How to Choose Essential Kitchen Appliances: A Comprehensive Guide

Your kitchen should be more than the sum of its appliances. The beauty of your decor, the functionality of your cabinets, and the comfort of your seating arrangements are also key. But without the appliances you need for food storage and preparation, your kitchen is just another cozy room in your house.

Luckily, choosing practical appliances doesn’t mean compromising on other priorities. With stylish, state-of-the-art appliances, any kitchen can become both chic and operational. 

Whether you’re moving to a new home or you’re remodeling to create your dream kitchen, getting all the appliances you need should be at the top of your to-do list. Keep reading for tips and recommendations that’ll help you quickly pick the best kitchen appliances for your needs.

General tips for choosing kitchen appliances

Every gadget and tool in your kitchen has a unique job, so each one has a different list of specs and qualities to prioritize when choosing the right model. However, there are a few things you should look for in every appliance you bring into your kitchen. 

Look for Energy Star models

If you want to keep your utility bills low and make your kitchen run on as little power, gas, and water as possible, look for appliances that have Energy Star labels. Energy Star is an EPA program that tests appliances and holds them to high standards of efficiency, so choosing new appliances with Energy Star labels is a quick and easy way to get the most efficient appliances for your kitchen. 

Choose finishes that match

A fully operational kitchen needs a lot of gizmos, so your countertops can feel cluttered if the devices don’t look good together. Luckily, most kitchen appliances come in an endless assortment of colors and finishes, so it’s pretty easy to find models that match or complement each other.

As you’re shopping, find appliances that all feature the same-colored finish. Popular options include stainless steel, matte black, oil-rubbed bronze, and slate, but if you’re looking for something a little bolder than these neutral shades, you can get appliances in just about any color imaginable, including fire-engine red and lime green. You do you.

Unfortunately, since you’ll probably be purchasing appliances from various retailers and online shops, it might not be possible to get literally every appliance in the same finish. If you encounter this problem, pick a secondary shade or two that complements your primary finish. Chances are, you can find everything you need within this assortment of colors. 

While you’re at it, make sure that whatever finishes you choose also look great with your walls, dishes, cookware, cabinets, floors, and counters. If you aren’t starting your collection from scratch, there will probably be a few mismatched objects, but you can keep them tucked away when you’re not using them. 

If you need help choosing complementary colors for your kitchen decor, it never hurts to get a few swatches or consult a color wheel. 

Consider smart appliances

Smart technology can make your life easier by automating various tasks in your kitchen. Major appliances like refrigerators, ovens, blenders, and dishwashers all come in programmable options that you can control with your phone or an AI voice assistant. This can also give your kitchen greater accessibility for seniors and persons with disabilities. 

Whatever your least favorite job in the kitchen, there’s probably a smart appliance to take it on for you. Check out our guide to home automation to get the lowdown on smart appliances. 

How to choose cooking appliances

Choosing your oven

Multifunctional ovens like this slick Amana model come with built-in stove tops so you don’t need to get a cooktop as well. Image source: Lowes

Your kitchen is first and foremost a room for cooking, so your oven is arguably the most important appliance in it. As such, you should pick a good one. 

Look for an oven that will fit whatever cavity is built into your cabinetry or wall to house it. Ovens aren’t a one-size-fits-all appliance, so take careful measurements before going to the appliance store to pick one up. On a related note, make sure your oven is large enough to meet your cooking needs. If you love to make casseroles but your favorite pans won’t fit into your new oven, you may have a problem.

The type of oven you get is also a factor. Convection ovens can cook food quicker because they use fans to circulate hot air inside them, but they’re often smaller than conventional ovens that don’t circulate air and so require more heating elements. You may want to choose a traditional oven instead of a convection model, but this could require hiring a contractor to make your oven’s designated spot a little wider. 

You’ll lastly need to consider what hookups your kitchen already has. If you want an electric wall oven, this probably won’t be an issue, but if you opt for a gas range instead, you’ll need to install a gas line if your kitchen doesn’t have one yet. 

