Tribest Sedona vs Excalibur Dehydrator – Which is Better?

Tribest's Sedona Combo dehydrator is as good or even better than Excalibur dehydrators in terms of a number of features

If you are on the market for a high-end food dehydrator, and especially if you are looking for a model with stainless steel trays, you have most likely heard of Excalibur, the company that claims to manufacture "America's best dehydrator". You may also have heard of Tribest-Life, a company that is known for its Tribest Sedona line of dehydrators. Tribest Sedona dehydrators come with many of the same features and functions as Excalibur's best dehydrators, and, just like Excalibur, Tribest gives you the option to order your favorite model either with stainless steel trays or plastic trays.

In this review, we take an in-depth look at how Tribest Sedona dehydrators compare to Excalibur's popular tray models in terms of various features to help you decide whether you should buy a Tribest Sedona dehydrator or an Excalibur. At the bottom of this page, you will also find handy Tribest Sedona vs Excalibur comparison charts which allow you to review key features side by side.

Please note that this review only covers non-commercial-grade, non-stackable models that Tribest-Life and Excalibur are actively marketing and selling at the time of writing (September 2016). It is also important to note that dehydrator manufacturers sometimes change product specifications without notice, and some of the information on this page may no longer be accurate. Therefore, before buying any Sedona or Excalibur dehydrator, please contact the manufacturer/seller for the up-to-date information.

There are big differences in capacity (drying space) between models

Unlike some other dehydrators out there, Tribest Sedona dehydrators and Excalibur's rectangular dehydrators are not expandable, which means you won't be able to expand their capacity by purchasing more trays to stack on top. Therefore, it is important to think about how much food you want to be able to dehydrate at once when shopping for a dehydrator. It is also important to look at the actual drying space rather than the number of trays as some models have smaller trays than others. If you go for an Excalibur dehydrator, you'll get 4, 8, 14 or 16 square feet of drying space, depending on which model you pick. The Tribest Sedona dehydrators, by contrast, will give you either 10 or 12.5 square feet of drying space.

In both cases, you can choose between stainless steel trays and BPA-free plastic trays

The great thing about Tribest Sedona and Excalibur dehydrators is that regardless of which model you pick, you can almost always choose to have it delivered either with stainless steel trays or plastic trays. It is worth noting, though, that as high-quality stainless steel is more expensive than plastic, the versions with stainless steel trays may also carry higher price tags. You can compare current Amazon prices on Tribest and Excalibur's stainless steel vs plastic tray models here.

All Sedona dehydrators have a 99-hour timer; most Excaliburs have a 26-hour timer

All Tribest Sedona dehydrators covered in this review come with a built-in timer that allows you to set the dehydrator to run for up to 99 hours, and once the time is up, the unit will automatically shut itself off. By contrast, only the fancy Excalibur EXC10EL has a 99-hour timer; all of Excalibur's other tray dehydrators come either with a 26-hour timer or no timer at all.

Some of the most advanced Tribest Sedona and Excalibur dehydrators come with a two-stage timer

Two Tribest Sedona dehydrators (Sedona Combo and Sedona Express) and one of Excalibur's non-commercial tray dehydrators (Excalibur EXC10EL) come with a two-stage timer. So, if you buy one of these three high-end models, you'll be able program your dehydrator to run at a specific temperature for a specific amount of time, and then at another temperature for the rest of the cycle. The dehydrator automatically switches to the second temperature setting after the first stage and shuts off when the second part of the cycle is complete.

Some Sedona dehydrators have two fans which can be set to operate either simultaneously or independently

Aside from the compact Tribest Sedona Express, all of the latest Tribest Sedona models come with two fans which can be set to operate either simultaneously or independently. This means that if you are dehydrating only a small batch of food, you can turn off one of the fans and only use half of the trays. As of September 2016, the non-commercial grade Excalibur models do not have this energy-saving feature.

Tribest Sedona vs Excalibur: Side-by-Side Comparison

Still not sure whether you should go for a Tribest Sedona dehydrator or one of Excalibur's tray dehydrators? With the following charts, you can easily compare the Tribest Sedona dehydrators and Excalibur's non-commercial grade, non-stackable models side by side. Please note, though, that dehydrator manufacturers can change product specifications without notice, and there is no guarantee that the information below is still up-to-date. Therefore, before buying any dehydrator, please contact the manufacturer/seller for the latest information.

* There are two versions of this model: D500CDSHD, which comes with a see-through door made of clear plastic, and D500SHD which has a stainless steel door. The links in the chart above take you to the Amazon product page for the model with the see-through door; if you are interested in the model with the stainless steel door, click here.
** There are two versions of this model: D900CDSHD, which comes with a clear plastic door, and D900SHD which has a stainless steel door. The links in the chart above take you to the Amazon product page for the model with the clear plastic door; if you are interested in the stainless steel door model instead, click here.

* Excludes Excalibur 2400, Excalibur's no-frills economy model with 4 square feet of drying space
** There are three versions of the 3926T model: the black 3926TB, the white 3926TW, and the black 3926TCDB with a see-through door. The D900S model, by contrast, is stainless steel on the outside. The link in the chart takes you to the Amazon product page for the black 3926TB model. If you are interested in the other models, click here (for the white model), here (for the model with the see-through door), or here (for the stainless steel model).