The best air fryer is a revolutionary bit of cooking tech that has completely take over most kitchens. It's a (very) small oven that allows you to cook meals quickly and healthily, as they use little to no oil to create crispy, delicious results. Essentially, they're easy to use, versatile, and great fun to cook with.
Do air fryers really fry? Not really, and air-fried food doesn’t usually taste the same as food cooked in a deep fat fryer, despite some advertising claims. That’s because they aren’t fryers at all. They’re scaled-down versions of the fan ovens you'll find in our guide to the best ovens. However, an air fryer is still worth a purchase, especially if you have limited space, you're not a confident cook or you're trying to save money on your monthly bills.
Whether you're an air fryer newbie or are obsessed with the mini-ovens, here are the very best air fryers you can buy today.
Best air fryers 2024 ranking
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Granted, the Tower 10-in-1 Air Fryer Xpress Pro Combo might not be the absolute cheapest of the cheap. But, this great value appliance is brilliant because it can do so many other things, hence the 10-in-1 status. So, it'll air fry your chips well enough - though we found this took practice to get just right, but the Tower of power does all sorts and offers 11 litres of cooking space into the bargain.
Naturally, the unit has to potential to cook food more healthily, up to 99% less fat in fact. However, the varied cooking options make it a standout, including the ability to rotisserie meat including a whole chicken if you need to. Kebabs, chargrilling and even lighter heat baking can be dine onside this touch-enabled appliance.
The Tower 10-in-1 Air Fryer Xpress Pro Combo comes with 7 cooking accessories, including a rotisserie rack, rotating kebab skewers and a multi-function wire rack. There's a 3-tier cooking system too, which effectively allows you to cook three different meals all at the same time. You also enjoy the benefit of some dishwasher safe parts that mean less time scrubbing up afterwards.
Read our full Tower 10-in-1 Air Fryer Xpress Pro Combo review for more details
Although it shares a very similar skill set as the Instant Pot Duo Crisp & Air Fryer above, the 11-in-1 Ninja Foodi goes a step further by being able to air fry without needing a change of lids. It's also got a steam fry function, which is inarguably the very best way to cook a small 2kg chicken or up to five drumsticks to succulent perfection and with the crispiest skin you’ve ever tasted. Simply pour 125ml of water into the main pot, fill the crisper basket with chicken, select Steam Air Fry and retreat for 25 minutes. Job done.
The Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 has a 6-litre capacity (6.34 quartz in American measures), which is an ideal size for soloists, couples and one-child families. Its three main cooking modes – pressure cooking, combo-steam and air fry – are selected by moving the ‘SmartLid Slider’ from left to right, and each main mode is subdivided into various cooking methods like steam air fry, standard air fry, steam bake, grill, sear, steam, slow cook and standard pressure cooking.
The Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 SmartLid is not only one of the best looking multicookers on the market, it’s also one of the most multi-talented models you can buy, period. Highly recommended.
Read our full Ninja Foodi Smartlid OL550UK review for more details.
Instant Vortex is the air fryer spin-off of Instant Pot. The chunky lines of its flagship Air Fryer let you know that it means business, backed up by a very generous 5.7 litre capacity. The design is wonderfully simple and needs very little in the way of manual input, especially if you're going for the one-touch settings. The 1700 watts of power means the appliance can take on fries with ease, but the size and adaptable heat settings makes the Instant Vortex Air Fryer great for other mealtime offerings too.
Indeed, choose from the likes of Air Fry, Roast, Bake and Reheat and you can cover most bases with this versatile gadget. If you spend some time familiarising yourself with the manual controls the Instant Vortex Air Fryer is actually very adept at baking. So then, this is a brilliant machine that can not only turn out the main course but it'll tackle dessert too. A quick and easy to clean design adds extra appeal.
Read our full Instant Vortex Air Fryer review for more details.
While there are certainly air fryers that do more, and more affordable ones, if you have the money this is still the best 'air fryer that only air fries' you can buy. Given that it does essentially the same thing as Tower's air fryers but costs 4-5 times as much, you need to feel assured you're getting your money's worth this upmarket Philips model. Well, thanks to its excellent build quality, good looks, fast and even cooking and deliciously crisp results, we'd say you can feel thoroughly reassured on that score.
Philips Airfryer XXL packs a lot into an admittedly sizeable package in order to accommodate anyone who needs to cook on a big scale thanks to a wide basket that can handle, for example, a whole chicken. There are a handful of preset modes so you can air fry, grill, roast, bake and dehydrate foodstuffs or take the manual route and choose from heat settings anywhere between 40°C and 200°C. A lack of accessories is a disappointment but the ability of the Philips Airfryer XXL to cook food quickly and efficiently cannot be faulted.
Top marks also go to the digital display too, which works exquisitely and, thanks to simple-but-effective icons such as meat and fish, means it’s pretty hard to mess things up. Aside from the main electrical unit the Philips Airfryer XXL is dishwasher-friendly too. We loved this so much, we gave it a T3 Award two years running.
