Embroidery Machines for Beginners: Five Entry Models Compared

The five machines at a glance

If you are just beginning machine embroidery, start here. All five have a hoop included and built-in designs, so a first project does not depend on buying files.^5,6,7,8,9 What separates them is the size of the field and whether they also sew. For how to weigh these points, see how to choose a home embroidery machine.

Drawn to scale. Each square is 1 inch (25.4 mm).

4 × 4 in100 × 100 mmPE545, SE700

6.7 × 3.9 in170 × 100 mmSinger SE9180

5 × 7 in130 × 180 mmPE900

6.3 × 10.2 in160 × 260 mmbernette 70 DECO

Five entry machines compared

Machine	Largest field	Sews?	Hoops included	Loads designs by
Brother PE545	4 × 4 in100 × 100 mm	No	16	USB, wireless LAN1
Brother SE700	4 × 4 in100 × 100 mm	Yes, 103 stitches7	111	USB, wireless LAN2
Brother PE900	5 × 7 in130 × 180 mm	No	18	USB, wireless LAN3
bernette 70 DECO	6.3 × 10.2 in160 × 260 mm	No	34	USB10
Singer SE9180	6.7 × 3.9 in170 × 100 mm	Yes, 250+ stitches5	15	USB5

Pick by your first project

• Names, monograms and small motifs, embroidery only: Brother PE545, up to 100 × 100 mm.¹
• The same, plus sewing: Brother SE700, which adds 103 sewing stitches to the same 100 × 100 mm field.^2,7
• Larger designs, embroidery only: Brother PE900, up to 130 × 180 mm, or bernette 70 DECO, up to 160 × 260 mm with three hoops.^3,4
• You mostly sew, and want to add small designs: Singer SE9180, up to 170 × 100 mm, with 250+ sewing stitches.⁵

What makes a first project easier

We can’t measure how easy a machine feels, and we found no maker or public body that does. These are the points the makers do publish, and why they matter to a beginner:

• A hoop in the box. You can start right away. The bernette 70 DECO includes three (160 × 260, 120 × 180 and 50 × 70 mm); the others include one.^4,5,6,8,11
• Built-in designs. From 135 on the Brother PE545 and SE700 to 208 on the bernette 70 DECO, enough to practise before buying files.^6,7,9
• An easy way to load your own designs. The three Brother machines take designs over wireless LAN or from a USB flash drive; the bernette and the Singer use a USB stick.^1,2,3,5,10
• File formats that match the designs you like. The bernette 70 DECO reads the longest list of formats here; the Singer page names only .VP3.^5,10

The five machines in detail

Embroidery only, 100 × 100 mm

Brother PE545

Largest field

100 × 100 mm (4 × 4 in)

Formats

.pes .phc .dst .pen

Transfer

USB, wireless LAN

Built-in designs

135, plus 10 fonts

Embroidery speed

up to 400 stitches/min

Strengths

• Embroidery only, with USB and wireless LAN
• Reads .pes and .dst files
• Listed by Brother in the US and in Canada

Drawbacks

• Smallest field here, shared with the SE700
• No sewing
• Check availability on brother.ca

Good fit: you want to add names and small motifs to things you already own, and you don't need to sew on it.
Skip it if: you already know you want designs larger than 100 × 100 mm.

Sews and embroiders, 100 × 100 mm

Brother SE700

Largest field

100 × 100 mm (4 × 4 in)

Sewing

103 stitches

Formats

.pes .phc .dst .pen

Transfer

USB, wireless LAN

Built-in designs

135, plus 10 fonts

Strengths

• Sews and embroiders
• USB and wireless LAN
• Hoop and sewing accessories in the box

Drawbacks

• Small 100 × 100 mm field
• Only one hoop included; the small 2 × 6 cm frame is sold separately
• brother.ca showed an empty SE700 page on 2026-11-09, with no description or purchase option

Good fit: you want to sew and to add small monograms or motifs with the same machine.
Skip it if: you want designs larger than 100 × 100 mm in one hooping.

Embroidery only, 130 × 180 mm

Brother PE900

Largest field

180 × 130 mm (sold as 5 × 7 in)

Formats

.pes .phc .dst .pen

Transfer

USB, wireless LAN

Built-in designs

193, plus 13 fonts

Embroidery speed

up to 650 stitches/min

Strengths

• 130 × 180 mm field at up to 650 stitches per minute
• USB and wireless LAN
• Its manual also covers the NS1250E sold in Canada

Drawbacks

• Embroidery only
• Only the 13 × 18 cm hoop is listed as included
• In Canada, brother.ca sends NS1250E buyers to stores and dealers

Good fit: you want embroidery only, with room for designs up to 130 × 180 mm.
Skip it if: you also need to sew, or want 160 × 260 mm designs in one hooping.

Embroidery only, 160 × 260 mm

bernette 70 DECO

Largest field

260 × 160 mm (10.2 × 6.3 in)

Formats

VP3 VIP PEC HUS DST EXP JEF PES

Transfer

USB

Built-in designs

208, plus 7 alphabets

Hoops included

160 × 260, 120 × 180, 50 × 70 mm

Embroidery speed

up to 850 stitches/min

Strengths

• Largest field here, with three hoops included
• Reads the longest list of formats here
• Up to 850 stitches per minute

Drawbacks

• Embroidery only
• USB only, no wireless connection listed
• In the US, bernette sends buyers to dealers

Good fit: you want embroidery only, room for large designs, and the widest choice of file formats.
Skip it if: you want to send designs over Wi-Fi, or to sew on the same machine.

Sews and embroiders, 170 × 100 mm

Singer SE9180

Largest field

170 × 100 mm (included hoop)

Sewing

250+ stitches

Formats

.VP3 (the format the page names)

Transfer

USB stick

Built-in designs

150, plus 10 fonts

Screen

7 in color touch screen

Strengths

• Sews and embroiders, with 250+ stitches
• Automatic needle threader and thread cutter
• Sold by Singer's own Canadian online store

Drawbacks

• 170 × 100 mm field, smaller than the 5 × 7 in class
• The page names only .VP3 for importing designs
• Singer contradicts itself on the page: its FAQ says 7 × 4.7 in and no Wi-Fi, while the hoop is 170 × 100 mm and the feature list mentions Wi-Fi

Good fit: you mostly sew and want to add names, monograms and small designs.
Skip it if: you plan large designs, or you buy most designs in .pes or .jef.

Buying in Canada

• Brother: brother.ca lists the NS1250E, a 5 × 7 in embroidery machine, and the PE900 manual covers both the PE900 and the NS1250E.^3,12 On 2026-11-09, brother.ca listed the PE545 and sent NS1250E buyers to a store or dealer; check the PE545 page before you count on it.^12,13
• bernette: the Canadian page for the 70 DECO links to BERNINA Canada’s online shop and to a store locator.¹⁴
• Singer: the SE9180 page opens on Singer’s Canadian online store.⁵

Stock changes often, so check before you plan around one model. The Units button at the top switches every size on this page between inches and millimetres.

How we chose these five

We kept machines whose maker documents we could read in full on 2026-11-09, that come with a hoop and built-in designs, and that are listed by their maker today. Two machines we looked at are left out: Singer’s Legacy SE300 could not be bought on singer.com when we checked, and Brother’s PE800 is marked discontinued by Brother USA.^15,16