The first machine most people buy
MIG is the process most people learn first, because the arc starts when you pull the trigger and keeps going. What separates machines is not the headline amperage but the wire feed and the honesty of the duty cycle. We compare feed rollers, low-end control on thin sheet, and whether a machine that claims gasless capability actually reverses its polarity.
200 A · gas and gasless · 3-in-1 · €160
A 200 A synergic machine at €160, sold under a brand with no service address — cheap for a reason we state plainly.
Best for: A one-off job where the machine only has to survive the project
≈ 160 €
160 A · 230 V · 8 kg · €176
An 8 kg three-process inverter with a seven-year manufacturer's warranty and a German importer with a published address.
Best for: A first MIG where the budget is firm and the machine must still be repairable in five years
≈ 175 €
160 A · gasless only · 3-in-1 · €200
A gasless-only machine, on purpose: no bottle, no regulator, no shielding to be blown away — for people who weld outdoors.
Best for: Gates, trailers, fence posts and anything welded where you cannot close a door
≈ 200 €
200 A · gasless · sold as a set · €200
A gasless 200 A set from a German seller — verified in Germany, and nowhere else, because the listing publishes no EAN.
Best for: Outdoor repair work in Germany, where the machine can be bought and returned locally
≈ 200 €
Gasless · 7.5 kg · D100 spools · €140
Seven and a half kilos, a set of tips and a reel of wire in the box — the machine you take to the work rather than the other way round.
Best for: Repairs away from the bench — gates, trailers, a bracket on a machine that cannot be moved
≈ 140 €
135 A · gasless · 60 % duty cycle stated · €110
The cheapest machine on this page, and — unusually for the price — one that publishes a duty cycle figure at all.
Best for: A first machine for someone finding out whether they enjoy welding at all
≈ 110 €
160 A · 230 V single phase · Euro torch connector · €505
A French-built trolley machine with a Euro connector and a 40 W feed motor — bought for the feed quality rather than for its headline current.
Best for: Someone who intends to keep the machine ten years and wants standard consumables
≈ £690 / 505 €
20–160 A · 4-in-1 · 6.8 kg · €220
Four processes in a 6.8 kg case, and the only machine here whose lower limit — 20 A — is published as well as its ceiling.
Best for: A small workshop that wants one box for occasional stick, TIG and MIG work
≈ 220 €
200 A · synergic · gas and gasless · €330
The synergic 200 A inverter that most German workshops end up with, and the cheapest machine here with a genuinely adjustable inductance.
Best for: A first serious MIG that will still be adequate after two years of use
≈ 330 €
200 A · pulse and double pulse · aluminium synergics · €600
The only machine here with genuine pulse and a spool gun interface — which is what makes aluminium a normal job rather than a fight.
Best for: Aluminium work, and anyone who wants the weld to look like the ones in the photographs
≈ 600 €
Italian-built trolley MIG · ~€1 550 across the EU
The one professional machine on this page — and the one whose price is the same in four countries, which tells you it is not a marketplace listing.
Best for: A workshop that welds most days and cannot afford the machine to be the reason work stops
≈ 1,630 €
Prices quoted in these summaries are dated readings. The live price is shown next to each product.
