15 Under-the-Radar Kitchen and Bath Heroes That’ll Make Life Better in 2026

One of my favorite things about my job is that I get to cover the home decor and appliance market. That means the first part of every year (and sometimes the back part of it) is full of travel to different trade shows — from those devoted to kitchen and bath products and home tech, to ones dedicated to gifts and more niche, avant garde design. These industry events are amazing resources and provide plenty of opportunity for brand and product discovery. 

That brings me to the 2026 Kitchen & Bath Show (KBIS), which wrapped yesterday in Orlando, Florida. I walked hall after hall at the Orange County Convention Center to find the best kitchen and bath products in this year’s offerings. Here’s what earned Apartment Therapy’s “Best in Show” seal — and what is coming to market this year (if not available already) that just might make your life better.

Kohler’s Anthem EvoCycle Smart Shower makes it easy to be more mindful about your water consumption. That’s because when it’s in “Cycle” mode, you can save up to 80% of water with a filtered, recirculated flow from the shower head. It uses an in-floor reservoir and filter in the shower base to do this, along with a closed loop system to deliver the recycled and fresh water mixture to the shower head. But you still get all the luxury that Kohler plumbing offers — and the tech behind the smart Anthem collection, too.

Personalization dominated so many of the brand booths at KBIS, but I was struck by how easy CAFÉ makes it to add bespoke touches in the kitchen. The brand started with interchangeable appliance hardware, and now it’s offering a range hood that’s paint- and wallpaper-compatible. You’re seeing CAFÉ’s collaboration with Chasing Paper wallpaper here, and in this show, the brand also debuted a new hardware option with Rejuvenation. 

The thing about smart toilets is that no matter the brand, they pretty much all look like futuristic spaceships. And that just doesn’t jibe with a more traditional bathroom. So designer Shea McGee of Studio McGee sought to fix that with this smart toilet design, which is part of her new Claude collection with Kohler. It has vintage-inspired molding touches but packs a bidet, heated seat, and more smart tech under its hood. The whole line, including this toilet, will launch in May. 

The Trinsic collection isn’t brand-spanking-new, but this bath faucet has a thoughtful tweak — and that’s why it caught my eye. How many times have you struggled to rinse toothpaste or mouthwash from your bathroom sink and thought to yourself, “Why can’t this be a pull-down faucet to get the job done?” Although this feature is typically reserved for kitchens, Delta Faucet decided to bring it to the bath — and the Trinsic pull-down bath faucet was born. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take two!

Nugget ice is a hot commodity at the Apartment Therapy offices, and we’ve been looking for an upgrade on that front. Happy to report that I’ve found it in the GE Profile Opal Mini Nugget Ice Maker. Just like its larger predecessor, the Opal Mini Pro makes the perfect cold, crunchy ice for seltzers, sodas, and whatever your bevvy of choice is. But this model ups its game with a side reservoir for fewer refills, a scale-inhibiting water filter, and stainless steel scoop — and it does it all in a much more compact footprint than the OG. 

GE Profile also introduced something pretty revolutionary for meal planning and making: a handsome, French door refrigerator equipped with what the brand is calling “Kitchen Assistant” technology. Essentially, the machine has a first-of-its-kind, built-in Scan-to-List barcode scanner near the exterior dispenser. And when you notice you’re grabbing the last La Croix, for example, or your hummus supply is running low, all you have to do is scan that item and it’ll appear on your digital shopping list in your GE SmartHQ app instantly so you never run out of anything again.

Right now, the system has tons of scannable items, but anything without a barcode can be added manually to the list, and the entire order can be synced to Instacart and dropped off at your home in as little as 30 minutes, if you use that delivery service. The fridge comes out in April and will retail for $4,899. It’ll also have all the other features you’d want out of a smart fridge, including precise-filling filtered water dispenser, a camera for seeing what you have inside at any given moment, and recipe integration.

LG introduced three new collections at KBIS to give homeowners even more choices in what their suite of appliances can look like — without compromising any of the performance that the brand is known for. The Seamless caught my eye for its modern flush panels and Zero Clearance tech, which makes installing certain appliances easier in spots you’d never think possible before, like a French door refrigerator in a tight spot between two walls.

When I heard that the mini but mighty Sharp Celerity High-Speed Oven could cook a chicken in 30 minutes, I was hooked. Then it got even better. Nine manual cooking modes — including microwave, convection bake, grill, convection roast, and air fry — means you can get rid of all the extra countertop appliances you’ve probably accumulated over the years. Add smart phone connectivity and recipe presets to the mix, and I’d call this machine the golden ticket for any small space. 

Here’s another one to file under “why didn’t they think of this sooner”: a top load washing machine with a special compartment for delicates, which sits right where an agitator would. Whirlpool finally did it, so now you can wash everything in your laundry basket all at once. What a time saver!

This three-rack dishwasher had a lot of bells and whistles for its $899 price point, including an adjustable middle rack and an intelligent drying function that gets dishes and glassware cabinet-ready right out of the wash. My favorite, though? The bottle-specific wash zones with high-pressure jets on this machine, which deep clean water bottles and straws. Say goodbye to those bottle brushes! You won’t need ’em after this Midea upgrade. 

Designer Ali Budd collaborated with Artistic Tile on a gorgeous collection of stone-forward tile designs that toe the line between organic and glam aesthetics perfectly, as ABI projects so often do. The Varo was my favorite for its stunning, almost sherbet-colored look and its geometric six-panel design, which allows for endless reconfiguring to just your liking.

Somehow, Sherwin-Williams was able to develop a durable paint formula that can be used both inside and outside the home. Forte is the perfect match for maybe one of spring’s easiest DIY curb appeal projects: painting your front door — and its reverse side — without switching your paint. 

Brown cabinetry has been back in a big way, and the fact that Fabuwood has delivered a new rich truffle finish speaks to that trend. It’s a lovely hue that introduces so much warmth into a space, whether you use it on all your cabinetry or just as an accent, as shown in this photo I took from the brand’s booth at the show. 

TOTO is always an industry leader in plumbing, but in this show the company introduced the sculptural and sleek one-piece bidet toilet, Aurora, which is all about efficient, powerful flushing, thanks to its dual-tank architecture. The way it combines bidet functionality with self-cleaning capabilities? Let’s just say you’re going to love this all-in-one item; it has a little bit more of a traditional toilet look, because you don’t have to sacrifice substance or style. 

The KitchenAid new double wall oven is like having a digital sous chef in your kitchen. First, it’s outfitted with built-in smart camera technology for its “Food Recognition” feature, which identifies what you’re making and gives you the best cooking cycle for it. That camera also allows a “Live Look-In” feature, so you can check on the progress of your meal without opening the door and letting out the heat. The machine’s “Doneness Detection” will actually let you know when your food is cooked to perfection. Combine all of this with a sleek design, LED touchscreen display, and backlit knobs that illuminate when the oven is preheating and flash when the food is done? You’ll never overcook a meal again — and you can even stream your dishes to share with your social network right from the unit. The brand has truly thought of everything here!