Medela Harmony- Best Manual Breast Pump

Touted as the best manual breast pump, this is the pump for moms who pump infrequently or want to relieve engorgement. Medela Harmony and the Avent Isis, both manual pumps, earn similarly high ratings, but Medela Harmony overtakes Avent Isis in many ways. Praised constantly by moms in many breast pumps reviews, this lightweight manual pump does live up to its name by being cost effective, efficient and powerful, easy to use, quiet, convenient, easy to clean, safe and provides gentle comfort.

Medela Harmony Manual Breast Pump

The Good

1. Cost Effective

- As a manual pump, it’s definitely cheaper than an electric pump.

2. Efficient and Powerful

- The two-pattern pumping system is great for maximizing milk flow and is thus, a reliable reliever for engorgement.

- Some moms reported being able to get a whole feeding in a few minutes. Once you have gotten the knack of handling a manual pump, you can pump between 4 and 6 ounces within 15 minutes!

3. Easy to Use (User Friendly Design)

- You can nurse your baby while pumping since its unique feature is the swivel handle. Just rotate it until you have found the position that offers you the maximum comfort.

- Some working moms who were stuck in major rush-hour traffic while driving home use it discretely in the car since it can be used left-handed or right-handed!

- It is compatible with most standard bottles including EvenFlo glass baby bottles. For moms who have bought many different brands of storage bottle already, don’t throw them away since you can use them with Medela Harmony anytime.

4. Quiet

- This is quieter than its rival, Avent.

- While the Avent handle makes a click noise every time you squeeze the handle to achieve the maximum suction, Medela Harmony oozes peaceful blissfulness.

5. Convenient and Portable

- Use it anywhere, no plugging, no messing around with tube and no need to look around for a place to set up your electric pump.

- Working moms, have you just received a call to go for a last minute outstation business trip? Fret not. It’s perfect as your on-the-go travelling companion!

- Stay-at-home moms, you can use it while walking around without being tethered down with tubing and electrical cords.

- Bogged down in the middle of the night? It’s a delight for a quick, night pumping session.

- For added convenience, this pump is also upgradeable to electric pumping with the use of Symphony or the Lactina conversion kits (not included in the package)

6. Easy to Clean

- As a one piece unit with so few parts to clean, don’t worry even if you have under a minute to clean them!

- All you have to wash are the flange, the body and the valve.

- They’re also smooth to wipe down with a Medela cleaning cloth in a pinch.

- To assemble, disassemble and clean, it only takes 10 minutes of your time! How about that, busy moms?

7. Safe and Sanitary

- Made from a kind of plastic that is less likely to leach any dangerous chemicals, you know that your baby’s feeding is safe in its hands.

- All parts that come into contact with breast milk at claimed to be 100% BPA/DEHP free.

8. Gentle Comfort

- A comfortable Soft-Fit breast shield is included to softly massage the breast while you pump and doesn’t bother the sensitive areas. This is pretty useful when you just had your baby and you’re sore!

- The contoured, ergonomically designed handle fits in your hand like a glove. With a handle that swivels, you have the freedom to position your hand and pump comfortably on each breast.

- With two distinct modes, it feels au-natural! The let-down mode stimulates your baby’s initial rapid suckling to initiate faster milk flow while the expression mode simulates your baby’s slower, deeper suckling rhythm for maximum milk flow in less time.

- Compared to the strong suction of the electric pump, this pump does not leave you with bloody and cracked nipples. The suction of Medela Harmony is just enough to get a nice flow coming out in a short amount of time without leaving you with any type of nipple or breast pain. Phew, what a relief!

The Bad

1. Expresses Only One Side at A Time

- Some first-time moms may find that time consuming compared to the automatic expression of electric pumps.

- However, once you have gotten the hang of it, it is both comfortable and efficient!

2. Flimsy Handle

- Many moms found that the tiny white rubber ring, which was necessary to create suction, broke off from the handle.

- One mom, who received a brand new pump from customer service, commented that they have corrected the design flaw. With the new pump being much shorter, she doubts that the stem will snap off.

3. Not Suitable for Dishwasher

- Some parts may get distorted in a dishwasher!

- To be honest, there are only so few parts to wash. It’s easier washing them with hands.

- Don’t sterilize or boil the parts or put it in the steam cleaner bags! They may become warped and render the pump useless.

4. Not Sturdy

- The construction of the pump is light weight and is not particularly sturdy.

- If you have older kids who love to play with anything that they can get their hands on, do not let them get near Medela Harmony.

- There was an incident where a 7 year old managed to break it within 2 minutes!

5. Loses Suction in the Middle

- Quite a number of moms have complained about this problem because of the tendency for the silicon part to get loose.

- However, many have noted that it’s not due to the product but rather their own method of handling it.

- Solution? Make sure the oval parts in the handle lines up straight as in the instructions.

- A note to moms who might have problems getting milk out of Medela Harmony. It may not be the pump itself but rather the size of the flanges. Every woman’s breast and nipples are different sizes. If you feel that it is painful to pump and the milk would not come out even though you were engorged with plenty of milk, try using the next size up flanges. A mom changed from 24 mm to 27 mm flanges and it made a world of difference!

Do bear in mind, too, that this product is not marketed for retail purchase. However, if you surf online a lot, purchasing this online shouldn’t be a problem. Compared to the electric Medela Swing Pump, Medela Harmony is faster to use once you are a pro at pumping! Designed for busy moms who do not have the time nor the patience to struggle with complicated parts or to wait for the pump to stimulate milk flow, Medela Harmony is perfect in its designed for faster let-down. Some moms, who found it so easy to pump compared to the hassle of hooking up to a machine, were stimulated to pump even more often whether they are out or at home. Despite Medela’s warnings, I would say that you could use this to pump daily as long as you are careful to fully drain the breast but it might not be suitable for maintaining supply for multiple pumping in a row.

Thus in retrospect, if you are looking for the best manual breast pump, Medela Harmony is your answer! Being cost effective, efficient and powerful, easy to use, quiet, convenient and portable, easy to clean, safe and sanitary, and adept at providing gentle comfort, Medela Harmony is a delight. In fact, you can become so adept at it after some practice that you can cook dinner, talk on the phone, and do some basic folding of the laundry while pumping at the same time! 

Get all these benefits at a price of $31.75 from Amazon! Don’t forget, if there is any problem, just call the customer service. They are rated as one of the best and most reliable customer service around!