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Air fryers have quickly become a go-to kitchen gadget, letting you whip up everything from crunchy fries to golden brown chicken using much less oil than traditional methods — sometimes just a drizzle of olive oil is all you need. The best air fryers in 2025 come from trusted air fryer brands and offer handy extras like digital presets, dual baskets and easy cleanup with accessories like parchment paper. Our current favorite is the Instant Vortex Plus air fryer, but there are a number of others we like that may better suit your lifestyle. Whether you're cooking for one or feeding the whole family, these air fryers deliver fast, tasty results without the mess.
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What does an air fryer do?
Let’s clear one thing up first: it’s not frying. Not really. Air fryers are more like smaller convection bake ovens, ones that are often pod-shaped. Most work by combining a heating element and fan, which means the hot air can usually better crisp the outside of food than other methods. They often reach higher top temperatures than toaster ovens – which is part of the appeal.
For most recipes, a thin layer of oil (usually sprayed) helps to replicate that fried look and feel better. However, it will rarely taste precisely like the deep-fried or pan frying version when it comes out of the air fryer basket. Don’t let that put you off, though, because the air fryer, in its many forms, combines some of the best parts of other cooking processes and brings them together into an energy-efficient way of air fryer cooking dinner. Or breakfast. Or lunch.
Read more: We’ve also rounded up the best pizza ovens and the best sous vide machines.
Best air fryers for 2025
Instant Pot Best air fryer overall Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart Air Fryer Capacity: 6-quart | Type: Pod-shaped | Cooking functions: Fry, roast, broil, bake, reheat, dehydrate | Weight: 16.19 lb | Power consumption: 1700W | Depth: 14.92” | Height: 12.83” | Width: 12.36” | Features: See-through window, odor control filter, EvenCrisp technology, fast preheating You probably know the “Instant” brand from the line of very popular Instant Pot pressure cookers, but did you know that the company makes great air fryers too? We’re especially impressed by the Instant Vortex Plus with ClearCook and OdorErase, which features a clear viewing window so you can see the air fryer basket while your food is cooking, plus an odor-removing filter. In our testing, we found that it didn’t completely eliminate smells, so if you’re whipping up an air fryer salmon it might be obvious, but it seemed significantly less smoky when compared to our Breville Smart Oven Air. We love its ease of use, intuitive controls, the easy-to-clean nonstick drawer basket, plus the roomy interior – it’s big enough to fit four chicken thighs. Plus, this top pick heats up very quickly with virtually no preheating time. A slightly more affordable option is its predecessor, the Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart. It lacks the viewing window and the odor-removing filters, but it still has the same intuitive control panel and roomy nonstick interior, so you can easily cook a chicken breast or smaller meals from your favorite cookbooks. If you want an even bigger option, Instant also offers Instant Vortex Plus in a 10-quart model that has a viewing window and a rotisserie feature. Pros ClearCook window lets you see your food as it cooks
Intuitive controls
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