Best Popcorn Machine Reviews Of 2024

Whether you’re at home enjoying an exciting Netflix new release, or you’re hosting a fundraiser for your local community center, a quality popcorn machine maker will save you money and provide you years of great tasting popcorn just the way you like it!

In your search for the best popcorn machine, you’ll come across several styles. Many of the top brands share similar features so it can be hard to distinguish the best from the not-so-great. For our best popcorn machine review, we examined the pros and cons of hundreds of different brands and makes and we narrowed it down to ten.

Read the overview below and get the official Fire Food Chef rankings and pricing for each of our top picks. Pros and cons are listed below in the full review.

Best Popcorn Machine Overview

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Assembly/Set Up

The Paramount 8oz Popcorn Maker Machine comes fully assembled in your choice of either bright red or black. There is, however, a detachable acrylic door. No tools are required for its removal or to reattach it. The rotational hot-oil kettle is also detachable from the low-noise, built-in motor.

A simple on/off switch activates the popcorn machine once its plugged in. Any standard grounded outlet 110v will do.

Compared to a commercial popcorn machine, the Paramount 8oz Popcorn Maker Machine is much smaller, but it’s still fairly large for a household kitchen appliance. At almost 22” inches in height, you’ll also need some clearance above it.

Due to its increased 8oz capacity, you may need to clear some space on your countertop. Is it heavy? You’ll be relieved to know it weighs about 12 pounds, relatively light if you’re just relocating it from the kitchen to your home theater or den, for example.

Construction Quality
For the most part, the Paramount 8oz Popcorn Maker Machine is quite sturdy. The machine body and clear walls are made primarily of acrylic plastic [3]. All the walls are clear, and housed within the unit is the hot-oil kettle, made of a durable, heat resistant metal exterior with a non-stick ceramic coated interior. Thick silicon rubber handles allow you to tilt, rotate, or remove the kettle as needed [4].

With normal wear and tear, occasional use, and regular maintenance, the built-in motor and electric stirring system should perform to standard for several uses. The manufacturer does offer a limited lifetime warranty.

Kettle Capacity
Eight Ounce Maximum Capacity
Also suitable for use with 2.5oz, 4oz, 6oz Popcorn Packets Per Batch

Performance
A simple on/off switch powers the popcorn machine on or off. There are no Wifi or digital features to mess with, just a very straightforward, classic hot-oil kettle design. To operate, you simply lift the kettle lid, enter your ingredients into the kettle, and wait for the built in stirring motor and heat to stimulate the transformation from kernels to popcorn!

Despite its increased capacity, the Paramount’s built-in stirring motor operates with low-noise. You can turn it on and still enjoy a movie in your home theater without having to crank the decibels up.

Many users have noted that there can be a number of kernels that remain behind after every batch. The larger the batch, the more kernels seem to be left behind. This, however, is standard even with the best commercial grade popcorn machines.

You can typically expect anywhere from 2% to 8% kernel remains per batch, depending on the type and quantity of ingredients used. Paramount explicitly warns that...“This product is not a "commercial" machine and is not designed for "high volume" applications.” According to our research, however making several back-to-back batches with the Paramount 8oz Popcorn Maker Machine is actually do-able.

One user happily reported that they were able to make 300 - 400 bags of popcorn with the Paramount 8oz over the course of about 3 hours!

Of course, if you decide to use the machine for a fundraising event, for example, and it malfunctions, the limited lifetime warranty will be null and void.

Cleaning And Maintenance
Perhaps the only drawback to the Paramount 8oz Machine is the clean up and maintenance required. Granted, cleaning a popcorn machine does require some work, but the effort is worth it, and Paramount has done a pretty good job of making it less painful.

The clear acrylic walls sides are easy to wipe down once the machine has cooled. The door and the hot-oil kettle are dishwasher safe. A vacuum or brush is the best way to remove dirt from the interior, which is important to keep your popcorn from contamination by bacteria [5].

How To Pick The Right Popcorn Machine For You

There are 2 key factors to consider when comparing different brands of the best popcorn maker machine. Determining how often you’ll be using the machine and how many you expect to serve is a good place to start your search.

1. Kettle Capacity: Measured in ounces, the larger the capacity, the more popcorn you can serve. 
2. Machine Size: Popcorn machines are available as countertop models, cart models, and commercial-size. For personal use at home, a quality countertop popcorn machine is ideal. Small events such as a community fundraiser can be served by a popcorn machine cart equipped with wheels for easy transport. Finally, if you plan to open a revue theater of your own, commercial-size machines are designed for high-demand and efficiency.

In our Paramount 8oz Popcorn Maker Machine review, we also chose to consider additional factors such as cleaning, maintenance, and performance. Style and pricing may also be factors you want to consider besides performance.

Serving Frequency And Size
If you consume popcorn at home monthly or even weekly, a countertop machine with anywhere from 2 - 6 oz capacity should serve your needs adequately.

For more frequent use, look for 8 oz or higher. Small restaurants and catering services would best serve their customers with a kettle capacity of 12 or higher.

When using a popcorn maker machine, smaller batches at a time will yield the best results. Even with a large, commercial 30 oz machine, you’ll leave fewer ‘old maids’ behind by not filling the kettle to capacity with each batch. 

Watch and learn how easy it is to make popcorn with a popcorn maker machine!

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