The best paper shredders you can buy for home or small office

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The best paper shredders you can buy for home or small office
  • Whether you have a home office or just need to dispose of documents containing personal information, a paper shredder for home use can save you time while keeping your information safe.
  • Our top pick, the Bonsaii Paper Shredder, offers generous capacity and a long run time, making it ideal for home offices, personal use, and more.
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With all of the recent data breaches, it seems to be more and more difficult to keep your personal and financial information safe. There's no foolproof way to protect yourself from a data breach (especially with personal data now stored digitally) but a paper shredder can be your first line of defense in keeping printed information private.

From shredding junk mail to getting rid of business files and documents, a paper shredder isn't just a home convenience, it's a necessity. Maybe it's time to clean out your old filing cabinet, or maybe you just want to keep up with your business' document turnover. Regardless of how you plan to use it, you'll need to have the right shredder for the job.

We looked for shredders that offer dependable performance, are versatile, and accommodate different budgets. Some of these shredders are high-capacity machines that need no cool-down time, while others are more basic but also more affordable. Most of them are multipurpose machines that don't just shred paper: They can tear up CDs, credit cards, staples, and paper clips, saving you valuable time. A number of these machines also feature jam-proof designs and technology, helping you to avoid the frustration of having to stop your work to deal with paper jams.

All of these units are compact enough to be used at home, and if you're running a business, we included options that are hardy enough for high-volume, frequent use. When a paper shredder could potentially prevent a case of stolen identity or fraud, this is an investment that you can't afford to go without.

Here are our top picks for the best paper shredder:

Keep reading for more details about our top picks.

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Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.

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The best paper shredder overall

The best paper shredder overall
With 240 minutes of continuous run-time and the ability to shred credit cards, CDs, and more, the Bonsai Paper Shredder offers the capacity of a commercial shredder at an affordable price.

The Bonsai Paper Shredder offers large-scale capacity and superior performance when compared with other home paper shredders, yet still comes in at under $300. The 4S30 model offers a 10-sheet shredding capacity, so you can quickly shred even larger documents. Additionally, this shredder is strong enough to cut not only paper, but also credit cards, CDs and DVDs, clips, and staples, saving you time and making disposing of junk mail, files, and documents easy. The micro-cut shred creates tiny particles, protecting your personal information.

The shredder's 240-minute continuous running time allows you to shred large amounts of material in a single session. After 240 minutes, the shredder only needs a 10-minute cool-down time, so it's a great choice if you have large shredding jobs or plan to use the shredder frequently throughout the day. Automatic jam detection identifies when the machine is overloaded, preventing the jam from happening.

On Amazon, one user wrote, "The shreds are micro-fine so security is not arguable. It is fairly quiet — quite easy to have normal conversation over it. I bought it as an alternative to paying the shredding company over $1,500 to shred my business documents. It has run nearly eight hours a day for weeks on end and just keeps chugging along."

Pros: Shreds into micro-pieces instead of long strips, continuous run-time of 240 minutes, automatic jam detection, energy-saving system, capable of shredding paper, CDs, staples, credit cards, and more

Cons: Larger casters would roll more smoothly, no safety shutoff, high price point

The best budget paper shredder

The best budget paper shredder
For everyday home use, the Pen + Gear 6-Sheet Crosscut Paper/Credit Card Shredder offers a combination of helpful features and overall value.

A paper shredder with huge capacity and loads of features generally carries a higher price tag. For everyday use around the home, the Pen + Gear 6-Sheet Crosscut Paper/Credit Card Shredder strikes a balance between features and affordability. This shredder's six-sheet capacity and ability to shred credit cards, staples, and even small paper clips, means that it's up to the task of most home shredding needs. And, at under $40, it's an affordable purchase option if you only need a shredder that you occasionally use for junk mail and documents.

While this shredder is affordable, it still has plenty of features that make for an impressive performance. It's equipped with overheat protection, so you don't have to worry about potentially burning the motor out, and the ShredSafe feed-entry has an angled slot to prevent fingers from ending up where they shouldn't. The four-mode switch includes a jam-remover function, and the shredder's compact design means you can easily keep it under a desk or tuck it away into a corner of the room.

The Pen + Gear 6-Sheet Crosscut Paper/Credit Card Shredder has received positive feedback from Walmart buyers. One owner wrote, "In one day, this shredder knocked out six bags of shredded documents. Yes, it does overheat so you have to give it a little break every so often. But it did not jam one single time or malfunction in any way."

