Home chefs can save time in the kitchen by investing in a food processor. These helpful machines can handle meal prep for you by chopping, slicing, and shredding a wide array of ingredients. Outsourcing these tedious tasks to a food processor can get your meals on the table faster and save you the stress of juggling so many duties at once. There’s a food processor out there for every sized job. To help narrow down your search, we made a comprehensive list of the best food processors available today.
Our Top Picks: Summary
- Best Overall: Cuisinart DFP-14BCNY 14-Cup Food Processor
- Best Budget: Hamilton Beach 12-Cup Stack & Snap Food Processor
- Upgrade: Breville Sous Chef XL
- Best Small: KitchenAid KFC3516ER 3.5 Cup Food Chopper
- Most Versatile: Ninja Mega Kitchen System
The Best Food Processors: Our Top Picks
Best Overall: Cuisinart DFP-14BCNY
Cuisinart DFP-14BCNY 14-Cup Food Processor
Great performance from the company that originally introduced the food processor.Check Price
Why We Picked It
The Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor gives you enough power and capacity to tackle any food preparations. The oversized work bowl is ideal for family meals and entertaining guests, while the large chute saves you from pre-cutting ingredients. With its powerful 750-watt motor, you can use this food processor to mix, chop, slice, shred, knead, and puree.
There’s a DFP-14 style for every kitchen thanks to its nine available color combinations. This appliance is easy to use with one-touch paddles for on, off, and pulse. The Cuisinart comes with a recipe book, a spatula, a medium-sized slicing disc, a shredding disc, and a chopping blade (also used for mixing). The company also protects this model with a three-year warranty.
Keep in Mind
This model is on the heavier side, which is good for keeping it stable, but it might be difficult to move in and out of a cupboard.
In a Nutshell
- 14-cup capacity
- 750-watt motor
- Nine available colors
Best Budget: Hamilton Beach
Hamilton Beach 12-Cup Stack & Snap Food Processor
An affordable food processor that still gives you top quality results.Check Price
Why We Picked It
The Hamilton Beach Stack and Snap is named after its assembly design. This unique set up allows you to put the pieces together by just stacking the base, bowl, and lid to snap them together without needing to twist or turn any locking mechanism. This also helps make the product easy to clean with the bowl, lid, and blades all being dishwasher safe.
This food processor comes with two stainless steel inserts: an S-blade for chopping and reversible disc for slicing or shredding. The 12-cup bowl should allow you to make anything in one batch and features a built-in pouring spout. The simple push-button controls allow you to choose between low-speed, high-speed, and pulse processing. This model has a 450-watt motor and is the best large capacity option for budget shoppers.
Keep in Mind
Some users have found that the Hamilton Beach Stack and Snap has a louder than average motor.
In a Nutshell
- Most affordable option
- Stack and Snap design
- 12-cup capacity
Upgrade: Breville Sous Chef
Breville Sous Chef XL
Versatile and powerful, this food processor will really feel like having another set of hands.Check Price
Why We Picked It
The Breville Sous Chef Food Processor is the biggest model on our list and comes with a variety of impressive features. You can use either the large 16-cup bowl or mini 2.5-cup bowl depending on the task at hand. It also comes with five multifunction discs, three S-blades, and an easy storage box for all the attachments and cleaning utensils.
The heavy-duty induction motor gives an impressive 1,200 watts of power with high torque to conquer the toughest jobs. The base features an LCD display with a multi-directional timer and is available in three different colors. The multiple pieces are easy to disassemble to make cleaning easy.
Keep in Mind
All the extra tools and capabilities come at a high price; the Breville Sous Chef is the most expensive option on our list.
In a Nutshell
- 1200 W motor
- 16-cup and 2.5-cup bowls
- Eight precision tools
Best Small: KitchenAid KFC3516ER
KitchenAid KFC3516ER 3.5 Cup Food Chopper
This petite food processor is the best for handling small jobs.Check Price
Why We Picked It
Smaller jobs like making a vinaigrette or chopping a single vegetable are easier to manage with mini food processors. The KitchenAid KFC3516ER features a space-saving 3.5-cup bowl, while the cover also has a built-in drizzle basin to incorporate liquid ingredients while processing. The work bowl, lid, and S-blade are all dishwasher safe.
Despite its light weight, this food processor doesn’t have any issues with sliding around the countertop; plus its smaller 240-watt motor keeps it from being overpowered. The controls are simple with a knob to adjust the speed and a lever located on the handle. Thanks to its small size, the best option for infrequent food processing and people with limited space. You can find a model to fit any kitchen with the 18 available colors.
Keep in Mind
The KitchenAid small food processor lacks extra features like multiple cutting tools or disks.