Choosing your cooktop

A compact cooktop on your counter is a great option if your oven doesn’t include a stove. Image source: Best Buy

If your oven doesn’t feature a built-in stovetop—or you often need more cooking space than one stove alone can provide—then a separate cooktop you can install on one of your counters might be necessary.

The considerations when choosing a cooktop are actually pretty similar to the ones for picking an oven. You should look for a cooktop that’s the right size for your counters and features as many burners as you’ll need. 

Depending on your kitchen’s hookups and your own cooking preferences, you can also choose between gas and electric cooktops. Professional cooks and foodies tend to favor cooking with gas, but electric cooktops are generally cheaper and easier to install. 

Choosing your range hood

A range hood like this stainless steel model can vent smoky air out of your kitchen when you’re searing meat or veggies. Image source: RC Willey 

Range hoods aren’t necessary for every kitchen, but if you do a lot of boiling, frying, or searing, then a range hood that pumps air out of your kitchen can help you keep it clean, dehumidified, and smoke-free. 

The first consideration when picking a range hood is size. The opening in your hood should be as wide as your cooktop if not wider. A few extra inches on either side will only benefit you. Additionally, most hoods are supposed to sit about two feet above the cooking surface they’re meant to pump air away from, but you may need to mount yours higher or lower depending on which model you get.

Next, you need to decide how you want your range hood to clear your air. Some models, called vented hoods, pump air out of your kitchen and push it outside. Be aware that this type of hood requires air ducts from your hood to the outside of your home and installation can be a little pricey. 

Alternatively, you can get a duct-free model that pumps air through a filter and recirculates it back into your kitchen. These models don’t require ductwork, but you need to change their filters regularly. 

Choosing your toaster

A sleek, colorful toaster can be a charming statement piece on your countertop as well as a practical device. Image source: Crate & Barrel

We’ve talked about a few large and expensive appliances that can feel intimidating to purchase and install, so let’s turn to something simple: toasters. When you’re buying a toaster, you only have a few considerations to worry about. 

First, do you need a two-slot or a four-slot toaster? Bigger families usually need more toasted bagels and Pop-Tarts in the morning, so a four-slot model is better if you have several kids. If you live alone, though, a two-slot toaster would probably do just fine. 

Next, make sure that whatever toaster you buy has variable settings so you can toast your bread to your taste and no more.

Aside from these two considerations, it really just comes down to picking a model from a popular brand like Cuisinart, Hamilton Beach, or Breville. Easy peasy. 

Choosing your microwave

A microwave for warming up leftovers, popping corn, and doing other small cooking jobs is an absolute must for any kitchen. Image source: Target

Aside from your oven and possibly your refrigerator, your microwave oven is one of the most important appliances in your kitchen. And while food cooked in a microwave sometimes lacks the je ne sais quoi of a meal cooked over the stove, it’s hard to beat the convenience of a hot meal that’s ready in a few short minutes. 

The first thing to consider when you’re buying a new microwave is where you’ll put it. Countertop microwaves that don’t require installation are the most common options, but you can also get a microwave built into your cabinetry or over your stove. This is a little more costly, but it saves you counter space.

The second consideration is size. This might be partially determined by where your microwave will sit, but it’s also important to carefully weigh the capacity of your microwave as you did for your oven. If your microwave is too small, it’ll cramp your cooking capabilities.

Finally, you need to decide how much you want your microwave to do. All models can be set to run for variable amounts of time, but more advanced microwaves let you adjust their heat output as well. And many microwaves these days come with pre-programmed settings for specific cooking jobs. 

Some microwaves even have ventilation systems built into them to serve as range hoods when installed over stoves. These specialized models are usually more expensive, but getting one can be cheaper than buying a microwave and a range hood.

Choosing your slow cooker

A slow cooker or crockpot can make large, tasty meals without requiring you to hover over them for hours. Image source: Kohl’s

Slow cookers are an immensely popular kitchen appliance because they require a little bit of prep up front but then allow you to go about your day as usual while dinner cooks in your absence.

When you’re choosing your slow cooker, look for one with a heating element that envelops the whole pot. This will distribute heat evenly throughout the food. Inferior cookers simply feature a heating element on the bottom of the crock which can burn your food if you don’t stir it frequently. 

