Best Food Processors: What the Testers Found (Cuisinart, Breville and Budget Picks)

This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, Gerzsi earns from qualifying purchases. Read our disclosure. Tamás is a real head chef with 25 years in professional kitchens; Gerzsi is his cartoon beaver apprentice. The illustrations and kitchen stories are just for fun; the test results are real and linked.

From the kitchen: Gerzsi has been shredding carrots with his teeth for years. Then he saw a food processor do five pounds in under a minute, and sat very quietly in the corner for a while.

A food processor does the boring prep: shredding a block of cheese, slicing a pile of potatoes, chopping onions for a pot of chili, or cutting cold butter into flour for pie dough. In Thanksgiving week that is a lot of hours back. The trade-offs are counter space, cleaning and price.

We didn’t test these ourselves, and Chef Tamás hasn’t reviewed these models, so the rankings below are the testers’. America’s Test Kitchen rated 11 food processors on chopping, slicing, shredding, kneading and mayonnaise (August 2026). Food Network picked six after its own tests (updated February 2026). Where they agree, we say so. Where they don’t, we say that too.

The food processors, side by side

Food processor	Bowl	Price at review	Tester verdict
Cuisinart Custom 14-Cup (DFP-14BCNY) · Check on Amazon	14 cups	About $240 at Amazon ($300 list)	ATK Winner: powerful and precise. No mini bowl; struggled with single-batch mayo.
Cuisinart Pro Custom 11 (DLC-8SY) · Check on Amazon	11 cups	About $200 at Amazon ($220 list)	ATK Best Buy: aced chopping, slicing and shredding. Slightly less powerful.
Breville Sous Chef 16 · Check on Amazon	16 cups	About $500	ATK Upgrade Pick, Food Network Best Large-Capacity. Fussy blades; takes a lot of space.
Breville Sous Chef 12-Cup · Check on Amazon	12 cups	About $300 (Target)	Food Network Best Overall: “powerful, consistent and fast.” Expensive.
Ninja Professional Plus (9 cups) · Check on Amazon	9 cups	About $110 at Amazon	Food Network Best Value. Doesn’t purée as finely.
KitchenAid 7-Cup · Check on Amazon	7 cups	About $90 at Amazon	Food Network Best Compact. Narrow feed tube; not very powerful.
Hamilton Beach Stack & Snap (12 cups) · Check on Amazon	12 cups	About $70 at Amazon	Food Network Best Budget. One slicing thickness only.

1. Cuisinart Custom 14-Cup: the one for most people

ATK’s winner. The testers liked its “power; precision; and a compact, streamlined design.” Two weak spots: it “couldn’t effectively incorporate egg yolks into single-batch mayonnaise,” and it “lacks a mini bowl for very small jobs.” It was $300 list and about $240 at Amazon when ATK checked (America’s Test Kitchen).

Good for: shredding, slicing and dough for a family. Not for: tiny jobs like one shallot or a single batch of mayo. A knife is faster there.

2. Cuisinart Pro Custom 11: the budget pick

ATK’s Best Buy. It “aced our chopping, slicing, and shredding tests.” It is “slightly less powerful” than the 14-cup, and the testers found it “slightly harder to clean and a little fussier to use.” It was $220 list and about $200 at Amazon at the time (America’s Test Kitchen).

Good for: most home prep for two to four people. Not for: big batches of bread dough.

3. Breville Sous Chef 16: the big one

Both testers rated it. ATK made it the Upgrade Pick: it “operates smoothly, efficiently, and relatively quietly.” The catches: “Its blades are multi-part and a bit annoying to assemble,” and the lid “has nooks and crannies” to clean. ATK listed it at about $500 at Amazon (America’s Test Kitchen). Food Network named it Best Large-Capacity for the “extra-large capacity and extra-wide feed chute,” and also noted it “takes up a lot of space” (about $500) (Food Network).

Good for: holiday cooking for a crowd and whole vegetables in the chute. Not for: small kitchens, or anyone who hates washing parts.

4. Breville Sous Chef 12-Cup: Food Network’s best overall

Food Network’s Best Overall, for “powerful, consistent and fast performance,” an adjustable feed chute and slicing blade, and “no stop-delay when pulse button released.” The one con: “Expensive.” It was about $300 at Target at the time of their review (Food Network). ATK did not rate this exact model; its Breville 12-cup test model (the 12 Plus) is discontinued.

Good for: cooks who want Breville quality in a smaller box than the 16. Not for: anyone who wants two testers agreeing. Only Food Network tested this one.

5. Three cheaper picks from Food Network

Food Network’s value picks, each with an honest con (Food Network):

• Ninja Professional Plus (9 cups): Best Value, about $110 at Amazon. “Powerful, efficient performance,” but it “doesn’t purée as finely.” · Check on Amazon
• KitchenAid 7-Cup: Best Compact, about $90 at Amazon. Easy to use, but a “narrow feed tube” and “not very powerful.” · Check on Amazon
• Hamilton Beach Stack & Snap (12 cups): Best Budget, about $70 at Amazon. “Efficient and consistent performance,” with only one slicing and shredding thickness. · Check on Amazon

Good for: small kitchens and occasional use. Not for: regular bread dough or big batches.

What to skip

ATK rated two models only Recommended with Reservations. The KitchenAid 13-Cup (KFP1318) is “particularly easy to use,” but “its lightweight base let the machine jump around the counter as it kneaded.” The Ninja Professional XL (NF701) “could not emulsify mayonnaise.” Among discontinued models, the Hamilton Beach 70825 also failed the mayo test (America’s Test Kitchen).

Food processor FAQ

What size food processor do I need?

For a family, 11 to 14 cups. Both of ATK’s top Cuisinarts are in that range. A 7- to 9-cup model is fine for one or two people, but it fills up fast with dough or a big batch of slaw. Gerzsi bought the small one first. He now owns two.

Food processor or blender?

A blender wants liquid: smoothies, soups, sauces. A food processor works with dry, chunky food: shredding, slicing, chopping and cutting butter into flour. If you mostly drink your vegetables, buy a blender. If you mostly chop them, buy this.

Can it make pie dough for Thanksgiving?

Yes, and it’s one of the best jobs for it. Pulse the cold butter into the flour in short bursts, so the butter stays in small pieces. Don’t let it run: warm, over-mixed dough bakes tough.

When are food processors cheapest?

Kitchen appliances are commonly discounted around Black Friday (November 27). If you can wait a few weeks, check our early Black Friday kitchen deals first.

The bottom line

Buy the Cuisinart Custom 14-Cup. It won ATK’s test and handles a family’s holiday prep. Save about $40 with the 11-cup if you cook for fewer people. Buy the Breville Sous Chef 16 only if you cook for a crowd and have the counter for it.

Tester-ranked. Beaver-approved.

Sources

• America’s Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors, by Lisa McManus (August 4, 2026)
• Food Network: 6 Best Food Processors, Tested and Reviewed, by Beth Lipton (updated February 5, 2026)

Prices are the ones the testers listed at the time of their reviews, checked October 26, 2026; prices change often, so tap a button for today’s price. Gerzsi the beaver is made up; the test results are real.