the refill you are looking for.

What makes Cross Action different

A standard round Oral-B head has its bristle tufts standing straight up. On Cross Action the tufts are set at 16 degrees, leaning in two directions, so as the head oscillates the tips are pushed into the gaps between teeth rather than skating over the front surfaces. That is the whole idea of the design, and it is why Oral-B positions it as its best general "whole mouth" head outside the iO range.

Oral-B quotes up to 100% more plaque removal than a regular manual toothbrush. Treat that as the manufacturer's own comparison against a manual brush, not against other electric heads: the honest gain over a cheaper Oral-B head is the angled bristle reaching the gaps, not a doubling of anything.

The fading bristles are a timer, not a fault

Each head carries CleanMaximiser indicator bristles. They start green and fade towards yellow as the head wears. When roughly half the colour has gone, the head is due for replacement. Dentists and Oral-B both work to the same rule of thumb, a new head every three months, so a four-pack is about a year's supply for one person, or six months for two people sharing a handle.

If your indicator is fading much faster than three months, you are probably pressing too hard. Handles with a pressure sensor, like the Oral-B Pro 3 3500, will flash to tell you.

Will it fit my toothbrush?

Cross Action fits every Oral-B rotating handle except the iO series and Pulsonic. In practice that covers Vitality, Pro 1, Pro 3, Pro 3 3500, Smart, Genius and the older Professional Care and Triumph models. It will not fit:

• Oral-B iO: iO uses a magnetic drive and its own heads. Buy iO Ultimate Clean heads instead.
• Oral-B Pulsonic: a sonic brush with a different fitting.
• Philips Sonicare or any non-Oral-B handle.

Price: check the per-head cost

At the time of writing Amazon itself is not selling this four-pack. There is no featured offer, and the cheapest new copy comes from a third-party seller at about £18.59 with free delivery, roughly £4.65 a head, against an RRP of £19.49. Before buying, compare it with:

• The Cross Action 10-pack in black, the same head in a bigger box. Normally the cheaper way to buy, but with no featured offer it was about £4.97 a head including delivery when this was written, so the four-pack currently wins.
• The Cross Action refill heads listing, which is worth checking for a lower multipack price.
• The Precision Clean 12-pack, a simpler head without angled bristles, at a fraction of the per-head price.

Prices on these move a lot, especially around sales events, so check each listing on the day.

Who it does not suit

• Sensitive or receding gums: the angled bristles are firmer in feel. Sensitive Clean heads use extra-soft bristles and are the better choice.
• Braces or a lot of dental work: an interdental or orthodontic head reaches round brackets better than a round head.
• Anyone buying purely on price: Precision Clean does most of the job for much less per head.

Specifications

Buy or skip?

Buy if you have a standard Oral-B handle and want the angled-bristle clean it was designed around: at today's prices the four-pack is the cheapest way to get genuine Cross Action heads. Skip it if you own an iO, where these will not fit at all, or if per-head cost matters more than the angled bristles, in which case Precision Clean is the better buy.