Keen bakers and kitchen designers alike agree that one of the best stand mixers is the ultimate statement kitchen appliance. Designed to take the stress (and the effort) out of baking, these mixers are one of the most sought-after countertop additions, with designs that span almost every colourway imaginable.
In this guide, you'll find our thoughts after reviewing twelve of the most coveted mixers on the market. But why do you need one? From combining a cake mix for a perfectly risen sponge to kneading bread dough whilst you prep the dinner, one of these appliances will change the game for a keen baker. The most expensive are equipped with speeds and modes for every delicate task, while a budget version is more suited to basic mixing. One thing is for certain, thanks to their hands-free nature, you won't have aching arms afterwards.
No round-up of stand mixers would be complete without brands such as KitchenAid, Kenwood and Russell Hobbs, which is why we've tried top-selling products from all of them as part of our testing process, making cakes, dough, meringue and more to see how they fare. While the Kenwood kMix remains our favourite mixer of all time, we can't deny that we love a KitchenAid too.
So, get stuck into the best stand mixers as decided by the Ideal Home team, who know a thing or two about baking. Once you've chosen your mixer, why not check out the best blenders so that you can coordinate your appliances by brand and colour?
The best stand mixers - Quick list
Short on time but sure that you want to bag the best stand mixer on the market? Browse our quick list below, which has everything you need to know neatly summed up.
Best stand mixer overall
The kMix is the favoured stand mixer of bakers everywhere. It's supremely powerful and has an excellent fold function, as well as all dishwasher-safe parts. It also comes in an array of pastel colours to suit any kitchen. Sure it's a little hefty (weighing in at 10kg), but it's our outright #1 choice on this list for good reason - it was unparalleled in terms of performance when we tried it.
Best value stand mixer
This isn't the cheapest mixer on this list, but it is the best value for money. You get a huge range of accessories for your money, and the build quality is fantastic for the price - it's like a professional-grade product. All dishwasher-safe parts were a hit with us when testing too, especially for whipping egg whites into shape. It is a bit more of an effort to store due to the accessories, and not as pretty as other options, but we still love it.
Best stand mixer for cake
It wouldn't be a stand mixer round-up without the iconic KitchenAid Artisan, which we found to be a total workhorse when it comes to mixing in our test kitchen, especially for cake batter. The huge array of colour options is a constant source of fascination for us, too. However, even though this is a mid-range model, it's pretty pricey.
Best affordable stand mixer
You can find the Kenwood Prospero online for less than £100, which makes it a standout steal at all times. Despite its RPP, we found the motor surprisingly powerful during our tests and the planetary mixing motion is a huge help. Annoyingly, this is a handwash-only model, including the accessories.
Best stand mixer with built-in scales
The best thing about this mixer? Being able to weigh everything you need to mix in the bowl, a true godsend to cut down on washing up during testing. The assisted tilt-head is great for bulkier mixes too, and the timer display is just another handy way to keep on top of the baking process. Sure the price is premium, but you get what you pay for with this mixer.
Best compact stand mixer
This mixer is a true space saver, and especially good for bread dough. It's capable given its low wattage, and we love how you can store the attachments within the bowl. The built-in timer is another plus, but it lacks the classic stand mixer look.
Load the next 5 products ↓
Best lightweight stand mixer
Take (a little bit of) the weight off with the Artisan Mini which is about 20% smaller than the original, which is our #3 choice. It has all of the same attachments you need but is much better suited to small spaces. It's just a shame the price tag doesn't really reflect the smaller size, but we still looked how it looked in our test kitchen.
Best quirky stand mixer
The design of this Emma Bridgewater mixer is like marmite, but we think it's a cute addition to a kitchen. The 10 speeds and pulse setting are super practical, and the generously sized bowl is a big help, too. It's just a shame that some of the parts are plastic.
Best large-capacity stand mixer
This robust and sturdy mixer is our favourite tilt-head mixer for large batches. The 12 speeds help with bulkier mixes too, and this was a winner on bread dough during our tests. It can be a bit clunky to lift the lever to bring the head up, and it's overall a larger choice than others on this list.
Best 2 in 1 stand mixer
The HeatSoft has a clever concept - it heats butter (even fresh from the fridge) to the perfect room temp for baking. It's also a 2 in 1 hand and stand mixer, and comes in at a pretty budget price too. The downside? It's not perfect at mixing dough.