As with most cooking appliances, your slow cooker’s capacity is another consideration. Most slow cookers have a capacity of six or seven quarts, though you can get bigger or smaller models depending on your needs. If you have a large family or you like to do a lot of meal prep at once, a bigger cooker might be better for your kitchen. 

Lastly, look for a slow cooker with a removable crock. Some cookers have the crock built into the appliance, and these can be much more difficult to clean. Make your life easier by choosing a model with a removable porcelain or ceramic crock. 

Other cooking appliances to consider

We’ve only covered a small handful of the cooking appliances you can add to your kitchen. There are almost as many cooking appliances as there are foods and ways to cook them, but you may not need many of these specialty appliances often enough to purchase them. Additionally, some of them have pretty steep learning curves. 

Barring gadgets that are too niche or expensive for most people, here’s a short list of other common cooking appliances you may want for your dream kitchen:

• Pressure cooker
• Toaster oven
• Bread maker
• Griddle
• Deep fryer
• Steamer
• Waffle maker
• Sous vide
• Rice cooker
• Air fryer

How to choose refrigeration appliances

Choosing your refrigerator

A stylish french door refrigerator can be a kitchen’s centerpiece as well as an essential appliance. Image source: Samsung

Your refrigerator is one of your biggest home appliances and it’s the heart of your kitchen. Basically everything you put into your oven, microwave, blender, or slow cooker has to be stored in your fridge first, and its size makes it central to your decor. This is all to say that you’d be justified in splurging on the perfect fridge for your home. 

When you’re picking the fridge for your dream kitchen, carefully measure the space where you’ll keep it. Fridges come in all shapes and sizes, and picking one that’s too large can create major roadblocks in what should be a functional space. At the same time, though, you want to make sure your fridge is large enough to hold all your food. Balancing these two needs can be difficult, especially in a smaller home, so you may need to demolish one of your cabinets to make room for the fridge you need. 

Fridges can also come with handy add-ons like freezers, ice makers, water filters, and dispensers. Multifunctional fridges like this tend to cost a little more, but they can help you do more with all that space your fridge takes up. 

The configuration of your fridge also matters. Side-by-side refrigerators that feature a refrigeration compartment on one side and a freezer compartment on the other work better for some kitchens, though they’re usually pretty large. In narrow spaces, refrigerators with top or bottom freezers usually fit better than side-by-side models. 

Choosing your freezer

A compact freezer like this Arctic King model can fit within your cabinetry to avoid taking up too much space. Image source: Walmart

If your fridge doesn’t include a freezer or you need to store more frozen food than your fridge can accommodate by itself, a secondary freezer might be necessary. 

Many of the factors to weigh when buying a freezer are the same as those you should account for when you buy a fridge. You should still be mindful of how much space the appliance will take up and how much food it can hold. 

Additionally, freezers come in several different configurations. Upright freezers are better for use in kitchens because they aren’t too large and feature doors that swing outward, so they can be kept in nooks or cabinets. Chest freezers are much larger, wider, and open upward, so they’re better if you have to freeze a lot of food, but you usually have to keep them in your garage or basement instead of your kitchen.

How to choose food prep appliances

Choosing your blender, food processor, or juicer

A food processor like this KitchenAid model can handle all your chopping and dicing when you cook. Image source: KitchenAid

Blenders, food processors, and juicers all do basically the same thing but for different purposes: they chop food into tiny pieces. All three of these small kitchen appliances can be a lifesaver, but they’re each better for separate jobs.

Blenders tend to have the largest capacity, so they’re best for making smoothies, purees, and soups. They also have the most variable power and speed settings, so they’re more versatile than food processors and juicers. If you can only get one chopping appliance, get a blender. 

They’re usually less proficient at smaller chopping jobs than food processors, though, so if you need to chop a handful of carrots, garlic, or onions for a pot roast, then a food processor is your best bet. 

Juicers are the best appliance for breaking fruits and vegetables down to a pulp and extracting their juice, so they’re better than the other two appliances for making ciders, cocktails, and, well, juices.

For all three kitchen appliances, look for the same three things: strong blades, powerful motors that will last a long time, and enough capacity to chop all the food you’ll need them to.

