The Greatest KitchenAid Stand Mixers of 2022

We’ve maintained for a very long time that our favourite stand mixer is the KitchenAid 6-Quart Skilled 600 Sequence Stand Mixer. As Stella defined, it’s one of many solely KitchenAids and not using a “foot.” With many different fashions, the underside of the bowl has ridges (or a foot, if you’ll) that locks into the bottom of the mixer. Off the mixer, this makes it more durable to maintain the bowl regular, unusable in water baths (like for melting chocolate), and extra. 

However, additionally as Stella famous, this can be a extremely private opinion. And there are many bakers who like their KitchenAid Artisans and Classics—who discover these fashions completely appropriate for baking desserts, cookies, and breads. Which is why we wished to check and examine (virtually) the entire KitchenAid stand mixers, so you might determine which one is greatest in your kitchen. 

We rounded up 5 well-liked KitchenAid stand mixers, utilizing them to make whipped cream, cookies, and bread. Listed here are the professionals and cons of every.

KitchenAid 6-Quart Skilled 600 Sequence Stand Mixer

It feels solely acceptable to start out with the one we’ve stood by for years. You’d be hard-pressed to discover a extra practical-yet-powerful stand mixer—able to even kneading high-hydration doughs with out strolling (when a stand mixer wobbles and strikes about on a countertop) an inch. As Stella famous, there are lots of issues that make this mixer a stand out. For starters, it has an all-metal development (together with gears). After I examined stand mixers some years again and eliminated to their tops to get a take a look at their gears and innerworkings, the KitchenAid stand mixers have been a few of the solely ones that really had principally metallic gears and components in addition to our bodies, which speaks to their high quality, heft, energy, and longevity (they will really be repaired). The Skilled 600 Sequence isn’t any completely different, and Stella notes she’s efficiently, simply, and cheaply changed the worm gear on hers.

Different notable benefits to this mixer are its flat, foot-free backside, which suggests it may be used over an open flame or simply put over a water tub like an ordinary metallic mixing bowl. Its lever lets you transfer the bowl up or down—a greater entry and retrieval mechanism than a tilt-head, because the latter can loosen over time. The bowl additionally has a deal with and is mega-wide, permitting you to simply scrape down its partitions and backside and make large-volume recipes (and even double batches of issues) with ease. 

Greatest for: Any baker, actually—particularly if you happen to make high-volume recipes or bread doughs. Most tilt-head, bowl-lock stand mixers will stroll when kneading bread doughs (particularly high-hydration ones, like ciabatta). A bowl-lift stand mixer just like the Skilled 600 Sequence has the steadiness and energy (one of many highest wattages of all of the KitchenAid fashions, in reality) to knead bread with ease and sans any wobble.

Challenges or shortcomings: Its bowl has two holes that hook onto corresponding prongs on every of the stand mixer’s arms and, generally, it may be troublesome to seat it. The bowl can wobble a bit when in use, too. And at about 17 inches excessive and 11 inches huge, it’s a large mixer that eats up an excellent quantity of counter area.

Worth at time of publish: $549.

Key Specs

• Wattage: 575
• Variety of speeds: 10
• Comes with: Paddle, dough hook, whisk, pour defend
• Weight: 29 lbs
• Guarantee: 1-year

KitchenAid KSM7586POB 7-Quart Professional Line Stand Mixer

This shares quite a lot of the identical traits because the Skilled 600 Sequence, however has a 1-quart bigger said capability and a 970-watt motor in comparison with the 575 of the 6-quart. Just like the 600 sequence, the Professional Line is a bowl-lift mannequin, with a straightforward to function lever and its bowl affixed to the mixer through two prongs with holes that match onto the mixer’s arms. It’s the most important residential stand mixer KitchenAid makes. 

Greatest for: At $680, it’s important to be a really avid baker who often doubles up on recipes to justify the added worth of this stand mixer. For many house bakers, we don’t assume the added wattage or area will make an enormous distinction in efficiency or usability, in comparison with the 600 Sequence.

Challenges or shortcomings: Just like the 600 Sequence, it may be a bit finicky to seat the bowl on the stand mixer at instances. It’s barely wider and heavier than the 600 sequence, although not taller.

Worth at time of publish: $680.

