Medela Pump in Style Advanced Breast Pump with On the Go Tote

Ameda Purely Yours vs Medela Pump in Style Advanced
Current Cost:
Ameda ~ $230 Medela ~$250

Yes, I own both! I’m a full-time working mom of 2 sweet boys, 2.5 yrs and 6 mos. I purchased the Ameda with my first and used it full time (3x a day, 5 days a week) for 4 months. I purchased the Medela with my second and have used it full time (3x a day, 5 days a week) for 3 months now and still going strong. I have a LOT to say about these pumps, but the bottom line is Medela is far superior. If you don’t want to read the full review, save yourself time, money, and frustration and purchase a Medela.

My experience with Ameda:
I purchased this pump for two main reasons. First, it was a closed system (milk can’t get into tubes) and the cost differential – there was a greater one when I purchased the Ameda in 2011. At first things worked well. I starting pumping at night to build supply before returning to work. After returning to work, things continued well for a few months, then all of a sudden my supply started dropping. I could tell that my pump “wasn’t quite the same” so I read and read online. Ultimately, I determined that I needed to replace the valves. I did, and things improved… for a few weeks. Then, again, my supply dropped, I replaced the valves and things improved for a short time. This repeated several times (those valves are $7 for a pair… that adds up!!!!). I spent more than what I wanted to on replacement valves. This went on until my son was 7 months and then my supply all but dried up. When it got to the point that I could only get 4 oz per day and I was pumping 3x a day for 20 minutes each I decided it was time to switch to formula. Did I blame the pump? Not at the time, but now, absolutely!

So, I cleaned everything well and packed it away carefully knowing that I would need it again for the next baby (except for the time when my close friend had her Ameda motor die on her after about 6 months of daily use and she borrowed mine for a week – hers was under the 1 year warranty, so Ameda did send a replacement free of charge).

When my second baby came, I pulled it back out and pumped some during maternity leave without issue at first (new valves). Then all of a sudden I felt the pump “wasn’t quite the same” so I took it to a lactation consultant to look it over. We tested just the motor and it was reading the correct suction pressure. We checked the tubing and other connections until we found the root cause; THE VALVES!!!!!! The bad valve was essentially causing the pump to pull less than half the expected vacuum. Bottom line, it was worthless with bad valves. The lactation consultant opened a new package of valves from her own store and one of them was bad right of package. We went through all of mine and the majority of them were bad. No wonder my supply dried up… I was pumping, but with bad valves I wasn’t actually removing milk. If you don’t remove milk your body slows the production. I decided at that point to test until I found a few extra good valves and then anytime I needed more, I would just have to come back and test to 100% verify that the valves I was using were good. I DID NOT want to lose my supply again just because of the bad valves. Well, it didn’t matter, because a week into me pumping at work, my motor started to go out. Yes, it was 2 years old, but the actual working life of the pump was about 5. Either way, I may have only used it for 5 months but it was not under warranty so I purchased a brand new Medela pump.

My experience with Medela:
I purchased a Medela Pump in Style and what a difference!!! I could tell an immediate difference, but for the sake of not wanting the “new and shiny” aspect to persuade my review, I’ve waited to write this. So, with the Ameda in my first two weeks of work, I already saw a decline in my milk supply. This gem got my supply back up to normal within 3 days. If that’s not enough to persuade you to go with Medela, I don’t know what will. I have no complaints with this pump. In fact, that close friend that I mentioned hers broke on her… when she has a second little one I plan to help her buy a Medela. Yes, I’m that passionate about it. I feel sorry for the mommy that buys the Ameda and then doesn’t have the support system or money to problem solve the Ameda issues and buy all those replacement valves.

Here are my opinions on the other aspects of the pumps:

Bag:
The backpack is tall and forces you to stack things. So, when you need the cooler from the bottom, you have to pull everything out. The tote, while maybe a little bigger is better organized so I don’t end up pulling everything out and readjusting. The Ameda is designed so you can pull the motor out of the bag, the Medela is not. So far that hasn’t presented a problem, but I can understand if you want to tuck it away in a small bag how it might be. The Ameda has no room to spare. If you want to bring a book along, good luck. With my Medela bag, I pack the hands free bra, extra bottles, a book, and extra accessories… with room to spare!

Setup/Takedown:
I felt like it was a much bigger deal to setup the Ameda to pump. You have to pull everything out of the bag and setup and then take it all back down and put away. With the Medela, the motor stays in the bag and everything stores nicely so you don’t have to pull everything out. I never have to take the cooler out and the tubes stay attached and have a nice little storage bag next to the motor.

Flanges/Valves/Fittings:
The Ameda accomplishes a “hygienic” closed system, which is a great concept, but comes at a price. I attribute this to my inadequate pumping and ultimately my supply drying up. The silicone diaphragm seemed to always get stuck in the vacuum position and the valves constantly needed replaced. I never did have to clean the tubes though. I also bought a different sized flange, but it was one that slide into the existing one and I never felt it made a good seal. The Medela is an open system and I do get condensation in the tubing. It’s worth it to me though because I know I’m getting great suction. I simply run my pump for a minute or two afterwards and it dries them out. The little white membranes provide the same function as the Ameda valves, but they are much less expensive and are much less likely to need replacing. I also had to buy a different flange size for the Medela, but it is designed so that the flange itself can just simply be a plug and play. It’s not an insert like the Ameda so I don’t have to worry about another joint that could potentially lead to suction loss.