In a Nutshell
- Compact and lightweight
- Affordable price
- Convenient controls
Most Versatile: Ninja Mega Kitchen System
Ninja Mega Kitchen System
The Ninja Mega Kitchen System functions as both a food processor and a blender.Check Price
Why We Picked It
The Ninja food processor and blender gives you more possibilities with just one appliance. There’s a 9-cup pitcher for blending, an 8-cup bowl for processing, and two Nutri Ninja Cups that feature to-go covers. There are one-touch controls for mixing dough, blending smoothies, crushing ice, and a pulse button.
The Ninja Mega Kitchen System has the most powerful motor on our list with 1,500 watts. The Nutri cups also function as a Nutrient and Vitamin extractor for juicing your favorite fruits and vegetables. Each container has its own set of blades plus two additional discs (one for slicing and shredding and one for grating).
Keep in Mind
With all the extra attachments and accessories, it can be difficult to store this model without some sort of organizer.
In a Nutshell
- Blender and food processor
- Nutri Ninja Cups
- 1500 Watt motor
How We Chose the Best Food Processors
We looked at all the top appliances available today to give you the best food processors for every occasion. For each model, we focused on a handful of characteristics from size to customer satisfaction to narrow down the products that can handle continuous use. To give you an in-depth look into our vetting process, the key factors are explained below.
Features and Accessories
We wanted to find food processors that give you the most for your money. One of the best ways to achieve this is finding models that offered versatile attachments and helpful features. We preferred products with multiple different cutting accessories that allow you to make more types of foods. We also focused on finding models that featured various speeds and a pulse option. Different recipes often call for low or high-speed processing, so having the extra options is a huge benefit.
Bowl Size and Shape
We factored in bowl size for each product, and our list includes both larger and miniature sizes. The larger capacity food processors can have between 10 and 14 cups (with our largest option being able to hold 16 cups). The overall shape of the bowl is also crucial for cleaning and pouring out your mixtures. We paid close attention to how each piece locked into place to help determine how easily a product can be put together and if there would be any hard to reach spots for cleaning.
Materials
Chopping vegetables and kneading dough isn’t light work, so we needed to find food processors that can handle years of use. Most of the products on our list featured stainless steel blades to give you a strong and reliable cutting performance. The appliance’s base also needs to use premium materials to ensure it won’t move around when it is turned on. It was essential for us to find models that use high-quality plastics for the containers to ensure they wouldn’t crack over time.
Customer Reviews
We pay close attention to the experiences of past users to ensure that a product can handle any task. Crowdsourcing people’s experiences will quickly show us any consistent defects or difficult to use functions. We also look for personal experiences with a company’s customer service in case you have to replace a part or return the product.
What to Consider When Choosing a Food Processor
The best size and features all depend on what you need from your food processor. To find the best model for you, keep the points below in mind while you’re shopping.
Size
Finding the right-sized food processor will depend on what you’re looking to use it for. If you plan on using your food processor for the majority of your meal prep, then at least a 10-cup capacity is your best choice. This will give you enough space to chop or shred ingredients for a whole meal. Smaller jobs, like making mayonnaise or purees, can be tackled by small food processors. These appliances will also be cheaper and easier to store. However, you can always do small jobs in the full-sized models while you can’t overfill the mini food processors.
Attachments
Many food processors come accessories to give you more versatility. S-blades are the most common and are used to chop or slice larger food items. Reversible discs have two sides that give you different functions; most commonly, they can be used for grating and shredding. Whether or not all these attachments are right for you will depend on your cooking needs. Basic food prep can be tackled with just the standard blades, but more textures and types of foods can be made with other available accessories.
Speed and Power
When it comes to using your food processor, there are two critical factors to consider: speed options and power output. Unlike a blender that typically has one spinning speed, food processors should have a high and low setting. They will yield different results and give you more possibilities for when you’re cooking. The power output is measured in watts. Higher wattage will provide you with better torque to handle tougher foods and functions like kneading dough. There’s a wide range of different wattage food processors, but the average is between 750 and 1,000.
Price
You can find food processors for as little as $20 and some with prices nearing $1,000. For the most part, the variations are based on size and attachments. Small food processors tend to be much more affordable. However, these models can be underpowered and don’t come with as many features or accessories. Your average sized food processor will cost between $100 and $200 and will include multiple blades and reliable motors. Some more expensive models have longer warranties and tend to be more durable, so sometimes spending more upfront can save you in the long run.
How to Clean and Care for a Food Processor
There are a few steps you take to ensure your food processor runs at peak performance for years to come.
- Make sure not to overfill your food processor. This will make jamming more likely and can cause motor malfunctions.
- Cut up larger food items if they do not fit through the chute.
- Food processor blades aren’t made to be sharpened. If you use your appliance more than average, they can become dull. If this happens, you should order new blades from the manufacturer.
- Keeping your food processor clean is crucial for continued use. You can use water and a tiny bit of soap to run a cleaning cycle.
- Bottle brushes are best for the food chute and hard to reach areas of the bowl.
- Do not put the base in water or the dishwasher. It can be wiped down with a damp cloth.
Related Resources
To learn more about other kitchen appliances, and see our top picks, check out the links below.
