It's not too early to start thinking about end-of-the-year finances and ultimately, 2023 tax filing soon after. And that means getting all your documentation in order. For every document you need to save, you'll probably be left with a half-dozen or so that should be junked, some of them containing sensitive financial information. Fortunately, shredders have come a long way since the days depicted in the movie Argo. (A key plot point: the failure of government shredders to fully destroy sensitive photos.)
With most of today's shredders, you can be reasonably sure that your documents will be sliced up finely enough to be in no danger of being pieced back together by any group...short of, perhaps, a national intelligence service. See below for the top models we've tested in recent years, then some deeper advice on how to shop for a shredder.
Overview
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![Fellowes Powershred 99Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Offices With Heavy Paper VolumeFellowes Powershred 99Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder
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![Fellowes AutoMax 130C Auto Feed Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Micro Offices Needing Fast ShreddingFellowes AutoMax 130C Auto Feed Shredder
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![Swingline Style+ Super Cross-Cut Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Appearance-Conscious Small OfficesSwingline Style+ Super Cross-Cut Shredder
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![TRU RED 16-Sheet Micro Cut Commercial Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Businesses Requiring Heavy-Duty, Secure ShreddingTRU RED 16-Sheet Micro Cut Commercial Shredder
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![Fellowes Powershred 99Ms Micro-Cut Shredder]()
A Solid Alternative to the TRU REDFellowes Powershred 99Ms Micro-Cut Shredder
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![Fellowes Powershred 79Ci]()
Best Shredder for Households and Home OfficesFellowes Powershred 79Ci
You Can Trust Our Reviews
Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
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![Fellowes Powershred 99Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Offices With Heavy Paper VolumeFellowes Powershred 99Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder
Pros & Cons
Bottom Line:
Bottom Line:
The Fellowes Powershred 99Ci 100% Jam Proof Cross-Cut Shredder is an excellent heavy-duty shredder. It's speedy, has high paper capacity, can shred a variety of materials, and can operate for a long time before needing a break. -
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![Fellowes AutoMax 130C Auto Feed Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Micro Offices Needing Fast ShreddingFellowes AutoMax 130C Auto Feed Shredder
Pros & Cons
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Bottom Line:
The Fellowes AutoMax 130C Auto Feed Shredder can automatically shred a stack of up to 130 sheets, and you can manually feed twice as many sheets as it is rated for. -
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![Swingline Style+ Super Cross-Cut Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Appearance-Conscious Small OfficesSwingline Style+ Super Cross-Cut Shredder
Pros & Cons
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Bottom Line:
The Swingline Style+ Super Cross-Cut Shredder is small, stylish, and lightning fast, and it holds more shredded paper than you might expect in its tiny basket. -
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![TRU RED 16-Sheet Micro Cut Commercial Shredder]()
Best Shredder for Businesses Requiring Heavy-Duty, Secure ShreddingTRU RED 16-Sheet Micro Cut Commercial Shredder
Pros & Cons
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The TRU RED 16-Sheet Micro Cut Commercial Shredder does nearly everything right, combining secure shredding of up to 20 sheets at once, good basket capacity, the ability to shred many non-paper items, and sustained shredding before required cool-down periods. -
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![Fellowes Powershred 99Ms Micro-Cut Shredder]()
A Solid Alternative to the TRU REDFellowes Powershred 99Ms Micro-Cut Shredder
Pros & Cons
Bottom Line:
Bottom Line:
The Fellowes Powershred 99Ms Micro-Cut shreds paper into small enough pieces to provide secure disposal, even for very sensitive documents. -
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![Fellowes Powershred 79Ci]()
Best Shredder for Households and Home OfficesFellowes Powershred 79Ci
Pros & Cons
Bottom Line:
Bottom Line:
Simple to operate and able to shred all sorts of office material, the well-rounded Fellowes Powershred 79Ci can work well as a home or home-office shredder, or as a personal shredder in a small office.Learn More Fellowes Powershred 79Ci Review Review -
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Best For | Best Shredder for Offices With Heavy Paper Volume | Best Shredder for Micro Offices Needing Fast Shredding | Best Shredder for Appearance-Conscious Small Offices | Best Shredder for Businesses Requiring Heavy-Duty, Secure Shredding | A Solid Alternative to the TRU RED | Best Shredder for Households and Home Offices | Best Shredder for Offices With Heavy Paper Volume | Best Shredder for Micro Offices Needing Fast Shredding | Best Shredder for Appearance-Conscious Small Offices |
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Buying Guide: The Best Shredders
One way of classifying shredders is by the way they cut paper. Strip-cut shredders cut sheets of paper into long strips. They are fast, but they don't provide much security, as the strips are usually large enough that they could be reassembled by a patient, determined person. Cross-cut shredders, somewhat more secure, chop the paper into short, thin strips. And micro-cut shredders dice paper into tiny diamonds or bits of confetti, and are suitable for shredding confidential—and in some cases secret—papers.
Shredder security, measured by the smallness of the shredded bits, is determined by the internationally accepted DIN 66399 standard. The range of security runs from P-1 (insecure) to P-7 (suitable for shredding top-secret documents). A P-4 security level is fine for most offices, while ones needing to dispose of particularly sensitive documents may want to up that to P-5.
Modern shredders can handle more than sheets of paper. Many of today's models can slice through CDs, credit and ID cards, paper clips, and staples. Some can make quick work even of thick envelopes full of junk mail.
Speed, based on the number of sheets you can feed through the shredder, one after another, is important. So is the feeder capacity (how many sheets you can shred at once) and the size of the basket where the shredded paper ends up. Run time—the length of time you can continuously feed paper through the shredder before it needs to cool down—and the length of the cooling-down period are other factors.
Key Shredder Features: What to Look For
The best shredder for you depends on your particular needs: Consider its speed, capacity, run time, and security (or the size of its shred). For example, a smaller office may want a fast shredder to run through a modest amount of paper quickly, while a larger office with more paper to dispose of may want a higher capacity or a longer run time. Offices that handle very sensitive documents will want a micro-cut shredder to dice the paper into fine confetti. Note also that the smaller the shred size, the more paper that will fit in the waste bin before you need to empty it. Strip-cut shredders tend to generate large, airy bundles of shredded materials; the finer shredders' output is easier to compact.
Compact shredders can fit in small spaces, and these may be best for home-office use, or as personal shredders in either a home or an office. Some offer safety features such as automatic shutoff if one's hand touches the feeder slot. Others offer jam protection. Shredders, as a group, are not known for their exterior elegance, but some compact shredders are stylish enough to blend in nicely with an office's décor.
The Kindest Cut of All
Don't put a price on security—a shredder can be a terrific investment. And though you may find it most useful in the spring, after you've prepared and submitted your taxes, it can help you protect your finances and your identity throughout the whole year, all with just a few minutes of work. The shredders featured here run the gamut from personal and home-office models to ones suitable for heavy-duty shredding in a large office.
One final note: Before you start shredding, you might want to check out our reviews of the top scanners we've tested for digitizing your documents before destruction.