Choosing your stand mixer

From stirring sauces to mixing bread dough, a stand mixer can tackle many jobs around your kitchen. Image source: Hamilton Beach

Stand mixers are a must-have if you love to bake your own bread, whip up some cream, or make cookie dough. As the name suggests, they mix food for you, reducing your arm strain and allowing you to handle other cooking tasks like compiling ingredients and stirring a roux while they work.
The best stand mixers come with variable speed settings since you should stir some recipes slower than others. Also, look out for mixers that feature attachments you’ll actually use like bread hooks, whisks, and butter churners. Some mixer attachments can even be used to make pasta or grind sausage. 

The only downsides of stand mixers are their price and size. They tend to be more expensive than hand mixers and they take up a lot of countertop space. If budget or space is a concern for you, consider getting a hand mixer instead. 

How to choose other essential kitchen appliances

Choosing your dishwasher

Eliminate the need to hand wash your dishes by getting a powerful dishwasher. Image source: RC Willey

Your dishwasher does more than just clean your dishes. It also facilitates many of the jobs your other appliances do by helping you clean up after you use them. If your dishwasher kicks the bucket, the efficiency of your kitchen can greatly suffer. Avoid this hangup by selecting a powerful and reliable dishwasher. 

As with other large kitchen appliances, the space your dishwasher will occupy should be a chief consideration. Take precise measurements of the cabinet your dishwasher will stand in and take its proximity to your water and electric hookups into account as well. 

Along with these factors, you must also determine how many dishes you need your dishwasher to hold at once. If your washer is too small for your family, you’ll end up running it more times per day to keep up with all the dirty dishes. Getting the best model for your home might mean hiring someone to widen your dishwasher’s intended spot. 

If you want to ensure your dishwasher isn’t consuming too much electricity or water, look for a model with soil sensors. These detect how dirty the dishes you load into your washer are and control water consumption to match the need. This ensures no water is ever wasted rinsing dishes once they’re clean.

You can also get dishwashers with specialized wash cycles, variable cycle times, and heaters for drying cycles. The more of these special features your washer includes the more expensive it will be, so only get what you need if your budget is tight. 

Choosing your coffee maker

A simple drip coffee maker like this can help get you going in the morning. Image source: Williams Sonoma

A coffee maker might be one of the smallest appliances in many kitchens, but for some people, it’s one of the most important. As such, many people have strong feelings about which coffee makers are best.

When choosing your coffee maker, you need to weigh how particular you are about your coffee against how much money you want to spend on your machine. If you just need a hot cup of joe to get your motor running in the morning, a drip machine will do nicely. Some machines can even grind your beans for you if you prefer freshly ground coffee. 

If you simply must have a cappuccino or chai instead of a drip, then shell out a little extra money to get an espresso machine and a milk frother. Similarly, if you prefer your coffee cold, a cold brew maker is probably the best option for you, though it will cost more than a standard drip machine. 

The capacity of your brewing machine is also a key factor. Look for a coffee maker with a large enough pot to brew enough coffee for everyone who imbibes in your household. 

Choosing your electric kettle

An electric kettle is an essential purchase if you love hot tea, instant ramen, or oatmeal. Image source: Crate & Barrel

If you prefer tea to coffee, then an electric kettle would probably be a better investment for you. And while kettles only really do one job—heat water—they can be used to make more than just tea! They can also help brew instant coffee, mix oatmeal, cook rice, and prepare dehydrated meals.

The two main considerations for an electric kettle are speed and volume. If you don’t want to wait for your hot water, choose a kettle that uses more wattage to boil water faster. And if you tend to need a lot of hot water at once, choose a kettle with a greater capacity. 

Many kettles also come with automatic shut-off features that allow you to walk away from your kettle without it boiling all the water away. If you want to set the water to boil and go about your morning while it gets hot, get one of these models. 

Outfit your kitchen with these essential appliances

More than perhaps any other room in your home, your kitchen has to pull double duty as a space for work and a space for entertaining visitors. Ensure it’s up to the task by getting all the appliances you’ll need, opt for high-quality options that will serve you for years, and select models that match your kitchen’s decor.