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5-in-1 Multi-Use Design: Air Fryer, Dehydrator, Baking Oven, Roaster, Reheat. Food Cooks in a Whirlwind Vortex for Extra Crisp & Crunch. Digital Easy-to-Use Panel with 8 One-Touch Pre-Set Functions.
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Looking for a new air fryer? Sarah Holden, culinary producer for Food Network Kitchen, breaks down three of our top picks, above.
Our Top Air Fryer Picks
This article has been reviewed since its original publish date for accuracy, pricing and availability. We updated this guide in June 2022 with a new best air fryer toaster oven pick, and in January 2021 when our original favorite the Crux 2.6 Qt. Air Convection Fryer, was discontinued. The Instant Vortex 6-Quart Air Fryer, which we reviewed in 2019 still remains our top overall air fryer pick. Read on for our list of current favorites.
Tested by Ben Mims, Leah Brickley, Jill Novatt and Amanda Neal for Food Network Kitchen
Air fryers have been on the market for more than a decade, and they've become a must-have for many home cooks. They're beloved for mimicking the results of deep frying without all the oil, and it's all thanks to their cooking mechanism. Unlike toaster ovens, which cook your food using a single heating element at the top or bottom of the machine, air fryers are essentially countertop convection ovens that cook your food from all angles using a heating element and powerful fan. Some air fryrs are bare-bones convection ovens, while others come with extra bells and whistles that allow you to dehydrate food or proof baked goods.
We've tested more than two dozen air fryers over the years to determine which models are the best on the market at any given time. If you’re looking for the best air fryer for your kitchen, this guide can help you determine which style air fryer is right for you, so you can get cooking.
How Do Air Fryers Work?
Air fryers are essentially countertop convection ovens. Convection cooking allows you to cook food quickly and evenly in less time than a traditional oven or toaster oven. A heating element and powerful fan are set within the cooking chamber. Together, they circulate hot air around the food set in a basket. The basket allows air to flow all over the food, making it extra crispy — kind of like how oil surrounds your food during deep frying.
What's the Difference Between Air Fryer Styles?
Air fryers come in three main styles: basket style, dual-basket style, and air fryer toaster ovens.
Are Air Fryers Healthy?
While an air fryer can certainly be a healthier alternative to deep-frying foods, simply using an air fryer to make a recipe does not make it healthier. "A major misconception is that pre-fried items (such as bagged frozen chicken nuggets or fish sticks) are somehow made healthier when prepared in an air fryer. Air frying is certainly a great way to prepare these frozen foods to crispy perfection, but these types of foods are no healthier than when prepared in a conventional oven," says Food Network's health and nutrition consultant Dana White, MS, RD, ATC.
Photo by: Amanda Neal
Amanda Neal
What to Consider Before You Buy an Air Fryer
How We Tested
The best air fryers cook food quickly and evenly and produce a crispy outer crust when using the air fry function. We evaluated the functions of each air fryer by making frozen, store-bought French fries, bone-in, skin-on chicken breast and yellow cake from a mix to determine if the machine browned food well on the outside by the time it cooked inside and produced crispy texture on the outside. The best air fryers cook food quickly and evenly, and have powerful heating elements that mimic a traditional oven.
We tested how easy the controls were to use, too, eschewing clunky manual dials and machines that don’t pause themselves in favor of digital displays/buttons that were simple to set and air fryers that paused cooking when you opened the baskets to check your food. Additional functions, how much noise the air fryers made, and how cumbersome they were to use were also measured as tiebreakers to pick the best machines.
We also checked how easy it was to clean each air fryer by hand and using a dishwasher on dishwasher-safe parts. Starting with a clean air fryer each time you cook is extremely important to avoid smoking during cooking and to ensure the best air flow possible.
Best Overall: Instant Vortex 6-Quart Air Fryer
Amazon
We already love the Instant Pot, so it's no surprise that Instant Brands churned out another winning product with the Instant Vortex. During our tests, we found this air fryer cooked with more power than the others, delivering crispy, evenly cooked food every time. That said, we did notice a whirring sound while it works, although, it's no louder than a microwave. We also love the size. The 6-quart capacity is large enough to hold a whole pound of chicken. The interface on the Instant Vortex is also very user-friendly with a touchscreen for pre-programmed settings and a dial that can up the temp in 5-degree incriments. It also has a sleek angular look that you won't mind seeing on your countertop every day.
