The Best Embroidery Machines Buying Guide

Remember the old days when these guys used to decorate your dresses with hand embroidery? It was a hell of a lot of manual work that they used to do but today, it has become so much easier.

Yes, there are plenty of the best embroidery machines to do such boring and time-consuming embroidery work in minutes.

Not just it has become easier ever since but with the invention of the computerized sewing machine, people have lots of added benefits.

For example, the latest computerized sewing machines come with a feature of memory storage to which the company stores various embroidery designs for letting you decorate your item with different designs.

We have different models of the best Embroidery Machines (we have included them in our list) which serve the need of different people.

While a good Embroidery machine could be fun to play with, the wrong selection results in disappointment as such machines aren’t as cheaper as the sewing machine for quilting or the regular sewing machines. They are costlier than those.

Our team of experts has performed deep research and made a list of the best ones to help the reader choose based on their requirements.

What is an Embroidery Machine and how it works?

I couldn’t explain the Embroidery Machine better than Wikipedia.

According to Wikipedia,

Machine embroidery is an embroidery process whereby a sewing machine or embroidery machine is used to create patterns on textiles. It is used commercially in product branding, corporate advertising, and uniform adornment

The latest computerized embroidery machines come with the facility to directly connect to the computer and download the latest designs from the Internet.

While manual Embroidery machines could be less costly, computerized Embroidery machines are a comparatively bigger investment.

Hence, it is the sole decretion of the users which type of Embroidery Machine they want to go with Mechanical or computerized one.

Also see: Best Heavy-duty sewing machine with buying guide and reviews

As I said above, there is plenty of Embroidery Machines out there, it could make anyone confused about which one suits their requirements.

Not just that, but they come with different price tags. In general, those with more features cost higher than others.

Quick List of the Best Embroidery Machines?

We understand that for the newbie, it is a daunting task as the Embroidery Machines are costlier than the general sewing machine, Just like our previous post, Best Sewing Machine for Beginners, we have considered the important concerns of the users and chosen the Best Embroidery Machines.

The below table consists of the Best Embroidery Machines which we recommend to our users.

We have created this list to keep factors such as pricing, features, usage, and purpose (home or business) in mind.

Types of Embroidery Machines

Based on our research, we have classified the Embroidery Machines into the following categories.

It will help you further fine-tune your requirements which you need to consider while making a purchase.

You need to decide which type of Embroidery Machine will be suitable for you.

This is our classification, not the universal. We classified Embroidery Machines into the following 5 categories-

Dedicated Embroidery Machine

These types of Embroidery Machines are high-performance machines that are generally used by big houses for decorating their crafting items and apparel with Embroidery Designs.

These are heavy-duty Embroidery Machines that are put to use for hours daily and are not ideal for a home unless there is a heavy requirement for Embroidery work done.

These Embroidery Machines are costlier than others we have discussed below because of being dedicated Embroidery Machines.

Apart from being expensive, they are not easy to use and require some kind of skills to operate them.

So if you are buying an Embroidery Machine to put it in industrial use, go for a dedicated one.

Combined Embroidery Machine

These types of sewing machines are generally used at home because they serve dual purposes.

Such a kind of Embroidery machine can be used for regular sewing as well Embroidery as well.

They are meant to do light Embroidery work at home, not for heavy use. They have all those necessary basic features needed in our daily life.

The advantage of such types of Embroidery Machines is, you don’t need a separate sewing machine to do the regular stitching chores.

Also see: 9 Best Stick Vacuum Cleaners

If you will buy Embroidery & Sewing Machine separately, it will cost you a hefty amount of money but if you have a combined Embroidery & Sewing machine, it will save you lots of money.

Not just the money, storing two dedicated machines at home will require more space too.

It can be a  problem for those who don’t live in a big house and do have not enough place for the items to store.

Computerized with a fixed number of Built-in Embroidery Designs.

Such types of Embroidery Machines have built-in Embroidery designs and you can use any of them with the press of a button.

It adds the limitation to your creativity with Embroidery designs as you can use only those your Embroidery Machines come with.

So if you think you will not be needing any more designs, go for such types of Machines.

However, if you think, you need more flexibility, go for ones that can be fed with more designs either via the internet or the USB cable.

Computerized Machine with the ability to connect to computer and download designs from the Internet

Such type of Embroidery Machines gives you more flexibility in your creativity as such they can be connected to the computer and with the of the internet, you can download designs.

The Brother company is an expert in making such types of Embroidery machines with a dedicated website for Embroidery designs iBroidery where the users can download different designs from.

