Best Food Vacuum Sealers, Expert Tips

Cooking Discussions
1

I have researched about the best food vacuum sealers over the past few days because I want to improve food storage, reduce waste, and preserve leftovers more efficiently. I’ve gone through expert reviews on sites like Wirecutter (New York Times), Consumer Reports, and Popular Mechanics—and two models consistently rank at the top:

FoodSaver Vacuum Sealer Machine
https://www.amazon.com/FoodSaver-FM2100-Manual-Sealing-Preservation/dp/B00LUGK5QW?th=1
Nesco Deluxe Food VS-12 Vacuum Sealer
https://www.amazon.com/VS-12-Deluxe-Starter-Viewing-Compact/dp/B01KCK9W1K

The problem is, I’m torn between these two. I mainly plan to use it for freezing meats, sealing dry goods like rice and beans, preserving leftovers, and possibly for sous vide cooking in the future.
Do any of you use either of these?
Which one offers better long-term reliability, ease of use, and strong seals?
Would love your recommendations or any other suggestions.
Thanks in advance for your help!

2

I have a somewhat older FoodSaver, gathering dust in my basement. I used it a bit when I first bought it, but I found it to be extremely frustrating in most applications because if even a single drop of liquid from the food comes in contact with the top of the bag, the entire vacuum and sealing process will fail. And so I never use it. I think some newer sealers deal with this in better ways; for me that would be my number one consideration when buying a new one. YMMV, but something to consider.

3

over the last 25+ years i’ve had several FoodSaver models and found them all good except for one space saving model which fit nicely on the counter, but lacked the functionality of the other models.