Top Heat Press Machine For Beginners & Small Business Reviews

Have you always been an artistic person?

Are you on the look for a way to make your clothes pop?

In this informative article, we will present the 5 most popular heat press models that are perfect for beginners and small businesses. We will go over some basic characteristics and touch on the dos and don’ts of purchasing a heat press machine.

How To Choose The Best Heat Press For Beginners

What’s Your Budget?

The first thing you need to think about is how much money can you spend. Be mindful of things like transfer papers and heat resistant tape that you will need to continuously spend money on. Calculate how often you might use the heat press. If you’ll be using it a lot, but can only spend less than $200, consider waiting until you’ve saved up some more money and buy a more quality machine. If you only need it occasionally, you can go with a cheaper model.

What Are Your Needs?

The next question you need to ask yourself what you’ll be using the press for. Do you want to start a custom mug business? Print baby onesies? Maybe decorate your child’s baseball team’s hats. There are countless options, and a heat press for each of them. In this step, you should consider the size of the platen and any additional attachments you might look for in a heat press for beginners.

What Is Important To You?

In this step, you need to prioritize. It’s not likely you will find the appliance of your dreams. Think about things like American-made vs generic. A US-made heat press will most likely be sturdier and better-made, while a generic one might be of worse quality, but you’ll find parts for it easier and it will surely be cheaper.

Where To Look For A Heat Press?

As these are not the most well-known appliances, you likely won’t have much time finding a heat press in your local stores. Your best bet is online stores like Amazon, Alibaba, and manufacturer sites. Or you can keep reading this one and other similar articles in which we’ll provide a link to all the mentioned best for beginner’s heat press machines.

Expected Price Range

As I’ve said before, the final price you’ll pay depends almost entirely on your needs and preferences. You can get a brand new heat press for less than $100, but there are also models that cost well over $1000. In this article, we will focus on heat presses under $200, as they are intended for beginners.

5 Best Heat Press Machines For Beginners

Best Tshirt Press For Beginners

Fancierstudio Power Heat Press

Keep Up With The Heat
The Fancierstudio power heat press weighs 50 pounds and has a printing area of 15×15”. It can work on temperatures all the way up to 700° Fahrenheit! That is a good 300 degrees more than most heat presses in this class. Paired with its 1800 Watt power output it becomes pretty clear this heat press machine for beginners can keep up with the professionals.

A Regular Clamshell
This Fancierstudio heat press is made in the clamshell-style, meaning it shouldn’t take too much space, however it does make it somewhat more dangerous to use than a swing-away model. It’s perfect to use on any flat surface and with a grand majority of materials.
Awkward Display
This heat press for beginners has electronic time and heat control. The display of this heat press is placed above the pressing area and might be difficult to see while the press is open. The 6 control buttons are located right under it. The pressure-adjusting knob is situated on top of the machine.

Convenient Conversion Guide
The Fancierstudio power heat press is black with blue details and its silicon rubber base is fully glued on to prevent it from moving around while you work. This heat press machine also has a handy guide to converting Celsius units to Fahrenheit on the front of the machine. This machine with all its features costs less than $200.

F2C Pro 5-In-1 Combo Heat Press

Best 5-in-1 heat press

Adjustable Height
The F2C 5-in-1 heat press is around 15″long, 15” wide and max 17″ high. That means the height is adjustable and it varies from 13.5″ to 17″ inches. The temperature is also adjustable and it goes from 0° Celsius (when it is turned off) to 250°C as the max temperature.

The Combo Features
F2C Pro 5-in-1 heat press comes with a 12×15 platen press, a 6×3” curved hat press, a mug press for 11 oz mugs and 2 plate presses for 5” and 6” diameter plates. This makes it the most versatile beginner press on this list, without impacting its price too much. This press with all the attachments costs less than $200.
Safer And Easier
The F2C pro heat press is a 360 swing-away press, meaning it’s safer and physically less demanding to use than clamshell models. It does require more space to be able to open than clamshell models, so make sure you have enough room for this machine before purchase.

Metal And Plastic Body
This best heat press for beginners has a 4/5” thick heating board which allows pressure to be more evenly distributed. Its printing surface is coated with a non-stick layer and the machine itself is made of metal and plastic.
Temperature And Pressure Controls
You can easily show a temperature in Celsius and Fahrenheit, whatever you want. The heat press comes with tthe display, but it is not that big. The good thing is that it is located on top so you can easily read the value on it. The buttons are also big so you will press the right one every time.