There are thousands of designs to choose from on this website.

Computerized Machine with the ability to have transferred Embroidery Designs through USB

This type of Embroidery Machine lets you connect the machine to Computers or other devices with a USB cable and have Embroidery Designs transferred to it.

So you can download Designs, on your computer, connect the Embroidery machine and transfer the design to Machine’s storage.

You need to make sure all the designs that you transfer have.PES or.DOT file format.

Consider these Important Factors before making a Purchase:

We love to guide the users of our website and try to give them as much information as possible about the products which we review.

Based on our research and analysis, we came across some general points which influence the purchase decision of the people.

Here is the important point which you should consider while purchasing the Best Embroidery Machine for yourself.

Ease of use

The first and foremost important thing, not only with Embroidery Machine for every other product is that the product should be easy to use.

It must be very user-friendly. We have some really good Embroidery machines which are pretty much user-friendly with many automatic features.

Built-in Stitches

Those who want a combined Embroidery and Sewing Machine must need to know the number of built-in stitches that this particular machine comes with.

More is the number of Built-in stitches,  more is the flexibility.

Apart from using it for decorating your project with Embroidery Designs, you can use built-in stitches for fashion sewing as well.

The Machines come with as low as 10 built-in stitches to 600 built-in stitches

LCD Screen

Look for the Embroidery Machine which has an LCD screen display on the front side so that you could see the screen and know which design pattern you have currently selected.

It is very convenient and without a fairly bigger LCD Screen, it becomes inconvenient to know the selected design.

Built-in Embroidery Designs

Since our main purpose is Embroidery, hence, it makes sense to check how many built-in Embroidery designs the machine has.

The larger is the built-in embroidery design, the better it will.

However, such types of sewing machines that have built-in Embroidery designs put limitations on your creativity and you can only use the Embroidery designs it comes with.

If you want an embroidery machine with built-in designs, look for one which has enough of them as per your need.

Embroidery Area

The larger the embroidery area, the more it will be convenient to make Embroidery designs on your crafting project.

However, while it can be a concern for one person, the other might not be worried about the same.

Hence, you need to check if you need an embroidery machine with a large hoop or the smaller one will do as well.

Buying an embroidery machine with a large hoop adds more flexibility as you can cover a bigger area, which is a plus.

However, if you buy with a smaller hoop, it will add limitations and you wouldn’t be to use it for a large project.

Though, for a bigger embroidery area size machine, you may have to spend a few extra bucks.

Computer Connectivity

If you see, in the future you might need to add more designs, look for the Embroidery Machine which has computer connectivity.

Such types of machines could be connected to the computer and have new designs stored on them.

So you can always have new embroidery designs.

Just download the designs from the internet on your computer, connect the embroidery machine to the computer using a USB 2.0 cable, and transfer the designs to the machine.

Automatic Features

The more the number of Automatic Features, the better it would be.

First, you will not have to do all those tasks manually which the Embroidery Machines can do on their own, such as Automatic needle threading, Automatic Thread Cutting, etc.

Such kind features are good for newcomers who just started with Embroidery stuff.

Price

Lastly the Price! you need to understand how much you are willing to spend on your Embroidery Machine.

It is because we have several different models of Embroidery machines with different specifications and features and they are price differences as well.

Those with a large number of features must be priced costlier than those with less no. of features.

The best way is to make a list of features (minimum) you need in your Embroidery Machine and compare the list with our suggested ones. We have included all types of Embroidery Machines.

Best Embroidery Machines: Our Reviews

In this section, we’ve reviewed all the above Embroidery Machines in detail.

Let’s take a look so that you know the main features, our views, Pros & Cons.

Brother PE770 Embroidery Machine – Our Choice

If the budget is not a constraint, I’d straightaway recommend Brother PE770 Embroidery Machine.

Look nowhere else and get this gem because there is no better option available than this Embroidery Machine.

The company brother is the leader when it comes to making an embroidery machine and this particular model is the best.

This is an Embroidery-only Machine, so while it can be an advantage for some people, for others it could be very disappointing.

Especially those who are looking to purchase a combined Embroidery Machine.

This Machine comes with a number of interesting features which makes it one of the best choices available in the market.

The design of the Brother PE770 sewing machine is awesome and it looks pretty sophisticated.

With a larger 5 x7 inches hoop, this embroidery machine can easily be used for decorating your project such as a jacket, home decor, or bags with Embroidery designs.

It is a computerized machine and has a USB 2.0 port which can be put for importing designs from the Pen drive to the Embroidery machine.

