Air fryer toaster ovens have become one of the most ubiquitous kitchen appliances in the past few years, inspiring an entirely new category of air fryer recipes and air fryer cookbooks. But there’s only so much counter space in any kitchen, and the traditional pod-shaped air fryer sometimes competes for real estate next to your trusty toaster or toaster oven. The simple solution? Combine both appliances. The best air fryer toaster ovens give you the best of both worlds, able to toast, bake, broil, fry, and lots more in the same machine.
Benefits of a Toaster Oven with an Air Fryer
Versatility and Multifunctionality
A toaster oven air fryer is exactly what it sounds like – a combination of a toaster oven and an air fryer. This compact device can perform the functions of both appliances, offering the ability to toast bread, bake a small batch of cookies, and air fry a serving of crispy fries. Why does this combination matter? Well, aside from conserving kitchen space, there’s also the appeal of cost-effectiveness. Instead of investing in separate appliances, you’re spending money on a single device that covers multiple bases. Imagine wanting to make a simple breakfast of toast and eggs in the morning, bake a small lasagna for lunch, and make crispy, guilt-free fries for dinner.
Air fryer toaster ovens can toast, bake, air fry and more, and have more capacity than a standard air fryer. One of our testers used her air fryer toaster oven when making Thanksgiving dinner, giving her another space to heat up stuffing and macaroni and cheese while the turkey finished in her full-size oven. Our best overall pick has enough room to fit a 9-by-13 casserole dish. Another tester with a smaller household uses an air fryer toaster oven more than her full-size oven for weeknight dinner.
Space-Saving Design
Most air fryer toaster ovens are fairly large, so they take up more counter space than pod models and can be cumbersome to move around. But they can cook a 12- or 13-inch pizza, bake a 9-inch cake, or roast a whole chicken (we eliminated any models that were too squat to fit a whole chicken). The Ninja Foodi Digital Air Fry Countertop Oven is the best compact air fryer toaster oven because it has a low-profile design, allowing it to fit tight spaces. You can even store it vertically to save counter space. Despite its small size, it can accommodate the largest pizza (13 inches) of my top air fryer toaster oven combo picks.
Healthier Cooking Options
Air fryers circulate hot air to cook food, reducing the need for excessive oil. This means you get to enjoy your favourite ‘fried’ dishes with significantly less fat, making them a healthier option. Along with all these elements associated with traditional ovens and toasters, some Toaster Ovens also feature an air fryer setting, which circulates hot air to mimic the effects of deep frying, while only using a fraction of the fat. Imagine, your favorite chicken tenders, with none of the guilt of eating fast food
Energy Efficiency
Toaster oven and air fryer settings actually work faster and more cost-effectively than a typical oven, so you’ll also be saving time and money while you grow your menu. because they heat up faster and maintain temperature more effectively. This results in less energy consumption and potentially lower utility bills. Air fryers have been found to use significantly less power than convection ovens, making them more cost-effective in the long run for energy-conscious individuals.
Performance and Cooking Quality
Even Cooking and Crisping
Heats evenly: Several factors play a role in how evenly food cooks in an air fryer toaster oven, including how far the food is from the heating elements, the number of elements used, the placement of the elements inside the oven, and the size and strength of the convection fan. The best models, including our picks, allow you to control the convection-fan speed or turn it off altogether—a key benefit that the pod-shaped versions don’t offer. Turning off the powerful fan yields better results when you need more gentle, even heat, such as when you’re baking a cake.
Our favorite air fryer toaster oven is the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro. It was exceptionally easy to use, air-fried crispy, crunchy wings and fries, and can cook larger foods like roast chicken. It also performed well with tasks that required gentler baking or roasting. The oven made a beautifully golden-brown roasted chicken and evenly baked cookies. It also toasted almost as evenly as the Cuisinart Chef’s Convection Toaster Oven TOB-260N1, our runner-up pick in this guide and a top pick in our guide to toaster ovens.
Testing Results
We made more than 100 pieces of toast, 10 pounds of fries, 50 cookies and 20 pieces of chicken to find our favorite air fryer toaster ovens. We evaluated each ovens performance based on a number of tests. First, we toasted bread at every setting available and recorded how long it took and toasting progression between levels. The best air fryer toaster ovens had the most gradual browning on the toast without burning it. Next, we tested the air fry function using 1 pound of frozen shoestring fries. We set the air fry function as per the provided manual or based on package directions if there was no information in the manual. We looked for fries that were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. We then tested the bake/oven function by baking five 1-ounce store bought cookie dough balls at 350 degrees F for 12 minutes. After 12 minutes, we expected to have fully-baked cookies that were not burnt on the bottoms. Our last performance test was to roast 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts at 425 degrees F until internal temperature was 165 degrees and note how long it took, how crispy the skin was and how juicy the meat was.
Drawbacks to Consider
Size and Counter Space
While the toaster oven air fryer combo is a fantastic gadget, it’s not without drawbacks. The primary one being that these appliances are generally smaller than a full-size oven, limiting the quantity of food you can prepare at one time. If you frequently cook for large gatherings, this could be an issue. Most air fryer toaster ovens are fairly large, so they take up more counter space than pod models and can be cumbersome to move around.
Cleaning Challenges
With an air fryer toaster oven, be aware you’ll have more cleanup! This includes the door, racks, and walls. Air frying is absolutely less messy than traditional deep frying, even if you use a self-contained deep fryer. Another consideration when buying an air fryer toaster oven: steam. Every unit we tested emitted some steam when air frying, but some turned our kitchen into a meat-and-potato-scented sauna. The Cuisinart was offensive here, with clouds of steam escaping through the top of the machine. Both it and the Instant produced so much steam, that it collected on the glass door and eventually leaked onto the counter. The foggy kitchen windows and lingering “fried food” smell are annoying, but we see another, more serious problem with heavy steam emitters: they can damage wood cabinetry over time.
Performance Compared to Dedicated Air Fryers
While air fryer toaster ovens excel in versatility by offering a wide range of cooking methods and larger capacities, they generally fall short of basket-style air fryers when it comes to air frying performance. The differences in their design and how they handle convection make basket air fryers the more consistent choice for achieving faster and crispier results. Ultimately, air fryer toaster ovens are passable at most tasks, but not necessarily better than their single-function air frying competitors. We’ve outlined what makes an air fryer special, but in short, air fryers are smaller appliances with really powerful fans that crisp up foods; toaster oven air fryers are larger, to accommodate their other capabilities, and sometimes don’t have super powerful fans.
Cost Considerations
The cost of a basic air fryer ranges from $50 to $200, while a basic toaster oven can cost between $30 and $150, depending on features and size. For those seeking a versatile all-in-one solution, an air fryer toaster oven may be the best option, combining the features of both appliances into one unit at a price range of $100 to $300. We’ve tested air fryer toaster ovens ranging from around $80 to well over $400, with the average cost being about $200. In general, we’ve found that price isn’t a reliable indicator of quality for air fryer toaster ovens: Plenty of cheaper ovens outperformed some of the most expensive ones, though there are pricey models worth the cost.
User Experiences and Reviews
Samantha Erb, the creator of Everyday Family Cooking, said the best air fryer toaster ovens are worth it when you cook for a group because their spacious interiors allow you to cook large batches of food or several items