The best pie makers in Australia for 2026, from a budget mini maker to the iconic Sunbeam Pie Magic.
Few foods are as Australian as a hot pie. We queue for them at the footy, we hand round party pies at every barbecue and birthday, and we tuck them into school lunchboxes through winter. A bench-top pie maker brings all of that home — and once you own one, the bakery run starts to feel like a tax you no longer need to pay.
The appeal is simple. A pie maker heats two thick non-stick plates that crimp and seal pastry into individual pies, cooking them from both sides at once. That means a crisp, properly browned base — the part a conventional oven always struggles with — in well under fifteen minutes, with no preheating a giant cavity and no soggy bottoms. You get individual portions, you control exactly what goes inside, and a homemade pie made from a few dollars of mince and a sheet of shop-bought pastry costs a fraction of the $7-plus you'll pay at the servo.
This guide covers three pie makers we'd genuinely recommend in Australia for 2026, from a $43 mini maker to the iconic Sunbeam Pie Magic and a premium Breville built for entertaining. The single most important thing to understand before you buy is below — and it is not the one most shoppers fixate on.
At a glance: our top 3 pie makers
How to choose a pie maker
The number of wells is not the headline — pie SIZE is
This is the buying insight almost everyone gets backwards. It is tempting to read 8 pies and assume it makes more food than a 4-pie model. It does not. More wells means smaller pies, not more dinner.
Here is the honest spread across our three picks:
- Sunbeam Pie Magic 4 Up — 4 generous, full-sized deep-fill pies. These are proper meal pies; one or two is a satisfying dinner.
- Breville the Quick and Easy Pie Maker — 8 smaller party-pie-sized pies. Great for a crowd or kids' lunches, but each pie is the size you'd pass around at a party, not a full dinner pie.
- Giles & Posner Mini Pie Maker — 1 to 2 mini deep-fill pies at a time. Perfect for one person; not a batch machine.
So match the maker to the job. Want a few proper pies for a family dinner? The Sunbeam's four full-sized wells win. Catering party pies for a gathering or filling lunchboxes for the week? The Breville's eight smaller wells make more sense. Cooking for one in a small kitchen? The mini maker is all you need.
Is a pastry cutter included?
A cutter sized to the plates is a small thing that makes a real difference. The Sunbeam Pie Magic includes one in the box, so your pastry rounds match the wells first time, every time — no measuring, no guesswork, far less waste. The Breville sidesteps the problem differently: you lay two whole sheets of pastry straight on and its plates do the shaping, so there's no cutting at all. The budget Giles & Posner uses a built-in crimping edge to seal but expects you to rough-cut your own pastry to fit its small wells.
Sealing and crimping
A pie that leaks is a pie that welds itself to the plates and makes a mess. Look for a firm seal. The Sunbeam combines an edge crimper with a handle latch that clamps the lid down so the pies seal without leaking. The Breville's Seal and Snap plate design both seals the edges and snaps the finished pies apart for easy lifting. Even the budget Giles & Posner has a built-in crimping edge to close the pastry — modest, but it does the core job.
Non-stick, cleaning and storage
All three of our picks use non-stick top and bottom plates, which is non-negotiable — pastry and hot filling need to release cleanly. For cleaning, wipe the plates while they're still warm (cooled-on filling is the enemy) and never take a metal knife or a scourer to the coating. Storage matters more than people expect on a small bench: the Sunbeam stores upright with cord storage and non-slip feet, which keeps it out of the way between footy weekends.
What you can actually make in a pie maker
A pie maker is far more versatile than its name suggests. On the savoury side you've got the classics — chunky beef-and-gravy, steak-and-mushroom, chicken-and-leek, curried-veg — plus mini quiches, sausage rolls, frittatas and even pizza scrolls. The fillings are where a slow cooker earns its place alongside it: slow-cook a batch of pulled beef, lamb shank meat or a thick curry on the weekend, then spoon it into pies all week.
Sweet pies are where it really wins over kids. Think apple, apple-and-cinnamon, mixed berry, lemon curd, jam tarts, custard pies and even little chocolate self-saucing puddings. Some people use the deep wells for individual cakes and muffins too. A pie maker quietly becomes a dessert machine.
Pastry tips that make or break the result
- Shortcrust for the base, puff for the top. This is the bakery-standard combination: a sturdy shortcrust bottom that holds the filling without going soggy, and a light puff lid that rises golden. You can use all puff if you prefer a lighter pie, but an all-puff base can struggle to stay crisp under a wet filling.
- Shop-bought sheets are completely fine. A box of frozen shortcrust and puff sheets from any supermarket is exactly what most home cooks use. Let them thaw just enough to handle without cracking.
