Yes, the easiest thing to do is to keep them all the same brand AND that's going to look the best too. Each company's appliance otherwise is going to have different handles and different styling and I just would not recommend it. Another approach is to have your cooktop and ovens match and have your fridge with a panel that matches your cabinets (this style of fridge is called 'panel ready'). You can do this with your dishwasher too.

Cynthia makes some excellent points above. The only thing I would add is for you to consider the reasons why you chose the appliances you have. If there are certain performance features or a particular look you like, that is important because when it is all said and done you will be the one using them every day and I would rather see someone with what they really want. There will definitely be some styling differences, but if you can go all stainless than I think it could be fine (though I would compare pictures of them to make sure). If the appliances are not directly next to one another or all in the same sight lines (i.e. if you are looking at one and can't see the others) it may matter even less that they are all the same. Good luck!!!

These are all great points. Thank you. Given that the Ovens will likely be right next to the range and the same sight lines, it probably makes sense to go with the Monogram ovens.

It will not look either tacky or haphazard to have different brands of stainless steel appliances. It will, however, look just a bit sleeker for the handles and styles to match. So if you are choosing appliances for specific features that one brand has and another doesn't, I think that functional features are the most important consideration (this is about cooking, after all). But if it isn't about specific features and the cost is roughly comparable, I think that it is nice to have handles and styles that look coordinated.
(We used a Wolf range, a GE Monogram cabinet depth fridge, a panelled dishwasher, and a Braun range hood, all stainless except the dishwasher, and they go together beautifully.)

That's the thing - I see so many high end kitchen places that mix and match appliances and it always looks great.

ends1, if it looks great to you in the showroom, it could be because the designer carefully selected pieces that had good commonality of style even if they don't match. But this takes skill and diligence! And it's entirely possible that they were selected mismatched on purpose to show how they fit into the company's cabinets, and were not meant to be something that they recommend doing in your own kitchen. You're going to be living with your appliances a long time and building them into custom cabinetry, so it's important to co-ordinate your appliances as best you can. If you weren't a little hesitant about mixing and matching, I would guess that you wouldn't have asked for our opinions. Mine is still to match as much as possible :)

I often mix brands and go with function first when there is any question. The question of what made you select different brands is important. Cost driven decisions often make the selection process very frustrating but are often necessary. I will say though that when clients don't get what they want up front, they regret it... so do it once and do it with what you love and will make your kitchen experience the best it can be. You'll use it every day!!!!
I mix Miele refrigerators with panels with Wolf, Viking or Thermadore ranges and range tops all the time, while specifying Thermadore Pro double ovens and warming drawers, misc. microwaves and U-Line beverage centers, and many different integrated dishwashers.... By integrating some so that the appliance becomes a mystery, helps with this matching stainless and handle issue.
Appliance loves: Wolf, Thermadore (love the look of the Pro double oven) and Viking Ranges and Ovens.... U-line beverage centers, Miele refrigeration for best of the best, or SubZero of course...., Thermador and Meile dishwashers and others, Microwave drawers (all my clients love them) even though I fought using them for years....

Good-luck and enjoy the process!

OH!!!! Very important: Make sure you know HOW TO CLEAN your appliances. Each manufacturer has specific instructions and will only warranty them if they are followed. The interior of some makes of ovens are very specific about how to clean them and can be ruined if not followed!

Have to say that I love the Thermador ovens

Ends1 is doing, per their description, a (semi) high end kitchen. Cohesive appliance design is important in achieving a semi to high end look. Anything with a panel becomes your cabinetry and can be removed from the appliance equation. Appliance brands certainly can be mixed. And as Cynthia noted, having common design elements makes cross brands more successful. The fact that their all stainless is a weak thread. But use what will perform the best and will give you the most joy using everyday. With luck, they will all share a style of handle or detail. Styling would be a wise tie-breaker between two appliances that are otherwise equal to you.

Thanks everyone!!

I just want to add.......
Using different appliances can also make the space interesting and no so cookie cutter.
Each appliance being chosen because it is the best is a conversation and a selling point. remember, all the stainless will bring your color scheme together.

