For this review, we have selected the best bread makers out there on the market to discuss product quality (including taste & quality of bread), features/specs, versatility, while showing consumer ratings, warranty, and many more details.

No doubt, that these advanced multi-tasking bread makers are some of the best things since sliced bread!

Out of these three top brands, Zojirushi has a specific program to make vegan bread though you can easily make vegan bread or veganize baking with other two brands as well. After all, bread is supposed to be vegan in its original form. If you’re also looking for gluten-free settings, Zojirushi and Breville can give you that option.

Besides baking bread, these machines can also make pizza & pasta dough, jam, cakes, and much more!   

These bread makers being the best rated & high end, they’re on the expensive side where you get what you pay for. One thing is for sure, these multi-purpose bread baking machines are stable & durable and you may save money in the long run other than getting healthy, tasty & better quality bread at home which far exceeds your average store-bought bread.

1) Zojirushi Bread Maker Review (Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus BB-PDC20BA)

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Since 1918, Zojirushi has been manufacturing products for a century to enhance the quality of life providing convenience, comfort, and value to people around the world.   

Whether you’re a novice or a professional baker, Zojirushi has been the top brand of choice and it has stood the test of time. With a rating of 4.5/5 from 1745 consumers speaks volumes!

Technologically advanced and loaded with many menu settings to provide you great versatility, Zojirushi comes with two blades (for thorough dough kneading), a removable nonstick bread pan, a vegan & gluten-free program and produces a loaf with a size & shape similar to a store loaf.

Get to know the quality of bread and everything you need to know about the machine from the details we’ve listed below.

Avg. Rating

4.5 out of 5 (from 1745 consumer ratings)

Bread Quality & Taste Test

When your kitchen is permeated with the aroma of fresh bread you know what to expect. That was a moment to cherish and our anticipation was sky high!   

As expected the freshly looking bread had a firm crispy crust with golden brown color, and the browning of the bread was consistent on all sides.

This even baking was understood due to its unique two-way heating mechanism (added heating element under the lid).

Inside the texture was consistent, soft, moist, and the air bubbles were spread evenly. It was firm enough making it much easier to cut.

We were able to cut really thin slices without a lot of crumbs or any damage to the texture. There were no awkward holes at the center as well which can create wastage. With any bread maker, you will have to wait for 20-30 minutes before slicing, since it’s not easy to cut bread when it’s freshly baked.

The taste was heavenly & excellent. It had a lovely crunch and not overly chewy. Great aroma, perfect looking standard sized loaf, and fantastic taste, what more you can expect? Words cannot describe the feeling when you see fresh healthy bread made at home in your own kitchen. Kudos to Zojirushi!

We also tried a loaf with added raisins. The raisins were well mixed evenly throughout the bread. Another delicious loaf with added sweetness of raisins!

Bread Sizes & Shapes

Available loaf sizes are: 1, 1-1/2, & 2 lbs (2 lb good for 4 people).

Zojirushi makes rectangular shaped loaves which are similar in shape & size to your store-bought loaves. Thus the slices should easily fit your bread slicer and toaster.

Custom Program Settings

Number of Courses: 15

Types of Custom Settings

1. White
2. Whole wheat
3. Multigrain
4. European
5. Gluten-free
6. Salt-free
7. Sugar-free
8. Vegan
9. Rapid white
10. Rapid whole wheat
11. Dough
12. Sourdough starter
13. Cake
14. Jam
15. Homemade (3 homemade memory settings to customize)

• The knead
• Rise
• Bake times

Custom Settings for Different Diets

1. Vegan
2. Gluten-free baking
3. Salt-free
4. Sugar-free

Average Baking Time

Standard bread = 3 hours and 20 minutes (depending on the settings you select)

Rapid bread      = 2 hours and 25 minutes

Delay Timer

This feature allows you to set the time you want the baking to begin. For an example, if you want the bread by the time you wake up at 7 a.m. you can put the ingredients before you go to sleep and set the delay timer to start baking at 3.30 a.m. Same feature can be used to keep the bread ready when you come home from work.  

Zojirushi has a 13-hour delay timer.

Crust Settings

Crust control gives you three crust colors: light, medium, or dark

Automatic Dispensers (for fruits, nuts, and yeast)

Zojirushi doesn’t have automatic dispensers for fruit/nut and yeast, but it indicates with a beep to make the additions and you can add nuts, fruits, raisins, chocolate chips or any other ingredient.

Bread Pan Quality & Maintenance

Baking pan is nonstick coated for easy cleaning and removal of bread.

