Hand Mixer vs Stand Mixer: Which is Better?

With the many kitchen appliances available, it can be challenging to choose which ones you need. And it’s hard to determine which ones make your kitchen more efficient. Aside from the many kitchen appliances, there’s also the question of the many types of one kitchen appliance. One example is the kitchen mixer. Do you need a hand mixer or a stand mixer? Which is better?

Today, we’ll see.

Hand Mixer Merits

Let’s first look at what makes the hand mixer a great choice for your kitchen mixing needs.

Portability

One of the hand mixer’s greatest assets is its portability. Because it is small and light, you can easily use it anywhere a power outlet is present. You can mix by the sink, on the stove, by the fridge, or any other place around the kitchen you find convenient with a hand mixer.

Aside from the portability in its use, it’s also portable storage-wise. You can store it anywhere.

Easier to Operate

Another great aspect of a hand mixer is how easy it is to operate. Using one is just a walk in the park. There are no fancy configurations – just plug it in and choose the speed setting. Plus, it doesn’t normally need a special bowl to mix in. And it is also easier to clean than your standard stand mixer.

Less Expensive

This is a big deal for a lot of consumers looking for a kitchen mixer. Affordability is a product advantage, it becomes available to more people. Even if consumers want the bigger and fancier stand mixer, but they don’t have $300 or more lying around to buy it, they’d opt for the cheaper option.

Hand Mixer Disadvantages

If an item has its advantages, it will surely have its disadvantages. There’s no such thing as a perfect product, or there will be no competition.

Weaker and Slower

The common opposite that goes with portability in machines is weaker power. The hand mixer is small and light. Therefore it can’t keep up with more demanding mixing tasks. It is effective when used for small and light batches of baking. But it can’t keep up with heavy mixtures and huge amounts of dry or wet ingredients.

Additionally, it can’t finish a job as fast as a stand mixer. With its portability, you might be sacrificing speed.

Prevents Multitasking

You can’t walk away from a hand mixer when operating it. You have to hold it in your hand (obviously) and manually direct the beater or whisk to get an effectively mixed blend.

Merits of a Stand Mixer

Now let’s look at the advantages of having a stand mixer.

Amazingly Powerful

With the amazing power of a stand mixer, there’s almost nothing you can’t mix and blend. This is doubly true with high-end stand mixers, like the KitchenAid KSMC895 Commercial 8-Quart Mixer. Whether you need to mix a heavy mixture or whisk eggs in seconds, the stand mixer is the effective weapon of choice.

Speedy

With its amazing power, a stand mixer can easily do a casual mixing job in seconds. With heavier mixtures, it may not be able to finish the job in seconds, but your standard hand mixture may not even be able to finish the job at all.

Another plus is that stand mixers can take care of a huge batch of ingredients at once. They are advantageous when you have to prepare something for a small crowd.

Versatile

A stand mixer can do a lot more due to its power. There are just more recipes and mixtures you can create.

Hands-Free Operation

Another great advantage with a stand mixer is its hands-free operation. You can go do other things while letting the machine do all the heavy mixing.

Stand Mixer Disadvantages

Now let’s see why some people don’t find the stand mixer as a viable option.

A Lot More Expensive

Just as affordability is a big plus, a heavy price tag is a big turnoff. Some people just can’t afford the large bucks associated with stand mixers, especially the good quality ones. There are cheaper options when it comes to standing mixers, sure. But they either break easily or don’t carry as much power and efficiency as the more expensive options. They lack the qualities that make stand mixers great.

Big, Heavy, and Unwieldy

You pay the price to have the stand mixer’s great power – the price being both literal and figurative. Stand mixers are big, heavy, and unwieldy. They take up space in your kitchen. And it takes a good amount of effort to move them from one point to another. Plus, they can be difficult to clean if the parts are not suitable for a dishwasher. The more expensive ones have that feature.

What Do You Need?

Most of the time, hand mixers are the better option for people, not all that serious with producing difficult recipes. A hand mixer can do enough for the average kitchen.

But if you are running a business, and need a powerhouse of a machine, a stand mixer is the better option for you.

With that in mind, here are a few good options for both a hand mixer and a stand mixer.