My husband and I cook a lot. COVID made almost no difference in our eating out. We both cherish our excellent appliances. So yes, I do think it's worth it. After 20 years of military moves and getting to try out all sorts of kitchens and appliances, we knew exactly what we wanted and didn't want.

**But, we made no attempt to "match" appliances by brand. They are matched by finish, and that's where you'll get the best bang for the buck.**

Otherwise, we chose the best appliance for the job where it mattered.

- So, the SZ fridge? Worth it. Getting identical for our new build. Produce lasts noticeably longer in this fridge than the standard brand one in our utility room when we've had to overflow.

- The Wolf range? Worth it. Although we're upgrading to a Blue Star for the wokking in the new build, we've been able to cook things that would never work on any regular cooktop, such as paella. Getting that perfect crust and perfect rice - no problem.

- The Wolf vent hood? No. We're still getting one (required for high power cooking) but less-expensive brand with the necessary CFM for the BS. The joist construction of the home is the limiting factor in this decision though.

- The KA combo wall oven (micro/speed cook upper with true convection lower) - great buy and going strong at 15 years, but KA has suffered issues the past few years (enamel chipping like Wolf's issue, uneven temperature control) so we splurged on a Thermador for the new build which had the high temp (550F) requirement for pizza, as many only go to 450F. Saved money getting the BS rangetop instead of full range because we rarely use the range portion of our Wolf now that we don't eat meat.

- Bosch DW - yes. We got the cheapest model because we simply don't use it very often and performance of a DW is not a priority as long as it works. Quiet was the only factor because we have an open floor plan.

Hope this helps!

What sort of cookware do you have? What type of cooking do you do? What size range? How do you use your oven/broiler? Will you have a wall oven?

Let me put it this way...many years ago (1990) we renovated the small kitchen in our first home- on a very tight budget. Everything we did was pretty basic, as far as counters (laminate), range (basic slide in), and floors (vInyl). The one thing I insisted on...and it was a huge splurge, was a SubZero fridge. That fridge was a savior.

During Hurricane Sandy, our neighborhood was without power for 2 weeks. Everyone around us had to throw out the contents of their fridges by the second day. Our SZ was still cold at 8 days w/o power. Even the ice was still firm. Fast forward to 2015, when we sold that house...the 25 year old SZ was still going strong.

It was a no brainer to get another SZ, when we gut renovated the kitchen in our new home. It is the best insulated fridge on the market, with the best costumer service. It’s well lit, and we like the layout. And, it will last! In my opinion, and many others on this forum, SZ is well worth the $$$.

As for going all Wolf for appliances...there are many other high end companies to consider. No company excels in all areas. Wolf has had continuing issues with the chipping of the blue enamel, which coats the inside of their ovens. For that reason, we chose Miele double ovens, which are superb.

Tell your husband, there is no reason for the appliances to match. Nobody walking into your kitchen is going to notice if the handles differ, or the stainless steel is not exactly the same. The rule of thumb is to get the best performing appliances you can afford.

We have Miele double ovens (one is a combi steam), a Thermador rangetop, Vent A Hood for ventilation, SubZero 42” fridge (paneled, not stainless), and a Bosch 800 dishwasher, also paneled.

To avoid differences in stainless finishes, consider paneling the fridge and dishwasher...this way, those two appliances will blend in with the cabinetry.

Click to enlarge for dishwasher

I've renovated a few kitchens and have never been able to get on board with the upsized cost of these appliances.

My mother got a viking range on her last renovation. She cooks a lot and hates that range with every fiber of her being. The ovens have wildly inconsistent temperatures, and she has all kinds of practical complaints with the gas stovetop. She's had people come out to look, there's nothing wrong with it - it's just not very precise. She's also had flecks of tinfoil stick to the blue insides and literally can never be removed without damaging the finish. She thinks that range was the stupidist thing she's ever dropped money on.

In her vacation home, she has a slide-in Frigidaire cheap-o range and loves it. It's 20 years old and we "gifted" her a new bosch induction range for xmas a few years ago (as in, she opened a pic of it on xmas morning and we told her we'd buy it when she was ready to switch to induction). But four years later she still hasn't taken the plunge because she's terrified that she'll never have an oven that works as well and consistently as the cheap one she has.

