We recommend these products based on an intensive research process that's designed to cut through the noise and find the top products in this space. Guided by experts, we spend hours looking into the factors that matter, to bring you these selections.
Ready to buy now? Shop the best:
Ninja makes so many kitchen products that it can be hard to choose which one is right for you. For instance, choosing the best Ninja air fryer means knowing how one model differs from the others. Do you need an appliance that crisps to perfection in minutes? Or would you prefer an air fryer that can also function as a steam cooker, allowing you to make full meals at the press of a button?
To learn which Ninja air fryers were the best and why, the BestReviews Testing Lab ran several models through a rigorous set of cooking tests. We wanted to find out not only what each air fryer could do but also where each appliance excelled and where it fell short.
Since all the air fryers were from the same manufacturer and offered a similar level of quality, to determine which was best, the BestReviews Testing Lab had to dive deeper into performance and functionality. Our top choice is the versatile Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer, which lets you cook a main and a side dish at the same time, so you can get dinner on the table even faster.
Editors’ Favorite
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 10 qt | Dimensions: 17.1” D x 13.9” W x 12.8” H | Weight: 19.8 lb | Material: Stainless steel and plastic | Number of Functions: 6 | Temperature Range: 105 to 450 degrees
The Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer offers the ideal combination of capacity and versatility. Its cooking area provides a full 10 quarts of capacity, which is large enough for up to 8 pounds of chicken wings. However, because it contains two separate baskets, you can easily cook two foods, such as a main and a side dish, at the same time. We especially love the Smart Finish option, which lets you use different cooking methods for each while still finishing at the same time. It also has a Match Cook setting that uses the same settings across both zones for the whole 10-quart cooking space.
Overall, this air fryer consistently delivers perfect results every time, thanks to its Smart Cook System. It makes it easy to get your food as rare or as well done as you like by simply pressing a button, thanks to the integrated Foodi Smart Thermometer. Its six cooking programs include air-frying, air-broiling, roasting, baking, reheating and dehydrating, so you can fully customize your recipes to suit your tastes.
We also like how easy the Ninja Foodi XL Air Fryer is to clean. Both baskets are nonstick, so cooked-on food comes right off. The crisper plates are even easier, though — they are dishwasher-safe for fuss-free washing.
Great Value
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 4 qt | Dimensions: 13.6” D x 11” W x 13.3” H | Weight: 10.58 lb | Material: Aluminum, ceramic and plastic | Number of Functions: 4 | Temperature Range: 105 to 400 degrees
The Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer makes it easy to enjoy your favorite “fried” foods without all the added fat, but it’s even more versatile than that. In addition to air-frying, it can roast, reheat and dehydrate, thanks to a temperature range of 105 to 400 degrees. Its dehydrating function is especially handy for making chips from fruits and vegetables for a healthy snack.
This air fryer features a 4-quart basket, which is large enough to cook up to 2 pounds of french fries at a time. Its basket has a ceramic-coated nonstick surface and is even dishwasher-safe, making cleanup a breeze. Both the basket and crisper plate are made of aluminum, so they’re highly durable.
We also appreciate how easy the Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer is to use. It has intuitive touch button controls and a digital display that allows you see its settings at a glance. It also offers a Pause button, so you can stop in the middle of cooking to check on the status of your food.
Best for its Compact Footprint
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 4 qt | Dimensions: 13.38” D x 11.96” W x 13.58” H | Weight: 15.74 lb | Material: Stainless steel and glass | Number of Functions: 4 | Temperature Range: 350 to 450 degrees
The Ninja Crispi 4-in-1 Portable Glass Air Fryer boasts a unique design that will appeal to those with a small kitchen or who travel regularly. Unlike traditional basket air fryers, it features a pod that houses the heating element and two differently sized glass containers to hold the food. It includes a 4-quart glass container and a 6-cup glass container, so you can prepare recipes for a group or just one or two people. This design gives the air fryer a compact footprint, which means it takes up minimal counter space and is easy to transport.
Because the food containers are made entirely of glass, they are entirely nontoxic. You can even use them for storage without worrying about chemicals leaching into the food. The air fryer also comes with lids for the containers, making it easy to store leftovers. They snap in place, too, so you can travel with them without any leaks.
We also love how versatile the Ninja Crispi is. It can reach a maximum temperature of 450 degrees, so its cooking functions include air-fry, bake, Max Crisp and Recrisp, allowing it to make a wide range of foods. Despite its powerful heat, though, its fixed heat-safe feet mean you can safely place it on all countertops, including granite, laminate, marble, quartz and butcher block.
