An interesting factoid about the wattage ratings of KitchenAid mixers, or “things you learn when you dive into this stuff”

[Mosca]

Watt’s the Story with Those Power Ratings?

Summary: Wattage is a measure of power consumption. Mixers with bigger bowls consume more power, hence have higher wattage ratings!

All mixers within a given model type have the exact same internals. The replacement part numbers are the same.

From the article:

What should I do about this?

“Buy the mixer you want, whether it’s based on color, price, included accessories, or any other characteristic that matters to you. You can buy based on the “power” claims and the numbers on the trim band if you wish; but these numbers won’t relate to the mixer’s actual capabilities. Clean it after you use it, give it routine maintenance and repairs as necessary, and it’ll run for a very long time, no matter how many watts it consumes.”

[STEbbq]

I was trying to work out why power would be a decision criteria here. I then realized if people buy mixers like cars then it all makes sense.

Tom, I am inclined to think you have gotten well more than $45 of value, learning, and entertainment out of the mixer already and I don’t think you have cooked anything yet.

[Mosca]

Yes, absolutely. I love this stuff. I bought my replacement parts (gasket, grease, washers) from Mr Mixer, essentially paying a few dollars to him as a middleman, because I felt like freely giving fair trade value for the information.

[Santamarina]

Thanks for sharing! We’ve been searching for our first stand mixer for a while and I’ve 100% been duped by the power rating. This sets me free to focus on the features that matter most!

[Jerod Broussard]

I based mine on color, then bowl size. No clue on anything else.

[Mosca]

Lol. I based mine on “found used at an estate sale”. There were no other characteristics that mattered.

[smokenoob]

kinda like horsepower and torque….

[texastweeter]

Uh...no, lol

[mrichie1229]

Tim Allen's motto is "More power!"

[texastweeter]

I got what I got a great deal on.

[mrichie1229]

I admit that I was getting sucked into the power ratings when reading about the different mixers because my wife asked for a bigger mixer (currently own a 4.5 Qt). I love the idea of the 8Qt Commercial mixer (go big or go home), but I am not sure if I can justify the cost.

According to KitchenAid's website it has a 1.3 HP motor that is geared to apply 0.44 HP to the bowl.

[Johnny Booth]

I went with the 7qt model. No tilt, bigger motor. Attachments like grinders can work the motor hard, with varying levels of drag. My thinking was that a bigger motor with more planetary points can handle those varying loads better. Overkill for a single loaf of bread, but necessary for juicing, grinding, etc.

Having said that; If they had a gas powered motor version, I probably would’ve bought that. 😂