Filtered list of 4 quality, portable sewing machines that you can get in U.S. Only machines that weigh under 12 pounds are considered.

Here in this list we are talking about portable, regular sewing machines that weigh under 12 lbs. If you are looking for mini sewing machines, you can read our list of 6 Best Mini Sewing Machines You Can Get In US.

You need to take extra care while choosing a portable sewing machine because there are a lot of useless machines out there. The specific purpose of having a portable sewing machine is to take it to sewing classes. But there is a down side to these kind of machines. Most portable machines are made of low quality plastic which makes it lightweight and fragile at the same time. Myself being a person who considers quality as top priority, has never been a great fan of portable sewing machines as most of them are generally use and throw kind of machines.

I guess any sewing machine that weighs under 12 pounds can be easily carried in a carrying case. I believe almost all American women can carry that weight. So I have filtered this list to sewing machines that weigh under 12 pounds.

Only a handful of quality machines are there in this category. Originally I was looking to do a list of 10 best portable sewing machines, but had to trim it to 5 because of the lack of quality in this genre. Again I had to cut the list to just 4 machines because most of them didn’t meet the quality standards I set. I am not saying that this is a complete list, but these are the machines that I feel will give you some value along with being a portable machine.

1. Brother XR9500PRW

Machine Weight : 9.92 lbs

This is by far, the best portable sewing machine you can get in US. It is the lightest sewing machine in this list. It is not just a lightweight sewing machine, it oozes quality as well. Recently it was voted as the ‘Best Sewing Machine For The Money Under $200’, which is a testimony to its quality and performance. XR9500PRW is also the most advanced sewing machine in this list (also the expensive). It really is one of the best computerized sewing machines around.

Cons : Not much to be honest.

2. Brother CS5055PRW

Machine Weight : 10.65 lbs

CS5055PRW is also another computerized sewing machine. Previously I wasn’t too keen on this machine as it was a little bit over priced. Now the price seems to have dropped quite a bit. It is the second lightest sewing machine in this list. It is a quality machine with some very good features. It always had the quality, but high price worked against it. Now the price is so low that it literally becomes a steal. I don’t know how long the price drop will stay.

Cons : Struggles with more than 4 layers of denim.

3. Brother XL2600I

Machine Weight : 11 lbs

XL2600I is a mechanical sewing machine, so you can’t expect the advanced features you saw on the previous two machines. However, it is called the ‘king of low cost sewing machines’ because of the quality that it provides. It is the least expensive sewing machine in this list. At this price, you can’t ask for better features. There is a newer version of this sewing machine under the model name XM2701, but it is slightly heavier and expensive than this one. That is the reason why it was excluded from the list.

Cons : User manual is not so great.

4. Brother XL2610

Machine Weight : 11 lbs

XL2610 is very similar to the previous machine, you can make that out from the model number itself. The only drawback of this machine is that it comes with a 4-step buttonhole instead of the one-step that came with XL2600I. Now 4-step buttonhole is not something that beginners will love. Lack of 1-step buttonhole makes it kind of old fashioned. Currently, this machine costs few dollars more than the XL2600I, which may also work against it.

Cons : No 1-step buttonhole.

Verdict

Let me put things in simple words. Choose Brother XR9500PRW if you are looking for quality, features, performance and portability. Go for Brother XL2600I if you are under tight budget and if you love mechanical sewing machines. I hope this list will help you make a decision.