We tested the Breville Joule, and this is what we thought about it

Countertop ovens are known for their versatility, but few are as versatile as the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro. It isn’t just an amped-up toaster oven — it can also air-fry, dehydrate, proof dough and slow cook, allowing it to replace multiple appliances in the kitchen.

The Breville Joule is similar to the Breville Oven Air Fryer Pro both in the number of cooking functions it supports and the extra-large capacity that can feed a crowd. However, the Joule takes its smart features further with a connected app that provides hundreds of recipes and even allows the oven to cook without your assistance. 

But does the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro live up to the hype? 

The BestReviews Testing Lab put the oven through its paces to determine how well it performs. Testing assessed how well it air-fries common foods like french fries and chicken wings, how effective other cooking functions like toasting, baking and reheating were and how even its cooking results were overall. In the end, the Joule excelled at air-frying and baking and preparing crispy, delicious food, but the limited functionality of its connected app was a bit disappointing. 

What is the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro?

The testing team unboxes and sets up the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro to assess its 13 cooking functions.

Product specifications
 

Type: Oven air fryer | Capacity: 1 cu ft | Dimensions: 21.5” W x 17.3” D x 12.8” H | Weight: 22.8 lb | Material: Stainless steel | Control Type: Knob  | Number of Functions: 13 | Temperature Range: 80 to 480 degrees

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro is a countertop oven with 13 cooking functions. It can toast, bake, roast, broil, air-fry, proof dough, reheat, slow cook, keep warm and dehydrate. It also has special settings for bagels, pizza and cookies. It can support so many cooking modes because of its wide temperature range, which goes as low as 80 degrees and as high as 480 degrees. 

The oven is fairly large, so it required quite a bit of space on the countertop in our testing area. It also needed clearance of 4 inches on each side and 6 inches on top. However, its size also translates to an extra-large capacity that can hold nine slices of toast, a 13-inch pizza, a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and even a 14-pound turkey. During testing, we easily fit a 2-pound bag of french fries in the oven’s air-fryer basket. Additionally, the Joule weighs nearly 23 pounds — or more than 15 pounds lighter than the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro — so it was pretty easy to move around our testing area. 

The Breville Joule has knob or dial controls for the functions, temperature and time settings. However, it also has an LCD display, so we could easily and precisely set the temperature and time during testing. Its exterior has a brushed stainless steel finish that will likely fit seamlessly in any modern kitchen. The Joule isn’t especially difficult to clean, but none of the accessories are dishwasher-safe, so it took longer to clean than some other models we tested. 

Pros

• Versatility: The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro is a highly versatile countertop oven that can perform the cooking functions that all toaster ovens can, including toasting, baking, roasting, broiling, warming and reheating. But it can also air-fry, dehydrate, proof dough and slow cook, so it can replace a toaster oven, an air-fryer, a dehydrator and a slow cooker in a single appliance.
• Accurate temperature: During testing, the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro operated at an accurate temperature within a few degrees, leading to even, consistent cooking results. 
• Cooking performance: Across all cooking functions, including air-frying, our testing revealed that the Joule offered a solid cooking performance, producing crispy, evenly cooked food. 
• App connectivity: The Joule is Wi-Fi-compatible, so it can link to the Breville+ app, which alerts you when the oven is preheated or your food is done. There is also an Autopilot feature that simplifies the cooking process for some recipes. 
• Capacity: The Joule can accommodate up to a 14-pound turkey, so it can handle large family dinners or dinner parties with ease. 

Cons

• Size: With its generous capacity, the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro requires significant countertop space. It measures 21.5 inches wide by 17.3 inches deep by 12.8 inches high and requires clearance on all sides, so it may not fit in smaller kitchens.
• Price: The Joule is one of the most expensive countertop ovens on the market, so it won’t fit every budget. 
• Cleanup: The Joule doesn’t have dishwasher-safe accessories, so it takes longer to clean it after cooking than similar ovens. 
• Limited app functions: While the Joule is Wi-Fi-connected, the Breville+ app has limited functions. It sends alerts when the oven is preheated or food is done, but it mainly serves as a source for recipes, which you can likely find online. 

Who is it for?

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro offers a wide range of cooking functions, so it’s ideal for anyone who wants a countertop oven that can do it all. Its large capacity makes it perfect for families or entertaining, and the connected app can provide plenty of inspiration for home cooks who enjoy experimenting. 

How we tested

The testing team conducts tests with commonly air-fried foods like hot dogs to determine the Breville Joule's performance.

We conducted several tests with commonly air-fried foods to see how well the Breville Joule performed as an air fryer. We also prepared the same foods in a standard oven to see how the air-fried versions compared in crispness, flavor and cooking time.  

Air-frying french fries

The package of frozen french fries we prepared in the Joule didn’t have air-frying instructions, so we followed a basic recipe we found online. We tossed the fries with olive oil and salt and placed them in a single layer in the oven’s air-fryer basket. We cooked the fries at 400 degrees for 10 minutes before shaking them in the basket to ensure they cooked evenly. We then air-fried them for another three minutes.

