8 best pasta makers, according to experts

Most can agree that pasta in any form is delicious, not to mention easy to make when all you have to do is boil it for a few minutes. That said, making pasta from scratch is a great project for a cool fall weekend or as a date night in with a significant other. By using a reliable pasta maker, you can prepare any type of pasta you love, whether it’s a short variety like penne or gnocchi, or a long noodle like linguine or pappardelle.

I spoke with pasta experts and culinary professionals from the Institute for Culinary Education about how to find the best pasta-making kitchen appliances. I also rounded up a couple helpful accessories such as gnocchi boards and ravioli cutters.

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There are a few important factors that go into choosing a pasta-making tool or appliance. Here’s what my experts recommend I keep in mind when curating this list:

• Pasta type: This is one of the most important aspects when looking for a pasta maker because it determines exactly what type of machine or tool you’ll need. Depending on the type of pasta you want to make, you may need a machine that can evenly flatten out the pasta dough so you can use a dough cutter to cut it into long pieces (like a pappardelle or linguine). On the other hand, you may need a more advanced machine for making short pasta such as penne or gemelli, which automatically pushes the pasta dough through a cutter.
• Automatic versus manual: The type of pasta maker you get, whether automatic or manual, depends a lot on how often you plan on making pasta and how experienced you are at it, says Shawn Matijevich, a lead chef-instructor of online culinary arts and food operations at the Institute of Culinary Education. Manual machines let you make sheets of pasta dough at your own pace and control the width, but they can require a lot of maintenance and cleaning, says Matijevich. Automatic machines, on the other hand, are great for people who are new to making pasta from scratch. “They are pricey, but well worth it in my opinion,” he says. “Making pasta by hand (without a machine) is actually a little more involved, so for beginners, the machine is great.”

• Accessories: You should also consider accessories for making certain types of pasta, which you may need instead of or in addition to a machine itself. This includes tools such as a pasta board for making gnocchi, imprinted ravioli or wooden dowels for drying long pasta. This could also include pasta dough cutters with unique patterns for cutting out pieces of ravioli. “I’d also recommend a fluted cutter,” says Matijevich. “One with a straight blade and a fluted blade on either side is best if you are looking for an all-in-one tool.”

All of the products below are either direct recommendations from experts or NBC Select staff, or highly rated options that have at least a 4-star average rating from 500 reviews or more.

Marcato Atlas 150 Pasta Maker

What we like

• Classic look
• Good for long pasta
• Makes multiple pasta types

The Atlas pasta maker from Marcato, which comes recommended by pasta chef Mateo Zielonka, is a manual pasta maker that requires you to turn the crank on the side to pass the sheet of pasta through the machine’s press to flatten it. It’s a great option if you’re getting started with making pasta, says Zielonka. While a manual pasta maker may be a slightly more old-fashioned and labor-intensive method for making pasta, it gives you more control over the width of the noodles. Since you have to run the dough through the machine by hand, you can control how many passes it gets, according to the brand. It has a 10-position adjuster, which helps control the thickness of the noodles, and comes with a roller that can cut pasta such as lasagne, fettuccine and tagliolini, according to the brand. (However, you can buy separate rollers to make even more pasta types.) 

Type: manual | Accessories: 3 pasta shape cutters  

Antree Pasta Maker Attachment

What we like

• Easy to use
• Good for long pasta
• Easy setup

The Antree pasta maker attachment is ideal for anyone who has a KitchenAid stand mixer — the attachment connects to the top of the mixer and works automatically, so you don’t have to manually spin the pasta roller. All you have to do is turn on the mixer (without a mixing attachment connected) and run the sheet of pasta dough through the machine. There’s also a crank on the side of the attachment that you can turn to adjust the thickness of the pasta dough. It can press sheets of dough up to 5 inches wide, so you can make multiple individual noodles at once or cut wider pieces of lasagna noodles quickly, according to the brand. The pasta maker has a 4.5-star average rating from over 13,600 reviews on Amazon.

Type: electric | Accessories: 2 pasta shape cutter

Philips Compact Pasta and Noodle MakerAmazon

What we like

• Electric
• Measuring cups included
• Makes multiple pasta shapes

This electric pasta maker from Philips, which comes recommended by NBC Select senior social media editor Rosalie Sparaco, takes a lot of the work out of preparing and cutting pasta dough. “I love this machine because it does all — and I mean all — of the hard work for you,” she says. “It makes homemade pasta feel like less of an only-on-the-weekend all-day project and more like something you can make any day of the week because it’s so fast and easy.” It has a compartment on the top where you add your ingredients in order to prepare your pasta dough. This means you don’t have to roll or knead the dough as much by hand on your countertop or a silicone mat, which helps avoid a potential mess. There is a pasta-shaping disc that pushes the dough out and through the filter, creating either long pastas such as fettuccine or spaghetti, or short varieties by cutting them as they come out of the machine. It comes with multiple shaping discs, measuring cups and a cleaning brush.

