Whether youre looking to make fast, fluffy fries or quick crispy bacon, both air fryers and deep fat fryers are great options. The deep fat fryer is a classic, delivering on familiar taste and texture. Air fryers are becoming increasingly popular, establishing themselves as a kitchen staple.
After extensive research and testing, our expert team has the professional advice to guide you to an informed decision. We've tested the best air fryers on the market. After comparing these products to a classic deep fat fryer, we can give a fair verdict on which youll want to have in your kitchen.
When it comes down to it, an air fryer is better than a deep fat fryer. However, there's a lot to consider before you choose. We've compared both appliances on price, space, and taste to tell you what you need to know before you buy.
Today's best air fryer and deep far fryer deals
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Deep fat fryers heat oil to high temperatures. Once the oil is hot, you plunge your food into the oil, turning it to get an even fry. The cooking itself is quick, but make sure to account for time to heat and cool the oil before and after. Bear in mind that youll need to stay by the fryer the whole time that your food is cooking, too.
Air fryers work with little to no oil. They are smaller machines which rapidly circulate hot air around a basket container to cook your food. The cooking takes a little longer, but it can produce results which have a comparable taste and a similar texture. You wont need to stay near the appliance, because they often have paddles to keep food moving while it cooks. If they dont, the most itll need is a shake or mix half way through.
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Results
WINNER: It's a tie
To start, air fryers will only cook battered foods if they're frozen, like breaded chicken or fish. If you want to make food with wet batter like churros, youll need a deep fat fryer. Having tried frozen food, vegetables, and the benchmark for all frying fries, we were pleased with the results of both appliances.
Our team felt that deep frying gave the perfect results, as expected. However, Millie, our air fryer expert, preferred the taste of her air fryer's food. She told us that tthe air fryer and deep fryer produced food which was shockingly similar in taste. The main difference was, when deep-frying, I wasnt able to season my fries until after I had cooked them, which meant that the air fried plate was more flavorful. You could say that the flavors were baked right in during the cooking process.
If there isnt much difference in the way of taste, air fryers might win overall, since they have a lower fat content. However, if you want to make churros, youll need a deep fat fryer.
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Cleaning up
WINNER: Air fryer
A common grievance with deep-fryers is the clear-up process. Oil is tough to clean and, when hot, the fryer will likely spit oil onto your surfaces. Your food will have oil sitting on it after cooking, so youll want some kitchen roll to soak that up.
Once finished with frying, youll need to wait for the oil in your deep fat fryer to cool before either disposing of it, or storing it somewhere. The most common solution is to let your oil cool, pour it into a nonrecyclable container and either keep it, or put it in the garbage. Oil also has a lingering smell, so make sure you ventilate your kitchen.
On the whole, air fryers are easy to clean. They come with removable baskets which are often dishwasher safe. There isnt much oil involved in the process, so it doesnt get as messy as deep frying.
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Cost
WINNER: deep fat fryer
Air fryers tend to have a higher upfront cost than deep fat fryers. You can buy ovens with integrated air fryers if you are looking for value. We love the Instant Pot Duo Crisp with Ultimate Lid for covering multiple functions in one. Deep fryers tend to be less expensive, however, youll need to replace the oil in the deep fryer regularly. An example of a comparable deep fat fryer is the Progress EK2969P Compact Deep Fat Fryer (opens in new tab). Its small and easy to store.
Instant Pot Duo Crisp with Ultimate Lid
We love this because it's so much more than an air fryer. It performed exceptionally, was easy to clean, and had capacity for everything from roast chickens to mash potatoes. We loved that this has 11 different functions, so is an appliance that can do more than air fry.
Progress EK2969P Compact Deep Fat Fryer
Millie, our expert, liked it because it's a competitive size in comparison to air fryers. It's easy to store and doesn't need a huge amount of oil.However, because it is small, the capacity isn't particularly large, so it is really a single-person appliance.
