To Find the Best Bread Machines, We Made More Than 60 Sandwich Loaves

Homemade bread is special: It fills the house with its warm, yeasty aroma, and there's nothing quite like slicing off a still-warm piece and eating it slathered with butter. And while there's a time and a place for sourdough rye boules and carefully braided challah, sometimes impatience wins out. In these instances, a bread machine makes it incredibly easy to make a loaf: Just add the ingredients to the baking pan, select your settings, and a fresh loaf of bread is on its way.

To find which bread maker met our standards for high-quality loaves, we tested 20 popular models to see which ones were the simplest to use, easiest to clean, and above all else, made great-tasting bread.

The Winners, at a Glance

The Best Bread Machine

Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker

$400 at Amazon View on Zojirushi.com

This powerhouse bread machine from Zojirushi was spot on with its mixing, kneading, stretching, and proofing. It baked up pillowy soft white and hearty rye breads. We appreciated its dual paddles and rectangular pan shape, which delivered easily sliceable (and sandwich-friendly) loaves.

The Best Budget Bread Machine

Cuisinart CBK-110 Compact Automatic Bread Maker

$130 at Amazon $130 at Williams Sonoma $130 at Target

Even with its more compact size, this model from Cuisinart still produced well-mixed, perfectly proofed two-pound loaves. It had built-in rest periods during kneading that allowed the dough to hydrate, helping to contribute to good gluten development and nicely risen loaves. It's also relatively inexpensive for a bread maker.

The Best Compact Bread Machine

Zojirushi BB-HAC10 Home Bakery Mini Breadmaker

$226 at Amazon $255 at Williams Sonoma $255 at Target

The Zojirushi Home Bakery Mini takes up less countertop and cabinet space without sacrificing bread quality. Even in its smaller form, it still offers many different settings for a variety of bread styles (like Quick Baking and French Bread), making it both convenient and versatile.

The Best Customizable Bread Machine

Breville Custom Loaf Bread Maker

$300 at Amazon $300 at Williams Sonoma $300 at Sur La Table

This bread machine can make four different-sized loaves, and it can also mix up dough, pizza dough, and jam. It has a truly easy-to-use interface, and we thought it was a great price considering all its bells and whistles.

The Tests

• White Bread Test: We made a loaf of white bread from each machine’s recipe booklet and noted how well each model mixed, kneaded, proofed, and baked the loaf. 
• Cinnamon Raisin Bread Test: We followed the bread makers' default cinnamon raisin bread recipes, noting how easy it was to add the raisins, and how well the bread came out.
• Rye Bread Test (Top Models-Only): We followed the recipe for our Bread Machine Rye Bread to see how each machine could handle a standardized formula. 
• Cinnamon Raisin Bread Test
• Usability and Cleanup Tests: We evaluated each bread machine’s settings and display and how easy it was to assemble the paddles and pan. We assessed how easy it was to clean, including the inside of the machine.

What We Learned

How Bread Machines Work

A bread machine consists of a square or rectangular pan, one or two rotating kneading paddles, and a heating element that wraps around the inside of the machine and radiates heat toward the pan. After you add ingredients and press start, the paddles mix and knead the dough. The heating element turns onto a low setting, too, which helps it rise. Once the proofing cycle is complete, the heating element then kicks into high gear to bake the dough. 

Most manufacturers have a specific order in which you add your ingredients to make sure the instant yeast doesn’t prematurely activate. Usually, recipes call for wet ingredients, then flour, and then the other dry ingredients, like yeast and salt. This is important for delayed bread cycles so the yeast doesn’t hydrate and start fermenting, but if you’re starting a cycle right away, it’s not a huge deal if the yeast gets wet.

Most Bread Machines Were Similar, but Some Had Different Bake Settings and Features

Most of the bread makers we tested had a surprisingly similar pan, kneading paddle, and heating element. There were some clever design elements—some machines had a folding paddle that would fall automatically after mixing to avoid getting stuck in the bread. Others, like the Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus, had a unique second heating element in their lids to promote browning the tops of the loaves. 

What set each bread machine apart was its settings. We appreciated the “rest” cycle in the Zojirushi models, which allowed ingredients to warm up before they were mixed. We also liked the pauses in the Cuisinart’s kneading cycles, which let the dough fully hydrate and build stronger gluten strands. It was these subtle differences that helped our winners edge out the competition.