Easy to Use and Clean
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 5 qt | Dimensions: 14.84” D x 11.29” W x 10.39” H | Weight: 10.34 lb | Material: Metal and plastic | Number of Functions: 4 | Temperature Range: 100 to 400 degrees
The Ninja Air Fryer Pro 4-in-1 makes preparing your favorite crispy foods with little oil as easy as can be. It has a maximum temperature of 400 degrees and surrounds food with this superheated air to get it as crisp as possible. It has a 5-quart basket that’s large enough to hold up to 4 pounds of french fries or 5 pounds of chicken wings. In addition to air-frying, though, it can also roast, reheat and dehydrate, making it versatile enough to prepare a wide variety of meals.
What is especially impressive about the Ninja Air Fryer Pro is its ability to handle frozen foods exceptionally well. It uses higher temperatures to cook your favorite frozen fries, chicken nuggets and more to an extra-crispy finish in just a matter of minutes. It also provides excellent results with fresh foods, too, thanks to its wide temperature range.
This air fryer also earns points for how easy it is to clean. The basket and crisper plate are both nonstick, which makes it easy to remove food residue. They’re dishwasher-safe, too, so you don’t have to do any scrubbing at all.
Best Ninja for Indoor Grilling
Type: Grill/basket air fryer | Capacity: 6 qt | Dimensions: 14.9" D x 14.9" W x 11.02" H | Weight: 14.5 lb | Material: Plastic and stainless steel | Control Type: Push button | Number of Functions: 5 | Temperature Range: 105 to 500 degrees
The Ninja Foodi Indoor Grill stands out from every other model because it has a high-temperature grilling feature that let us cook proteins like burgers and steaks and create pronounced grill marks. Besides grilling, this model has Air Crisp, Roast, Bake and Dehydrate modes, offering a broad range of cooking techniques.
The compact design ensures that it fits easily on the counter even in a small kitchen with limited space, while the air-frying technology meant we could cook food with up to 75% less oil.
The appliance comes with a grill grate, 4-quart crisper basket, 6-quart cooking pot, cleaning brush and recipe book. Though it is on the small side and can produce some unwanted smoke while grilling, it's still a solid option for those who like to grill year-round.
Best Ninja for Quick Meals
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 6 qt | Dimensions: 14.1” L x 13.8” W x 12.4” H | Weight: 16 lb | Material: Plastic and metal | Control Type: Push button | Number of Functions: 12 | Temperature Range: 90 to 450 degrees
The Ninja Speedi Rapid Cooker's claim to fame is its ability to make an entire meal — proteins, vegetables and more — in a short amount of time. While the company touts that it can cook meals in 15 minutes, that was for a limited selection of foods. We found under 30 minutes to be a better estimate for most meals.
This model isn't large; it only comfortably fits two 4-ounce burgers. Also, the hinged lid required a little extra overhead space (the unit is 20 inches tall with the lid fully open). But the speed and versatility helped offset those minor annoyances, making it a highly desirable model.
We liked that it's easily cleaned and has intuitive controls. Oveall, it's a quality item that performs reliably and offers consistent cooking.
Best Ninja for Crisping
Type: Basket air fryer | Capacity: 5.5 qt | Dimensions: 14” L x 11” W x 14.75” H | Weight: 11.7 lb | Material: Plastic and metal | Control Type: Push button | Number of Functions: 7 | Temperature Range: 105 to 450 degrees
Every air fryer is on this list because it has a feature that sets it apart in some way. The Ninja Max XL Air Fryer has a high-temperature setting (450 degrees). While the purpose is to take food from the freezer to a tantalizing crisp in a short amount of time, we found it also worked well as a finishing touch to give dishes a quick crunch.
While the capacity is only 5.5 quarts, the depth of the basket allowed us to easily cook a large amount of loose food — such as 2 pounds of french fries. However, we could only fit one large 8-ounce burger at a time in the air fryer.
The Ninja Max XL was the quietest Ninja we tested, and cleaning it was simple. It's an especially great option if frozen foods are what you will cook the most.
Best Ninja for Making Small-to-Large Batches
Type: Basket Air Fryer | Capacity: 7 qt | Dimensions: 18.19” L x 11.81” W x 11.26” H | Weight: 17 lb | Material: Plastic and metal | Control Type: Push button | Number of Functions: 6 | Temperature Range: 80 to 450 degrees
Whether we wanted to cook one or four burgers, or two burgers and a serving of french fries, the Ninja Foodi FlexBasket design let us do that. The large basket has a divider that creates two separate cooking chambers for cooking different foods. We could also remove the divider for one large cooking space.
The Smart Finish feature ensured that the food in each chamber finished at the same time, so we didn't have to worry about making the calculations. And the variety of cooking functions lets us do everything from dehydrate to bake to broil.
While it wasn't the simplest model we used, operation wasn't too difficult. And we loved that it was quick and easy to clean. If you want to make more than one dish at a time, this is a good, affordable option.