The frozen french fries cooked for a total of 13 minutes. 

Air-frying chicken wings

We tossed the chicken wings with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika. We then placed them in the Joule’s air-fryer basket in a single layer and cooked them at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. After flipping the wings over, we cooked them for another eight minutes.

The chicken wings cooked for a total of 18 minutes.

Air-frying hot dogs

We cut several slits down the length of the hot dogs and placed them in the Joule’s air-fryer basket. We then air-fried the hot dogs for six minutes at 400 degrees before transferring them to hot dog buns. We returned the hot dogs and buns to the oven to cook for another two minutes.

The hot dogs cooked for a total of eight minutes.  

Air-frying Brussels sprouts

We tossed the Brussels sprouts with olive oil, salt, pepper and sliced garlic and placed them in a single layer in the Joule’s air-fryer basket. We cooked the veggies for five minutes at 375 degrees before shaking them to ensure they cooked evenly. We then returned the sprouts to the oven for another six minutes. 

The Brussels sprouts cooked for a total of 11 minutes. 

Air-frying bacon

We placed the bacon in a single layer in the Joule’s air-fryer basket, making sure to set the oven’s roasting pan beneath it to catch the grease. We cooked the bacon at 350 degrees for a total of nine minutes. 

Price and where to buy

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro regularly costs $549.95. You can find it at Amazon and Best Buy.

Cooking performance

We paid particular attention to the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro’s air-frying performance but were also impressed by how well it toasted, baked and more. We also considered how well the Autopilot feature worked through the Breville+ app. 

Air-frying french fries

The frozen french fries we prepared in the Joule took just 13 minutes to cook fully, 11 minutes less than those made in a standard oven — and the fastest cooking time of all the air fryers we tested. The finished fries were almost perfectly crispy on the exterior, with only a few smaller fries getting slightly brown on the ends. The interior of the fries was fluffy and tender, and they were flavorful with just a small amount of salt. 

On the other hand, the oven-baked fries were crispy on the outside, but their interior wasn’t soft like the air-fried fries. Instead, they were almost dried out, which left them somewhat bland, even with the same amount of salt as the fries made in the Joule. 

Air-frying chicken wings

The chicken wings we air-fried in the Breville Joule took 18 minutes to cook fully. They had a crispy skin with slight charring at the ends, but the meat inside was juicy and tender. Additionally, they were quite flavorful with just a blend of simple seasonings, including salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and onion powder.

In a standard oven, the chicken wings took nearly 30 minutes longer to cook. The finished product wasn’t as crispy on the outside or juicy on the inside, either. We also noticed that the kitchen became noticeably warmer when using the standard oven because the wings had to cook for 46 minutes. On the other hand, when air-frying the wings, only the area around the Joule became slightly warmer.

Air-frying hot dogs

The hot dogs we made in the Joule required only eight minutes to cook compared to 19 minutes in a standard oven. They developed a perfectly crispy skin and a juicy interior, making them very flavorful. Their buns were also well-toasted without any burnt or dark areas.

The hot dogs from the oven also had a crispy skin, but they shriveled up quite a bit. As a result, they weren’t as juicy inside, so their flavor wasn’t as good, either. 

Air-frying Brussels sprouts

We needed just 11 minutes to air-fry Brussels sprouts in the Breville Joule. They developed a crispy exterior with areas of caramelization but still had a tender interior. These were actually some of the best Brussels sprouts we made in all the air fryers we tested. 

In a standard oven, the sprouts needed 26 minutes to fully cook. However, they weren’t as crispy or caramelized as the air-fried version. While they tasted fine, they weren’t as flavorful either. 

Air-frying bacon

When we air-fried our bacon for just nine minutes in the Joule, we were seriously impressed with how close to perfect the finished product was. It was crisp throughout, with just some slight chew near the ends. The flavor was excellent, too. 

We also got the bacon perfectly crispy in a standard oven, but it took 21 minutes. The oven-baked bacon was also considerably greasier than the air-fried version because it sat in its own drippings as it cooked. In the Joule, the grease dripped into the roasting pan below, so the bacon wasn’t saturated with it. 

Other cooking results

In addition to air-frying, we tried most of the Breville Joule’s other cooking functions. We toasted two slices of bread, which were perfectly golden brown after just a few minutes on the “6” darkness setting. We also tested the Cookie setting with chocolate chip cookies made from a roll of pre-made dough. In 11 minutes, the cookies were perfectly crispy outside and still slightly soft in the center. The Reheat setting also warmed up a leftover chicken parmigiana hero, fully heating it through in about 10 minutes. The bread got slightly more toasted than we would’ve liked, though. 

