Kitchen Appliances You Don't Need (And What to Use Instead)

It can be easy to get sucked into the latest and greatest kitchen gadgets and appliances. Especially with the rise of TikTok, we know we're not the only ones who've run right to Amazon to buy a trendy kitchen appliance or gadget because it looks cool—just to find out that it was a waste of counter space and money.

So let our pain (and waste of money) be your guide to all the kitchen gadgets that are useful and the kitchen gadgets that are useless.

Sandwich Maker and Panini Press

Don't get us wrong, these small kitchen appliances are a fun way to take your sandwich game to the next level, but the sandwich maker and panini press may be wasting more space in your kitchen than you want to admit.

Because while these appliances make your sandwich hot and crispy, so does a pan, an air fryer, or even a waffle iron. Yes. We've officially swapped our panini press for a waffle iron, and we're never turning back.

Food Processor vs Blender

Here's the thing, this can go one of two ways. You're either a blender person or a food processor person, and you don't need both. If you're stretching your dollars and trying to figure out which appliances you need most, just pick one of these appliances.

For us, it's blender all the way. But if you're a food processor person, that's okay too. Just pick one, though. Think about what you use each appliance for, and pick the one that does both.

Fruit and Vegetable Cutters

Not technically an appliance, the internet is full of fancy gadgets that cut your apples and core your bananas and turn your zucchini into noodles. These gadgets are fun, don't get us wrong, but also you can just use a knife.

Instead of spending on lots of gizmos that will clutter up your drawers, invest in a good knife and take some time to hone in on your knife skills. You can learn to cut your fruits and vegetables any way that a fancy cutter can—it's just going to take some practice.

KitchenAid

We love our KitchenAid but stand mixers are expensive and definitely not a necessity if you're not a big baker. They come with a price tag of well over two hundred dollars, and hand mixers can do almost everything they can but for a fraction of the price.

High-end hand mixers can be found for under a hundred dollars, so the price difference alone makes the switch from stand mixer to hand mixer a no-brainer.

Mini Makers

Mini-makers have their place: college dorm rooms. If you're not living in a shared space where you're cramped for room, mini-makers are a waste of space and money.

They're cheap and fun but just buy a normal-sized waffle maker or use a pan to cook your eggs. It's more expensive to buy full-sized appliances, but it'll last a lot longer, and it just makes more sense, practically speaking.

Baby Food Maker

New parents get bombarded with products that are 'have-to-have,' but the baby food maker shouldn't be one of them. You can skip the fuss and the mess that comes with baby food makers and just use a blender or a food processor.

These appliances can usually make larger batches of baby food at a time and clean up a lot easier as well, so it's a win-win in our book.

Appliance Essentials

What appliances you keep in your kitchen is totally up to you and what works for your lifestyle, so if you disagree with our list of appliances we pass on, that's okay. Your kitchen, your call.

But here are the appliances we keep in our kitchen. Along with the large, basic appliances, we absolutely love our air fryer, toaster, blender, waffle maker, and crockpot. These simple appliances have streamlined our kitchen and the cooking process and helped us cut clutter in the kitchen.