We tested 6 air fryers for a month — one clear winner
Same chicken, same fries, same kitchen. The results were not as close as the marketing suggests.
By Ren Okafor · 2026-05-19
Air fryers all claim crispy, fast and healthy. We cooked the same three foods in six of them to find out who actually delivers.
The winner wasn't the most expensive or the biggest — it was the one with even heat and a basket that didn't make you play Tetris with dinner.
How we judged
- Crispiness and evenness on fries
- Real preheat and cook times, not the box claims
- How annoying the basket is to clean
Bottom lineSkip the giant 'family' models unless you cook for a crowd. The mid-size winner was faster, easier and cheaper.