Bowl liters, motor watts, and thirty years of attachments
The longest-lived appliance on this site, and the one bought least often — which changes what matters. A stand mixer is chosen on bowl capacity and on the attachment hub it carries, because the hub decides what the machine can still do in ten years: mincer, pasta roller, grater, and on some ranges a great deal more. Motor wattage matters for stiff dough, but the published figure and the usable dough quantity are two different claims, and serious makers state the second. We compare bowl liters against the maker's stated flour capacity, wattage, whether the action is planetary, the hub standard, the machine's weight — a light mixer walks across the countertop with heavy dough — and what is supplied in the box.
Stand and hand mixer in one · stated for thick mixtures · no wattage published
A 4-quart stand mixer whose head detaches as a hand mixer, with six speeds, QuickBurst, five attachments and a lever that moves the bowl by hand.
Best for: A small kitchen that needs one mixer rather than two
≈ $63
Stand mixer · 7 speeds · planetary mixing · no wattage published
A 300 W planetary stand mixer with seven speeds, a 4-quart stainless bowl, a removable splatter shield and the three standard attachments.
Best for: A single-batch baker who wants the mixing action rather than the badge
≈ $127
Artisan 5 qt tilt-head, almond · 59 bowl touchpoints · metal construction
The 5-quart Artisan tilt-head mixer in four bullets: metal construction, 59 touchpoints, a handled bowl rated 9 dozen cookies, a locking tilt-head and ten speeds.
Best for: The Artisan in this color, bought on the badge and the bowl handle
≈ $499
Artisan 5 qt tilt-head · 59 bowl touchpoints · metal construction
The 5-quart Artisan tilt-head mixer in black matte, with ten speeds, 59 touchpoints, a handled bowl rated 9 dozen cookies and over twenty colors in the range.
Best for: Anyone who has chosen the Artisan and is choosing the finish
≈ $492
Bowl-lift stand mixer · twice the in-bowl power of the KSM150 tilt-head, per KitchenAid
A 5.5-quart bowl-lift stand mixer with eleven speeds plus a half speed for folding, a 3-point locking bowl and twice the bowl power of the tilt-head Artisan.
Best for: Bread in quantity, under a wall cupboard, with the hub in reach
Artisan KSM150PS, 5 qt tilt-head · 10 speeds · 36 in cord · 9 dozen cookies per batch · 59 bowl touchpoints · its own listing publishes only the speed range and the cord length
The 5-quart Artisan tilt-head mixer, published here in a single bullet giving a 10-speed slide control and a 36-inch cord.
Best for: Anyone buying the Artisan on reputation rather than on the page
≈ $499
Artisan 5 qt tilt-head, pistachio · 59 bowl touchpoints · metal construction
The 5-quart Artisan tilt-head mixer in pistachio, with ten speeds, 59 touchpoints, a handled bowl rated 9 dozen cookies and over twenty colors in the range.
Best for: Anyone for whom the color is the point and the mechanism is settled
≈ $500
Classic Series tilt-head · 59 bowl touchpoints · metal construction
A 4.5-quart tilt-head stand mixer in metal, with ten speeds, 59 touchpoints, three coated attachments and access to the KitchenAid attachment hub.
Best for: Anyone who wants the hub and the metal without paying Artisan money
≈ $323
Tilt-head · 5.3 qt polished stainless bowl · up to 9 dozen cookies, per the maker
A 5.3-quart tilt-head mixer with twelve speeds, a silicone-edged flat beater, a removable splash shield with a pour chute and an easy-grip bowl handle.
Best for: A baker who wants the beater to scrape and the shield to pour, at a third of the Artisan price
≈ $150
Tilt-head · 300 W · 10 speeds · from pizza dough to cake batter
A 300 W tilt-head mixer with ten speeds, a 6.3-quart bowl and a six-function lid including a magnifier, a slicer and a scale.
Best for: A large bowl at the lowest price, if you will hold the machine down yourself
Tilt-head · 660 W copper motor · 10 speeds plus pulse
A 660 W tilt-head mixer with a 6-quart bowl, ten speeds plus pulse, a flex-edge beater, a pour-through splash guard and suction cups.