The only reason why I wouldn't match brands it's if I was looking for performance and/or extra features. With that said, it is impossible to match handles or even stainless steel finishes (NOT ALL STAINLESS STEELS HAVE THE SAME TEXTURE).
For example, my whole kitchen is Bosch, except for the fridge, which I am debating if I should get a Bosch (not so well rated) or going with another brand. If I go with another brand looking for a better performance, I would go for the best fridge my wallet allows and I would forget about handles. If I want to match handles I would go with the Bosch in the first place.
On the other hand, who cares if the brands match when you have a Viking range, a Bosch dishwasher and a Miele fridge, for instance? You have top performance everywhere and they are all beautifully designed appliances. And please stay away from GE Monogram, Whirpool Gold, Frigidaire Gallery, etc. They are neither high performance nor good design.

We are building a "farmhouse" style home. If you look at gorgeous, classy old houses, funky-cool old farmhouses, or any home that looks as if generations have lived and loved and cooked and slept there, it's not all matchy-matchy! Get a black range/stove, a great retro white fridge, brick floors, wood counter-tops. And of course that doesn't even take into account what everyone above has said about what is 'best' in terms of what works the best -- for YOU. Take a look and see: matchy- matchy is nouveau, not REAL, not comfy, and NOT COOL.

These are all good points. In our case, our fridge needs to be replace and it is separate from the other 3 appliances. So we'll get whatever stainless fridge we want based on features, etc. Then the other 3 appliances are grouped together, so we'll replace them together when need be. If, at the time, we can go with the same brand we will, but I will not sweat it. Currently our appliances are all the same brand, but the oven is a different sub-brand from the others. The handle looks a bit different. I don't notice and neither has anyone else.

Every house I have lived in has had the same appliances and I enjoy that but that isn't to say that having different appliances is bad at all. Like previous people have mentioned, it does give it a more sleek look by having the same handles and style but I think if you have a vision of having different appliances, then go for it! I think that is unique and unique is always good!

Best of luck with building your home!!!

Is there much difference in the appliances shades of the stainless steel?

I was just shopping at the Best Buy appliance showroom and I did notice that the different companies had a different finish. It was not apparent on the ranges (probably because so much is going on) but I did find it different on the refrigerators especially.

jn3344 thanks concerned since the DW will be a cabinet away from the fridge. I guess my best bet would to go same manufacturer with similar handles or a recessed type or possibly panel one of them? Just thinking which is SS is harder to keep clean fridge or DW I would panel that one lol.

I think people mix appliances all the time. I hear a lot of people buying Bosch dishwashers (for instance) but they don't buy anything else by that name.

I think if you have them side by side somebody will notice. But I think if your dishwasher is on another wall, the way windows are oriented, the way lights are placed, those things will have more of an impact than the finish.

Its just in the showroom, it can be very apparent. But who cares???

May I make a suggestion on the "which appliance to panel" question? Counter-depth refrigerators still stick out a few inches from the rest of the cabinetry (as opposed to fully integrated built ins) and thus never look entirely seamless when paneled. Dishwashers, OTOH, are utterly seamless with the cabinetry when paneled and thus disappear. So I think if you are choosing which appliance to panel, the dishwasher may be the better choice. OTOH, I think refrigerators get more fingerprints because more people of different ages open and close them.

Having gone through this, I think you can absolutely get away with appliances not matching (I'm using a viking refrigerator, thermador double oven, monogra gas cooktop and Miele dishwasher, which I paneled). In doing this, the most important thing was placement. I have an L shaped kitchen. The refrigerator is at one end of the L and the double ovens are on the other end (those two obviously have the most stainless showing). The DW ( which is paneled) is on the side where refrigerator is and the range top is two feet away from the oven. In my opinion it looks seamless. If I had them all lined up in a row, I think I would have a different opinion. Also try and match handles (generally). I have pro handles on fridge and ovens.

You buy appliances for ther function for you and they do not have to be from the same manufacturer, you get what works for how you work . In this pic of my kitchen I have stainless commercial stove, a black fronted DW and a color called gazelle wall ovens and 3 fridges that you can't see too well The fridges are from Sweden and are counter depth and come in different components(this worked for me)

Well said.

Thanks for the info I think I might just panel the DW and leave the SS fridge so as to have seamless cabinet look Is this done a lot? I also have a wine cooler in the island so that should be ok since it’s not breaking up the flow?

Yes, that is done a lot (full disclosure: that's what we did. ;-)

Well, I just decided to update and got an all matching group.....I am happy.

I HAVE A STAINLESS STOVE WITH SOME BLACK IN IT HOW WOULD IT LOOK TO DO A BLACK BUITIN DISHWASHER BESIDE IT SAME NAME BRAND-I NOW HAVE STAINLESS AND THE DISHWASHER SMUDGES ALL THE TIME.