Pan Dimension

5 x 8 3/4 x 5 inches

Kneading Blades

Comes with double kneading blades to knead dough thoroughly. Kneading blades are removable and have a nonstick coat making it easier to remove the bread and clean.

Other Features

• Dual heaters on the bottom and under the lid for even baking and browning
• Automatic pause to stop the kneading blades when the lid is opened and restarts when closed
• Keep-warm setting can be used to keep the bread warm for 60 minutes
• Large viewing window on top allows you to view the kneading, rising and baking of your bread

LCD Display

Easy-to-read LCD display shows the remaining time in which the bread will be completed and you can see the program setting codes on lid to select the type of baking.  

Noise and Stability

This is one of the quietest bread makers and no pounding or wobbling on the counter

Housing Material

Stainless Steel

Country of origin

Japan

Warranty

I year

Electrical Ratings

120 volts

Motor & Heater Power

Heater: 600W Motor:100W

Machine Dimensions

10.5 x 18 x 12.88 inches

Weight

24 lbs

What Comes with the Package

Bread maker, liquid measuring cup, nested measuring cups, measuring spoon, instruction manual, recipe book and DVD

2) Panasonic Bread Maker Review (Home Bakery SD-BMT1000-T)

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With 34 pre-programmed settings, we really doubt there could be any other bread machine that can provide more variety than this bread maker. It’s a baker’s dream come true and its compact size doesn’t require much space which can fit even a small kitchen!

The freedom you have with this machine to choose a wide range of baking, types of dough and other options such as to make compote and chocolate is remarkable!

You can also make pasta, brioches, and scones or you can even surprise your guests with a marble bread by adding instant coffee, green tea or chocolate.

It is one of the fastest bread makers as well which can bake a bread in an hour!

The only minor issue is that the control panel and original user manual is in the Japanese language. So you will have to use the  Google Translate App available on smartphones (available on Android and iPhone). This app uses the camera on your phone to translate a language which appears on your screen.

You can find the closest English manual (PDF) which is available to download here (manual of the product made for the Hong Kong market)   

Once you paste the English labels on the control panel as described in the English manual it will be much easier to operate.

In spite of that minor inconvenience, there are many customers who are really satisfied with the versatility and performance of this machine!

Avg. Rating

4.6 out of 5 (from 39 consumer ratings)

Bread Quality & Taste Test

Again it was wonderful to see a perfectly baked bread and get ourselves filled with its aroma. So appetizing and the baking was consistent, covered with its light golden color.  

The bread had all the good characteristics you would expect from a quality well-proofed bread. A crispy crust, firm texture on the outside and a nice soft texture inside. It was very easy to cut into slices after keeping it for 30 minutes, and we didn’t find any weird holes.    

Tasty and obviously way better than the bread you would find in supermarkets.

Bread Shape & Size

Produces a 1 pound (good for 2 people) vertical loaf

Custom Program Settings

Number of Pre-Programmed Settings: 34

Types of Custom Settings

1. Pain de mie
2. Yudane pain de mie
3. Chiffon pain de mie
4. Bread
5. Soft bread
6. Rapid bread
7. 60 minutes bread
8. Rice bread
9. French rice bread
10. French Bread
11. Rye bread
12. Whole wheat bread
13. Brioche
14. Marble bread
15. Pineapple bread
16. Red bean bread
17. Half bread
18. Rice Flour Bread
19. Bread dough
20. Pizza dough
21. Dumpling skin dough
22. 8 minutes dough
23. Natural yeast bread
24. Natural yeast bread dough
25. Natural yeast fermentation
26. Scone
27. Cake
28. Vegetable Cake
29. Chocolate
30. Jam
31. Compote
32. Red bean
33. Mochi
34. Udon/Pasta dough

Bread Pan

Removable non-stick pan

Kneading Blades

The Panasonic comes with two types of removable blades. One for the bread and the other for noodles/mochi.

Average Baking Time

Standard bread = 4 hours

Rapid bread = 1 hours and 55 minutes

60 minutes bread = 1 hour

Crust Settings

You can set the crust color as light, standard or dark

Automatic Dispensers (fruits, nuts, yeast)

There are two dispensers, one for fruits & nuts and the other for yeast. These dispensers automatically release fruits, nuts, raisins, and yeast at the right time.