$99 | Amazon (reg. $120) $99 | WalmartAnother Top Pick: Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart Air Fryer
Amazon
If you're looking for a powerful air fryer and insist on a dehydrate function, the Instant Vortex Plus is for you. Like our favorite Instant Vortex, the Plus model is designed with a roomy basket and a sleek exterior. The interface on the Instant Vortex Plus is also very user-friendly with a touchscreen for pre-programmed settings and a dial that can up the temp in 5-degree incriments. We found the dehydrate function perfectly dried fresh strawberries and we could see it working well on other produce. The one downside of the model is the broil function, which is preset at 400 degrees F for 2 minutes. We tested out broiling mac and cheese topped with extra cheese and breadcrumbs and found that neither browned particularly well.
$75 | Amazon (reg. $160) $106 | Walmart (reg. $130)Best Value: COSORI Pro Air Fryer Oven Combo
$119.99
Amazon
If you want to get the most functionality out of a basket style air fryer, the Cosori Pro is for you. The Cosori Pro comes with 13 cooking functions to choose from — the most we've seen on a basket style air fryer. Each function acts as a pre-set for different kinds of food including fish, chickn, veggies, bread and more. Plus, this air fryer doesn't skimp on space. You can fry a large batch of perfectly golden French fries or bake an 8-inch round cake in the basket, which is the largest cake pan we could fit in a basket style air fryer. The basket is also completely removable making this machine very easy to clean.
$120 | AmazonBest Air Fryer Toaster Oven: Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer
Amazon
This is a mid-size to small machine with a digital interface. It’s an intuitive machine with 11 preset functions including air fry, slow cook, roast, broil, bake, cookies, pizza, toast, bagel, reheat and warm. The rack levels are printed right on the door for ease of use. This model does a preheat cycle for most settings which is an additional step and takes a few extra minutes, but it adds a level of precision in the cooking not seen in many of the other machines. This did every task perfectly and in a short amount of time. It has a spring-loaded door, which takes a minute to get used to, but then is a nice feature. Comes with a 13-inch nonstick pizza tray, wire rack, broiling rack, 11 x 13 enamel roasting pan, air fry basket and crumb tray and has additional accessories for purchase: bamboo cutting board, pizza stone and pizza crisper pan. The oven will also fit casserole dishes and a quarter sheet pan which gives it versatility to cook many things. It also comes in several finishes so can really be purchased to match your kitchen and décor.
Shop More Air Fryer Toaster Ovens
$350 | Amazon $350 | Williams SonomaBest Dual Basket Air Fryer: Ninja Foodi 8-Quart DualZone Air Fryer
$199.99
Amazon
If you’re already an air fryer convert then you know how diverse they are — perhaps it’s time to take it to the next level. Enter the slim-profiled Ninja Foodi with its double 4-quart baskets. Take advantage of Foodi’s Smart Finish feature: finish two different foods cooking at different times and temps at the same time — think chicken breasts and French fries (they did great in our tests). Or the Match Cook setting for larger amounts of the same food or cook different foods using the same function, temperature and time. The Foodi also dehydrates in addition to broil, bake and roast.
$175 | Amazon (reg. $200)Best Mid-Size Air Fryer: Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer
Amazon
This model is sturdy, compact and feels like it’s made of quality materials, a boon when a lot of air fryer models can feel like they’re made of flimsy plastic that gets too hot to touch. At four quarts, this model is the ideal size for cooking for two people and cooked all the foods we tested to a beautiful golden brown and with crisp texture. Its handy, multi-function display gives it a more functional appearance than that of a futuristic robot. Plus, you can dehydrate with this model, which slows the heated air that circulates around the food so it gradually dries out kale, apple slices and more for healthy fruit and veggie chips and other dehydrated foods.
$85 | Amazon (reg. $130)Best Small Air Fryer: Dash Compact Air Fryer
$49.99
Amazon
While most air fryer models have a nearly 6-quart capacity, this model can only hold half that, making it ideal for cooking for one. Its tiny footprint also means it takes up less room on your counter and fits perfectly in a dorm room, apartment or RV. And the smaller heating volume browned the fries, chicken and cake we tested in it just as well as the Instant Vortex.