Type: electric | Accessories: 3 pasta shape cutters 

Smeg Stand Mixer Pasta Roller Attachment

What we like

• Good for long pasta
• Durable

The Smeg pasta roller attachment comes recommended by NBC Select editorial director Lauren Swanson, who says it has a high-quality look and feel to it. “It’s pricey, but substantial — you can feel the weight of the roller before you even open the package,” she says. “It does the job of any other pasta roller attachment that I’ve used and is simple to use.” Similar to the KitchenAid version, this attachment connects to the top of a Smeg stand mixer and automatically cuts pastas like fettuccine and tagliolini. 

Type: electric | Accessories: 2 pasta shape cutters 

KitchenAid Gourmet Pasta Press Attachment

What we like

• Multiple pasta shapes
• Good for short pasta
• Easy setup

This attachment, similar to one above, connects to the top of a KitchenAid stand mixer and works by simply turning on the machine. It pushes pasta dough through a shaping tool vertically rather than horizontally, which means you can use kitchen shears to cut pieces as it comes out. It functions as both an electric and manual pasta maker because the attachment itself pushes the pasta dough through the cutter, but there’s also a lever on the side that lets you cut the pasta to your preferred length. This means you can use it to make long pasta like spaghetti and bucatini or small ones like macaroni and rotini. It also has a 4.6-star average rating from over 4,100 reviews on Amazon. 

Type: electric | Accessories: 6 pasta shape cutter 

Bamboo Pasta Drying Rack with Transfer Wand

What we like

• Helps dry pasta quickly
• Good for long pasta
• Easy to set up

In addition to a pasta-making machine, it helps to have additional accessories to help prepare your pasta and get the right texture and shape. For long pasta, such as spaghetti, bucatini, fettuccine and pappardelle, recipes often call for drying the pasta to help prevent it from breaking, since it’s much less firm than dried pasta you’d get at the grocery store. These wooden dowels act as a drying rack for freshly-made pasta and come with a transfer wand to make it easier to move your prepared pasta across your countertop without accidentally breaking it, according to the brand. The stand has a 4.6-star average rating from more than 400 reviews on Amazon. 

Type: manual | Accessories: 1 transfer wand

KneadEat Curved Gnocchi Board Paddle

What we like

• Easy to use
• Easy to store
• Small size

If you’re a fan of potato gnocchi and want to start making it from scratch, you’ll want a pasta board (or paddle), such as this curved one that has a 4.6-star average rating from 530 reviews on Amazon. The grooves on the board help give gnocchi its traditional textured shape. To use it, all you have to do is prepare your gnocchi dough, cut it into small pieces and use your thumb to press and roll the pieces against the grooves on the paddle to imprint with the shape. It’s also small and easy to store in a drawer or stack it on your cutting boards or baking sheets. 

Type: manual | Accessories: n/a    

Master Feng Ravioli Cutter with Roller Wheel Set

What we like

• Good for making ravioli
• Easy to use

While pastas such as spaghetti, penne, rotini and fettuccine are favorites among pasta lovers, so are stuffed pastas like ravioli. While they’re easy to make from scratch, they also require particular tools, such as a dough cutter, to help them truly come together. This set, which has a 4.6-star average rating from over 4,200 reviews on Amazon, includes a rolling textured pasta cutter for cutting multiple pieces of ravioli at once, as well as individual ravioli cutting stamps, so you can cut them into either circular or square-shaped pieces. The handle is wooden and the cutting mechanism is made of brass and steel. 

Type: manual | Accessories: 3 cutters

There are a few important details to keep in mind before you start shopping for a pasta maker and accessories. Here’s what experts recommend prioritizing before you choose one. 

While a lot of people prefer just boiling store-bought dried pasta, making pasta from scratch every once in a while is fun for people of all culinary levels. That said, think about how often you make homemade pasta before choosing a machine, says Matijevich. If you aren’t as experienced at making fresh pasta, an electric machine that does most of the hard work will probably be best. However, if you are experienced and make it often, a manual machine will give you more control over the width and size of your noodles. 

As mentioned above, the type of pasta you like can influence which type of machine you get. For example, if you prefer short pasta, you’ll need a pasta maker that makes it easy to cut the noodles into small shapes. If you exclusively like long pastas, a manual pasta maker that evenly flattens sheets of pasta works best.

While pasta-making appliances in general aren’t huge, it still helps to have a proper work surface for preparing pasta dough. Make sure you have a table or counter that you can use the machine on and consider getting an adjustable clamp to secure it, says Zielonka. “[I] definitely recommend buying ones which clips well to the table, so the pasta machine doesn’t wobble while making pasta,” he says. “Look for machines made with good quality steel.”

At NBC Select, we work with experts who have specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also take steps to ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.

•  Shawn Matijevich is a lead chef-instructor of online culinary arts and food operations at the Institute of Culinary Education
• Mateo Zielonka is a pasta chef and the author of the cookbook The Pasta Man: The Art of Making Spectacular Pasta. 

I’m a commerce editor at NBC Select, where I write about home and kitchen topics, including reviews on cooking appliances, how to clean a grout and how to shop for garden fertilizer. I spoke with culinary experts for this story.