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Size and look
WINNER: air fryer
As air fryers continue to improve, they are getting smaller, more storable, and much slicker. If you want to pack it into a drawer, the Ninja Max XL Air Fryer is a brilliant option. Equally, our team loved the look of Beautiful by Drew Barrymore Touchscreen Air Fryer to leave on your countertop. Deep fryers have less of an aesthetic appeal, but you can buy small ones and stow them away in a cupboard.
The Ninja Max XL Air Fryer can crisp up fries in minutes and is perfectly sized for small households, but its plastic finish lacks refinement
Beautiful 6-Quart Digital Air Fryer
The Beautiful 6-Quart Digital Air Fryer stands out thanks to its attractive design, which will look right at home in any contemporary kitchen.
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Our verdict
For me, the air fryer is the clear winner. Even though the upfront cost can be a little more, its easier to store, clean, and use. The taste test really helps the air fryer sit in the top spot for me; its a healthier option, without compromising on flavor or texture. However, if you are looking to make churros and battered food, youll need to buy a deep fryer.
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How we test
We like all of our products to have been fried-and-tested, so we make sure that we have personally used an appliance before reviewing it. Where we haven't tried it, we research and read reviews thoroughly.
We were unable to try a deep fryer, but, luckily, Millie had already tested the T-Fal Actifry Genius + (alongside many others) against a Progress EK2969P Compact Deep Fat Fryer.
When testing, Millie was assessing each appliance on a number of factors:
Noise: Lots of noise doesn't always equate to lots of power and can make it hard to do other things around the house.
Speed: Deep fryers are quicker in cooking time, so it was important to look at how long these appliances would take exactly. Fries would take around 25 minutes in the air fryer, but some on our best air fryer list took 12 minutes.
Looks: These are often on your countertops, so we wanted to make sure that we accounted for how these look. In our roundup, we highlighted the less attractive features, if there were any.
Cleaning: Cleaning an air fryer is advertised as easy. Most baskets can do in the dishwasher. This was a key factor for choosing the air fryer over the deep fryer, so we scrutinised cleaning.
For more insight, our review guidelines explain more about our product review process.
For the most part, yes. Our expert tester, Millie Fender, told us that her partner couldnt tell the difference between most of the foods which she tested in the air fryer and deep fryer. However, if youre being picky, and looking for that guilty-pleasure grease, youll need a deep fat fryer.
That depends on what health means to you. Air fryers are praised for using less oil to cook your food. For example, rather than plunging fries into a deep fat fryer, you will use a tablespoon, at most, of oil in an air fryer. This means that the fat content of your food will be reduced. This is considered to be generally healthier, but that doesnt apply to all people.
Yes, but not homemade batter. You can make bacon, fries, vegetables, and heat up frozen battered food like chicken and fish or fish. However, the air fryer cannot crisp up a wet batter like a deep fryer can.
In many instances, yes. As above, you can do most of the jobs of a deep fryer with an air fryer, including making competitively crispy and fluffy fries.
Air fryers take longer to cook your food. They can take up to twenty minutes where the deep fryer might only take two. That being said, the clean-up process is much faster with an air fryer.
Yes. If you have a deep pot or pan, some oil, and a slotted spoon you can use your home equipment as a fryer. This is a good option for saving on space too.
Vegetable oil, canola oil, and peanut oil are the most popular options. They have a higher smoke point, so are the best oils to use.
People tend to recommend that you change the oil after eight to ten uses. The color and quality of the oil will affect the taste, so it depends how sensitive you are to flavor.
There are lots of benefits to both appliances and you can use them to make some great meals and snacks. Deep fryers are classic and, in many ways, offer you more versatility in what you can fry. However, lots of air fryers are becoming integrated into other multi-cookers, which offer fantastic value for money. Think about space, taste, and price and you won't go wrong.
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Millie Fender is Head of Reviews. She specializes in cooking appliances and also reviews outdoor grills and pizza ovens. She was tasked with reviewing the market leading air fryers, so is our expert on the topic. When she's not putting air fryers, and other appliances, through their paces in our testing kitchen, she'll be using the products at home in her day-to-day life.
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Air Fryer vs Deep Fat Fryer: fried-and-tested by experts - Homes & Gardens