What is the best food processor according to owners?
The Cuisinart Custom 14 DFP-14BKSY comes out on top at 86% recommend (n=44). Owners praise it for lasting decades of hard use and for chopping and prep that comes out uniform batch after batch, though several note it struggles with small quantities and isn't great at slicing or shredding cheese.
Is it worth paying more for the Breville Sous Chef Pro instead of a cheaper processor?
For owners who actually push a machine hard, yes. The Breville Sous Chef Pro BFP800XL sits at 85% recommend (n=13) and owners describe a motor that handles nut butters, pizza dough, grating, and mincing without strain, plus real versatility across pesto, hummus, cheese, and fillings. The tradeoffs owners flag are the steep price and a heavy, bulky base that basically has to live on the counter.
What's the biggest complaint owners have about food processors in general?
Reliability shows up as a recurring theme across the category. Owners of the smaller Mini-Prep Plus (80% recommend, n=10) report the motor overheating, smoking, or burning out on longer or heavier jobs like mayonnaise, and some units arrive dead on arrival. Even the tank-like Robot Coupe R2N (75% recommend, n=12) draws reports of secondhand units needing repairs, from failing motors to worn plastic parts and bowl safety switches that won't lock.
Should I buy a small food processor or a full-size one?
It depends on what's actually going in it. The Mini-Prep Plus earns praise from owners for everyday small jobs like nuts, garlic, herbs, pesto, and salsa, and its compact size means it can stay out on the counter instead of getting hauled from a cabinet. But that same small size is a weak spot for the top-ranked Cuisinart Custom 14, whose owners call it bulky and underwhelming on small batches, so buyers doing mostly light daily prep may be better served by a mini model despite its lower 80% recommend rate.
Do commercial-style food processors like the Robot Coupe hold up better long term?
Owners report genuinely impressive longevity from the Robot Coupe R2N, with units 20 to 30 years old, including ones pulled out of barns or dropped repeatedly, still running. That durability comes with caveats: older or secondhand units commonly need repair work, and owners cite motor failures and broken internal plastic pieces often enough that its recommend rate lands at 75% (n=12), behind several newer home models.
Which food processor is weakest based on owner feedback?
The Cuisinart DFP-14BCNY trails the field at 67% recommend (n=9). Owners who like it point to strong overall performance and solid build quality, but a lid that's awkward to seat and locks imperfectly, combined with weaker handling of small batches and hard nuts, pulls its score down compared to its Cuisinart stablemate.