Best for: Bread in quantity, if you accept an aluminum hook for the price
≈ $150
Artisan 5 qt tilt-head, velvet finish · 59 bowl touchpoints · metal construction
The 5-quart Artisan tilt-head mixer in blue velvet, shipping a bowl, a coated flat beater, a coated dough hook, a 6-wire whip and a pouring shield.
Best for: The Artisan, bought from the one listing that tells you what arrives
≈ $400
1,500 W · 2 bowls, 4.5 + 5.5 L · planetary
The only stand mixer here supplied with two stainless bowls — 4.5 and 5.5 liters — behind a 1,500 W motor Arebos states is pure copper in an ABS housing. Planetary action, six speeds, a tilting head, and a set that includes beater, dough hook, whisk and splash guard.
Best for: Baking in sequence — meringue and batter in one session, without washing up in between.
1,000 W · metal body · stepless + pulse
The kMix: a 1,000 W motor in a metal housing, with stepless speed control and a pulse function rather than fixed steps. Kenwood states the range extends with over twenty dishwasher-safe attachments, and supplies a three-piece baking set — K-beater, whisk and dough hook — plus a splash guard.
Best for: A mixer bought once, for the attachment range it opens rather than for its motor.
1,800 or 2,000 W · 5 L · planetary, 8 directions
A 5-liter planetary mixer that Klarstein states moves the tool in eight directions, with six speeds and a dough hook and whisk supplied. Its power is published twice and differently: the listing title says 2,000 W, the specification text says an 1,800 W motor. We report both.
Best for: Bread and yeast doughs, from a maker that at least names what it is for.
2,500 W · 12 L bowl · 8.5 kg (18.7 lb) dough
The only stand mixer here that publishes what it will actually turn: up to 8.5 kg (18.7 lb) of dough in a 12-liter bowl, behind a 2,500 W motor, a die-cast aluminum housing and a metal gearbox. An LED display shows speed and time. Its speed count is published twice and differently — thirteen in the title, twelve in the text.
Best for: Bread in real quantities, from someone who wants the dough figure before buying.
Kneading is what puts a stand mixer to the test. Undersized, it heats, slips and ages fast on dense doughs.
A wide speed range lets you fold flour in very slowly before building up. That is what makes the machine clean to use.
KitchenAid Artisan KSM150PS 5-Quart Tilt-Head Mixer, Almond Cream
Bowl capacity decides the size of the batch. Too small a bowl forces working twice, which cancels the time saved.
Torque at low speed counts more than the advertised figure. A heavy, slow machine often kneads better than one more powerful on paper.
The hook for yeasted doughs, the paddle for cake batters and creams, the whisk for anything that aerates.
For everything that is beaten and whipped, yes, and unattended. It is simply less convenient to get out for two egg whites.
The bowl is too large for the quantity, or the hook is badly set for height. Most machines have a bowl-clearance adjustment.
Depending on the recipe, generally a few minutes at low speed. Over-kneading heats the dough and damages the gluten network.
The mincer and the pasta roller give real service; the others often cost the price of a dedicated appliance that would do better.
Moderate warmth yes, a smell no. A dough too dense or too large makes the motor suffer.
Stainless is unbreakable and hides the dough; glass shows the progress and breaks. Stainless remains the usual choice.
It is torque at low speed, not advertised power, that kneads — a heavy, slow machine often beats one more powerful on paper. Check the bowl-clearance adjustment: it is almost always that when dough stays on the sides.
The column is kept only if four appliances in five give the figure. Otherwise it would turn absence into a difference.
$63 – $150
3 models
Hamilton Beach 64651 Classic Stand and Hand Mixer, Hamilton Beach 63390 7-Speed Planetary Stand Mixer, Martha Stewart 5.3-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer
Specifications: manufacturer sheets for kitchen appliances and the matching Amazon product pages. Prices and availability: Keepa. Every figure in this table names its source.
Most recent revision in this category: October 17, 2026.
Prices quoted in these summaries are dated readings. The live price is shown next to each product.
