Skip to main content

The best bread machines

There’s no denying the taste of a freshly baked loaf of bread. A big advantage of making your own bread is that you get to choose exactly which ingredients hit the mixing bowl. This is a big win for those of us looking to keep preservatives and allergy-inducing ingredients out of our morning toast. The only cat-sized kitchen tool you’ll need to get started is a bread machine.

Many of today’s bread machines are compact, are easy to use, and employ the latest thermal tech to quickly bake your favorite cinnamon-raisin recipe. Read on to see our favorite bread makers of the year, and what we love about them.

Zojirushi BB-PAC20 Virtuoso Bread Maker

Image used with permission by copyright holder

This is the machine for those who don’t mind spending the extra dough (pun intended) for top-notch performance, features, and perfect taste. The Virtuoso brings all of the beauties of artisanal bread baking straight to your kitchen counter. Choose from over eight different bread presets, including wheat, gluten-free, sourdough, jam, cake, and three customizable modes for your own delicious recipes.

Just add your ingredients, close the lid, and the Virtuoso will set to work on making your perfectly browned, 2-pound loaf. Choose your crust shade — light, medium, or dark — and you’re good to go. The Virtuoso sports a twin set of kneading blades to take all the toil out of hand-kneading, and when the bread is done, two easy-grab handles make it easy to remove the stainless steel pan. The LCD control panel is simple but responsive, and is the gateway to our favorite feature of the Virtuoso — the 13-hour delay timer. This prolongs the final bread-baking hours. Set it before bed, and wake up to the heavenly aroma of fresh bread in the morning.

Oster BRTW20 ExpressBake Bread Maker

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The ExpressBake is one of the best quick-serve options on the market right now. True to its name, the 650-watt maker will whip up a perfect 2-pound loaf of bread in less than an hour. Need to prepare a last-minute fruitcake for your in-law’s forgotten birthday? No problem. Load in your ingredients, then choose from a list of bread presets, including bread, dough, jam, gluten-free, and many more.

The Oster BRTW20 ExpressBake is a solid compact baker too, which makes it easy to pack away in the cupboard when you’re not using it. When you’re done baking, ExpressBake cleanup couldn’t be easier. The internal pan is removable and non-stick. A quick scrub and you’re done … until the next loaf.

Breville BBM800XL Bread Maker

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The powerful 830-watt BBM makes our list for a number of reasons. The control panel is LED-backlit. Yes, it’s a simple thing, but many bread makers opt for no backlight at all, making it difficult to read through all the machine presets.

On top of 13 different bread choices and crust options, the Breville BBM also lets you choose from four different loaf sizes. A collapsible kneading blade delivers ingredients to the dough at exact times in the bake cycle. Just load your flaxseed and rest easy. The icing on this machine-tossed birthday cake is that the BBM also sports a top-seated fruit and nut dispenser and comes with an awesome selection of easy-bake recipes.

Cuisinart CK-200 Convection Bread Maker

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The beauty of the CK-2oo is all in the convection heating. Convection is nothing more than appliance-produced heat being pushed around by a fan, but that singular design element makes all the difference when it comes to bread. The 680-watt CK-200 produces rustic-inspired loaves of your favorite breads, with hard-crunch crusts and chewy interiors. It’s the way bread should always be. Choose from up to 16 different presets, including cakes, jams, and even gluten-free. The CK-200 is also your own kitchen assistant.

If you’re forgetful when it comes to adding ingredients to your dough at the right time, the CK-200 will automatically chime when it requires specific fixin’s. There’s even a 12-hour delay start, which means you can set the maker to have your bread freshly made for when you get home from work. If you’re after superior bread and don’t mind shelling out the cash, look no further.

T-Fal Actibread Bread Maker

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The small Actibread is a mighty 700-watt gluten-free bread maker. Each of the over 16 baking presets, including gluten-free salty, gluten-free sweet, gluten-free cake, whole wheat, and more, are designed for less ingredient-heavy recipes. The compact size means it won’t take up valuable kitchen counter space, and there’s even a top-mounted viewing window so you can watch your dough rise in real time.

The Actibread also sports a 15-hour delay start (the longest delay-start time on our list) and comes with measuring cups and spoons, a hook, kneading blades, and a book of 25 gluten-free recipes.

Michael Bizzaco
Michael Bizzaco has been selling, installing, and talking about TVs, soundbars, streaming devices, and all things smart home…
Wyze cameras can now use AI to summarize your motion events
A text alert from Wyze summarized using AI.

Wyze has officially launched Cam Unlimited Pro, a new subscription that gives you access to several AI-powered features. This includes Descriptive Alerts -- text notifications generated by AI that accurately summarize motion events triggered by your camera. It’s a powerful feature, and one that should give you highly detailed alerts so you can determine if you need to dive into the Wyze app to watch the full video clip.

For example, an old alert from Wyze might say something like “Pet detected by Backyard Cam.” With Descriptive Alerts, that’ll change to “Small white dog playing with tennis ball in backyard at 4:04 PM.” It can also give you accurate descriptions of folks at your front door, letting you know if they’ve dropped off a package or delivered groceries.

Read more
Samsung expects to ship Ballie, its futuristic AI robot, later this year
A close-up look at Ballie from the side.

Samsung first revealed Ballie several years ago at CES 2020 -- only for the home bot to go dark, before reemerging with a new design at CES 2024. At CES 2025, Ballie once again took the stage, and Samsung is officially claiming that the adorable robot will be coming to store shelves sometime this year. It’s been a long time coming, but it seems as if Ballie is ready to become your new household companion, and we’re excited about all the possibilities it can bring to your smart home.

Ballie is a home bot that makes liberal use of AI technology. It’s billed as a “self-propelled, autonomous home robot” designed with companionship, health monitoring, and entertainment features to help streamline your day-to-day tasks. Its built-in projector and speakers are the main way it’ll communicate with users, and they seem to be pretty robust.

Read more
Ecovacs shows off powerful Deebot X8 Pro Omni robot vacuum at CES 2025
The Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni in its docking station.

Ecovacs came out swinging at CES 2025, revealing a slew of smart home products running the gamut from robot vacuums and lawnmowers to bizarre window-cleaning robots. The star, however, was the Deebot X8 Pro Omni -- a powerful robot vacuum that makes big changes to its mopping abilities thanks to a new collaboration with Tineco.

Though it didn’t pick up a robotic arm like the Roborock Saros Z70, the Deebot X8 Pro Omni did learn some cool new mopping techniques. There are two big upgrades here, the first being additional pressure while mopping. The X8 Pro Omni can create up to 4,000Pa pressure and spin at up to 200 rpm, which should result in better cleaning than anything else we’ve seen from Ecovacs so far. The other upgrade is a self-washing mop, which continually cleans itself while mopping your floors, ensuring every mess is tackled by a clean mop.

Read more