There are tons of objective reviews online where repair people and home owners in the last 20 years have had pretty consistent complaints about these models. Lots of people love them too. But the complaints are enough that i couldn't ignore them.

If they were just a luxury upcharge (like 20 or 30%) - sure, maybe. But priced at 3, 4 and 5 times the price of the next step down appliances...? That's nuts.

I mostly see these names in homes where people are worried about image; less so where people are worried about cooking (though there will be plenty of people on this forum who bought them for legitimate reasons related to cooking).

Just my two cents!

@H202, had your mother come here before doing her reno, she would’ve known not to get any Viking appliance. They haven’t made a quality appliance in at least 15 years. So, lumping all “high end” appliances with Viking isn’t fair. No appliance manufacturer excels in all areas. Viking no longer excels in any.

I’ve never had an oven that heats up as quickly, and maintains its temperature, as well as the Miele pair I have now. The Thermador rangetop has been a fantastic. Already gave my SubZero story above, Bosch dishwasher cleans perfectly, and is very quiet.

My appliances are now over 5 years old. Not once have they malfunctioned, and needed repairs. However, I read here all the time, of Samsung, LG, GE, and Whirlpool complaints...and repair calls needed, not long after installation. While every manufacturer can throw out a lemon, now and then...with “high end” appliances that’s more the exception, not the norm.

We did a complete kitchen remodel in our previous house and went with relatively expensive appliances - Wolf gas cooktop, Dacor double ovens, Miele dishwasher and a KA built in 42” fridge. I just couldn’t bring myself to pay $3K more for an SZ fridge. The ovens and cooktop were great, DW was overrated. I bought a second home with an SZ fridge and I see why they’re more expensive. The build quality is much better and it seems to fit more in it than you’d think possible. I have a good friend who’s a retired CMKBD and she swears by SZ refrigerators, saying things stay fresh much longer. I have to say I do really like it and if it dies I will probably buy another one.

All that said, after I moved out of the house with the remodeled kitchen, I bought a place where I replaced all the appliances with moderately priced units. Bosch DW, LG fridge, Electrolux induction range. They all perform beautifully and IMO induction is far superior to even the Wolf gas cooktop.

You can get all caught up in having the best and/or most prestigious brands. Sometimes they look nicer, sometimes they perform better but IMO there are lots of great choices that are less expensive.

I second Darbuka's comment about the SZ's in a power outage. My husband was originally reluctant to spend five figures on a refrigerator. He was convinced when we had a power outage and the ice didn't even melt after days without power. They are built like tanks.

I have fortunately had very good luck with Viking appliances, I've had the microwave, double oven, and cooktop for nearly 7 years without any issues.

I love my Bosch dishwashers, I have two in my main house, one in my shore house. So much so that we will only install a Bosch in any of our flip properties. Well worth the money.

We cook and bake a fair amount. This was the third kitchen we'd built for ourselves so we've learned and found what works - for us.

Our kitchen is very much function over form but my wife and our design team still made it look pretty good I think. If your kitchen is for cooking rather than just for show then focus on function and let the aesthetics take care of themselves. You DO NOT want to spend the next many years irritated by poor function every time you use your kitchen. For us the appliances we chose were well worth the cost. YMMV.

Our new kitchen (Jun 2020) is a slight modification of our previous kitchen that had worked very well for us for 15 years and that we’d built to be a very functional working kitchen. We do a fair amount of cooking, baking and entertaining. We replaced our 36” Wolf with a Bluestar and went w/ a 24” griddle instead of 12”. We added a CSO.

Our new kitchen includes: 48” Bluestar RNB Range w/ 4 burners and 24” griddle/flat-top, Miele XL CSO (combi-steam), Miele H6780 electric wall oven, GE Advantium Speed Bake / Microwave (240v), 2 Miele warming drawers, 3 countertop induction hobs.

Ventilation: Accurex 1200 CFM range hood exhaust system, Fantech 600 CFM ceiling exhaust vent over oven stack, 2000 CFM variable speed MUA.

Sub-Zero Combi (Frig over 2 freezer drawers), Perlick under-counter beverage frig, Scotsman under counter ice maker, 2 Frigidaire Flexi-Freezers in garage (each can be either all frig or all freezer). 2 Miele DW’s.