Last updated: August 21, 2026
Somebody in your life has decided this is the year they learn to sew, and every guide they read hands them a machine with a menu, a screen and four hundred stitches they will never touch. The Singer Start 1304 is the opposite proposition: one dial, six stitches, nothing to configure and nothing to accidentally switch off.
That simplicity is a genuine feature and also a real ceiling. This review sets out exactly what the 1304 can do, the one specification that decides whether it suits you, and the point at which most owners want something else. No invented numbers, and no pretending a starter machine is more than it is.
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Quick Answer
Is the Singer Start 1304 enough machine to learn on?
- For hemming, mending and simple projects, yes. Six built in stitches covers more than beginners expect.
- Listings put it at 6 built in stitches and 57 stitch applications, with a four step buttonhole and a free arm.
- Stitch width and length are preset rather than adjustable, which is the specification that decides everything.
- Light enough for a class or a closet, and simple enough that nothing gets switched on by accident.
Bottom line: an honest starter machine for repairs and small projects. If you already know you want to make clothes, start one step higher.
What the 1304 Actually Offers
Singer’s product page lists 57 stitch applications, a four step buttonhole, a removable free arm for cuffs and trouser hems, LED lighting and three presser feet: all purpose, zipper and buttonhole, plus a darning plate. Retail listings for the machine describe those applications as coming from six built in stitches.
The six are the useful ones: straight, zigzag, satin, blind hem, a scallop and the buttonhole sequence. Between them you can hem, repair a seam, finish a raw edge, sew a zipper and put a button placket on a cushion. That is a working machine, not a toy.
What Is Not on the Machine
No needle threader is listed. No one step buttonhole. No drop feed lever for free motion work. Nothing here is a surprise at this position in the range, but each one is a small daily friction, and the buttonhole is the one that will eventually push a garment sewer upward.
The Preset Stitch Width and Length
This is the specification that matters most and the one almost nobody checks. On the 1304 the stitch width and length are preset for each stitch rather than dialed in, so you select a stitch and get the setting Singer chose for it. There are no separate width and length controls to turn.
For learning, that is genuinely helpful. A large share of early frustration comes from a beginner who has nudged the stitch length to almost zero and now has a machine that appears to be jammed. Removing the controls removes the mistake.
Where It Bites Later
Basting needs a long stitch. Topstitching on a jacket looks wrong at a standard length. Sewing very fine fabric wants a short stitch, and satin stitch appliqué wants a specific width. None of those are possible if the settings are fixed, and that is the moment people start shopping again. If you already know you want that control, our first machine guide explains which features are worth paying for up front.
How It Sits Against Its Nearest Relatives
The 1304 sits at the bottom of Singer’s lineup, and Singer’s own M series is the natural step up. Seeing the three together makes the ceiling obvious, because the jump in capability between the first and second row is much bigger than the jump between the second and third.
| Model | Stitch menu | Buttonhole | Stitch settings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singer Start 1304 | 6 stitches, 57 applications | Four step | Preset width and length |
| Singer M3500 | 32 stitches, 110 applications | One step, auto sized | Adjustable |
| Singer 4423 | 23 stitches, 97 applications | One step, auto sized | Adjustable |
Stitch counts and applications come from Singer’s product pages and from the retail listings for the 1304. The interesting column is the last one, not the first.
Who It Is Genuinely Right For
Someone who wants to hem trousers, fix a torn seam, shorten curtains and run up a drawstring bag. Someone teaching a teenager, where fewer controls means fewer things to get wrong. Someone whose machine has to live in a closet and come out occasionally, where light and simple beats capable and heavy.
It is also a reasonable second machine for a spare room or a holiday house, where you want something that works without being the machine you care about. Our budget machine guide covers what you give up across that whole tier.
Who Should Skip It
Anyone planning to make clothes. The four step buttonhole and the fixed stitch settings will both become obstacles inside the first few garments, and buying twice costs more than buying once. Anyone working with denim seams should also look elsewhere, since a light machine at a folded hem is the classic setup for a broken needle.
What to Buy With It
The 1304 arrives with the basics and nothing spare, and two small purchases make the first month much smoother. Both are things you will keep using on whatever machine you own next.
A Real Needle Assortment
The needles in the box are universal points in one or two sizes, and half of early sewing problems are a needle mismatch rather than a machine fault. A mixed pack with ballpoint sizes for knits and a heavier size for denim covers almost everything a starter sews. Our needle guide explains which one goes where.
Spare Bobbins
Nothing kills momentum like running out of bobbin thread halfway down a seam and having to unthread the machine to wind another. Buy a pack in the right class, wind three at the start of a project, and keep them in a small case rather than loose in a drawer where the thread unwinds.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many stitches does the Singer 1304 have? Retail listings put it at 6 built in stitches, and Singer’s own page describes 57 stitch applications built from them. Those are two ways of counting the same thing: six stitch selections on the dial, used in different ways for different jobs.
Can you adjust the stitch length on a 1304? No. The stitch width and length are preset for each stitch rather than set with separate dials. That prevents a lot of beginner mistakes and rules out basting, topstitching at a longer length and fine work at a shorter one.
Is the Singer 1304 the same as the M1500? They are closely related. Singer’s M1500 is the updated styling of the same basic starter concept in the M series. Compare the current listings rather than assuming, because Singer refreshes these entry models regularly.
Is it suitable for a child learning to sew? With an adult sitting alongside, yes, and the simplicity helps. There is no speed limiter, so control comes entirely from the foot pedal, and fingers need to stay behind the presser foot. Our machines for kids guide covers the safety side properly.
Will it sew denim? A single layer of denim or a light hem with the correct needle, yes. A folded jeans hem with four or more layers at the seam is asking too much of a light machine, and that is where needles break. The denim guide explains what the job actually needs.
The Bottom Line
The Start 1304 does the honest thing: it removes the controls a beginner is most likely to get wrong and charges accordingly. For mending, hemming and small projects it is enough machine, and its simplicity is a real reason people keep using it instead of leaving it in the box. Check the preset stitch settings against your ambitions before you buy, because that is the wall you will meet, not the stitch count. Read next: our budget machine guide and what actually matters in a first machine.