Best heavy-duty KitchenAid
Unlike the Cuisinart, this almost industrial-sized mixer has a bowl-lift design, which is much better for serious bakers to input ingredients with. You can make a huge amount in one mix with this choice, but it'll set you back an almost professional amount for the privilege. But if you need a recommendation, it's the stand mixer of choice of our Kitchen Appliances Editor.
Best stand mixer overall
You might be surprised to not find another brand beginning with K kicking off this list, but hear us out: kMix is the secret weapon of bakers everywhere, casual or professional. That's because it offers something for everyone.
Not only is it incredibly easy to control with six speeds and a fold option, but its five-litre heatproof glass bowl also allows you to see exactly what’s going on with your cake batter. This puts paid to those pesky flour lumps. It also features a 1,000W motor designed to handle up to 1.35kg of difficult dough. On the downside, thanks to its metal body, it’s another heavy mixer at 10.9kg.
During testing, the kMix stand mixer was the most fuss-free option to use, staying reassuringly steady on the worktop even at high speeds. It produced everything from light, fluffy doughnuts to crisp meringue and thick whipped cream for pavlovas perfectly.
Another plus is the sheer range of compatible attachments, which include a pasta cutter, grinding mill, dicer and spaghetti maker. It comes in four colours and all the parts are dishwasher-safe, all adding to why the kMix remains the Ideal Home team's favourite mixer of all time.
Our full Kenwood kMix stand mixer review has more details.
Best value stand mixer
This is a stand mixer for cooks who want to progress from making a springy Victoria sandwich to baking the sort of things the Great British Bake Off judges would be wowed by. The reason is that it’s more than a stand mixer. Not only does it come with shredding discs, a mincer, a citrus press and a blender (and swivels into three positions for you to use them), but in its stand mixer mode it beats, mixes, whisks and kneads like a pro.
I've spoken to many a professional chef about how much they rely on the Thermomix brand in professional kitchens, and I think this Bosch mixer is a great alternative to one of those do-it-all appliances.
Inside the mixer's 3.9-litre bowl, there’s enough room to mix up to 2kg of dough with the kneading hook. This even has a ‘dough deflector’ to stop any mixture from escaping. During testing, dough wrapped around the hook but was easy to remove. The blender also performed well with no lack of power – a common problem with attachments.
When you’re finished baking up a storm, the MUM5 stand mixer's cord automatically retracts. All the accessories except the mincer can be popped in the dishwasher and there’s a storage bag. The obvious downside of this mixer is the sheer amount of kit to store, but if you’re willing to make some room you’ll be duly rewarded.
Our full Bosch MUM59340GB Stand Mixer review has more details.
Best stand mixer for cake
We know you recognise this one. From the Great British Bake Off to Nigella's home kitchen, the KitchenAid Artisan is a classic. We put it to the test to see if it's still the cream of the crop. The verdict? This stand mixer is stunning and sturdy, but the motor is a little lacking compared to some of the others in our guide. You can make up to two batches of bread at a time in this mixer, so it's a good balance between size and capacity. The bowl also screws on easily and has a handle. Attachments are dishwasher-safe, which we love.
We found during testing that the Artisan mixer will quietly work away at whichever task you throw at it. There’s also an optional pouring shield to prevent splashes, and it comes with a wire whisk, flat beater and dough hook as default. The classic tilt-head design will fit under your kitchen cabinets, and because there are so many colours to choose from (not to mention countless custom bowls and other matching appliances such as the best food processors) we know it will look the part too.
It’s also one of the heaviest stand mixers available, at a knee-bending 11kg with accessories. It did make some delicious cake though, and you can buy plenty of additional attachments to make pasta, ice cream, and even to stuff sausages if you so wish.
Our full KitchenAid Artisan Mixer review has more information.
Best stand mixer under £200
The Kenwood Prospero KHC29 Stand Mixer has 1000 watts of power, which is impressive for a mixer of this price. It's affordable when you buy it purely for mixing, but spend a little more and you'll find attachments for blending, food processing, and even meat grinding.
While the design is a little unusual, we found that it did a great job of incorporating all of our ingredients thanks to the planetary mixing motion that reaches all edges of the bowl. The dough hook is also great for making springy loaves with well-kneaded dough. The 1000-watt motor comes in handy here, too, but with only five-speed settings, it lacks some more specific speeds.
