Maybe you’re brand new to baking and don’t know where to start when it comes to buying the right tools. Or perhaps you’ve accumulated a kitchen full of hand-me-downs and you’re ready to start fresh with the best tools, hoping they’ll last for years to come. Whatever brings you here, this collection of our all-time favorite baking tools will get you well-equipped and set up for success.
Our commerce team spends hours and hours every week testing kitchen gear to determine which products reign supreme in their given categories. That’s how we landed on our favorite stand mixer and kitchen scale. Other tools you see here are firsthand recommendations from our professional test kitchen editors, like the glass mixing bowls that Kendra Vaculin would go to battle for. Once you have these tools, you’ll be able to whip up just about every baking recipe we publish, like BA’s Best Chocolate Chip Cookies, this always reliable No-Knead Focaccia, and the absolute fluffiest Cinnamon Rolls With Cream Cheese Frosting.
The Basics
When it comes to the baking basics, you only need a few things. But, you really do need them. No other tool in your kitchen can do what these babies can.
“My go-to spatula is the one from GIR (which stands for Get It Right—and they did).” —Hana Asbrink, deputy food editor
These silicone spatulas are extra easy to clean since they don’t have any seams, detachable parts, or wooden handles. Go for a whole set!
Anchor Hocking Glass Mixing Bowls
“I like these glass bowls because you can use them in heat sensitive applications, throw them in the microwave or oven, and safely use all kinds of utensils in them.” —Kendra Vaculin, test kitchen editor
These boar hair bristles hold on tight to the liquid you’re brushing, whether that’s egg wash or cream. Hand wash it like you would a paint brush, and let it dry upside down.
JK Adams Maple Wood French Dowel Rolling Pin
“I’ve rolled out a lot of pie crust and cookie dough over the years, and I’ve concluded definitively that the best rolling pin is a straightforward, no-nonsense dowel-style wood rolling pin.” —Claire Saffitz, Bon Appétit contributor
Ateco Small Offset Spatula
An offset spatula can do so much more than frost a cake. Use it to flip small items in a pan like silver dollar pancakes, level your cup of flour, or smooth your cake batter in the pan before baking, then again to loosen the cake from the pan after baking.
OXO Good Grips Medium Cookie Scoop
Professional bakers have used this handy tool for years to portion equal quantities of cookie dough in a hurry. But you don’t need to work in a bakery to achieve the same result. It can also be used to transfer buttercream from the bowl straight onto the cake or into the pastry bag. This one from OXO Good Grips ensures you’ll find a comfortable hold while you use it.
A bowl scraper is integral to bread baking. You’ll need it to portion dough and, you guessed it, scrape the bowl clean after mixing. You can also use it to help transport ingredients from your cutting board to the bowl or scrape up any stuck-on bits of dough off the counter or the rolling pin. Using a plastic scraper like this one means you can bend it slightly to conform to the size and shape of your bowl.
Measuring Tools
It should come as no surprise that to bake well, you need to be exact. To do that, start with the best measuring tools.
“These are the only measuring spoons I use in the test kitchen. They include a few not-so-popular (but helpful!) additions like half a tablespoon and ⅛ teaspoon. They’re dishwasher safe, sturdy, and no-fuss; exactly what I’m looking for in my measuring spoons.” —Jesse Szewczyk, senior test kitchen editor
Le Creuset Stainless Steel Measuring Cups
“Durable and dishwasher-safe, this four-piece measuring cup set features engraved numbers so you don’t need to worry about them fading and peeling after just a few uses.” —Antara Sinha, Bon Appétit contributor
OXO Good Grips 2-Cup Angled Measuring Cup
“We love the OXO Good Grips liquid measuring cup for its angled display inside the cup, which means you don’t need to hover at counter-level to check for the meniscus of your liquid ingredients,” says Antara. In addition to measuring, a liquid measuring cup is perfect for adding eggs to the bowl of a stand mixer (one at a time) and portioning creme brulée custard evenly into ramekins.
A digital scale is the only tool on this list that will take you from a fine baker to a baker extraordinaire overnight simply because it eliminates the human error element in measuring ingredients. Why buy the Escali? “It comes in a ton of fun colors, it’s virtually indestructible, and it costs around $25,” says food director, Chris Morocco.
Rubbermaid Stainless Steel Oven Thermometer
We have good news and bad news. The bad news is, your oven is probably not running at the temperature you set it at. The good news: with a ten dollar thermometer in your oven, you can know exactly what temperature your oven is really running at (it can be off by as much as 50°!) and tinker accordingly to ensure a good bake.
