Best: Overall

Rating: 10/10

• Weight: 1.5kg
• Variable speeds: Four
• Pulse action: No
• Included accessories: Flat beaters, balloon whisk, dough hooks
• Wattage: 400W
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

Call us shallow, but we love the look of this stylish retro hand mixer. The design, however, results in more than just a seriously attractive bit of kit. The clever, unique features include a retractable cord to avoid annoying trailing wires when it is in storage and the plug slots into the unit’s body for a truly tidy setup. An ejector button also makes it quick and easy to remove the attachments after use, ready for popping in the dishwasher.

We enjoyed using the mixer and felt the full benefit of the powerful 400W motor, which made whipping and beating a breeze. And it comes with everything a baker needs – flat beaters, a balloon whisk and dough hooks are included in the box. The handle is comfortable and easy to grip for safe use and excellent control, and the quality of the Dualit hand mixer is clear – we’re confident it will endure years of service.

Best: Cordless whisk

Rating: 9.5/10

• Weight: 1.53kg
• Variable speeds: Five
• Pulse action: No
• Included accessories: Beaters
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

Cuisinart’s machine was our first encounter with a cordless electric whisk, and we’d go so far as to say it was life-changing. It’s easy to overlook how annoying it is to be constrained or tangled by a cable when trying to beat ingredients. We almost didn’t realise it until we experienced the freedom of a cordless mixer.

The device itself does the job of mixing, whisking and beating well, and we liked the shape of the beaters, which are almost a cross between balloon whisks and flat beaters. The power is impressive, and we got about 20 minutes of use on a full charge of the battery, which does need about two hours to charge, so you need to be prepared and have it full of juice and ready for use.

The design looks great, it is comfortable to hold, and the flat base means that it stands perfectly upright on the countertop, which we found really helpful when we needed to add more ingredients to the bowl before whisking again. We also like that it is operated by two buttons – one for power, the other for changing the speed – and there is an LED screen that displays the setting in use.

Best: Innovation

Rating: 9/10

• Weight: 1.3kg
• Variable speeds: Seven
• Pulse action: Boost button
• Included accessories: Flat beaters, balloon whisk, dough hooks, storage case
• Wattage: 270W
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

If you’re not willing to wait for the butter to reach room temperature after taking it from the fridge before baking (honestly, who is?), this hand mixer will forgive your impatience. Just hit the copper-coloured button on the handle to activate the “heatsoft” function and warm air will stream from the machine, rapidly bringing cold butter to room temperature – 12 times faster than leaving it on the countertop. When we tested the feature, we could feel the butter becoming softer and fluffier, resulting in a perfect cake batter.

The Breville device offers options aplenty with seven-speed settings and a boost button, and it comes with flat beaters, a balloon whisk and dough hooks. We also like the copper-coloured magnetic nozzle that can be removed and cleaned with the other attachments in the dishwasher. A clear storage box with space for all the accessories and the hand mixer unit on the top is genius for clutter-free storage.

Best: Multitasking hand whisk

Rating: 9.5/10

• Weight: 2kg
• Variable speeds: Five
• Pulse action: Turbo button
• Included accessories: Stick blender, chopper, whisk, potato masher, beaker
• Wattage: 700W

Those short on storage space will be looking for a device that does it all, and we’ve found it in this handheld Smeg gadget. The sleek, stylish design is marvellous, and there is nothing this machine can’t do. It blends to a smooth puree, finely chops ingredients, and we are obsessed with the potato masher – the kind made popular thanks to Nigella’s famous “mee-cro-wah-vey” clip and that will make you never want to use a conventional masher again. But we’re here mainly for the whisking capabilities and it did not disappoint, swiftly whipping egg whites to gloriously glossy stiff peaks. This is the most powerful device we tested, and it shows in use. If you’re looking for a kitchen allrounder that oozes cool sophistication, there is no better machine.

Best: Budget buy

Rating: 8/10

• Variable speeds: Four
• Pulse action: Yes
• Included accessories: Beaters, dough hooks
• Wattage: 350W
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

One of the more basic hand mixers this may be, but it packs an impressive 350W of power for quick and effective use. We found it simple to operate, using your thumb to change the settings or activate the turbo option while mixing, and comfortable to hold for maximum control. The two attachments – wire beaters and dough hooks – cover most bases when baking and effortlessly beat, mix and whip ingredients. Bosch’s machine is also compact and feels light yet sturdy in the hand. Interestingly, it is made from BPA-free, non-toxic plastic. Best of all, the price keeps it within most people’s budgets.

Best: Luxury buy

Rating: 8/10

• Weight: 1.3kg
• Variable speeds: Seven
• Pulse action: No
• Included accessories: Beaters
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

From the most reasonable device in our round-up, we jump to the priciest: the KitchenAid mixer. With seven-speed settings and the freedom to work untethered by a cable, this whisk offers flexibility in a stylish design. Fully charge it – this takes about two hours – and you’ll enjoy more than an hour of use. You’ll also know when it needs charging because the battery light indicator will go from green to amber and then red.

The unit is compact and comfortable to hold and it’s among the quietest we used. Our favourite thing about this mixer is the soft-start feature, which gradually dials up the speed of the whisk to avoid that ghastly splatter of ingredients that comes with going straight in at full speed. For the price, we would have liked to have seen more accessories included, but this is a quality piece of kit that any KitchenAid devotee will love using.

Best: Lightweight mixer

Rating: 9/10

• Weight: 1.2kg
• Variable speeds: Five
• Pulse action: Yes
• Included accessories: Flat beaters, dough hooks
• Wattage: 400W
• Dishwasher-safe attachments: Yes

With a matte black finish and chrome detail, this hand mixer is a stylish, robust device that makes short work of whipping and mixing tasks. You can feel the force in your hands while you work – even the pulse setting is super powerful – but the lightweight of the unit makes it comfortable to use. Given its power and the dough hooks it comes with, we thought it would be ideal for making bread, and we whipped up a basic white loaf mix (flour, salt, yeast, oil and water) that became smooth and elastic in under 10 minutes. Meanwhile, the rounded handle means we could get a good grip of it to stay in control even when it is on the highest speed and the sliding switch is easily toggled with a thumb as you mix. This is an excellent value, high-quality machine that also comes with an impressive three-year guarantee.

Best: Corded whisk

Rating: 8/10

• Weight: 1.2kg
• Variable speeds: Five
• Pulse action: Turbo boost
• Included accessories: Beaters, dough hooks
• Wattage: 250W

On getting this sleek, well-designed hand whisk out of the box, we were taken by the gorgeous ombre gradient effect on its black body and knew it would look fantastic in any kitchen. It’s a compact unit, so ideal for those with little cupboard space, and it is lightweight and comfortable to use. Coming with both beaters and dough hooks, the Progress whisk can handle most jobs a baker needs to complete. The almost conical shape of the beaters is a huge plus and meant we could get into those hard-to-reach parts of the mixing bowl and get everything off the sides. It is not quite the 400W that Kwan recommends in our FAQs below, but we found the 250W machine was more than adequate for most tasks in a domestic kitchen. We didn’t put the attachments in the dishwasher, but they were easy to wash up by hand, and the quality means they looked as good as new after several uses.