Are you trying to find the best heat press machine for hats and/or caps?
The devil is in the details when trying to see which of the best hat heat press machines is best suited for your artwork and your turnover rate.
You might be thinking about buying your first cap heat press, upgrading or adding to your current production, and there are key considerations to be made.
First of all, you need to have a good-sized cap element to ensure that nothing moves when applying pressure.
Secondly, you’ll want to have a machine that can deliver enough heat so that the transfer doesn’t leave you with anything short of a smooth and long-lasting imprint of your artwork.
Not in the mood for research and just want to find out which is the best?
THE BEST HAT PRESS
Our top pick is the Vevor 4-in-1 Hat Press
- I love that it comes with 4 plates for various types of hats.
- You can press all types of hats, such as berets, baseball caps, bucket hats, peaked caps, bonnets, and so on.
- Really makes hat pressing a breeze.
- Super affordable price tag!
While it’s sometimes hard to compare seemingly identical machines (functionally at least) without getting into a huge debate about manufacturers and prices, let’s just say that you don’t have to.
Just check out these top four hat heat press machines picks. Each has its own unique qualities that make it ideal for various production scales.
Find out which one can help you recuperate your investment in record time and what features are always worth paying a premium if you want to deliver quality products to your customers.
Comparison Chart of the Top 5 Hat Press Machines in 2024
Below is a comparison chart of the top 5 hat press machines, which are mentioned in this article.
You can then read my reviews below featuring the best heat hat presses 2024 has to offer.
NAME | INFO | PRICE |
|---|---|---|
| Heats up to 300° C 4 Curved heat plates:
| |
 | Heats up to 205°C (400°F) Curved heat plate 3 x 5" | |
 | Heats up to 489°F Curved heat plate 3 x 5.5" | |
 | Heats up to 450°F) Curved heat plate 3.5 x 6" | |
 | Heats up to 450°F) Curved heat plate 3.5 x 5.5" |
Hat Heat Press Machine Reviews
So which press is the best hat press? Here are some reviews to help you decide.
I will outline the top features, the pros and cons of each in detailed cap press reviews, which should help you choose the best cap press 2024 has on offer.
1. VEVOR Hat Press (With 4 Hat Plates) Review
Vevor is a popular brand when it comes to heat press machines. They have a range of presses out that consistently rank well with reviews.
This specific heat press is fantastic because it comes with 4 pads (6 x 3, 6.7 x 2.7, 6.7 x 3.8, and 8.1 x 3.5 inches). Which means you can do a larger variety of hats, such as baseball caps, bucket hats, beanies, bonnets, peaked caps and berets.
We also found that we prefer using this heat press for things such as masks, sleeves and more.
It is a clam-shell design which means that it won't occupy much desktop space either.
It has an aluminum heating plate which means that the service life that you can expect from this press is rated at 12,000 hours.
As usual, it comes with an LCD screen that allows you to set duration, and temperature. Pressure can be adjusted with the pressure knob.
The power consumption is rated at 350W and the machine only gets up to a maximum of 300° C (about 572° F). That’s more than enough to ensure a quality ink transfer and a smooth end result.
It has a parallel arm handle with an ergonomic foam-grip. This will minimizes handle flex when opening and closing the machine. We find that the handle is quite comfortable to work with.
The press has a sturdy heavy-duty steel frame, which makes it a great commercial-great stable machine that is built to last.
PROS:
- Easy to use
- Heats up to 300° C
- 4 Hat pads included
- Steel frame
- Long service life
- Parallel arm handle
- LCD display and touchpad control
CONS:
>>> Read more reviews on Vevor or click the button below to check the price.
2. Cricut SMART Hat Heat Press Review
This SMART hat heat press features a ceramic-coated curved element which makes it ideal for transferring your designs and logos to various hats.
The curved heat element on the Cricut Hat Press as edge-to-edge heating to give even heat when pressing, resulting in professional-looking designs. The element on this hat press is 5” x 3” in size which is smaller than the Vevor press mentioned above.
It has Bluetooth capability which means you can connect it to the Cricut Heat app, select your material, and the app will automatically set the press time and temperature. You can also manually set the temperature and the timer.
The hat press is super small and compact and is a great space saver but also compact and lightweight enough that you can travel to trade shows, markets, and fairs with your Cricut Hat Press.
The hat press comes with a hat form mold which means that you can work on hats of various sizes and shapes.
This hat press is super easy to use and has a comfortable grip or handle to make pressing as comfortable as possible.
Although it is quite small, this is an excellent choice for home use or even small businesses. It is great value for money due to its SMART technology capabilities and versatility.
PROS:
CONS:
>>> Read our review of the Cricut Hat Press or click the button below to check the price.
3. Smarketbuy Digital Hat Heat Press Review
This cap heat press features a curved element which makes it ideal for transferring your designs and logos to various hats.
Wondering what makes a heat press a hat heat press? That’s it! The curved element.
The one in question is 5.5” x 3” in size which is smaller than the Vevor press mentioned above.
