Kitchenaid Vs. Cuisinart: Which Stand Mixer Is Better? I Tested Them Head-to-Head

• Value: 19/20
• Functionality: 19/20
• Ease of Use: 17/20
• Aesthetics: 17/20
• Mixing Power: 19/20

TOTAL: 92/100

If you’re trying to spend under $300 on a stand mixer, but you still want something sturdy and reliable, the Cuisinart is your best bet. Seriously—if you bake more than four times a year, don’t even waste your time looking at those under-$100 stand mixers (which often have suction cups on the bottom, because they’re so lightweight they waddle across your counter or topple at high speeds), or the KitchenAid Mini, for that matter (which, in my experience, overheats easily and has issues mixing consistently).

Cuisinart offers a bit more nuance, in terms of speeds, offering 12 options to the KitchenAid Artisan’s 10. This provides you a bit more control over what you’re mixing (or whipping, or aerating), and the dial allows you to adjust speeds pretty seamlessly. It also weighs about 35 percent less than the KitchenAid—clocking in at 15 pounds to the Artisan’s 23-ish—making it easier to haul from the cabinet to your counter, should you stow it between uses.

And, in another impressive flex, it boasts 500 watts of power to the Artisan’s 325. However, that power—combined with its lighter weight—means that when I kneaded bread doughs, the Cuisinart tended to buck and shake; never so much that it threatened to topple over or “walk,” but worth noting all the same.

Another con was that out of the box, the Cuisinart’s tilt head was too high for the attachments, so things didn’t mix properly. The fix is simple—you’ll need to take a flat-head screwdriver to twist the screw in the mixer’s head and adjust the height to suit your needs. However, actually turning the screw can require serious elbow grease, and I found I wasn’t alone in my challenge here, with some reviewers saying they struggled to do so. 

That said, if you tend to bake cookies and cakes for the most part, or you’re interested in using its attachments to spiralize veggies and grind meat, the Cuisinart will do it all—and do so remarkably well. It’s really only if you bake a lot of bread or plan on using it to make your own fondant that you may want to consider the KitchenAid instead.

FAST FACTS

• Size: 7.87" D x 14.17" W x 14.13" H
• Capacity: 5.5 quarts
• Power: 500 watts
• Colors: 13, including white, black, dove gray, orange, red, sage green, periwinkle blue, silver and beige
• Attachments: bowl, whisk, dough hook, flat beater and pouring shield included; attachments to grind meat, spiralize vegetables, make pasta and ice cream/sorbet sold separately

• Value: 18/20
• Functionality: 20/20
• Ease of Use: 17/20
• Aesthetics: 20/20
• Mixing Power: 19/20

TOTAL: 94/100

While testing the KitchenAid Artisan and the Cuisinart, I had to account for two things: A bias toward the KitchenAid, for using them for 12+ years, and the fact that maybe my 12-year-old machine may not perform as well as a fresh-out-of-the-box Cuisinart mixer. But here’s the thing, which ultimately gave it the edge: The Artisan executed on every test flawlessly (buttercream! Rye bagels! Cookies! Cupcakes!), without overheating, bucking or shaking.

I’ll be brutally honest: I find the knob to adjust speeds a bit clunkier and harder to transition than the Cuisinart’s dial, and sometimes, the attachments are a bit harder to remove than the Cuisinart. And at 23 pounds, it’s too heavy to live anywhere but my counter, and I don’t love sacrificing that tabletop space.

But at the end of the day, those gripes are minor cons to the machine’s durability, versatility and overall quality. Yes, I have the bias of 12 years’ use, but the fact that the Artisan runs as efficiently today as it did more than a decade ago underscores its value in my mind. That helps me justify the price—that and the fact that it’s often on sale (QVC is currently offering it for $119 off the retail price). Plus, if we’re being superficial, it does have the widest range of colors and finishes (and it’s compatible with the brand’s ceramic bowls), which is a bonus.

FAST FACTS

• Size: 9.3" D x 14.3" W x 14" H
• Capacity: 5 quarts
• Power: 325 watts
• Colors: 39 options, offering just about every color of the rainbow (including glossy and matte finishes)
• Attachments: bowl, dough hook, beater and paddle included; 10+ attachments sold separately to allow you to make pasta, grind meat, spiralize/chop veggies, make ice cream/sorbet and more