Thermapen Probe Thermometer
“Using a digital thermometer to test the internal temperature of baked goods is the most foolproof, low-effort way of getting consistently great results,” says senior test kitchen editor, Shilpa Uskokovic. And the Thermapen is “the most accurate and best instant-read thermometer on the market today is, hands down” says contributing editor, Amiel Stanek.
Appliances and Electronics
In baking, there are few appliances more necessary than your oven. That said, these two appliances save you time, physical energy, and provide a consistent, well-mixed product. Need we say more?
KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer
With a 325-watt motor and 10 different speeds, the KitchenAid Artisan 5-quart stand mixer whips, kneads, and whisks powerfully. Plus, it won’t move across the countertop when it’s set to high speeds (a common occurrence in cheaper stand mixers). We’ve found that the streamlined shape and tilt-head design also make it very easy to clean.
KitchenAid Cordless Hand Mixer
If you’re not ready to commit to purchasing a stand mixer, a hand mixer is the next best thing. It will allow you to make a batch of cookies or whip cream without stopping to give your arm a break. This model has several features that help it stand apart from the crowd. The cordless aspect means you can walk about your kitchen freely without becoming tangled. The back of the mixer has a flat surface, which means it can stand upright on its own. We also love its Soft Start feature which brings the beaters up to speed slowly to prevent splattering.
Baking Pans
By no means do you have to buy every baking pan on this list. But, once your love of baking is in full bloom, use this list to grow your own equipment closet with the best of the best.
Fat Daddio’s 9×3 Inch Cake Pans
Fat Daddio’s round cake pans are made of light-colored anodized aluminum. Since dark pans heat more quickly than light pans, using these pans ensures that the outside of your cake doesn’t cook too quickly, which can result in a burnt-crust-underbaked-middle situation. And their nonreactive coating means you can bake a citrusy upside-down cake in it without fear of it tasting metallic.
Nordic Ware Half-Sheet Pan
This baking sheet is made with high-quality, pure, uncoated aluminum, which lends itself to even heat distribution more efficiently and uniformly than aluminized steel (aluminum-coated steel) or stainless steel. This results in food that bakes evenly, rises predictably, and browns perfectly. Something called a “reinforced encapsulated steel rim” makes Nordic Ware’s baking trays virtually warp-resistant.
“This 9″ aluminum number from USA Pan has been my go-to for years. I strongly favor metal over other materials such as glass or ceramic because the thermal conductivity is superior, and it comes with zero risk of cracking or breaking in extreme temperature changes. This one also has a small lip that holds up a crimped pie edge and prevents dough from falling off as it bakes.” —Shilpa Uskokovic, senior test kitchen editor
USA Pan 9×5 Inch Loaf Pan
As you can see, we have a thing for USA Pan-branded products. When it comes to rectangular-shaped pans, we prefer this brand because of its straight edges, which gives a professional-looking final result. And with these sharp edges, you can evenly portion your loaf cake slices or sandwich bread.
USA Pan 9×13 Inch Baking Pan
This type of pan is perfect for focaccia, sheet-pan pizzas, sheet cakes, and so much more. This particular piece of aluminized-steel cookware looks like a piece of industrial equipment and cooks with that same level of exactness.
USA Pan 8 Inch Square Baking Pan
The 8×8” pan promotes the same even-cooking and straight edges as the other sizes on this page, plus it’s great for anyone working with small kitchens and storage spaces.
Oxo Good Grips Non-Stick Muffin Pan
With wide, flat edges on the sides, this muffin pan has plenty of space for you to hold onto when you’re taking your hot pan out of the oven. Plus, the nonstick coating helps ensure that your towering tops don’t stick to the pan and tear when you go to pop out your muffins and cupcakes.
Fat Daddio’s Springform Cake Pan
Unmolding a cheesecake couldn’t be easier with Fat Daddio’s nonstick springform pan—particularly compared to many of its competitors that feature a raised lip around the base that will often leave a visible divot on the side of your crust. The heavy-duty, stainless-steel spring-lock buckle on the outer ring is the sturdiest we’ve tried. Plus, it’s made of restaurant-grade anodized aluminum, which means no warping.
If you don’t have the cabinet space to collect a variety of Bundt shapes and sizes, this pan will give you the most flexible bang for your buck. At around $38, this high-quality pan with a nonstick finish is a worthy, affordable addition to any baker’s cupboard and is made to last.
Nordic Ware Jubilee Bundt Pan
But if you do have the space, adding this fun geometric Bundt shape into the mix is super fun—and the hard angles are good for trapping pools of ganache and caramel sauce.
