Originally Posted By: actionstan
It really depends on the car, and the OCI you are planning to do.
This.
Usually, the OE has done a decent job, and is a good starting point.
Some OEM brands are a natural choice on certain makes, like Manns or Mahles on a Volvo or VAG, or a Hengst or Mann on some MBs. There a Wix is a distant second choice. But I wouldn't use any of those German brands on a Chevy truck, where a Wix excels. Motorcrafts seem to generally do a fine job on Fords. I've yet to encounter a bad example of any of these filter makes, and none would harm any vehicle.
I guess if forced to make a universal choice for vehicles unknown, I'd lean towards Wix, who puts a solid effort into all their products.
But frankly, unless an element suffers a catastrophic failure causing a pressure blockage, or you are looking for meaningful wear differences over hundreds of thousands of miles, the differences among the better filter makers is not that dramatic. Certainly not worth losing sleep over.