Best Ninja with an Extra-Large Capacity
Type: Oven/air fryer | Capacity: 12.7 qt | Dimensions:16.39" W x 21.5" D x 13.26" H | Weight: 31 lb | Material: Plastic and stainless steel | Control Type: Dial/push Button | Number of Functions: 12 | Temperature Range: 105 to 450 degrees
The Ninja 12-in-1 Smart Double Oven with FlexDoor might not be on your radar because it's a little older and not as popular as some other models. However, we think it deserves attention for its quality, performance and flexibility.
It's two ovens in one, each with different abilities. The top oven didn't offer much cooking space, but it let us bake, broil, reheat, warm and toast. The more spacious bottom oven let us air-fry, convection bake, cook pizza, air-roast, dehydrate and more.
The key feature that makes this dual oven such a great idea is the Smart Finish. This enabled us to cook different items while ensuring that they completed cooking at the same time. On the downside, this oven takes up a lot of counter space and is power-hungry. But overall, it's a solid option for someone looking to replace their toaster oven with a much more advanced and versatile product.
It's easy to think that all an air fryer needs to do is heat and circulate air, but there's more to it than that. Here are some ways Ninja compares to other top brands.
We've spent an extensive amount of time — several months — testing and using a variety of Instant and Ninja air fryers. To be honest, these two leading brands run neck and neck. Sometimes, the Instant beats the Ninja, while at other times, the Ninjas just have more to offer. For instance, we liked that no Ninja air fryer we tested had a smell, while nearly every Instant starts with a pronounced odor that must be burned away.
Instant offers models with a pressure-cooking feature, just like Ninja. We do admit to favoring the design of the Instant pressure cooker/air fryer, but only because it is several inches shorter and fits better under our cabinets. Also, the Instant air fryers offered more information throughout the cooking process, showing countdown times and dinging to remind us when to add food and shake food.
Overall, the Ninja models were more intuitive to use — the control panels just made sense at a glance. As far as capacity and cooking times are concerned, both brands excel. Ninja models, however, are more distinct. The functions, such as Grill and Max Crisp, seemed to have greater purpose. But if budget is your primary concern, the Instant wins every time because comparable models cost anywhere from $20 to $50 less than Ninja.
When comparing the Ninja to the Cosori, we pulled back to take in general functionality because the Cosori is laid out a little differently from the Ninja. For example, when selecting presets, the Ninja jumps to cooking functions, such as Air Fry, Dehydrate, Broil or Bake, while the Cosori often has one-touch settings for specific foods like french fries or bacon.
On the plus side, Cosori air fryers are extremely quiet. However, the noise is generated by the fan, and a louder appliance usually means more consistent cooking (because the air circulates better). Like the Instant brand, Cosori tends to cost slightly less than Ninja, but it isn’t a significant difference.
While some Cosori models outperformed their comparable Ninja model, Ninja air fryers cooked more quickly — shaving off as much as 5 minutes — and heated the food more evenly.
Comparing Ninja to Breville is a little easier. That’s because the two brands don't really line up to offer a great deal of competition. An individual interested in a Breville air fryer has an extremely limited selection: all the options are essentially convection ovens. Also, Breville appliances that offer air-frying are not inexpensive. The top-of-the-line model, Joule, offers incredible function and capacity that can easily accommodate enough food for a family, but it costs $499.95. That's $150 more than our top pick for Ninja's oven air fryer, the Ninja 12-in-1 Smart Double Oven with FlexDoor.
Also, Ninja air fryers are designed with a sleek and stylish flair that looks good in your kitchen. The Breville models, for our money, just don't offer the same aesthetics. If you want a high-end professional-level oven/air fryer, the Breville is the way to go. However, if yours is a family on a budget, but you still want a versatile, high-quality air fryer, we would lean toward the Ninja.
At its core, an air fryer has to have certain features to function properly, at least a heating element and a fan. But it's the features that are unique to the brand that make it stand out. Depending on the model, there are several standout features you might find on a Ninja air fryer.
Instead of Teflon, Ninja air fryers, like the Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer, have a special ceramic coating. This coating is critical in making the appliance easy to clean. We found that even after cooking chicken or bacon it was easy to wipe down the basket and crisper plate using warm water, mild dish detergent and a nonabrasive sponge.
Most dual air fryers have two baskets for cooking. Ninja air fryers with a DualZone FlexBasket are different. They have one large basket and a divider. When you want to cook one large 7-quart serving of fries, you fill the entire basket. However, when you want to cook two separate dishes (or a half-basket), all you have to do is slip in the sturdy divider. This creates two zones that can cook independently of each other.
Some Ninja air fryers offer steam cooking in addition to air-frying, so they use both dry heat and moist heat to cook food. This means you can steam rice and vegetables while crisping chicken all at the press of a button. While it is possible to have full meals done in about 15 minutes, these models make the best in closer to 25 minutes.