Not just that, it also comes with an embroidery card slot where you can insert Brother Embroidery Card and make designs (PS: You will have to purchase a Brother Embroidery card separately)

More Features at a Glance:

PROS:

CONS:

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Brother SE400 Combination Computerized Sewing and Embroidery Machine – Best Combined Machine (our choice)

For those who are looking for the best embroidery machine which can be used for regular sewing & quilting as well, Brother SE400 is an ideal choice.

With a beautiful design and features, this combined sewing machine is an all-in-one machine for home purposes.

Since it is not a dedicated Embroidery machine, it may not be a good choice who anticipates heavy use per day.

Brother SE400 comes with a number of beautiful features such as a 4 x 4 embroidery area which is good for the home purpose, 67 built-in stitches for fashion sewing needs, and 70 built-in Embroidery designs as well.

It is a versatile machine and an ideal choice for your Embroidery, Sewing, and Quilting need.

It is pretty easy to operate and the instructions videos explain everything in great detail too.

It is a mid-price range combined with Sewing & Embroidery Machine which comes with computer connectivity.

It keeps your machine updated to the latest features and also lets you import designs that you have downloaded from the internet on your computer.

More Features at a Glance:

PROS:

CONS:

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SINGER Futura XL400 Portable Sewing and125 Embroidery Design Machine – Best SINGER brand Model

For those people who are brand loyal and want to buy SINGER Embroidery Machine, we’d like to recommend SINGER Futura XL 400 combined Machine which is good for regular sewing as well as for Embroidery purposes as well.

It is a lightweight, portable yet powerful machine that you wouldn’t regret buying.

It comes with so many interesting features that other comparable Embroidery Machines aren’t having.

This gem is yet another great choice for those who are looking for combined sewing and embroidery machine.

If we talk about the feature especially for Embroidery purposes, it has 125 built-in embroidery designs and since it supports USB 2.0, you add just connect the machine to the computer and import your favorite design.

The Machine also comes with a large hoop that lets you decorate large items such as curtains, home decor, bedspreads, etc with ease.

It has a 10 x 6-inch embroidery area and with multi-hoop features, you can cover a 12 x 20 inches area which is much bigger than other embroidery machines.

The price of this embroidery machine is pretty much better and it is in everyone’s pocket.

The best part of the SINGER Futura XL400 embroidery machine is that it supports a huge number of design formats.

So you need not specifically look for a particular design format to import on this embroidery machine.

More Features at a Glance:

PROS:

CONS:

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Brother PE535 Embroidery Machine, White

The other option available for those who are looking for a dedicated Embroidery Machine is Brother PE535 Embroidery Machine.

It comes with a huge number of Embroidery features which makes it a perfect choice who wants to buy a Machine exclusively for Embroidery purposes.

It is a good choice for businesses as well since it can be a house for long hours without any problem.

So if you are into the embroidery business or have a boutique where you decorate blouses, bags, and home decor items with Embroidery designs, Brother PE535 is a good choice.

The best part is, it is not as expensive as other models made for only embroidery purposes.

Though the embroidery area is a bit smaller than the other models we have discussed above.

It comes with a 4×4 embroidery area which is enough for most people (not for all).

It comes with 80 built-in Embroidery designs and the ability to import more with the help of computer connectivity.

Brother PE535 has a 2.0 USB port built-in and with a memory stick, you can import the design on the machine.

The front of the Embroidery Machine has a colored LCD screen that lets you view your design before you go ahead and make a design with embroidery.

Among the other features, it has an Automatic Needle Threader and 9 lettering fonts.

More Features at a Glance:

PROS:

CONS:

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Singer Futura XL-580 Embroidery and Sewing Machine

If you are looking for more features and more functionality than the SINGER Futura XL400, we have an upgraded model of the same.

SINGER Futura XL-580 is the upgraded model which comes with additional features such as more built-in stitches and embroidery designs.

Among the huge list of features, this combined embroidery and sewing machine comes with massive 250 built-in embroidery designs and 200 built-in stitches, and with the help of included USB cable, you can import as much as you want.

This combined machine has an endless hoop that lets you decorate almost every size of cloth.

The work area is so brightly illuminated with multiple LED lights.

The other features include Automatic Needle Threader, Automatic Thread Cutter, and drop-and-sew bobbin system which takes this embroidery machine the best choice for everyone.

SINGER Futura XL-580 supports almost all types of Embroidery design file extensions so you don’t have to worry about finding a particular format to transfer to the machine.

Just connect the machine to your computer via a USB cable and transfer all the files you have downloaded from the internet.

More Features at a Glance:

PROS:

CONS:

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