Even Great Bread Machines Can Make Flatter Loaves

Bread machines might seem magical, but proper rise isn’t guaranteed. Yeast is a living organism, and its ability to leaven bread requires the right moisture content, temperature, and fuel. Yeast that performs well in some loaves might not do so well in others, due to improper mixing, varying proofing temperatures, or the starting temperature of the water being used.

Because of this, even a high-performing machine can produce a sub-par loaf from time to time. When making bread by hand, a baker can check the dough consistency and rise mid-proof in order to make adjustments, but with an automated bread machine cycle, you just have to try again.

Why Did My Bread Loaf Come Out Dense?

If this happens, your recipe ratios may just be off. Dense bread is often the result of a too-dry dough. A good place to begin troubleshooting is by using a kitchen scale to weigh your ingredients: That way, you won't accidentally add too much flour. Too much kneading can also cause overdeveloped gluten and dense bread, so you may need to play around with cycle lengths. And make sure your yeast hasn't expired!

Two Paddles Were Better Than One

The only winning bread machine we tested that had two kneading paddles was the Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus, which proved necessary due to its elongated pan. The dual paddles immediately incorporated all ingredients, kneading them well, and even functioned as a dough shaper: during proofing, the paddles would rotate back and forth, stretching the dough to fill the pan fully. The result was a perfectly shaped loaf of white bread with a textbook dome and soft crumb. 

The Breville and Breadman bread machines also had rectangular pans, though they were slightly shorter and only had a single paddle. Both models struggled to mix ingredients and would have benefitted from having another paddle or a square pan.

The Best Bread Machines Were Great at Proofing

Bread machines proof each loaf at a precise temperature, and our favorite machines stayed consistent throughout the proofing cycle. Even though our kitchen was 66ºF, the loaves were proofed between 82° to 92ºF, depending on the settings of each machine, and stayed there for two hours throughout their multiple rise stages.

Bread Recipes Needed to Be Tweaked

Not all bread flour or yeast is the same. Even with fairly standard recipes, each loaf will be slightly unique. That said, we really appreciated the detailed recipes from Zojiirushi, which gave both volume and weight. We also liked the troubleshooting guide in the user manual that helped new home bakers adjust their recipes to best suit their ingredients, like reducing water if the loaf rises too much. 

Ultimately, many of the machines we tested produced an acceptable loaf of bread. However, our winners produced the best loaves of bread based on their default recipes, so if you just want to set and forget and leave the tinkering to someone else, you’ll likely still get good results.

All the Bread Machines Were Easy to Use and Clean

After baking, the nonstick bread pans were easy to remove and wash. However, it may still be a good idea to keep a dough cloth on hand to help remove stubborn sticky bits of dough.

The one gripe we had about cleaning bread machines was the paddles. Because the kneading paddles are left under the dough during proofing and baking, you either end up with a paddle-shaped hole or the paddle itself stuck in the loaf. Even the fold-down paddles still left big indents, so no machine had a true advantage with clean-up.

What Size Bread Machine Should You Choose?

The sizes given by manufacturers are often, well, unhelpful: what the heck is a two-pound loaf capacity? Is a one-pound loaf capacity too little? Gah! To put things in perspective, most of the sliced bread you find at the supermarket is around one pound, and most of the machines we tested have larger capacities, around two pounds.

In the end, we think a two-pound machine is a versatile choice that lets you bake up loaves big and small. That being said, a one-pound capacity machine, like our petite winner from Zojirushi, is great for folks who don't have a ton of storage space but have their hearts set on a bread machine.

The Criteria: What to Look for in a Bread Machine

The best bread machines can mix, knead, proof, and bake great loaves of bread with their default recipes. They should be easy to use, and their features (like functions that promise different crust shades) should be accurate. We preferred rectangular bread pans with dual paddles, which produced well-kneaded, neat loaves that sliced easily. When it comes to size, we'd spring for a two-pound capacity machine, but if you're low on storage space, a one-pound machine will do just fine, too.

Our Favorite Bread Machines

The Best Bread Machine

Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker

$400 at Amazon View on Zojirushi.com

What we liked: The default white bread this model baked was truly exceptional: It had an open crumb that was tender and pillowy, and the loaf was the ideal shape for making a sandwich. This machine was the only model with a rectangular loaf pan, which was a boon. Because the dough was stretched lengthwise by the dual paddles, it didn't inhibit fermentation during proofing. We also appreciated the extra heating element in the lid for a more evenly baked crust (you can choose between three shades: light, medium, and dark), and the added programming settings, like a delay timer.

