I was surprised. I've tried several toothpastes that claim to whiten, but I didn't really see any results. However, just one use of this one made a huge difference. I was concerned about the pigmentation at the joints between my post-treatment teeth and my original teeth, but this one whitened my teeth overall, and the joints that bothered me faded after just one use. If it's so effective after just one use, it seems like it would be better value for money to use this one regularly than to buy other toothpastes, even if they're more expensive. The flavor is not much different from regular mint, so it's easy to use.