If canned soup takes you back to your student days and jarred pasta sauces no longer appeal, it's time to invest in one of the best hand blenders. This versatile kitchen appliance makes it easy to prepare everything from soups to homemade sauces from scratch.

Also known as stick or immersion blenders, these compact appliances come in a wide range of styles and price points, making it difficult to know which one is worth buying. To help narrow down the options, I tested a selection of hand blenders in my own kitchen, blending everything from soups to smoothies to find the models that deliver the best performance.

It’s worth noting some hand blenders simply come on their own, while many, such as those from Ninja and KitchenAid, also come with accessories such as whisks and vegetable choppers, so that you can chop or mash ingredients before you blend.

Hand blenders vary widely in power, features and price. During testing, I used models with more than 1,000W of power, multiple blade designs and a range of accessories, with prices spanning from under £20 to more than £150.

I've rounded up the best hand blenders for every type of home cook, with my full verdict on each below.

Read more: Best slow cookers, tested

I chopped, blended and whisked ingredients with these blenders (Sarah Finley/The Independent)

The best hand blenders for 2026 are:

• Best overall – Bosch series 6 ergomaster hand blender: £99.99, Johnlewis.com
• Best budget – Russell Hobbs food collection blender: £13, Amazon.co.uk
• Best cordless – Kitchenaid go cordless hand blender: £125.30, Amazon.co.uk
• Best for versatility – Cuisinart power blend immersion blender: £49.99, Cusinart.co.uk

Read more: Best microwaves, tested