Please note: in the UK, this is technically called model HD9650/99. The version in the USA seems to be slightly different and is called HD9630/96 Airfryer XXL as far as we can tell.
Read our full Philips Airfryer XXL review for more details.
First up, it's great to know the Tower T17021 Family Size Air Fryer comes with a brilliant pedigree. Tower sells the most air fryers in the UK and the brand has been around for a long time, so this appliance is off to a solid start. However, it's the value for money delivered by this air fryer that really sets it apart.
For very little outlay you get an air fryer that is wonderfully easy to use, thanks to a simple dial-based interface but one that can cook food brilliantly. The 1500 watts of power gets the heat right up to 200 degrees if needed, while the circulation inside the food container seems perfect for producing mega crispy fries. In fact, you can chuck just about anything in it to air fry, using manual intervention if you like to tweak as you go.
Being a family-friendly machine means 4.3 litres of cooking container to fill, which is more than enough for most. Granted, it's not dishwasher-friendly but the design is actually a doddle to clean. Add it all together and you've got a surprise hit, for a bargain price. What more does anyone want from a basic air fryer?
Read our full Tower Family Size Air Fryer review for more details.
As well as turning out your classic air-fried staples – ie: chips, chicken and salmon – this actually doubles as a slightly Instant Pot-like cooker for 'wet' meals such as curries, stews and casseroles. It may look a little complicated at first glance but it's actually very intuitive.
With a glass dome so you can see what's cookin' and a handy little spatula/paddle thing that turns around inside to stir food, so you don't have to, it's something of a joy to use. If your kitchen is cramped you might struggle to find storage space for this hefty beast but when something is this useful and effective, why store it away anyhow?
Read our full Tefal Actifry Genius XL 2in1 review for more details.
As air fryers have taken over the kitchen, it only makes sense that they've started to get bigger... and bigger... and BIGGER! Case in point: the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer which has a massive 10.4-litre capacity and dual-zone cooking for multiple meals at a time.
For people who like batch cooking, the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer is a game changer. Unsurprisingly, the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer is absolutely massive so you'll need a good amount of storage space or room on your counter to display it. Having said that, it's got a sleek black and silver design and an easy-to-use button and touchscreen panel display.
The best thing about the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer is its different compartments. It comes with a divider which transforms the main compartment from DualZone to MegaZone. This allows the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer to cook two types of foods in two ways with two independent cooking zones using DualZone technology. When you remove the divider, the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer becomes an extra large drawer which can cook for up to eight people at a time.
Read our full Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer review for more details.
If you're looking for the best cheap model then, for us, the Wilko 4L Air Fryer is currently pick of the crop. It might have an entry-level price tag but this appliance can air fry a treat. There's a generous 4 litre capacity, which is ideal for family meals if we're talking fries and a brilliant no-nonsense design. A pair of simple dials allow you to set heat and time settings, a power light and a blue indicator to show optimum operating heat and that's it.
The Wilko 4L Air Fryer packs in 1400 watts of power, so it's more than capable of cooking up chips, chicken wings and spring rolls like any other rival. And, because it's got that sizeable capacity you can probably squeeze a few other things in there too. As befits the best air fryer design, there's a grill in the bottom of the pan that you site food on top of. Oil and grease then drips into the pan for disposal. It's wonderfully simply and brilliant for the money.
Read our full Wilko 4L Air Fryer review for more details.
The Ninja Foodi Dual Zone Air Fryer is a neat variation on the theme because it comes with twin cooking compartments. This allows you to an entire meal in one go by taking care of, say, fries in one side and a juicy salmon fillet in the other. You can mix and match the arrangement to suit your tastes and hunger pangs. There are presets if you want to take the easy route, or the machine can be manually configured to cook things just as you like them.
There's plenty of heat, more than enough power and the usual performance that we've come to expect from the Ninja brand. The appliance is quite bulky to allow for the 7.6 litre capacity of the two compartments. However, the way that you can bung everything into the one appliance more than makes up for that, especially if you're always pushed for time in the kitchen. As usual with Ninja, the finish of the Foodi Dual Zone is very plush, and this air fryer is heavily promoted on Food TV channels with 'proper' chefs using it to make great meals. However, the fact you can cook twice the normal amount of fries is probably an equally big selling point for many.
Read our full Ninja Foodi Dual Zone Air Fryer review for more details and if you want this air fryer to be even bigger, take a look at our Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer review.
If you’re worried about your energy costs as much as your waistline the Tefal EasyFry Grill & Steam healthy fryer is a sound investment. This kitchen appliance allows you to bypass your regular oven, ditch the need to fry anything and lets you do everything inside one mini oven.
Power-wise, the Tefal EasyFry Grill & Steam healthy fryer is 1700Watts while the one-touch presets let you tackle fries, nuggets, roast chicken, fish and more. Cooking functions include Air Fry, Grill, Steam, Rotisserie, Dehydrate and there’s a Manual setting too.