EPhotoInc New Digital 9×12” Swing Away Heat Press

Best Heat Press Machine For Small Business

The Inner Workings
The ePhotoInc 9×12” swing-away heat press weighs just 30 pounds. This tiny heat press boasts a powerful 1200 Watt engine. It has a 0-500 degrees Fahrenheit working temperature range, and the standard 0-999 second timer.

Heat Press Controls
This ePhotoinc heat press for beginners has an end of cycle alarm to warn you when the transfer is over. Time and temperature are displayed on a small, tilted screen on the side of the machine. Under the screen are 4 brightly colored control buttons. The pressure knob is right next to the screen box.
Turquoise Platen That Stands Out
This heat press has an aluminum heat platen that’s Teflon-coated. That makes it safer for clothes and easier to clean and maintain for you. The platen is turquoise and the rest of the press is black with metallic details. This heat press is cheaper than most on this list because it has a smaller heating area.

Swing Away Function Pros
The 9×12″ model in this review is the only ePhotoInc heat press that opens to the side rather than up and that is called a swing-away type. For me personally, that seems like the safer option. The problem with clamshell models is that the hinges can loosen up after some time due to the up-down motion. This could cause the top part of the press to fall and that can be dangerous.

Swing Away Function Cons
The swing-away heat press is made for people how have a lot of space. Since it moves left-right, you have to have free space for the heat press to make its rotation. That is something you need to know before you decide if this model is good for you so make sure you measure the space. The extra room requirement means this heat press might be better suited for small businesses than homes.

Heat Press Machine For Shirts

Cricut EasyPress 2

The Epitome Of Portable
Cricut EasyPress 2 is available in 3 sizes. 12×10” 9×9” and 6×7”, depending on your pressing needs, and weighs under 10 pounds. It works on temperatures up to 400 Fahrenheit. This small heat press is great for saving space. The construction is separated in 2 parts, the base and the heat press.

Innovative System
This heat press works similarly to a clamshell press, only the top platen is completely detachable from the base. Choose the design you want to use, print it on the transfer paper,
put your shirt on the base with the transfer paper on ti and place the heat press on top. The entire process is done in a minute and you have a brand new shirt.

Modern Features For A Modern Press
The Cricut EasyPress has a purposeful screen set on top of the machine. The screen is surrounded by control buttons and the whole thing looks quite modern.  One of the best features of this EasyPress is that it automatically turns off when left unused for 10 minutes. An amazing option for absent-minded or just plain busy individuals.

Show-Stopper
This beginner’s heat press is white and comes with either red or mint coloring under the handle. The safety base is black. This wonderfully modern, show-stopping heat press will cost between $100 and $200 depending on which size best suits your needs.

Industrial Heat Press

PowerPress Industrial-Quality Heat Press

A Powerful Clamshell
This powerfull clamshell heat press made by PowerPress is simple to use so you can use it even if you don’t have experience. The thing you need for it to work properly is 110V plug and a will to learn. It is a clamshell heat press which measn it opens at the top and not on the sides. This solution is better for people who don’t have much space for the swing-away model.

Tefon-coated Heating Plate
Another thing why this is a good heat press for beginners is the Teflon-coated plate. That plate is good for almost every fabric so you don’t have to worry about the material you are using. You can set up a temperature in both Celsius and Fahrenheits so you don’t have to calcuate before setting the heat press.

Heats Up In 15 Minutes
Once you turn the heat press on, you have 15 minutes to set everything up before it reaches wanted temperature. You can see everything on a small LCD display, but you have to stand on the right side of the heat press to see the display when you open the heat press. There is a power switch on the same side so it is definitely smart to stay there.

Conclusion – Final Word On Beginner Heat Presses

Out of these 5 models, I think the best beginner model for home use is the Cricut EasyPress 2. It has some amazing features, and it’s made to be carried and shown around. It does its job well, and when you don’t want to use it anymore, you can just put it in any drawer because it’s so compact. All in all, a purchase you won’t regret. And you get to choose a size!

I believe the best heat press for small businesses would be the Fancierstudio Power heat press. It seems the sturdiest and most commercial out of all the offered models. It has the most powerful engine and the largest temperature range, paired with a large printing area and a relatively cheap price, this press seems perfect for getting your business up and running.

If you aren’t satisfied with these presses, consider this article about the best heat presses available right now. If you need more versatility in your life, read this article about the best combo heat presses. But, if you need a simple heat press, check out my post about digital heat presses.