Key Specs: 

• Wattage: 970
• Variety of speeds: 10
• Comes with: Paddle, dough hook, whisk, pour defend
• Weight: 32 lbs
• Guarantee: 5-year

KitchenAid Artisan Sequence 5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer

The Artisan includes a footed bowl that locks into the stand mixer’s base and a head that tilts and ought to be locked into place when in use. The tapered, footed bowl isn’t our favourite: it’s not as simple to scrape down the perimeters, and it might’t be positioned over an open flame or a double boiler like a large, non-footed bowl can. It’s best-suited for medium-ish baking duties (we wouldn’t advocate doubling up on a recipe). When you’ve had your eye on a particular version KitchenAid, it’s probably the Artisan.

Greatest for: When you’re an off-the-cuff baker and don’t typically make bread at house, you’ll probably be pleased with the Artisan. The Artisan’s appropriate with glass and every kind of printed and blended metallic bowls, too, which is enjoyable from an aesthetics perspective.

Challenges or shortcomings: We wouldn’t advocate making breads with the Artisan—it tends to stroll and tilt-head stand mixers heads can loosen over time. In actual fact, I’ve loosened an Artisan’s head making bread earlier than.

Worth at time of publish: $450

Key Specs

• Wattage: 325
• Variety of speeds: 10
• Comes with: Paddle, dough hook, whisk, pour defend
• Weight: 26 lbs
• Guarantee: 1-year

Kitchenaid Artisan Mini Plus 3.5-Qt. Tilt-Head Stand Mixer with Flex Edge Beater

This smaller model of the Artisan is one in every of KitchenAid’s comparatively newer choices. It has a 3.5-quart capability, a 250-watt motor, and is about eight inches huge and 12 inches excessive in comparison with the Artisan’s 9-inch width and 14-inch peak. If space-saving and standard-batch, occasional baking are your prime precedence, then the Artisan Mini could also be value contemplating. Just like the Artisan, it includes a footed bowl with a deal with that’s locked into the bottom and a tilt-head that’s secured when in use.

Greatest for: The informal, space-saving (or in want of space-saving) baker will probably recognize the Artisan Mini. It’s additionally appropriate with a glass mixing bowl, if that’s one thing you’re concerned with (although we do fear about its breakability). When you’re on the lookout for the lightest weight, easiest-to-lift KitchenAid stand mixer, the Mini is the smallest it will get.

Challenges or shortcomings: The Artisan Mini has area limitations, in addition to the identical considerations of any tilt-head stand mixer (much less energy, much less longevity).  

Worth at time of publish: $379.

Key Specs: 

• Wattage: 250
• Variety of speeds: 10
• Comes with: Paddle, dough hook, whisk
• Weight: 18 lbs
• Guarantee: 1-year

KitchenAid Traditional Sequence 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer

That is the least costly stand mixer KitchenAid gives, regardless of being 1.5-quarts bigger and having a 25-watt extra {powerful} motor than the Artisan Mini. It’s additionally a footed, bowl-lock, tilt-head stand mixer. So, why the lower cost? So far as we are able to inform, the bowl lacks a deal with, and the mixer solely is available in two colours (black and white). A stand mixer generally is a point of interest in a house kitchen, so this lack of coloration selection could be vital to you. 

Greatest for: The informal house baker who needs to get essentially the most budget-friendly KitchenAid stand mixer and who doesn’t care about its colorway. 

Challenges or shortcomings: We wouldn’t advocate this stand mixer for frequent, heavy-duty use or quite a lot of bread baking. We’re not tremendous followers of footed stand mixer bowls and dislike the very fact the Traditional’s bowl’s lacks a deal with. It detracts from its usability. 

Worth at time of publish: $330.

Key Specs: 

• Wattage: 275
• Variety of speeds: 10
• Comes with: Paddle, dough hook, whisk
• Weight: 25 lbs
• Guarantee: 1-year

FAQs

Can you employ any KitchenAid attachment with any KitchenAid stand mixer?

KitchenAid’s attachments (meat grinder, pasta curler and cutter, spiralizer, and so forth.) are appropriate with each KitchenAid stand mixer and match into the hub of every mannequin, aside from the ice cream maker. This attachment is appropriate with “all Tilt-Head Stand Mixers, besides fashions KSM3316 and KSM3317” and bowl-lift fashions “besides fashions K5SS, KSM5, KSM50, KSM500 and KSM450,” in line with KitchenAid.

What do I do with a unfastened tilt-head stand mixer?

To repair a unfastened or wobbling head on a tilt-head stand mixer, KitchenAid has a number of options.

What’s the most effective KitchenAid stand mixer?

Our favourite KitchenAid stand mixer is the KitchenAid 6-Quart Skilled 600 Sequence Stand Mixer.