For serious cooks and avid bakers, a stand mixer is a must-have. Stand mixers save your arms from the hassle of kneading dough or mixing cake batter, and their detachable components make cleanup a breeze. But with dozens of options on the market, all offering different bowl sizes, attachments and mixing speeds, shopping for the best stand mixer can be challenging.
The Hamilton Beach 6-Speed Stand Mixer offers a powerful motor in a compact profile that’s easy to store. It promises to whip, beat, cream or blend a variety of foods with ease, and it’s considerably cheaper than some of the most popular stand mixers available.
We wanted to see if this Hamilton Beach 6 Speed Electric Stand Mixer could deliver quality results at an affordable price, so we put it to the test. Here’s what we learned.
We’ve used a variety of stand mixers before for all kinds of baking and dessert recipes, so we’re familiar with what works and what doesn’t. We tested this Hamilton Beach stand mixer for 2 weeks to make recipes like biscuit dough, cookie dough and meringues.
The Hamilton Beach 6-Speed Stand Mixer is smaller and more lightweight than most popular stand mixer models, so it’s easy to find space on your counter for it. It offers six mixing speeds, which are selected with a dial, as well as a gentler “fold” setting. The tilt-up head allows easy access to the bowl. Its modern styling and minimalist color choices distinguish it from other models on the market.
The Hamilton Beach 6-Speed Stand Mixer retails for around $100. The exact price will vary based on the color of the mixer. It’s sold by Amazon, Wayfair and Macy’s.
The Hamilton Beach 6-Speed Stand Mixer is capable of mixing up anything from lightweight meringues to heavier pizza and bread doughs. With the mixer unplugged, flip the mixer’s head back by pressing the button on the side, then insert the mixing attachment of your choice. The mixing speed is controlled with a dial on the side. Depending on your recipe and the attachment you’re using, you may need to pause mixing and tilt the mixer head to add ingredients or scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure everything is being incorporated properly.
This Hamilton Beach mixer has a 300-watt motor and a 3.5-quart stainless steel footed bowl. The mixer comes with a flat beater, a wire whisk and a dough hook. The beater operates with a planetary mixing action, meaning the mixing attachment rotates while it’s being circled around the bowl. If you’ve used a KitchenAid stand mixer, it’s the same mixing action you’ll be familiar with. It also features non-slip feet to keep the mixer steady.
The 3.5-quart bowl is a versatile size that can accommodate large and small batches. The mixing action was good, especially with the paddle beater, and we appreciated how easy the dial made it to switch between mixing speeds. The non-slip, suction cup feet are a smart addition to keep this lightweight model from “walking” across the counter while it’s mixing. Its design is compact and modern, and its color choices are simple: it comes in plain black or gray with chrome accents.
The dial used to change mixing speeds wasn’t a feature we’d encountered before, but it was intuitive and easy to use. We found the “fold” feature interesting, but not necessarily a must-have — it operates similarly to the “pulse” function on a food processor, letting you control the motor speed manually in order to fold in ingredients.
While this Hamilton Beach stand mixer mixes well, it’s not the right mixer for everyone. We struggled to swap out the mixing attachments — it would be a very difficult task for someone with arm or hand issues. Also, we would have preferred a bowl with a handle.
Adding ingredients while the motor is running can also prove tricky since the attachments cover a larger portion of the bowl than some models, leaving only a small amount of space through which to pour ingredients. For recipes like chocolate chip cookies, where the mixer is stopped and the head lifted in order to add the chocolate chips, this isn’t much of an issue. However, for recipes that require a constant drizzle of sugar, oil or melted butter, the limited space can be challenging.
This stand mixer is also limited in its available attachments. While some models offer attachments for everything from grinding meat to making pasta, this Hamilton Beach model sticks to the basics. The motor and bowl size handle foods like cake batter with ease, but users sometimes report the mixer struggling to mix larger amounts of heavy dough. If you want a mixer to help you test out a variety of bread recipes, you may prefer a more robust model.
Overall, the Hamilton Beach 6-Speed Stand Mixer is best for someone already familiar with how stand mixers operate and who is looking for a stand mixer to use for basic baking recipes. Swapping out the attachments was challenging, and we found that the process of lifting the mixer head and removing the attachments wasn’t as intuitive as we’d like. However, it mixed most of our recipes quite well, and we appreciated that it wasn’t as heavy or bulky as other models on the market.
KitchenAid Artisan Mini Stand Mixer
This compact stand mixer has a 3.5-quart bowl and tilt-head operation like the Hamilton Beach, but with 10 speed settings. It’s heavier, so it’s fairly stable for its size. It’s also available in a variety of colors to match your kitchen decor.
Sold by Amazon
Dash Everyday 6-Speed Stand Mixer
For beginner bakers or smaller households, this budget stand mixer is a good option. It comes with a 3-quart stainless steel bowl and two pairs of beaters like those you’d find on a hand mixer instead of the typical stand mixer attachments.
Sold by Amazon
Hamilton Beach 12-Speed Electric Stand Mixer
If you’re a baker who frequently preps large batches of baked goods, you’ll appreciate the bigger mixing bowl and increased speed settings offered by this model. Along with a flat beater, dough hook and whisk, this model comes with a pouring shield for less messy baking.
Sold by Amazon
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Laura Duerr writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
