Ninja CREAMi Swirl vs Nostalgia Electric Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker

Buy the Ninja CREAMi Swirl if you want one machine that turns fruit, yogurt, protein shakes and custard bases into scoops or soft serve, with pint-based processing and a built-in swirl handle. Buy the Nostalgia if you mainly want a self-cooling machine that churns a liquid mix into soft serve in under 18 minutes and dispenses from a lever. The Ninja is the more versatile and better-built unit, but it needs pre-frozen pints and a day of planning. The Nostalgia is simpler to run but limited to churned mixes and a 1.25-quart bowl.

• Choose the Ninja CREAMi Swirl if you want to process pre-frozen pints into scoops, soft serve, fruit whip or protein desserts and value the swirl handle and 13 programs.
• Choose the Nostalgia Electric Soft Serve Maker if you want to pour in a liquid mix and get soft serve in under 18 minutes with a lever dispenser and 10 thickness settings.