These preset programs make it a doddle to use while it gets the job done super efficiently. Cleaning the Tefal EasyFry Grill & Steam healthy fryer is similarly easy and there’s a supporting app that guides you every step of the way if you’re stuck for inspiration. If you can find one discounted it’s even better value.
Read our full Tefal EasyFry Grill & Steam review for more details.
Go big or go home, right?! Well with the Breville Halo XL 9L Air Fryer, big is what you get. With a whopping 9-litre capacity, this air fryer from Breville has oodles of space although it can all be found in a single basket. Not to worry though, as the Breville Halo XL 9L Air Fryer makes huge batches of food for the entire family, and it does it while looking pretty good, too.
The LED controls and touchscreen of the Breville Halo XL 9L Air Fryer are easy to use and customise. You can fry, bake, grill and roast with ease and, considering its capacity, the Breville Halo doesn’t feel too intrusive in your kitchen.
Read our full Breville Halo XL 9L Air Fryer review for more details.
The Instant Vortex Mini 4-in-1 is a very decent little all-rounder, with enough basic features and functions to keep most small kitchens ticking over. The real benefit though, is its small size, which makes it perfect for anyone who is struggling for countertop space. The compact nature of the appliance does make it less appealing to anyone with more mouths to feed, but if you’re eating solo or as a couple it’ll do just fine.
Air frying and roasting are its two core skills and, interestingly, the settings stay the same each time you use it, which is great if you make chips on auto pilot. It’s also nice to have the bake feature, which has seen a little action making bread rolls for me and that reheat option is useful for warming up dinner leftovers for lunch. All in all, the Instant Vortex Mini 4-in-1 is a cracking little thing, which is good value too.
Read our full Instant Vortex Mini 4-in1 Air Fryer review for more details.
The Sage the Combi Wave 3 in 1 is a beefy appliance but for good reason. Alongside its solid credentials for producing air fried food this model can turn its hand to a raft of varied cooking tasks. Choose from mealtime cooking options that include Fast Combi, From Frozen, Air Fry, Oven and Microwave from the sizeable onboard settings menu. Or set up everything using manual control. What's more, you can pick additional settings such as Grill, Keep Warm, Melt Chocolate and Soften Butter.
Sage has done a fab job with the design, with a delicious stainless steel exterior along with innards to match. It's cavernous too, with 25 litres of space to cook anything and everything in. You'll need to find space to accommodate it, but the trade off is you get a multi-purpose device that cooks great air fried meals and can also tackle plenty of other options too.
Read our full Sage the Combi Wave 3 in 1 review for more details.
Ninja’s AF100UK Air Fryer immediately impresses as you take it out of the box due to its more compact size and lighter weight. It’s not the smallest air fryer on the market, but if you’re stuck for space this model is perfect. Better still, the container you cook your food in is nicely made, with an extremely durable ceramic-coated crisper plate insert that you rest food on for more consistent results. Apart from the main unit, everything is dishwasher-friendly.
Results-wise, the Ninja AF100UK Air Fryer is capable on all fronts, so it naturally does perfect air fry chips but can roast, reheat and dehydrate too. You can cook using presets or manually across the whole heat spectrum, as well as benefitting from two fan speeds when needed.
Read our full Ninja AF100UK Air Fryer review for more details.
How to choose the best air fryer for you
What is an air fryer? Well, it is essentially a very small fan oven. When seeking out the best air fryer for you, you’re going to be looking for the same things you look for in any kitchen appliance. First off: capacity. The size of the machine you buy will depend on the size of your family and the size of your kitchen, and the last thing you want to do is end up with a huge appliance that’s cumbersome and far too big to use for just you and your partner.
Of course, the bigger you go, the more options you get, with some allowing you to fry multiple food items at a time, or even doubling up as other appliances such as steamers and grills. One of the other major advantages of air fryers compared to deep fat fryers is that they are much less hassle to clean and low maintenance in general. Look out for models with dishwasher safe parts and intuitive controls which allow you to vary the temperature for cooking to perfection. Take a look at our invaluable advice on cleaning your air fryer too.
How we test air fryers
To review the best air fryers, we call in the latest and greatest models and take them through vigorous testing for at least four weeks. We'll look at everything from unboxing and set-up to the design and features, and most importantly: how well they cook.
Other aspects of air fryers we'll look at include the controls, how easy they are to clean, how much money they cost when in use, if they make excessive noise, and much more. We'll also cook many different foods within the air fryer but will make sure to cook meals that people most commonly associated with air fryers, like chips and chicken.
Once we've tested the best air fryers, we write and publish a review and if we think it's worthy, we'll add it to our main guide. If we're lucky enough to keep the air fryer in question, we'll continue to test it and update the review accordingly when we find out new positives or negatives that we find.
To find out more, see how we test at T3 for more.
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