- You generally don't need to blind-bake. Because a pie maker heats the base directly and hard, the bottom crisps as it cooks — no separate blind-bake step like an oven pie. The exception is very wet fillings, where a thin layer of breadcrumbs or a slightly thicker filling helps.
- Don't overfill. Leave room for the lid to seal; an overfilled well is the number-one cause of leaks and welded pastry.
- An egg wash on the lid gives you that glossy, golden bakery finish.
Pie maker vs oven vs sandwich press
An oven can make beautiful pies, but it's slower (you preheat a whole cavity), it browns the top far better than the base, and a single large pie is harder to portion than individual ones. A pie maker beats it on speed, on crisp bases and on tidy single servings — which is exactly why it earns bench space.
People also ask whether a sandwich press can stand in. It can't, really. A press has flat or ribbed plates that flatten a sandwich; it cannot crimp and seal a pastry pocket. A press makes toasties and paninis; a pie maker makes sealed pies. They're complementary appliances, not substitutes — many Australian kitchens happily own both.
Cleaning and care
Treat the non-stick coating gently and a pie maker will last for years. Unplug it and let it cool slightly, then wipe the warm plates with a damp cloth or paper towel — warm crumbs and filling lift off in seconds where cooled-on ones cling. Never submerge the body in water, and only ever use wood or silicone tools on the plates, never metal or abrasive scourers. For stubborn baked-on bits, drape a damp cloth over the cooled plate for a few minutes to soften them first. Store it where the lid stays shut and the cord is tidy, ideally upright if the model allows.
How we picked
We curate these picks from products with verified current availability on Amazon AU, cross-checked against manufacturer specifications and aggregated owner sentiment from Australian buyers. We did not lab-test these units over weeks and we won't pretend otherwise. What we do is confirm each model is genuinely in stock for Australian shoppers, sanity-check the specs against the maker's own listings, and frame the trade-offs honestly — especially the pie-size difference that the marketing tends to gloss over. Prices are indicative in AUD and move around; check the live figure before you buy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best pie maker in Australia in 2026?
For most Australian households the Sunbeam Pie Magic 4 Up (around $74) is the best pie maker in 2026. It makes four generous, full-sized deep-fill pies at once, includes a pastry cutter sized to the plates, and uses an edge crimper plus a handle latch to seal pies without leaks. For one or two people on a budget the Giles & Posner Mini Pie Maker (around $43) is the cheapest entry point, and for entertaining the Breville the Quick and Easy Pie Maker (around $99) makes eight party-pie-sized pies with no pastry cutting.
Does a pie maker with more wells make more food?
No, and this is the most common mistake buyers make. More wells means smaller pies, not more food. The Sunbeam Pie Magic makes four generous, full-sized deep-fill pies; the Breville makes eight smaller party-pie-sized pies; the Giles & Posner mini maker makes one or two mini pies. Choose based on whether you want a few proper meal pies or lots of little party-sized ones.
What is the difference between the Sunbeam Pie Magic and the Breville pie maker?
The Sunbeam Pie Magic 4 Up makes four full-sized deep-fill pies and comes with a pastry cutter, so it suits family dinners where you want a proper meal pie. The Breville the Quick and Easy Pie Maker makes eight smaller party-pie-sized pies, needs no pastry cutting (you lay two whole sheets straight on), and has a countdown timer, so it suits parties, batch cooking and kids lunches. The Sunbeam is about size and tradition; the Breville is about convenience and volume.
Can you make sweet pies in a pie maker?
Yes. Beyond savoury classics like beef-and-gravy and chicken-and-leek, a pie maker is great for sweet pies — apple, apple-and-cinnamon, mixed berry, lemon curd, jam tarts and custard pies. Many people also use the deep wells for individual cakes, muffins and little self-saucing puddings. It quietly doubles as a dessert maker.
What pastry should I use in a pie maker?
The bakery-standard combination is shortcrust for the base and puff for the lid — a sturdy bottom that won't go soggy and a light, golden top. Shop-bought frozen pastry sheets are completely fine and are what most home cooks use; just let them thaw enough to handle without cracking. You generally do not need to blind-bake, because the pie maker heats the base directly and crisps it as it cooks.
Can a sandwich press make pies?
No. A sandwich press has flat or ribbed plates designed to flatten a sandwich; it cannot crimp and seal a pastry pocket the way a pie maker does. A press makes toasties and paninis, a pie maker makes sealed pies, and they are complementary appliances rather than substitutes. If you want both functions you need both machines.
How do you clean a pie maker?
Unplug it and let it cool slightly, then wipe the still-warm non-stick plates with a damp cloth or paper towel — warm filling lifts off easily while cooled-on filling clings. Never submerge the body in water, and only use wood or silicone tools on the plates, never metal or a scourer. For stubborn baked-on bits, lay a damp cloth over the cooled plate for a few minutes to soften them before wiping.
