Best & worst

Nonstick cookware

The 10-piece Earth Pan with Sand Flow, $190, at left, delivered high performance at half the price of some other sets we tested. Burned food, handles that broke during testing, and stuck-on food helped land the $300 Mercola Healthy Chef cookware set at the bottom of our Ratings.

Showerheads

Moen's top-rated Inspire 21777, at left, offered a strong flow of water at a consistent temperature and seven settings. Even the $50 price is appealing. But pass up the $40 Price Pfister Bell 15-070. A big drop in water temperature between the showerhead and your body and so-so force made this model mediocre.

Stand mixers

In our tests of 18 models the KitchenAid Classic K45SS[WH], $200, at left, came out on top—a spot it has held for years—because it can whip up fluffy meringues and handle double batches of bread dough with ease. The Sunbeam Mixmaster 2594, $90, was a lightweight in performance and pounds.

Toaster ovens

The Cuisinart TOB-195, $180, at top, was very good at baking and broiling and toasts bread as evenly as some of the top toasters. It's spacious enough for a 4-pound chicken and has touchpad control. The Emerson TOR35, $70, was only fair at baking and took longer to bake and broil than other models.

Toasters

Whether you like your toast light or dark, the Cuisinart CPT-170, $80, at top, consistently produced batch after batch of evenly toasted bread, and a digital display counts the seconds until your toast is ready. The Toastess Digital TT321, $60, was only fair at toasting, and results were inconsistent from batch to batch.

Toilet paper

Soft and strong, top-rated Quilted Northern Ultra Plush also disintegrated easily when flushed, so it's easier on plumbing and septic systems. It costs 29 cents per 100 sheets. Scott 1000 was the thinnest we tested and was only ­mediocre in strength and softness. It costs 6 cents per 100 sheets.

Toilets

The American Standard Champion 4 2002.014, $425, left, provided power, quietness, and thorough bowl cleansing in one flush. The Briggs Maelstrom 4298, $230, clogged about half the time in our solid-waste test and needed multiple flushes. The Kohler Persuade K-3654, $325, right, got an even lower overall score; it has separate modes for liquid and solid waste.

For more Best & Worst products see our Laundry and cleaning & Home and garden reports.