Finding a Solid, Affordable Sewing Machine Without Breaking the Bank

You’re here because you’re probably someone who is tired of their clothes fitting poorly and wants them to look fitted and slimmer right? Your tired of the typical dress shirt muffin top and wearing t-shirts that look like garbage bags.

So you start researching different models and price points of solid and reliable sewing machines. You really don't want to drop a grip of money on one, especially in the very beginning.

I totally get that.

So, what do you look for, and where do you look for it? Let's talk about it.

I'm going to tell you where you can find a nice, solid, cheap sewing machine. But let's clear something up really quick here: cheap does not mean bad. Nor does old mean bad—not at all in the sewing world. Finding a cheap sewing machine is actually awesome! There are some straight bangers out there that are 20-40 years old that will easily handle your DIY tailoring projects.

BTW, if you’ve never even used a sewing machine don’t worry, you can learn everything you need to know to tailor your own clothes in like 10 minutes. I’m not kidding. Here’s an easy tutorial for you.

Sewing Machines Go Waaaay Back

In the last 150 years or so, every single sewing machine has been made, generally speaking, kind of the same.

They all ask you three basic questions:

1. What kind of stitch do you want to make?

2. How long do you want that stitch to be?

3. And, how wide?

And just about any sewing machine, whether its a brand new Bernina or Janome from a big box store, or a $40 used Kenmore from Facebook Marketplace will answer all 3 of those questions for you.

Now, I like new things. Like a lot. I can oftentimes get a bad case of shiny new object syndrome. TVs, phones, computers, all the things. So I understand the temptation to go out and buy a brand new $400 sewing machine or even a $1,000 serger machine. Completely get it, you want the best of the best right away because it will make things easier right? Possibly sure. But then what happens if you start tailoring your own clothes and then decide that you don't like this very much? You use it a few times and realize that you either don’t have the time or the patience to go through your whole closet and make all your clothes fit you better.

Or maybe you DO like DIY tailoring, but you don’t do it as frequently as you thought you would. Especially to justify the price of paying that much money for a sewing machine?

That's a crappy situation to be in.

That’s why I’m a HUGE advocate of buying a used sewing machine when you’re starting out. You can always upgrade later down the road if you want to anyway. There’s zero reason for anyone to get a brand new sewing machine when they can get a solid used one for a fraction of the price.

Well if you’re looking for a used one how much should you pay for it? My general ballpark is usually between $40 to $90 or so.

Now, if you CAN go below $40 sure, but what's going to end up happening is you're going to get into that range of what I call “novelty” sewing machines or mini sewing machines. You'll find them all over the place on websites like eBay. They can make quick stitches if you want to fix something in an emergency but they're not durable or long lasting at all. If you try and hem a pair of jeans with one of those you’re gonna have a really bad time, trust me.

Meh…you can do much better.

There’s also those ridiculous stapler looking sewing machines. Just no.

Even worse…

For not that much more money you can get a full-sized sewing machine that can handle everything you have in your closet without any problems at all. So these are pointless.

Now, once you start to get well above $90, closer to the $200-$500 range those sewing machines are going to have a lot of really good features to them. That isn’t up for debate. They’re going to have automatic threaders, more powerful motors, computerized stitch settings etc. But they're WAY overkill for what we need one for. If you're just going to use it to tailor your own clothes, then you’re probably not going to use all of the extra features and bells and whistles that those machines have. I have a Brother ST371HD and I love it. But do you know how many features this thing has that I NEVER use? A lot.

So then it's like, “why did I spend so much money on this if I just need a sewing machine that can make a straight stitch, and a zigzag stitch?

Where To Find A Good One

Look for a cheap used one or better yet, a free one. Here's what ends up happening: Grandma has a sewing machine that she loves dearly and takes immaculate care of. But sadly grandma passes away and nobody else in the family knows how to use the sewing machine. Not only do they not know how to use it, they aren’t really interested in learning either. So they will either give it away for free to get it off of their hands in their time of grief, or for a very, very cheap price.

You, my friend, just got a steal of a deal!

Also, Facebook Marketplace is a gold mine for used sewing machines because they kind of fall into that same category of people not really understanding the value of a sewing machine or even the capabilities of what they can do. When everyone was making masks a few years ago sewing machines were really REALLY hard to find. Everyone and their mother jumped on the mask making train. Now, I’ll never forget the first time I saw pre-made fabric masks in Target. I was instantly like “whelp, there goes that sinking ship”. Sure enough, EVERYONE then listed their sewing machine online to get rid of it. They didn’t use it for anything else anyway.

There are a lot of different brands out there, but I usually stand by Singer and Brother (not sponsored). I suggest those two because they've been making sewing machines for like 150 years. Yes, that's great, fantastic, but here's the thing: accessories. You are going to be able to find the correct accessories for those machines without any major issues at all. There are a a few other brands out there that make really solid sewing machines, but accessories can be few and far between. So you're not going to be able to find specialty presser feet or the correct bobbins. And you’re going to be really annoyed. I went into Joann Fabrics looking for a presser foot for my old Necchi machine. Not only did they not have any but the sales rep was super condescending when I asked her. Apparently informing them of the use case is required for transactions there.

Save Some Major Coin Bro

You don't need to spend a fortune to get a decent sewing machine. Not even close. Keep your budget between $40 and $90. Unless you have some disposable income you want to get rid of. In that case, sure, buy a brand new sewing machine. I also take tips and donations…just saying.

Let’s go continue binge tailoring our clothes. I’ll see you in the next one SD out, deuces!