What we didn’t like: There’s no getting around it: this machine is big, heavy, and expensive.

Key Specs

• Weight: 20 pounds
• Materials: Plastic, stainless steel 
• Dimensions: 18 x 101.2 x 127/8 inches
• Capacity: 2-pound loaf
• Settings: 10 bread, 3 crust, dough, sourdough starter, cake, jam, homemade
• Number of kneading paddles: 2
• Bread pan shape: Rectangular
• Care instructions: Hand-wash bread pan with warm water and soap; to clean interior, unplug, then wipe down inside and outside with damp cloth before drying thoroughly

The Best Budget Bread Machine

Cuisinart CBK-110 Compact Automatic Bread Maker

$130 at Amazon $130 at Williams Sonoma $130 at Target

What we liked: For a relatively inexpensive, fairly small machine, the Cuisinart Compact Automatic Bread Maker delivered great results. It was easy to use and baked consistently good bread. We particularly appreciated the mixing and kneading feature, which brought all the ingredients together swiftly and developed great gluten strength through a series of rests between kneading cycles. 

What we didn’t like: The larger loaves were very tall, which made them harder to slice and more awkward to eat. We thought the white bread was a little dry, but that could likely be tweaked by adding more water. 

Key Specs

• Weight: 12 pounds
• Materials: Stainless steel 
• Dimensions: 10.2  x 13.25 x 11.25 inches
• Capacity: 2-pound loaf
• Settings: 7 bread, 3 crust, dough, jam, packaged mix, cake, bake-only
• Number of kneading paddles: 1 
• Bread pan shape: Square
• Care instructions: Hand wash bread pan with warm water and soap; to clean interior, unplug, then wipe down inside and outside with damp cloth before drying thoroughly

The Best Compact Bread Machine

Zojirushi BB-HAC10 Home Bakery Mini Breadmaker

$226 at Amazon $255 at Williams Sonoma $255 at Target

What we liked: This was the smallest bread machine we tested, and we appreciated how lightweight and portable it was without sacrificing bread quality. It baked well-proofed white bread and rye loaves with soft, tender crumbs. The machine had a simple display and easy menu navigation, too.

What we didn’t like: This was the only machine tested that produced a lumpy, under-risen loaf, but after retesting the recipe, the next one turned out great. It did take longer to fully incorporate all of the dry ingredients, but not as long as some other models tested. 

Key Specs

• Weight: 12 pounds
• Materials: Plastic body
• Dimensions: 8.5 x 11.25 x 12.25 inches
• Capacity: 1-pound loaf
• Settings: 5 bread, 2 crust, cookie/pasta dough, jam setting, cake setting
• Number of kneading paddles: 1
• Bread pan shape: Square
• Care instructions: Hand-wash bread pan with warm, soapy water; to clean interior, unplug, then wipe down inside and outside with damp cloth before drying thoroughly

The Best Customizable Bread Machine

Breville Custom Loaf Bread Maker

$300 at Amazon $300 at Williams Sonoma $300 at Sur La Table

What we liked: This bread machine has an impressive nine settings—13 if you count all the different types of dough it can churn out, including focaccia and hamburger buns. Most bread machines offer some customization on the loaf doneness, but the Breville also allows you to choose between four different sizes. There are some luxe, flashy features, like a Delay Start and Keep Warm function. It was super easy to browse through and select the different settings. The cinnamon bread was tasty, with well-dispersed raisins. Cleanup was easy because there was very little dough stuck to the pan and mixing paddle—a sign of properly mixed bread.

What we didn't like: The loaf of white bread looked golden brown and promising when baking, but it deflated considerably after removing it from the pan. (As we noted, these issues can often be fixed with further trial and error).

