Early in my cooking career, I made the difficult decision to stop lying to myself and admit that juicing citrus with my hands was not working out. After switching to a simple, ergonomic KitchenAid citrus juicer, I realized just how much juice I'd been leaving on the table by inefficiently (and messily) squeezing lemons, limes, and oranges with brute force. Since that fateful switch, I have tested several types of juice presses over a decade of working in food as a writer and editor.

Whether the model is manual or electric, stand or handheld, the right citrus press maximizes the amount of juice extracted from a fruit with no great cost to your hands. Today, there are citrus juicers for every kind of task, from filling a pitcher with lime juice for margaritas to adding a splash of lemon to salad dressing. I asked citrus-loving chefs and bartenders for the juicers they consistently reach for, and I tested many popular models myself to find the presses that squeeze the most amount of juice with the least amount of effort. All of my picks below are dishwasher safe. If you're looking for other ways to break down fruit, we also have guides to the best blenders and food processors.