For those who want it all, Ninja pressure cookers offer an incredible advantage. These models combine several appliances and let us perform a variety of tasks all in the same pot: steaming, pressure-cooking, air-frying, slow-cooking, searing, sous vide and more. This unique ability turns Ninja's air fryer into one of the most versatile cooking machines on the market.
Typically, an air fryer has a maximum temperature of 400 degrees. However, there were a few cookers that allowed us to dial up the heat beyond the norm. The Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer and the Ninja Crispi 4-in-1 Portable Glass Air Fryer both heat up to 450 degrees. While this is excellent for quick crisping, you often need to monitor the air fryer closely so the food doesn’t dry out or burn.
As a very general rule of thumb, we found that a serving in most Ninja air fryers requires about 2 quarts of capacity. If we wanted to make enough french fries for two people, we would use a 4-quart model, like the Ninja 4-Quart Air Fryer or the Ninja Crispi 4-in-1 Portable Glass Air Fryer. For a family of four adults, we would suggest a model with at least an 8-quart capacity, such as the Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZOne Smart XL Air Fryer. However, if there are young children with smaller appetites, a 5- or 6-quart model, like the Ninja Air Fryer Pro 4-in-1, might be sufficient.
It's important to remember that for models with two drawers, the serving size is cut in half. However, a model like the Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer offers the best of both worlds. While it has two separate 5-quart baskets, you can still utilize the full 10-quart capacity with the Match Cook feature, which copies the cook settings across both cooking zones.
Just like any product, Ninja's line of air fryers has its share of pros and cons. While many of these are specific to certain models, we stayed generic for this list to offer a broad overview of the brand.
There is a wide range of Ninja air fryers. It is essential to match features to needs. Finding the best model means considering these options.
One great thing about Ninja's line of air fryers is the company has carefully considered its potential range of customers, and there is a model for every price point. For individuals seeking an affordable model that can still feed a family, the Ninja Air Fryer Pro 4-in-1 is regularly priced under $100. On the other end of the spectrum, the Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer offers double the capacity and two baskets for cooking multiple foods at once, as well as special features that make cooking quicker and easier. It normally retails for $249.99. The Ninja Foodi 5-in-1 Grill is another high-end option, costing over $200.
In between, Ninja offers a range of models. As the price increases, the cooking capacity and versatility increase. At around $150, the models are large enough to make meals for a small family and begin to include special features, such as a steamer or a Max Crisp setting. At $180, the company introduces dual baskets to cook two different foods at the same time. Above the $200 price mark, the air fryers have a combination of larger capacity and multiple cooking functions to accommodate food for larger families and a wider variety of cooking styles.
To learn how well the Ninja air fryers performed cooking tasks, we established a baseline by cooking the same foods in each model. We used the same brand and the same recipes and evaluated the results, placing our focus on flavor, juiciness and crispiness.
To test an air fryer's ability to cook french fries, we filled each basket with 2 pounds of steak fries (or to capacity if it was a smaller model) and cooked them at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. We were careful not to overfill the basket and did not add any oil or seasonings.
For chicken wings, we mixed olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper. The olive oil kept the spices from blowing around the chamber while cooking. We set the air fryer to 400 degrees and heated the wings for 18 minutes, flipping after 9 minutes to ensure even cooking.
We made several diagonal slits across each hot dog to help the meat cook more evenly. We cooked an entire pack at 400 degrees for 6 minutes. Halfway through the process, we rolled the hot dogs so they would crisp evenly. After 6 minutes, we put each hot dog in a buttered bun and toasted them for an additional 2 minutes.
We trimmed and soaked enough Brussels sprouts to fill the basket. After 15 minutes, we dried them and added olive oil, salt, pepper and minced garlic. The olive oil kept the seasonings on the sprouts while we cooked them at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.
Cooking bacon was easy but messy. We laid out six strips across the bottom of each Ninja air fryer basket and set the temperature to 350 degrees. We cooked the bacon for 9 minutes and evaluated the texture and flavor. If the bacon needed more time, we added as needed.
There are many highly desirable features and functions in Ninja air fryers. The brand is well made and reliable, with models that cook with consistency and, thanks to the nonstick coating, clean easily. The price point may be a few dollars higher than that of some other brands, but the versatility is worth it.
Some Ninja air fryers, like our top picks, the Ninja Foodi 10-Quart 6-in-1 DualZone Smart XL Air Fryer and the Ninja Foodi 5-in-1 Indoor Electric Grill, can perform virtually any cooking function. And if you want a specific feature, such as the ability to grill or cook multiple dishes at once, Ninja has you covered there as well. In conclusion, if you’re willing to pay a few dollars more to get an outstanding product, there is a Ninja air fryer that’s perfect for your needs.