None of the attachments can go in the dishwasher, which is a bit of a pain, but we did find that they are easy enough to clean by hand. The mixer is great for smaller kitchen counters because it's lightweight and can slot under kitchen cabinets with ease.
Our full Kenwood Prospero KHC29 Stand Mixer review has more information.
Best stand mixer with built-in scales
The Kenwood Titanium Chef Baker is an expensive choice, but with in-built scales and a timer, it's the ticket to perfectly precise bakes. We really enjoyed how accurate the scales were, as they allowed us to add all of our flour, butter, sugar, and eggs to the bowl without the need to put them in a separate measuring device beforehand. Less cleanup, and a lot less faff! The assisted tilt-head means you can prop up the attachments with minimal effort because it springs up when you press the lever.
It comes in only one colour, which is a shame, but you can switch out the colour of the top panel. This also has a port to add up to 25 attachments: a blender, even a pasta maker. The best part, these will also pair with the scales on the base! The mixer comes with three attachments, and we particularly enjoyed the flat beater. We did find that the splash guard had a slight cap above the bowl because it's attached to the assisted tilt-head, and this lets a little flour and icing sugar escape from the bowl when cooking.
Our full Kenwood Titanium Chef Baker stand mixer review has more details.
Best compact stand mixer
In testing, we loved how easily it was able to knead bread and make cakes and whipped cream with the Morphy Richards MixStar. The mixer is noisier than some, and it also lacks that classic tilt-head design that many find so appealing about a stand mixer. If it's not the look you're after though, this is an immensely capable model. It comes with an in-built timer that allows you to plan your baking exploits perfectly, and its six-point speed dial is variable which gives you complete control of your mixing.
The MixStar is powered through a central column that stems from its base. To this, you can attach the whisk, dough hook, or flat beater attachments which work on a cog to rotate around the bowl. Unlike many stand mixers which have only one overhead attachment, this mixer has two, which means it can power through tasks as quickly as you'll need. All the attachments store easily in an insert that sits in the bowl itself, which means this stand mixer is incredibly easy to store and significantly less space-intensive than other options.
Our full Morphy Richards MixStar review has more details.
Best lightweight stand mixer
25% lighter and 20% smaller than the Kitchenaid Artisan mixer, the KitchenAid Artisan Mini is great for those who want the charm of a KitchenAid mixer but with a smaller profile. It has a flat beater, wire whisk, and dough hook for all your baking needs, and you can also wash all of these (apart from the whisk) in the dishwasher.
Despite its limited motor size, the KitchenAid Artisan Mini was powerful enough during our tests to make smooth and fluffy cake mixes and well-worked cookie dough. When making bread it was able to knead a regular sized loaf, but we did find that the dough worked its way up the hook, unfortunately.
If you enjoy baking but don't need the best stand mixer for batch bakes, the KitchenAid Artisan Mini is a great choice for you. It has a great range of colour options too, and it looks a real treat when placed on the kitchen counter, as you'll see in the images from our test centre below.
Our full KitchenAid Artisan Mini Tilt-Head Stand Mixer review has more details.
Best quirky stand mixer
A more traditional boxy exterior might have you swiping left on the Go Create Stand Mixer. But beneath the no-nonsense plastic lies a good yet affordable helper. There are noticeable differences between this and a more premium model – the stainless-steel bowl has a plastic base as does the whisk, for example – but beyond that everything you need for baking is here.
Three tools, a slide-on splashguard with a pouring spout, a powerful 1000W motor and 10 speeds. There’s even a pulse on the dial, which provides a burst of top speed for finishing off mixes.
The benefit of fewer metal elements (even the beater is made from fibreglass) is that all the parts are dishwasher-safe. This makes it invaluable in a busy family household, plus it’s lighter than die-cast models. So you can move it around without straining under the weight. Another plus is the mixer’s generously sized five-litre bowl, which easily accommodated bread dough, cake batter or egg whites without throwing anything out.
There are a couple of quirks. The mixer was very noisy on the top speeds, and the spring from new was strong, so you’ll need to hold the head as you raise it or it jerks. However, the performance was surprisingly efficient for a machine at this price point.
It whisked our egg whites to firm peaks in about four minutes. It mixed and kneaded bread dough around the bowl without it wrapping around the hook (which resulted in a well-risen loaf), and blended butter and sugar to a pale creamy consistency.