Another Walmart buyer said, "The size is perfect for our small home office since it doesn't take up too much floor space or is too noisy. The only complaint I find is the window on the front that allows you to see how full the basket is could be a tad larger."

Pros: Low price point, jam-remover function, overheat protection, suitable for shredding paper, credit cards, staples, and paper clips

Cons: Louder than some other units, six-sheet capacity means shredding larger documents can take a while

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The best jam-proof paper shredder

The best jam-proof paper shredder
The Fellowes Powershred Jam Proof Paper and Credit Card Shredder has a unique design for preventing jams, so you can work without interruption.

If you have ever tried to undo a jam in a paper shredder, you know that it can take valuable time out of your day. The Fellowes Powershred Jam Proof Paper and Credit Card Shredder is designed to prevent jams from happening in the first place. This machine's jam-proof system helps to eliminate them and has the power to work through tough jobs. It can handle up to 12 sheets of paper at a time and is tough enough to shred credit cards, CDs, paper clips, and staples.

One of the most valuable features is its SafeSense Technology, which disables the shredder when hands touch the paper opening. Additionally, the shredder is equipped with an Energy Savings System to keep power consumption down.

This shredder can run for up to 10 minutes at a time before requiring a 20-minute cool-down period. Its cross-cut design eliminates the long pieces that other shredders create, making for a more secure shred.

The Fellowes Powershred Jam Proof Paper and Credit Card Shredder has a high Amazon rating among buyers. One owner wrote, "When the folded sheets hit the cutters, the shredder briefly stopped and put itself in reverse to clear the jam. It did that a few times and the folded sheets straightened themselves out and it chopped them up. I was pretty impressed."

Pros: Jam-proof system, safety shutoff when hands touch the paper opening, pull-out bin for easy cleaning, capable of shredding 12 sheets of paper and credit cards, CDs, staples, and more

Cons: Needs to cool down after 10 minutes of use, long cool-down period

The best high-volume paper shredder

The best high-volume paper shredder
For large jobs and high performance, the Swingline 20-Sheet Cross-Cut Commercial Shredder is up for the task.

The Swingline 20-Sheet Cross-Cut Commercial Shredder is a heavy-duty shredder capable of handling high-volume jobs. The generously sized 19-gallon bin allows you to shred for long periods at a time without stopping, and the shredder can process up to 20 sheets of paper at a time. The nonstop jam-free technology is designed for continuous, seamless operation, so you can focus on feeding more documents, rather than dealing with paper jams.

This shredder is ideal for a home office where you need to quickly shred large volumes and need a shredder that's dependable and easy to operate. This Swingline shredder can handle DVDs, CDs, credit cards, paper clips, staples, and paper. The cross-cut design results in a small shred size of 0.16 inches by 1.75 inches, for maximized security. This shredder is also equipped with a bin sensor that alerts you when the bin is getting full. The unit is backed by a two-year limited warranty, and the cutter comes with a limited lifetime warranty.

While this shredder offers the generous capacity and performance that you see in many top-of-the-line commercial units, it comes at a more reasonable price that's practical for a home business or home office.

Pros: Continuous operation without cool-down, capacity to shred 20 sheets at a time, nonstop jam-free technology, shreds credit cards, CDs, and more

Cons: Requires oil to function, higher price point than some lower-end shredders, pricey (and overkill) for casual home use

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The best manual paper shredder

The best manual paper shredder
For light shredding needs, the Nakabayashi Co. 3-Way Manual Shredder is portable and lightweight, and it operates without power.

One downside to most paper shredders is that they're bulky, which can be an issue if you're tight on space. If you only use a shredder occasionally and don't want to sacrifice floor space to a unit that you don't need often, the Nakabayashi Co. 3-Way Manual Shredder could be an ideal solution. This manual shredder requires no power, is compact, and is portable. Measuring just 12.6 by 7.6 by 5.9 inches in size, it's small enough to tuck into a drawer for storage.

Though this shredder is small, it can shred a standard piece of A4 paper, CDs, and credit cards. Because the shredder operates by hand-turning the handle, it creates less noise than other electrically powered units.

The Nakabayashi Co. 3-Way Manual Shredder has generally positive feedback from owners. Buyers like that it's silent and performs well, but stress that it is for very light-duty shredding.

Pros: Compact, no need for electricity, quiet operation, capable of shredding paper, credit cards, and CDs

Cons: Suitable only for smaller-volume shredding, cannot shred paper larger than A4 size, handle is small

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