Key Specs

• Weight: 16.84 pounds
• Materials: Stainless steel body
• Dimensions: 9.6 x 16.4 x 13.3 inches
• Capacity: 2.5-pound loaf, 2-pound loaf, 1.5-pound loaf, and 1-pound loaf
• Settings: Basic, whole wheat, gluten-free, crusty loaf, sweet, yeast-free, dough (including hamburger buns, focaccia, pizza dough, and pasta dough), bake only, and jam
• Number of kneading paddles: 1
• Bread pan shape: Rectangular
• Care instructions: Hand-wash bread pan with warm, soapy water; to clean exterior and interior, unplug, then wipe down inside and outside with damp cloth or sponge

The Competition

• Breadman 2-Pound Professional Bread Maker: This machine performed admirably, but both loaves were slightly over-proofed and recipes would likely need to be tweaked. 
• Hamilton Beach HomeBaker 2-Pound Breadmaker: This machine was deep, and we had trouble opening the lid on our countertop; it frequently hit our cabinets. It also took longer than other models to fully incorporate ingredients. 
• Gohyo 19-in-1 Bread Machine: This machine produced dense bread that had pockets of dry ingredients that were still powdery and unincorporated.
• CUSIMAX Bread Maker: This machine also left pockets of dry ingredients that weren't fully incorporated. 
• KBS Large 17-in-1 Bread Machine: The white bread from this model had a gummy interior and inconsistent rise. 
• Cuisinart 2-Pound Convection Bread Maker: This machine also struggled to thoroughly incorporate all of the dry ingredients. 
• Zojirushi Home Bakery Maestro Breadmaker: This model made great white bread, but we thought the other Zojirushi models performed better overall. 
• Neretva Bread Machine: This machine produced dense white bread and had issues incorporating ingredients. 
• KITCHENARM 29-in-1 SMART Bread Machine: This model was the trickiest to clean, and its paddle kept getting stuck in the pan with dried bits of dough. 
• West Bend Hi-Rise Bread Maker: Even with dual paddles, this machine had trouble incorporating all of the ingredients evenly. 
• Dash Everyday Stainless Steel Bread Maker: This machine wobbled a lot during kneading and only baked so-so bread.
• Pohl Schmitt 14-in-1 Stainless Steel Bread Maker Machine: Bread came out unevenly baked and flat from this machine. 
• Oster ExpressBake 2-Pound Bread Maker: Unevenly baked, bread was dense and gummy. 
• Panasonic Bread Machine: Some areas of the crust came out burnt, and the crumb was very dense. 
• Amazon Basics Non-Stick Bread Making Machine: This machine was loud and shook a lot during kneading, and both loaves collapsed heavily due to overproving. 
• CROWNFUL Automatic Bread Machine: This product now appears to be discontinued.

FAQs

Is it worth getting a bread machine?

If you want access to fresh-made loaves of bread and don't have a ton of time, a bread maker can be a helpful appliance to have. Making bread in this gadget is as easy as adding the ingredients in the correct order, choosing your bread style, and pressing start.

Is it cheaper to buy bread or to make it in a bread machine?

While a bread machine has an initial investment that might be hard to offset by just buying loaves at the store, making your own bread at home can be a cost saver, eventually. The bigger advantage of a bread machine is having freshly baked bread at home with minimal effort.

Can you use regular flour in a bread machine?

Most bread machines use regular, all-purpose flour in their recipes, though some models do offer premixed packets that include all of the dry ingredients. We recommend using the default recipes that come with your bread machine to better learn how they function, and most of those recipes will ask for standard all-purpose or bread flour.

What kind of yeast should you use in a bread machine?

Some manufacturers recommend using bread machine yeast, which is a type of instant yeast designed for bread machines, but every model we tested called for either instant yeast or active dry yeast. While any of these yeasts will work in a bread machine, be sure to read your instructions closely to see which type your recipe calls for, as they have different rise times.

Can you make sourdough bread in a bread machine?

Yes, you can make sourdough bread in a bread machine by adding some starter. The overall end result might not be as crusty as a loaf baked in a Dutch oven or bread pan, but it will still have that tang.

Why We're the Experts

• Jesse Raub was a writer at Serious Eats and spent over 15 years working in the specialty coffee industry.
• He's an accomplished home baker who tackled bread-related reviews for Serious Eats, including loaf pans and bread lames.
• Rochelle Bilow is an editor at Serious Eats. She has been testing kitchen gear for three years, after working in the food writing industry for over a decade.
• For this review, we tested 20 bread machines, baking over 60 loaves of bread. We evaluated bread machines both at home and in our lab so that our winners—the Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus, Cuisinart Compact, and the Zojirushi Home Bakery Mini—were all tested multiple times by different people to ensure they were truly the best.