Delay Timer

13-hour delay timer

Other Features

• Large LCD display
• There is no window on top, but you can open the cover anytime during the baking process

Noise and Stability

It’s relatively quiet and stable on the countertop

Country of Origin

Japan

Warranty

1 Year

Housing Material

PP Resin

Dimensions

13 x 10.3 x 14.4 inches

Weight

14.95 lbs

Electrical Rating

100V

Motor & Heater Power

430W

What Comes with the Package

Bread maker, instruction manual, recipe book, removable bake pan with two kneading blades, measuring cup and measuring spoon

3) Breville Bread Maker Review (Custom Loaf BBM800XL)  

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We’re all fond of our smartphones but if you’re looking for a smart bread maker then Breville BBM800XL is the one you’re looking for. It is also one of the sleekest & elegant looking bread makers that looks hi-tech with aesthetic appeal.

Once you make the selection via the interface the machine computes temperature and baking time while a simple ‘turn & confirm dial’ lets you get a recipe done.

Breville also comes with a larger bright & clear LCD display showing custom settings, cycles and other selections.

Avg. Rating

4.3 out of 5 (from 221 consumer ratings)

Bread Quality & Taste

The loaf looked quite big & plump with a nice even golden crust. It had a beautiful color and both the inner & outer texture looked great and enticing.

We sliced the bread after letting it cool for about 20 minutes. Though Zojirushi is still our top pick when it comes to best looking & tasteful bread we have no complaints against Breville. The bread was fresh, appetizing and tasty.  

Bread Sizes & Shapes

4 loaf sizes: 1.0-pound, 1-1/2-pound, 2.0-pound (family size) and 2-1/2-pound

Breville produces horizontal bread which is quite similar to the loaves at the store.

Custom Program Settings

Number of Automatic Settings (Courses): 13

Types of Custom Settings

1. Basic
2. Basic rapid
3. Whole wheat
4. Whole wheat rapid
5. Gluten free
6. Crusty loaf
7. Sweet
8. Yeast free
9. Dough – bread
10. Dough – pizza
11. Dough – pasta
12. Bake only
13. Jam

Bread Pan

Non-stick bread pan with handle

Pan Dimensions

5.5 inches deep, 5.5 inches wide and 7.5 inches long

Kneading Paddle

Removable single collapsible paddle with non-stick coating (automatically collapses before the ‘bake’ phase to minimize the hole at the bottom of the baked loaf)

Average Baking Time

Standard = 3 – 3 ½   hours (depending on the settings you select)

Rapid = 2 ½ hours

Delay Timer

13 hours

Crust Settings

3 crust colors: light, medium or dark

Automatic Dispensers (fruits, nuts and yeast)

Automatic fruit & nut dispenser releases ingredients at the right moment during the kneading phase to evenly incorporate within the dough. No automatic yeast dispenser.

LCD Display

Breville comes with a larger smart intuitive LCD screen with progress indicator, custom settings, remaining time, etc.

Other Features

• Unique collapsible kneading paddle blends ingredients and then before the baking phase starts the paddle collapses to reduce the hole at the base of the loaf
• If there is a power outage for 60 minutes or less, the ‘power failure protection’ will automatically resume the cycle when the power is back
• Keep-warm setting: can keep bread warm after baking for 60 minutes
• There is a window on top & interior light to check the loaf without opening the lid. You can also pause it and open the lid if required.

Noise and Stability

Fairly quiet and stable, but can have a slight shake while it kneads. Not as heavy or quite as the Zojirushi. Make sure to keep it on a dry, level and clean surface and don’t keep it near the edges.

Country of Origin

China (made according to Breville’s specifications & standards)

Warranty

1 year

Housing Material

Stainless Steel

Dimensions

9.6 x 16.4 x 13.3 inches

Weight

16.85 lbs

Electrical Rating

110V

Motor & Heater Power

830 Watts

What Comes with the Package

Bread maker, instruction booklet, collapsible paddle for bread & dough, and fixed paddle for jam

Conclusion

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No matter which brand you select out of the above bread makers, it’s highly unlikely you will be disappointed since these have already proven to be the favorites among the consumers.

If you don’t want to trade bread quality, taste, loaf size and shape for anything besides having vegan & gluten-free options then no doubt, Zojirushi is the brand we would highly recommend (well it’s the Vitamix of bread makers).

If you’re willing to pay for a machine that gives you the liberty of baking with variety and make a few more recipes while having the convenience of dispensers and express baking, yet compromise on loaf size and shape then go for the Panasonic.

Fine design, modern interface, custom settings with pleasing bread quality & taste are your requirements, then you may opt for Breville.