I can barely tell when this KitchenAid dishwasher is running it's so quiet – plus it holds all of my family's dishes

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• The KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher has intuitive controls, runs quietly, and is Energy Star-certified.
• It easily accommodates dishes for my family of four, with plenty of room to spare.
• It's expensive at around $1,900, but comes with free delivery and a five-year warranty.

If you've ever lived without one, you know how much of a time saver a dishwasher can be. Compared to washing by hand, you also save water, effort, and the your skin when you use a dishwasher, not to mention avoiding the constant battle over which family member's turn it is to wash the dishes.

The KitchenAid 24-inch Top Control Built-in Tall Tub Dishwasher (Model #KDTM804KBS) is easy to load, energy-efficient, whisper-quiet, intuitive to use, and made by a brand with a reputation for manufacturing high-quality kitchen appliances. In fact, according to Yale Appliance's yearly survey, KitchenAid is one of the top five most reliable dishwasher brands.

I have extensive experience reviewing and writing about dishwashers. The KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher is the latest I've tested, putting it through more than 400 cleaning cycles. Here are my experiences with it.

Design and specs

The mark of a good dishwasher is a stainless-steel tub, and the KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher has just that. Stainless steel is important because it speeds up drying, makes the appliance run quieter, and it lasts longer than plastic. And, I think it looks nicer, especially with this model's LED interior lights reflecting off it.

The dishwasher's controls are located on the top of the door, which gives the front a clean appearance and makes it easier for you to see the buttons and alphanumeric display, which counts down the time until the cycle is complete and displays error codes when applicable.

The KDTM804KBS has five cleaning cycles: ProWash, Tough, Normal, Express Wash, and Rinse Only. Plus, you can modify the cycles to include Hi Temp Wash, Sani Rinse, ProDry (adds an extra 15 minutes to the dry cycle), Top 2 Racks, and a 1 to 24-hour delay. The user manual goes into detail about additional settings you can access, including kosher-friendly and rinse aid adjustments.

Regardless of the setting, the dishwasher uses a filtration system that removes food particles during the wash and rinse cycles then circulates clean water to the racks. This makes it so debris isn't redistributed throughout the dishwasher.

Each of the three racks is nylon-coated, which is common in today's dishwashers and a must-have to decrease the likelihood of cracking and exposing the wire frame underneath.

For more specifications, check out the product page on the Home Depot website.

Setup process

I'm sure if push came to shove, I could figure out how to install the dishwasher on my own, but when you order from The Home Depot, you can have professionals install it for you for a fee, which is what I opted for. The only requirements are a water supply line within six feet of the hookup, an electrical outlet within six feet, and the cabinet opening must be at least 24 inches wide by 24 inches deep by 34–1/2 inches high.

Delivery was coordinated by Whirlpool Home Delivery. The company gave me a seven-hour window for when the dishwasher might arrive. The workers were professional and well-trained. This was during the pandemic, and they took safety precautions – e.g., wearing a mask, staying at a distance when possible – to ensure a safe experience.

The installation took about an hour. The installers didn't provide me with a tutorial of how it worked, but I also wanted them in and out as quickly as possible since we were in the first peak of the pandemic. Fortunately, the user manual had all the information I needed.

What makes the dishwasher stand out

I've been using the KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher for more than a year. And, since we are at home for every meal, we use a lot of dishes. Consequently, the washer is running every day. I'd estimate it's gone through at least 400 cleaning cycles.

What struck me first was how spacious the tub is with its three racks. I like that I can adjust the racks to accommodate stockpots and other large items.

I don't wash dishes before they go in the dishwasher. Sure, I'll scrape the big chunks of food into the garbage before loading, but I don't pre-rinse or remove other pieces of stuck-on gunk. Even with my dirtiest dishes, including casserole dishes and pans with burnt-on materials in them, the KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher gets the job done.

Typically, I run the dishwasher on ProWash, which uses sensors to measure the debris in the water and adjusts the water temperatures and wash time as needed. The run time is usually around three hours in this mode. Rarely do I have to run items through a second time because of stuck-on food debris, and I can count on my hand the number of times the debris wasn't gone after two cycles.

At first I was confused about how to best load the dishwasher. Fortunately, the KitchenAid KDTM804KBS comes with instructions for loading. Once I got the hang of it, loading became second nature. On the bottom rack, I typically put dinner plates, larger bowls, pots, casserole dishes, and pans along with silverware in the removable basket. The middle rack holds smaller plates and bowls as well as wine glasses and larger cups. And, the top rack is for smaller cups, ramekins, and flat cooking utensils, like wooden spoons.

The KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher is incredibly quiet. When I first started using it, I would put my ear right next to it to determine if it was running. Then, browsing the user manual, I found out the LED in the upper right corner of the dishwasher face lets you know when it's running. The light is blue during the cleaning cycle and red when drying.

I placed a sound meter 12 inches from the washer when it was running, and it registered 45 decibels. For comparison, the ambient noise in my kitchen is 40 decibels so there wasn't a significant difference in noise.

Cons to consider

There were a couple of issues with the installation. First, the contractors who remodeled our kitchen made the counters about two inches higher than the standard. To correct for this, they put two-by-fours under the previous dishwasher so the top would come up to the counter bottom. The installers said they could not install the KitchenAid dishwasher on these two-by-fours and had to remove them. Consequently, there's a gap between the top of the dishwasher and the counter. Most likely, you don't have a weird funhouse like me, and you won't have this issue.

This review is actually of the second KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher I received. The day after it was installed, the first one stopped cleaning and registered an "h20" error message. I contacted customer support about it and didn't mention I was a member of the media. They instructed me to check the water hose to ensure it was getting water. It was. Once we weren't able to troubleshoot it over the phone, they arranged to have the dishwasher replaced. In the last eight months, I haven't received any error messages with the replacement appliance.

My last con is picky. I've found it's incredibly easy to accidentally press the top-control buttons. This has led to a few instances where I started or stopped a cleaning cycle when I didn't mean to.

The bottom line

The KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher is the best dishwasher I've ever tested, but at $1,900, it's expensive even by high-end dishwasher standards. Therefore, I would only recommend this model if you have extra money to spend, and you are looking for the best model money can buy. It's packed full of fancy features (e.g., interior LED lights, fingerprint-resistant coating, water filtration, etc.) that aren't necessary but are nice to have. If you don't have the nearly two grand to drop on a dishwasher, I recommend trying a more affordable KitchenAid model.

What model should you get?

As you come down in price on KitchenAid units, you sacrifice features. So, the key to dishwasher shopping is knowing which features you can't live without.

For example, the KDTE204KPS model still has the stainless-steel tub, durable nylon coating on the racks, and sensors that adjust the water temp and wash time based on the soil levels – three features I strongly recommend. Yet, it's nearly half the price of the model I tested. You only sacrifice the interior lights, water filtration system, stainless-steel accents, and other minor benefits.

What are your alternatives?

If you'd like to pass on a KitchenAid altogether, check out our recently-updated guide to the best dishwashers. Our top pick, the Bosch SHEM63W55N, is less than half the price of the KitchenAid KDTM804KBS Dishwasher.