5 Kitchen Appliances To Buy When You're Moving Into A New Home And You're On A Budget

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Congratulations on moving into your new home, and our condolences that the former occupants took everything not bolted to the floor. In most cases, this isn't a big deal until you get to the kitchen and realize that you can't use it as a kitchen because the only thing in there is a sink, and sinks can't cook food. It's a scenario I can empathize with. When I purchased my home in 2019, we, too, showed up to an empty kitchen, although the former owners did give us a warning first. 

In either case, a mixture of frustration and excitement comes with having a totally empty kitchen. You have the joy of picking out new stuff for your new home and the pain of paying for it. Imagine that you've moved into your place, you don't have a ton of money, and you need to get your house stocked up quickly so you don't have to get takeout every single day. The good news is that with a little sleuthing and some patience, you can stock a kitchen full of appliances without that much money. 

You likely won't be getting the highest-end tech in the kitchen space, nor will you be spending money on extra kitchen smart tech you don't need. Instead, we'll be focusing on adhering to the strictest budget possible. If it isn't immediately evident, don't waste your money. 

Your first task is to check the online marketplaces where people offload their old stuff. Facebook Marketplace is the big dog these days, followed by Craigslist. Local social media apps like Nextdoor may also house the occasional "get this off of my lawn" post as well. You can find a lot of free stuff on these types of services. While researching this article, I found a free microwave, toaster, and coffee machine in the same listing. I also found a free stove, dishwasher, and refrigerator in a matter of a few minutes. In fact, for the free fridge, the owner actually wanted to pay $20 for someone to take it.

In any case, you can find a ton of bargains on these sites. Just make sure you communicate effectively with the owner of the item and ensure it works before pickup. Some appliance brands are better than others in the used market, so if you can find the good stuff for free or cheap, you should go for it. However, it's hard to be picky when it's free, so as long as it functions to spec, branding doesn't matter in this case. The goal is to get stuff that works. You can worry about getting the nice stuff later. 

Let's start with what will arguably be the most expensive things to buy new, even on a budget, and that's the stove and the refrigerator. You'll want to avoid the latest tech, like fridges with smart displays and smart induction stove tops, because those are way too expensive. For budgetary reasons, we recommend top freezer-type fridges. They are the least expensive type. Save the French door for when you have the scratch to buy a nice one. 

The good news is that all the major players make top freezer refrigerators, including LG, GE, Frigidaire, Samsung, Whirlpool, and others. We recommend getting those if you can find them on sale versus smaller or unknown brands where the quality won't be quite as consistent. In any case, the best advice is to shop the sales at big stores like Best Buy, Home Depot, and Lowe's, as you can usually find some decent sales on stuff most of the year. You can also try appliance outlets in your area for more options and savings. Many big box stores also have open-box deals that can save you some money too. 

All of the above information applies to stoves as well. Old-school coil-style electric ranges are way less expensive than their glass top or induction counterparts. With a little shopping and some luck, you can get both for under $1,000 combined new, but shopping used will still be cheaper overall. 

Every kitchen needs a microwave because while stovetop popcorn is awesome, the microwave is much less messy and more convenient. Most major microwave brands have budget options, which makes them easy to find in most stores. You can find plenty for under $100, and it's an appliance I am not at all squeamish about buying used. My current home has one of those fancy built-in models now, but every microwave I previously owned was either given to me or purchased used. 

The same advice applies here as it does for stoves and refrigerators with one notable exception. You can buy microwaves online in way more places and since they're smaller, and therefore less likely to be damaged during shipping than larger appliances. The larger selection at more stores means you can shop the sales even harder. Target, Walmart, and online retailers like Amazon all have microwaves on sale basically all the time.

Plus, microwaves are set to standards based on wattage. In most cases, microwave quality is mostly about how well it distributes heat, but a 1,100-watt microwave will heat your food just fine, no matter who makes it. Of all the appliances on this list, microwaves are also among the easiest to find for free on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist, in my experience, thanks to their low resale value. In most cases, people just want them gone, and you could be the next person to oblige them. 

Toasters are a requirement for me at least, because bagels and toast exist, and you can do some cool stuff with even basic toast. In any case, toasters are wonderful to shop for on a budget because they are among the least expensive kitchen appliances that money can buy. They are also exceedingly difficult to mess up. You set the timer, press down on the lever, and wait. Simple mechanisms and ancient technology mean you can get this for virtually nothing, even brand new. 

The best part about toasters is that they're everywhere including the usual suspects like Walmart, Target, and Amazon. You can find them brand new for under $50 easily no matter where you go, but you can easily find even less expensive ones if you dig a bit. I purchased my four-slice toaster at Family Dollar five years ago when I moved into my house for about $15 and it still works fine to this day, despite being plugged into a 240-volt socket for about 24 hours due to a breaker box installation snafu that the contractors promptly fixed. 

Toasters, like microwaves, are also very easy to find for free on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist for much of the same reason. They aren't worth anything used anyway, so people just want them gone. The one piece of advice I do have is to spring for a four-slice toaster. It's better to have the extra slots and not need them than not having them.

We move into the more optional appliances that aren't necessary but do make your life easier. For this, the air fryer is about as good as it gets. Not only are there a metric ton of recipes for them available on the Internet, but they also heat up faster than traditional ovens, which can be convenient when you're busy. You can find a bunch of budget air fryers online at places like Amazon and higher-end air fryers at big box stores, but we think Ninja's standard air fryer is a good middle ground. 

They are a bit pricier when new, running for about $130 on Amazon without any sales. However, per CamelCamelCamel, they are on sale almost all the time, and often for $90 or less. You may have to wait for something like Black Friday or Amazon Prime Day, but you can get this at a hefty discount with some patience. If time is of the essence, you can find them used on eBay for around $60 to $70. For an appliance that can virtually replace your oven for small meals, that's a pretty good deal.

We also chose the Ninja because they are among the most reputable air fryer brands on the market, so even if you have to buy it new, the data is on your side that it'll last you a while. You can go for other brands like Chefman, but in terms of price, it mostly depends on which are on sale.

I am a massive fan of the Instant Pot in general. There is a lot to like about it. It does its primary function, which is pressure cooking. Its ability to take longer recipes and make them shorter is nice for busy people who don't always have a ton of time. However, it can also slow cook like a Crock Pot, sauté like an electric cooktop, steam, and other things. I use mine as a rice cooker. It's not perfect, but it's good enough to keep me from buying a separate rice cooker. 

For this list, the Instant Pot Duo is probably the way to go. It goes for $90 on Amazon when it's not on sale, but like the Ninja air fryer above, it's on sale almost all the time, sometimes dipping between $45 and $50. You can find it for $50 or even less on eBay pretty consistently as well. Since it had its time in the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic, there are also plenty of them on Facebook Marketplace, and you may be able to get one for as low as $25 to $30, or even free in some cases. 

For me, it's the versatility that sells this one. You can make a lot of food in a variety of ways, which gives you a lot more options in a kitchen where you can't buy every gadget on the market.