The top bread machines for home bakers

Description

id=“article-body“ class=“row“ section=“article-body“>

There’s really no comparison between store-bought bread and homemade bread, but baking a loaf of bread from scratch is quite a commitment — most of us don’t have time to knead, proof and bake a fresh loaf each week. That’s where a bread machine for baking fresh bread comes in.  

With a bread maker in your kitchen, you can simply toss wet and dry ingredients into the bread making appliance and send it on its merry way. In a few hours, voila! A freshly baked loaf of bread, complete with crispy crust and perfectly light texture.

If you’re in the market for one of these handy kitchen gadgets, the following are some of Chowhound’s favorite bread machines to buy in 2020, based on our research, including specs comparisons and user reviews. We’ll update this with the best bread machine options as we use new products.

Read more: 15 unexpected uses for your bread machine

Williams Sonoma

Note: As freshly baked bread surges in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic, many of these bread making machines are temporarily out of stock — but just keep checking back, and in the meanwhile, see how to make Crock-Pot bread in a slow cooker, how to bake bread in a skillet or Dutch oven, and even how to use your Instant Pot to help with proofing. (Or just stick to quick bread loaves such as beer bread and banana bread.)

What to look for when buying a bread machine
As you start looking at bread machines, you’ll find they vary significantly in shape, size and price. There are a few factors that contribute to these differences in bread making machine options, and you’ll want to consider which features are most important for your needs.

First, automatic bread makers come in various sizes. This not only refers to the physical footprint of the appliance for baking bread (which can be substantial), but also the loaf size it can bake. Common bread maker sizes include 1- and 2-pound loaf models — if you’re only baking a loaf of bread for yourself, a smaller bread maker might work just fine, while larger families might need larger loaves to keep everyone satisfied.

You’ll also want to think about the shape of the appliance’s inner bread pan, as this will determine the shape of the loaf of bread. Many bread-making machines have square pans, which yield square loaves, but you can also find bread making models that make horizontal loaves that are closer to what you’d buy in the store.

Want to make different kinds of bread? Bread makers can only churn out specific types of bread depending on the bread flour and settings, so if you want to make wheat, gluten-free or other varieties, you’ll need a machine that has the appropriate settings. Some fancier bread machines even have nonbread settings, such as ones for cake!

Finally, bread makers often have additional features that let you customize the final product. Popular settings include crust color, delayed start, mix-in dispensers and even different loaf sizes.

It’s a lot to think about, so to make your decision a little easier, we’ve combed the internet for the best bread machines, taking specs, popularity, ratings and professional reviews into consideration.

Top overall pick

Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker

Zojirushi If you’re ready to leave grocery store bread in the past, the Zojirushi Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker is one of the top bread machines you can buy today. Unlike many other models, the Zojirushi Bread Maker creates traditional 2-pound rectangular loaves similar to what you buy from the store, and it boasts a variety of baking bread features that let you create amazing bread with minimal effort.

This appliance can make white, multigrain, whole wheat, gluten-free, salt-free, sugar-free and vegan bread, and it boasts double kneading blades and dual heaters for superior cooking results. You can control the automatic bread maker settings via the large LCD screen, adjusting things like the bread type, crust control and delay timer. The Zojirushi Bread Maker has a large glass viewing window that lets you see what’s going on inside during the baking process and a sturdy inner bread pan, and it even features a rapid setting that whips up white or whole wheat bread in two and a half hours.

This bread machine comes with a liquid measuring cup, nested measuring cups and a measuring spoon, as well as a bread recipe book. While this Zojirushi Bread Maker is on the more expensive side, buyer reviews say it makes absolutely delicious bread that rivals handmade loaves. (Also available but temporarily out of stock on Amazon and at Target.)

$340 at Bed Bath & Beyond

Our favorite budget bread machine

Hamilton Beach Digital Bread Maker

Hamilton Beach High-end bread machines can cost several hundred dollars, and if you only make bread once in a blue moon, you might not want to empty your wallet for one