Cooler:
The coolers are about the same size, but the Medela only has enough room for 4 bottles. The Ameda has room for 6. I only 4 - 5oz bottles so it works perfectly for me. With the Ameda, the ice packs never lasted long enough in my opinion. The Medela icepack is far superior. I even heat my milk to scald (150 deg F) – lipase enzyme issue you can Google if you’re interested in learning about it – and then I stick it in the bag and it is able to cool it and keep it cold until the evening! It’s awesome.

Bottles:
Ameda is 4 oz, Medela is 5 oz. Other than that, they are essentially the same. I don’t use them. I pump into the Playtex drop-ins pump and store liners and then they pop into the drop-in bottles (less bottle washing!).

Motor:
The vacuum supposedly is rated the same (lactation consultant shared that with me, but I’m not going to lie I didn’t read into it), but my experience is that the Medela is more reliable (several reviews report motors dying prematurely… which I experienced as well as my close friend). Also, the Ameda has the ability to adjust both speed and suction. At first I thought this would be perfect, but the more I used it, the more I was annoyed that it didn’t just automatically adjust. How am I supposed to know how fast it should go? Haha. So, the fact that the Medela pump does it’s automatic fast speed at first for letdown then adjusts to regular on its own or with the push of a button makes my life much easier. I’ve never once thought how nice it would be to adjust the speed myself. With the Ameda I always had to use full suction. With the Medela I have it at half suction and it works perfectly! Also, the Medela works faster for me than the Ameda did.

Cleaning:
The flanges are essentially the same. The two things that are different about cleaning is that the Ameda valves are a pain to clean because you really can’t clean them for risk of damaging them… and they are expensive! I gently rinsed them and left it at that. With the Medela, I do have to rinse the tubes once a week and have to do it when I’m certain I won’t need them… because you have to wait for them to dry completely before use again. So far it hasn’t been an issue.

Availability of parts:
Because Medela is a better known brand, you can find just about any replacement item you need at Target. So, when you need that emergency membrane/valve, you can almost guarantee you’ll find it at a nearby story, whereas, with Ameda I was overnight shipping if I had an emergency.

Noise:
The Ameda is much louder and more obnoxious sounding the Medela. Mine had a whirring sound when it pumped. Others who heard it thought something was wrong with it and usually asked if everything was okay (they were Medela users).

Batteries:
If you’re going to pump in the car, even once, buy the car adapter. These things sucks batteries like crazy (both of them). The battery pack is external with the Medela, which is has to be since you can’t remove the motor… but it makes it annoying.

Hands free:
Do yourself a favor and get a hands free pumping bra!

In conclusion, buy Medela and rest assured you’ve made the right decision.

I was using the Medela Lactina pump till I decided whether or not I would be pumping at work. I want to first make sure that I could pump enough milk to support my little one. When I knew I could pump enough my first concern was my supply dropping when I switched pumps. My lactation consultant recommended this pump to me, so of course it was the one that I bought. Its at a great price and the pump is amazing. I love the bag. The supplies that I use everyday at work fit in it nicely and so cooler bag with ice packs and two bottles. I didn't want a bag that was so small that I would end up carrying two by the end of the day. Its really nice and light and is made from really nice fabrics. With the Lactina it was taking me 10 minutes to pump the amount I needed for each session, with this pump sometimes it only takes me 6 minutes to get the same amount I pumped in 10!!!! I pump 3 times a day and this pump does not bother me or make me sore by the third pumping session The medela ice pack is also great, with the Lactina, I used a different cooler with ice packs and my milk was starting to get a little more warm than I liked by the time I got home to put it in my freezer. With the medela cooler and ice pack my milk is so cold its like I had it in a mini fridge!!! This pump is well worth the money especially if you are planning to pump for several months several times a day. I'm so glad I bought this pump.

i've been using this pump for about 6 weeks (my baby is 7 weeks). i'm not sure it's typically recommended to begin using a pump that soon, but my baby had a REALLY strong latch and my nipples suffered terribly; in order to give my nipples an opportunity to heal, my LC told me to go ahead and pump if it was more comfortable. (frankly, i was in so much pain every time i nursed, i wonder if i would have made it to where i am today without the pump.) the pump was a blessing in those early weeks.

then, a couple of weeks before returning to work, i began using the pump again to build up a store of milk. again, it worked wonderfully and by the time i returned to work, i had a really nice store of at least several days of worth of feedings.

most recently, i returned to work and have been using the pump three times a day during the work day, then exclusively breastfeeding when home. i work in an office of males so i like that it's pretty quiet and discreet. the bag is roomy enough to fit any extra items you might need like a hands-free bra or a box of storage bags. further, i haven't had any issues with milk depletion. i make sure to pump as often as the baby is feeding.

before placing the pump on my registry, i read the reviews and as a first time mom who had NO CLUE how a breast pump worked, i was a little overwhelmed by how complicated it sounded and nervous by the bad reviews i read citing mold issues. first, the pump is easy-peasy. i'm sure all pumps are equally simple to use, but i thought i would mention it since it was something i was concerned with. second, in the 6 weeks i've been using this pump, i've had no issues with milk in the lines... i can't even imagine HOW milk gets in the lines... given the design of the pump, this just doesn't make sense to me... unless you're jogging or bending over or doing something so that the milk that collects in the bottles or bags through gravity is somehow disrupted and brought back upward into the pump parts.

i will mention there have been a few times after washing the parts that i didn't dry the water where the lines connect and as such, a little condensation got into the lines, but as it states in the instruction manual, i ran it for a few minutes with the lines unconnected and they cleared just fine. no biggie.

i use the pump with storage bags to freeze (which is nice and tidy) and instead of dropping money on one of those hands-free bras, i went to T.J. Maxx, spent $3 on a sports bra, cut small holes at the nipple for the flanges and voila! hands-free pumping.

i've been very pleased with this product.