Perifit Wearable Breast Pump review

Imagine Elvie’s less chic cousin, and you get the Perifit breast pump. Those of you who have been reading the blog for a few years know my love-hate relationship with the OG Elvie. It was the first wearable breast pump I ever owned and truly an innovator in the breast pump space. While not a perfect pump, it did encourage others to dream of a world free of tubes and cables. So when I heard that Perifit had come out with a pump that was a similar style with a longer tunnel and silicone flange, I thought all the problems that the OG Elvie suffered from had finally been fixed. Indeed, they have not.

Now, if you had success with the OG Elvie, you are likely to have a very good experience with the Perifit breast pump. The flange is very comfortable, and you have the option to order your pump with flange sizes as small as 15mm. And like the OG Elvie, it features a very gentle suction pattern that you can customize with an app. But unlike the Elvie, which is fairly compact, the Perifit breast pump is bulky, with a large motor that can be hard to fit in a lot of nursing bras correctly, even with the extenders.

I used this pump several times, trying all the suction pattern combinations that I could think of, almost nearing discomfort. Each session, I was faced with the same issues I had with the OG Elvie, output was low and inconsistent. With the Elvie, I was able to hack it in such a way to improve its performance but this pump doesn’t suffer from the tunnel length problem so I couldn’t figure out why my output was so much lower. Even when I extended my pumping session time, there wasn’t a noticeable improvement. My only conclusion is that the available suction patterns are not compatible with me. They have a fluttery quality to them that seems to make me tense up.

As far as the app is concerned, it gives you suction pattern options that you can play around with and does try to estimate how much milk you’ve pumped. The milk monitoring feature isn’t very good but none of the pumps with app-control have been able to figure out how to do this accurately so I wouldn’t let that dissuade you. The app is still great for keeping you from digging around in your bra in mixed company. And clean up is not too bad as far as the number of parts to clean. However, I did find it hard to remove just the container. I appreciated how easy it was with the Elvie to pop off the container with a push of a button.

So in the end, I would say that this pump is probably a good option for someone who prefers a gentle amount of suction and was interested in the OG Elvie but hated the price point (or the bright light nipple iykyk). And they offer a 30-day trial period unlike other brands so you can try this pump risk-free. I would recommend waiting until after baby arrives to order so you don’t waste any trial days. All in all I appreciate that pump manufacturers seem to be listening to women’s concerns and suggestions. Remember your pumping journey hasn’t failed, you may not have found the right pump for you yet. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions about this or any of the other pumps I’ve tried over the years.

Happy Pumping,