The 12 best air fryers in 2025 for fast, effortless cooking, tried and tested with expert advice

We put air fryers in the hot seat, testing them for ease of use, consistent results, speed and cost-efficiency. Copy link. twitter. facebook. whatsapp. The best air fryers don’t just fry your food to perfection. Nowadays, the top-rated kitchen gadgets will grill, bake, reheat, dehydrate and roast your food. So it’s not hard to see why these inexpensive appliances, which work by circulating hot air in a basket, have risen in favour since they first burst onto the cooking scene around 10 years ago.

“Air fryers have soared in popularity due in part to their healthier cooking, convenience and versatility when it comes to sorting out your tea,” explains Izzy Forgione, small appliances expert at AO. “Air fryers also tend to cook food faster than your oven. This is largely down to their compact size and hot air circulation, which makes them ideal for busy households, or if you’re making a small snack.”.

The good news is that in 2025, air fryers aren’t hard to come by. Brands like Philips, Tefal and Tower offer these energy-saving appliances in a range of sizes and styles. The best-known brand, Ninja, seemingly has an air fryer for every type of cook (and kitchen). We’ve tested all the latest models from each of these brands, among others. You can read our full reviews below, followed by the answers to some frequently asked questions. But if you’re in a hurry, here’s a quick look at our top five:.

“Single drawer air fryers are the most common and straightforward as they utilise a single cooking basket,” explains small appliance expert Forgione. “Dual air fryers are the next step up, with two separate drawers allowing you to cook two meals simultaneously at different temperatures and times.”. But air fryers don’t stop there. Some now include a rotisserie, enabling them to cook whole chickens in time for the Sunday roast. “There are also some air fryer ovens that mimic mini ovens and allow you to bake or grill your food,” Forgione says. And then there are multicookers, which, along with cooking food under timed conditions, can air fry too.

Forgione recommends keeping things simple: if you’re feeding a crowd, a dual air fryer with a large capacity is best. While if you’re looking for versatility, it’s worth considering options with other cooking features, like a grill or rotisserie. For energy-saving options, look for air fryers that come with a lower wattage. Our thorough, real-world tests will always help you find the best product at the best price. No manufacturer ever sees copy before publication and we do not accept payment in exchange for favourable reviews. Visit our Who We Are page to learn more.

We test air fryers by looking at the design, ease of operation, variety of programmes, quality of results and ease of cleaning and maintenance, rating each of these out of 10 to give an overall score. For this guide, we cooked the same food (frozen chips, fish fingers, chicken and veg) in each air fryer. To keep things fair, we used a small amount of olive oil poured from a pre-portioned scoop to cook the roasted veg and chicken. Where possible, we also tried to use the same brand of chips and fish fingers.

After assessing how evenly the air fryer cooked the food and taking into consideration the price, here’s how they compare with each other, starting with our favourite…. £208.98, Ninja. Best overall, 8/10. We like: the ‘FlexDrawer’, which allows you to cook one or multiple items. We don’t like: the large basket can feel cumbersome. In a lot of ways, Ninja’s Foodi FlexDrawer Dual Air Fryer looks similar to the Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer that we’ve listed further down in this guide. But this option gives you the best of both worlds.

As its name suggests, this model is versatile. The handy FlexDrawer feature means you don’t have to decide at point of purchase whether you want a single-drawer or double-drawer design. Instead, by removing or inserting a divider, you can enjoy both. With a total capacity of 10.4 litres, the ‘megazone’ is ample space for a whole chicken or heap of roasted veg, while the divider means you can cook two of your favourite things in each 5.2-litre drawer.

It’s worth flagging that most Ninjas come with cooking presets instead of cooking programmes. This means you’ll have to use the food packaging as guidance on how long to cook things and simply up the temperature and/or time. But that’s not a deal breaker. I found the ‘Max Crisp’ best for cooking frozen fries and fish fingers, while the ‘Air Fry’ mode worked wonders for chicken and the ‘roast’ preset helped me cook veg in no time.

Like many other dual air fryers, this gadget can also ‘sync’ and ‘match’ each basket, which makes plating up meals at the same time easy. The only real stumbling block I came across was when washing the large drawer. Even when only using one of the baskets, you’ll still end up cleaning two. And if you have a small sink, this might prove too chunky. Apart from the clean-up process, I think this Ninja is as good as it gets.