Is the Breville Sous Chef 16 Worth It?
Based on tests by America's Test Kitchen (Aug 2026). How we score
Save $250Depends. Cuisinart Custom 14 for most people.
Amazon prices as of Sep 29, 9:38 PM EDT (details)
Why
America's Test Kitchen's upgrade pick: "If you want all the bells and whistles, they come with this fully loaded model," and it chopped, sliced and shredded "quickly and uniformly with minimal waste." But ATK's winner, the Cuisinart Custom 14, costs much less and needs no accessories box. Buy the Breville only if you'll really use the mini bowl and extra disks and have room to store them.
Breville warranty: 2-year limited; 30-year motor
Cheaper alternatives, scored against the Breville
Custom 14-Cup Food Processor
From 1 tester: America's Test Kitchen
From 1 tester: America's Test Kitchen
America's Test Kitchen's winner: "power; precision; and a compact, streamlined design that takes up less space than most food processors," with three blades that store inside the bowl. One regression: its redesigned chopping blade leaves bigger gaps, so it "couldn't effectively incorporate egg yolks into single-batch mayonnaise" (a double batch worked). No mini bowl. Warranty: 3 years on the unit (vs the Breville's 2) but 5 on the motor (vs 30).
| Criterion | Breville | Cuisinart Custom 14 |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 3/3 | 2.5/3 |
| Ease of use | 2.5/3 | 3/3 |
| Cleanup | 2.5/3 | 3/3 |
From America's Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors (updated Aug. 4, 2026)
Sources: America's Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors (updated Aug. 4, 2026)
Pro Custom 11-Cup Food Processor
From 1 tester: America's Test Kitchen
From 1 tester: America's Test Kitchen
America's Test Kitchen's Best Buy: it "aced our chopping, slicing, and shredding tests" and, unlike the 14-cup, handled a single batch of mayonnaise. It has a smaller motor (625 vs 720 watts) and bowl, and the attached feed-tube pusher made it "slightly harder to clean and a little fussier to use."
| Criterion | Breville | Cuisinart Pro Custom 11 |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 3/3 | 3/3 |
| Ease of use | 2.5/3 | 2.5/3 |
| Cleanup | 2.5/3 | 3/3 |
From America's Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors (updated Aug. 4, 2026)
Sources: America's Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors (updated Aug. 4, 2026)
Common questions
Breville Sous Chef or Cuisinart?
America's Test Kitchen's winner is the Cuisinart Custom 14, which is compact and simple. The Breville Sous Chef 16 is their upgrade pick for people who want a mini bowl and many more accessories, with the space and budget for them.
Can the Breville Sous Chef 16 dice?
Only with a dicing attachment, which America's Test Kitchen notes is sold separately.
Sources: America's Test Kitchen: The Best Food Processors (updated Aug. 4, 2026), Manufacturer specs via Amazon listing