It’s fully customization in terms of press time, temperature, and pressure. You can set the temperature to 489°F and the timer up to 999 seconds.
The cap press machine has a clam-shell design. For this reason, it’s a very good space saver and also good at applying pressure evenly onto the fabric.
The design also allows for switching up platens so that you can work on hats of various sizes.
A quality protective coating is applied to the stock bottom platen. This prevents the material from sticking to the surface area or applying excessive heat to your hat.
The LCD screen is a nice touch too. It makes it easier to make the correct adjustments and lets you know how long it takes until the transfer is complete.
The readability is very good so you don’t have to worry about the lighting in your studio or workshop.
Another benefit of the cap press is the stability of the platens. They make it so your hat doesn’t move during the heat transfer regardless of the pressure.
This is very important if you want to minimize user error and wasting materials.
The ease of use is also off the charts. The handle is rubber-coated for ergonomics and heat protection; it’s pretty much all you need if you want to churn out hats all day.
The power consumption is 300W which is to be expected of a startup machine. You can plug it in any household outlet and start your long production run without worries.
Although it is quite small, it might just be the best hat heat press for home studios due to its impressive durability and high production rate (for the money).
PROS:
CONS:
>>> Read more reviews on Amazon or click the button below to check the price.
4. SOROVEE Hat Heat Press Machine
The Sorovee hat heat press is similar to the Smarketbuy hat press above. It has a curved heat element for pressing which ensures that when pressing you achieve a great quality transfer.
It is a clamshell hat press design that is compact so does not take up too much space on your workstation. Along with its comfortable handle, it makes this hat press easy to use for even a beginner.
The cap heat press has a life span of up to 12,000 hours, which is more durable than other machines that use ordinary silicone heating pads. The heating element is also Teflon coated which helps prevent the cap from burning when pressing.
The curved element is 6 x 3.5" in size which makes it suitable for a variety of hat and cap styles.
The press can reach temperatures of up to 450°F which can be set via the digital temperature control. You can also set the time required to press which allows you to work with different types of materials like Infusible Ink, sublimation prints, or HTV that will require different time and heat settings.
One great feature of this hat press is that when the countdown timer is over, an audible alarm will sound and the heating element will stop heating to prevent damage to the hat and cap.
Time and temperature are not all that can be adjusted with this hat heat press as you can adjust the pressure as well. You simply turn the pressure adjusting knob on the press.
The power consumption is rated at 350W and the machine only gets up to a maximum of 450°F. That’s more than enough to ensure a quality ink transfer and a smooth end result all whilst having a low power draw.
The heat press for caps is suitable for business and home daily use.
It has a 1 year warranty.
PROS:
CONS:
>>> Read more reviews on Amazon or click the button below to check the price.
5. Pro Clamshell Hat Press Heat Machine for Caps
- Our Pro Clamshell Cap Heat Press Review -
ThePro Hat Press Heat Machine for caps is a great compact heat press machine for adding designs to caps.
It is the perfect addition to any craft room if you are looking to expand the projects that you make and sell.
The clamshell design means that you save space in your craft room and still offers high quality graphic transfers.
The curved element is 5.5" x 3.5" which, although not large in size, it is still suitable to press designs on to baseball hats and a wide range of hats.
The clam-shell design is always nice to have not just because of the space-saving aspect but also because it offers plenty of protection by raising the heating element away from the work space.
The clamshell heat press has a full range pressure adjustment knob making it easy to operate. It also gives you added control when you need to adjust the pressure based on the thickness of the material you are transferring the design too.
You can also see each setting clearly on the LCD display.
The heat press has an updated aluminium plate for long term use as it has a service life more than 12,000 hours.
The other great aspect of this hat heat press is that is as a maximum heating temperature of 450° which means that it should still give a quality transfer when using this press with a sublimation print.
If you’re interested in creating your own heat press hats, T-shirts, mugs, and other apparel or accessories, then it would be better looking at a 5-in-1 model swing-away heat press machine rather than a one-dimensional machine.
PROS:
CONS:
- Medium heat output
Conclusion:
You may be asking yourself which of these machines stands out among the best hat heat press machines. The Vevor Hat Heat Press definitely checks a lot of boxes for hobbyists and designers working to scale up their production.
The clam-shell design is easy to use, the temperature range is amazing (almost double the recommended requirement), and the degree of adjust-ability for sizes and materials is more than impressive.
The machine is not the fastest but it’s energy and space-efficient. Of course, if you’re not looking for something truly heavy-duty and commercial-grade, both the Cricut Hat Press and Smartketbuy are strong alternatives.
Particularly the Cricut Hat Press which is very versatile with its compact and Smart technology design and the Cricut Hat Pressing Form Mold.
The affordable price tag and versatility of this heat press machine can help give you a complete introduction to putting your unique artwork on apparel and accessories.
Here is a great article that explains the benefits of using a hat press over a multi-press.
Now that you have found a new hat press machine for your home or business, why not hop over to our craft blog section. We have loads of tutorials, project examples as well as step-by-step posts to help you get started.
You can also find our guide with heat press reviews here.