We noticed a few streaks of butter in the sponge batter after mixing and scraping down, but the baked cake rounds were light with golden, springy tops.
Our full Russell Hobbs Emma Bridgewater Stand Mixer review has more details.
Best large capacity stand mixer
Great for batch bakers and big families, the 500W Precision Stand Mixer is surprisingly roomy. While its footprint is standard, its 5.2-litre, stainless-steel bowl provides more capacity than you’d expect in a model of this size. This means that you can knead up to 1.2kg of dough, whip 1.4 litres of cream or whisk 12 egg whites in a single load.
There are 12 speeds, from a gentle stir (which we found invaluable for starting to mix the dough) to a rapid whisk that took the effort out of making meringues. The mixer shook a little on the highest settings but stayed steady on the worktop.
Its tools are the usual three of whisk (the only part not dishwasher-safe), beater and dough hook. This last one was especially good in that our bread dough didn’t wrap itself around the hook, but moved and kneaded it around the bowl efficiently.
Our loaf rose well without any manual kneading. The two-part splashguard and spout, while a handy option, was something awkward to have in use most of the time. It slid on easily enough but every time the mixer head was raised, both sections had to be removed, making scraping down the bowl more of a chore.
Its performance couldn’t be faulted – our sugar and butter creamed together quickly, and the batter looked well-aerated. The finished sponge wasn’t as fluffy as we’d hoped though. Where it delivers less is on aesthetics – the Precision Stand Mixer is only available in black or white, the pedal to raise the mixer head protrudes oddly and the dial feels like a clunky way to move up or down through the speeds.
However, if you’re looking for a robust workhorse of a mixer and don’t mind not having a colourful appliance, it’s a smart choice.
Best 2-in-1 stand mixer
The Breville HeatSoft VFM029 is a budget-friendly 2-in-1 stand mixer and hand mixer, which makes it a good choice for those short on money, time and/or space. Our reviewer Qin also thought that the stand mixer base would be handy for those who might have mobility issues and have trouble holding up the handheld mixer for longer periods, which makes it a good accessible buy too.
After testing, Qin summarised that it's a mixer best for cake bakers rather than breadmakers. Aside from the fact that it’s not very good at kneading dough, the smaller capacity means you’d be limited as to the type of bread recipe you can try overall.
There are plenty of positives for the cake makers out there though, including the clever HeatSoft function, which warms butter from the fridge into perfect room-temperature baking condition. As well as that standout feature, this mixer is equipped with a good range of attachments too, and can often be found on sale for closer to £250 than its RRP of £350.
Our Breville HeatSoft VFM029 2-in-1 Hand and Stand Mixer review has the full details.
Best heavy duty KitchenAid mixer
This is the KitchenAid mixer for serious bakers, with the capacity and power to churn through industrial batches of bread, cake and so much more. It has a design to match that kind of heavy-duty work too, with a bowl lift design that allows you to deal with kilograms of flour and sugar with ease.
During testing, there was no test that this mixer couldn't ace, with the planetary action delivering thorough mixing all the way down to the bottom of the huge 6.9-litre bowl. The removable pouring chute is also excellent for adding extra flour or sugar to a mix without causing a plume of dust, and the speed settings are designed to perfect any type of mixture you're working on, from egg whites to cake batter.
Of course, this a big mixer, so you'll need ample worktop space in your kitchen, as well as the desire to make huge batches in order to justify splashing out on this professional-style model. This mixer impressed us in all of our tests, but with an RRP of £749.00, it's a buy that you'll need to have a return on investment with in terms of use.
How we test stand mixers
As you might have guessed by now, we're serious about how we test products at Ideal Home. We go to lengths to get hands-on experience with products, so that we can recommend you (or steer you away from) products in good faith.
When it comes to stand mixers, we used our test kitchen Great British Bake Off style to conduct several tests to see how four of these mxiers performed. On this testing day, we perfected the set tests that every mixer has to pass. The tests were: baking a Victoria sponge, whipping egg whites into stiff peaks, baking a loaf of bread using a standard recipe and creaming icing.
We used the mixers we tested on the day with those recipes, and then continued to use them in the future when we employed our trusted team of freelancers to review mixers for us too. You can see detailed results in the individual reviews we've linked to under every product, but un every review using those tests we were looking for well-combined mixes (with no floury lumps left at the bottom of the bowl), creamy icing and egg whites that were whipped into peaks quickly.