I just got a new dishwasher and it is smudgefree. I replaced my old white ones with fridgeaire gallery. Get some of the new chalkboard stick on paper and try it out as a black dishwasher.

We are building a new house and have a similar situation as decorating263 above. We are considering a black LG refrigerator that would be 2 cabinets (about 4 ft.) from an LG Range that is mostly stainless, with some black, including on top. There is also an island in front of the Range such that, from most locations in the kitchen, you would not see both at once. The dishwasher, a black bosch, will be around the corner from the range, also behind the same island.

I guess obvious answer is a black range. So far, we haven't found one we like. Another minor consideration is that the builder is providing an above range microwave that will be a stainless GE, that also has some black features. We are getting the microwave either way, but, as a less expensive item, we could always replace that with a black one that matches the range after delivery.

Our first preference is to go with what I described in the first paragraph. Is this horrible?

We are moving into a home that has Whirlpool Gold appliances. We are responsible for purchasing a refrigerator. If we opt to purchase a regular Whirlpool (NOT Gold) fridge, will it still match? Anyone with experience with this?

I have three different brands, and they look fine. The stainless all looks the same. The dishwasher and range are on the same side and the dishwasher has a recessed handle. The refrigerator is on the opposite wall and has a similar handle to the range. Drastically different appliances would look odd, but really, all from the same line just doesn't make sense for most of us.

I totally disagree with the concept of buying all your appliances from the same company. No company makes the best of everything, and there is absolutely no problem having stainless appliances from different companies.

In my house, you'll see Samsung washer & dryer, an LG fridge, and Whirlpool stove and microwave. I have had no problems so far in 12 years with ANY appliance.

A kitchen is for cooking high end or not. There are superior appliances in every line better ranges in one, better dishwashers in another and so on

Almost all high end appliances offer a choice of handles and you can buy after market handles to be fitted

If you like every thing matching then I guess go that route but its certainly not a hard and fast rule

NO. N. O. Unh-uh. All Stainless does not match. Because some companies have dips working for them. Just learned the hard way. We just bought a $4k oven that sits next to the $2.5k fridge. Whirlpool and KitchenAid. The new KitchenAid oven is what I think of as true Stainless. But the Whirlpool is obviously in a COLOR that they refer to as Stainless. Mismatch! Shiznit!

We are building a modern farmhouse and my cabinets are wood but kind of a grey/light tan cafe latte color with black quartz countertops. I opted for stainless from the same brand and line except the fridge. I chose them becuase I want he french door oven and Advantium from GE Cafe line so I got their cooktop & dishwasher also. But new black stainless Kitchenaid 5 door fridge with the platinum interior has won me over!! I think matchy matchy is out unless your space is more formal.

Listen folks - none of us make the rules. Stainless steel appliances have got to be from the same manufacturer. Period. If they don't match OR go together, it mattters. First thing the realtor will tell you when it comes time to sell is get new appliances that match (or at least go), so you may as well go ahead and get them for yourself to enjoy. Stainless has many shades and veneers unfortunately. I've mixed and match white and black stainless before and had great success but stainless steel is different because of how it's made. I just bought all new Kenmore stainless. I picked the fridge first (most expensive, most used) and LOVED the fridge and so my decision was made - all Kenmore it is. Even the Kenmore Elite is a different shade in stainless steel. It sucks but they need to match. Yes high end appliances are different and can mix and match a little better, especially if you have a designer working with you, but way out of my budget that's for sure.

Stainless finish to match SubZero?

I'm replacing my dead KitchenAid built in refrigerator. planning on biting the bullet for a SubZero 42" Side by Side in stainless. My concern is that I have 27" double ovens right beside the fridge, fifteen year old KitchenAid. I figure they aren't long for this world so I'm considering which ovens I'll be replacing them with. Trying to find which brand has a stainless finish closest to Sub Zero.(Wolf offers no 27" ovens) There are a few 27" options. My choices are; Dacor, with flush handles so not to conflict with the Sub Zero tubular handle. The Viking Pro, very spendy! Or the Thermador with Masterpiece handle which doesn't look great with fridge handle. Does anyone have experience pairing Sub Zero with these brands?

Does anyone think this wont work, I am not good in the decorating dept.

I am having a house built and using builders grade appliances except for fridge and washer and dryer. The stove, dishwasher and microwave will be stainless, the fridge I am buying is black and the washer and dryer will be white and hidden. I am so tired trying to keep fridge front pristine. I think there is enough black in the stainless appliances to look good with the black fridge., even though it will be a different brand.

