The best air fryer toaster oven of 2025

Air Fryer Chicken Wings

Chicken wings are almost universally loved and a very popular item for air frying. The goal for an air fried wing is crispy on the outside and the skin with a juicy inside. To test the air frying ability of each oven, I cooked three frozen wings in the fry mode at 450 F for 30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes. I let each oven fully preheat before putting the wings in and then photographed them right after they pulled them out. Naturally, I tasted them too, when they were cool enough to eat.

Success here depends on high heat and good fan circulation of that hot air, which means faster cooking. The faster an air fryer cooks and the more efficient the superconvection is, the faster the outer skin will be crispy, making it less likely that the chicken will be dry on the inside.

The Ninja Foodi oven won the big wing war by a feather, with the crispiest wings after 30 minutes. They were also perfectly juicy inside and had no real visible burning. The Cuisinart also nailed the wing test, but I had to pull them out after about 25 minutes because they were completely done. They also had some burnt skin, but not enough to bother me. The Breville and Crux also did well with good browning and crispy skin, while the KitchenAid finished sixth and the Calphalon seventh without enough browning or crisping for my taste.

Air Fryer French Fries

This second air fryer test was designed to illuminate the sheer power and speed of an individual oven’s air fryer function, but also its ability to cook evenly. I put a handful of frozen fries (McDonald’s style) on the air fryer at 450 F and timed how quickly each one reached that golden brown color we all crave. Because quick cooking and convenience are key features of the counter air fryer oven, faster equals better. All oven subjects (except the Cuisinart) reach the desired fineness eventually, but some accomplish the task much more quickly and consistently than others.

Breville won the frying test with perfectly golden fries in six minutes. I set the Ninja to a slightly lower temperature (390 F) for its manual, and in eight minutes I had perfect fries (a very close second place and probably would have won or tied if I had set it at 450 F). The KitchenAid also took eight minutes on 450 F, while the Crux took nine minutes to reach and the Calphalon took 12. The Cuisinart was actually the fastest at only three minutes, but it burned the edges of the chips and he has no uniform cook. At this point, I began to suspect that the Cuisinart has an unusually intense air fryer function, for better or worse.

Grilled salmon

To test the broiler, I brushed a 4-ounce salmon fillet with a mixture of mustard, olive oil and brown sugar. After the oven came to preheat, I snuck the salmon under the broiler about 2 inches from the top and left it there for four minutes before removing it from the oven for a photoshoot.

The key thing I was looking for here was how well each broiler deposited a caramelized crust on top of the fish. Some ovens, such as the Calphalon and the Cuisinart, showed almost no signs of browning, while the Ninja and the Breville gave a nice color and the beginnings of a good crust. I decided they would share the blue ribbon for this test. KitchenAid and Crux showed some burnout, landing in third and fourth place.

Old plain toast

This test was to see how accurate the toasting presets of a particular oven are and how fast it can toast. I stuck a slice of bread in each toaster and set it to medium. I did not weigh this test like the others because, in truth, any of these ovens will take you to the desired roasting, it may just take more (or less) time, a little tinkering or learning the presets to get it. as you wish.

How long each cooking time was for the “medium” preset in each oven varied significantly, ranging from more than six minutes for the Calphalon to just three and a half minutes for the Ninja. As it was, these two produced the most uniform and attractive toast that corresponds to the preset, but the Ninja (winner) did it in half the time. The Breville, KitchenAid, and Crux barely toasted bread when set to medium—which just means you should use a darker setting—while the Cuisinart toasted bread.

Baked cookies

Next, I wanted to see how accurately and consistently each oven could reach and maintain a temperature, and baking a cookie is a perfect test for that. I scooped a spherical scoop of Toll House cookie dough onto parchment paper and stuck one in each oven on the middle rack for the recommended time and temperature (350 F for 10 minutes).

The cookie race was a photo finish between Ninja and Breville, both of which produced near-perfect results. The Cuisinart cookie was overbaked, as was the Crux (albeit slightly), while the KitchenAid cookie was slightly underbaked.

Preheating test

Another great attraction to use a countertop oven over the large oven is the speed at which it preheats. During cookie baking, I timed each oven to see how fast it reached 350 F.

The Ninja Foodi blew everyone else away, preheating to 350F in a blazing 50 seconds. Most of the others clock in about three and a half minutes, while the larger Breville took five minutes to come up to temp. I haven’t done an official test for preheating the air fryer, but I noticed that the Calphalon took a lot longer than the others to reach 450 F in the air fryer.

Test accuracy and temperature consistency

This is one of the most important functions for any oven, especially if you plan to do light cooking in it. If an oven cannot maintain a precise and consistent temperature, it makes the following recipes much more difficult, and you will be forever adjusting and selling your food to ensure that it does not burn. I used thermocouples to read the internal temperature of the oven while baking for 10 minutes at 350 F. I was able to get an average temperature reading for the duration of the oven, but I also watched the thermometer in real time to see how. a lot of fluctuations happened during cooking.

The KitchenAid won this test with an average reading of 350 F on the nose and with very little fluctuation. The Ninja (343 F average temperature), Cuisinart (346 F) and Breville (345 F) also did well, although the Breville started very hot and then cooled down. The last two ranked were the Crux, which ran hot (365 F) and the Calpahlon, which ran cold (337 F). Both were also the most inconsistent in the entire bread.

Cleaning and care

Apart from the Ninja (more on this in a second), there is nothing particularly unusual about the care or cleaning of these ovens. They have standard box interiors of various sizes made from stainless steel that require regular scrubs and wipes. Each oven also has a removable, dishwasher safe tray to catch fallen chips and toasted bits.

Now back to the Ninja. Due to the compact interior, this oven is definitely more prone to splatter and stains, especially when cooking foods with fat and grease, such as wings. Fortunately, there’s a clever design feature that allows the entire floor of the Ninja oven to fold out, so you can just place it inside with a rag or a Brillo pad and wipe away. I’m sure the Ninja will require more frequent cleaning than the others. If it’s not something you’re diligent about, it’s definitely something to consider.