Just got a beautiful slide in black & stainless range/ oven that goes well with my Black and Tan marble looking counter tops. However my current over the range microwave is 11 years old and is off white which blends in with the off white cabinets. When I replace the microwave should I match it to the range where it would "pop"or the cabinets where it will recede?

@dirowell recede.

Placement Advice for TV in Kitchen

We are redoing our kitchen using Kraftmaid Montclair Cabinets in the Canvas color. Currently, our 22" tv in the kitchen is between two windows, anchored by a free standing wall cabinet.

As we are increasing the size of our kitchen island, we will no longer be able to keep this cabinet here. We are increasing the tv to 32 inches but I am hesitant to keep it on this wall as it is a focal wall in the kitchen. The only other place to put it would be a corner wall by the table.

I really need advice on this one. Where do you think it should go? Should it stay on the wall between the two windows, an ideas on how to decorate around it. I am really envisioning this wall with some beautiful artwork.

I have attached pictures.

We just remodeled last year and I mismatched my appliances. I wanted white appliances (I have 5 kids and stainless is a nightmare of finger prints!) but no one has a white stove in anything better than a $300 electric top, I wanted induction. So I mixed a stainless induction slide in range with Kitchenaid white dishwashers with stainless handles. I worked as the stove was against my white backsplash.
Then after 3 KA fridges quit within a week, I ended up with a completely unmatched white Samsung fridge.:(. I am still not happy with that, but the realtors that appraised our house to put on the market thought it would not be an issue for resale.

I guess it depends.

We are building and I went with the best appliances we could afford for each piece. For instance, I LOVE my Bosch dishwasher so I got that. I love KitchenAid ovens, so we got that too. A few weeks ago, we visited some acquaintances who own several homes. The one we saw was close to $4 million dollars (and not in a market that supports that type of price so it was like a castle!). They had four different lines of appliances. I never would have noticed it if it wasn't pointed out to me.

We are redoing our kitchen, I want to get the Wolf 36 inch stove top range, and I love the Viking French door double oven. I also have back problems so it would be easier for me to use. My worry is if I am spending that amount of money I want it to be done right and I am concerned about them not matching, which my dishwasher is a bosch and my fridge is LG, but on a different wall with the island blocking the view. The stove top range is on one end of the kitchen and the double oven on the wall left of it, Should I get the matching Viking range top or the matching Wolf double oven, or go with the two that I like the best, wolf stovetop range and Viking French door double oven?

Jesus God. No. Go with appliances that suit your needs. For instance. I went with a Thermador Range, 2 Bosch dishwashers, 2 Miele speed ovens, 1 Miele Steam oven, 2 Gaggenau convection ovens, 2 Miele CVA coffee systems 1 with pods and one for fresh beans, Dacor wine server and a Sub-zero ice machine. My husband and I picked out every single one of them based off of the features and individual qualities. We entertain a lot and needed professional appliances that suit our needs. We have recently listed our house for sale and had an agent open house. One of the realtors asked why we had mismatched appliances. My agent replied that we obviously took a lot of time and effort hand selecting those kitchen appliances and if they can't see that then maybe they had no business showing this house because they'd be horrid at selling it. Look at it this way. Samsung makes great tv's, phones and washer and dryers. They make horrid dishwashers and fridges. It's all about preference. They don't need to match brands, just finishes.

Thank you so much, that's what I was thinking but just needed to hear it.

I Just purchased all new kitchen appliances. I did a lot of research. After cooking and cleaning kitchens for so many yrs, I decided the gas viking stove I wanted so badly, wasn't going to work now since I would rather clean less. I went with a induction cooktop, all GE Cafe. Double ovens and the top one is the french door, advantium microwave, best dishwasher, warming drawer. I didn't like the GE built in refrigerators at all. So I went with 2 KitchenAid single door refrigerators with bottom freezers. Yes, the handles have a textured design but the handles on the GE Cafe's are the same size and style, only no texture. I'm putting them on the left and right side of one kitchen wall and putting the cabinets in the middle. The microwave is going in my island. I got the "everything has to be the same" when I went into our high end appliance store. But I decided to go with what I liked and thought would work well for me. My kitchen is large and not all appliances will be too close together. But I would still get what I wanted. And some would say I have OCD when it comes to decorating. I dare some realtor tell me my kitchen looks bad after all the money and time I spent decorating & furnishing it.