Additionally, we tried the Autopilot feature. It allows you to choose select recipes in the Breville+ app and then guides you through the steps, including transitioning through multiple cooking functions. We made the Extra-Crispy Bar-Style Tortilla Pizza, which was a relatively simple dish and easy to prepare. The finished product turned out exactly as advertised — it had a very crispy “crust,” and the cheese melted along the sides to create a tasty, browned edge.  

Ease of use

Testers evaluate the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro's controls to determine if operating the oven is quick and easy.

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro has straightforward, user-friendly controls that make operating the oven quick and easy. However, the app leaves something to be desired. 

Control panel

The Breville Joule features knob or dial controls for selecting the function, temperature and time when using the oven, as well as several push-buttons. 

Knob controls can be a problem on countertop ovens because they often don’t allow you to precisely set the temperature and time. However, we found this wasn’t an issue with the Joule because the knob controls are paired with an LCD display. That allowed us to precisely set the temperature in 5-degree increments and the time in 1-minute intervals, so everything from cookies to frozen french fries cooked evenly during testing. 

The first knob on the control panel made it easy to scroll through the oven’s various cooking functions. The second knob enabled us to set a precise temperature, while the third knob set the time. Overall, the control panel had an intuitive design that made it easy to use the oven, even without looking at the manual. 

In addition to the knob controls, the Joule has several buttons that aid in operation. 

• Start/Stop: This button starts and stops the cooking process.
• Oven Light/Temperature Conversion: This button turns on the interior oven light and allows you to switch between Fahrenheit and Celsius temperature readings.
• Convection: This button allows you to turn on the convection fan to circulate air around the food no matter which cooking function is selected. 
• A Bit More: This button lets you add more cooking time if a cooking function ends and the food isn’t fully cooked or warm enough. 
• Frozen Food: This button adjusts the preselected temperature and time if you’re cooking frozen food.
• Favorite: This button allows you to save your most used cook settings to repeat in the future. 

App functionality

The Joule is Wi-Fi-enabled, so it works with the Breville+ app through a mobile device. During testing, it was easy to download the app from the Google Play Store and create an account. Once the app was downloaded, we only had to connect the oven to the Wi-Fi network in our testing area to be ready to cook. The entire process only took a few minutes.

The oven doesn’t have to connect to Wi-Fi for operation, though. Even without a network connection, the control panel functions normally. 

The app sends alerts to let you know when the oven is preheated, or its cooking timer has finished. It also provides access to hundreds of recipes. We found the app easy to navigate because the recipes are organized into distinct categories, such as Beef, Vegetables, Air Fry or Sweets. Once we selected a category, we could further refine our search by selecting filters like “<45 minutes” or “Mains.”

Some recipes are also compatible with the Autopilot feature, which automatically preheats the oven and switches between cooking functions based on the recipe.

However, while the app is easy to use and has plenty of recipes for inspiration, we found it doesn’t have much functionality beyond that. It didn’t allow us to start or preheat the oven outside the Autopilot recipes, so it essentially serves as more of a recipe database than an alternative method for operating the oven. 

Cooking

The trickiest part about cooking in the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer is figuring out where to position the rack, basket or other accessory based on the cooking function. Fortunately, the recommended positions are printed on the oven door window, which allowed us to use the oven without having to consult the owner’s manual every time. 

When the rack or basket was in the proper position, we only had to turn the function knob to select our cook setting. Each function has a preset temperature and time, but we could easily adjust both by turning the respective dials. Once we chose the desired settings, we only had to press the Start/Stop button to turn on the oven. 

Some settings, including Bake, Roast, Pizza, Air Fry, Cookies and Slow Cook, have a preheat cycle, so the oven automatically begins heating to the selected temperature. During testing, the oven sounded an alert and stopped the blinking preheat display once the temperature was reached, so we knew it was time to add the food. 

When the cooking timer finished counting down, the Joule sounded another alert to let us know the food was ready. We could stop the cooking cycle at any point simply by pushing the Start/Stop button again. Additionally, the timer paused during cooking whenever we opened the oven door. When we closed the door again, the timer resumed. 

Design

The testing team assesses the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer's design as it pertains to style, durability and functionality.

The Breville The Joule Oven Air Fryer boasts a well-made design that is both stylish and user-friendly. Its premium materials also make it durable enough for busy households. 

Look and feel

The Breville Joule has the classic rectangular shape of most toaster ovens, measuring 21.5 inches wide by 17.3 inches deep by 12.8 inches high. It is available with a brushed or black stainless steel finish. Our testing model featured the brushed stainless steel finish, which matched the other stainless steel appliances in our testing area perfectly. 

The oven took up quite a bit of countertop space and required 4 inches of clearance on each side and 6 inches on top, so it may not fit in a smaller kitchen. However, we had no trouble finding a spot for it in our testing area. Overall, we were impressed by its sleek, modern appearance, which seamlessly blended in with the rest of the kitchen decor. 

Durability

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro features stainless steel construction that felt highly durable during testing. Its door has a large bar handle that provided a solid grip when opening and closing the oven and was well-anchored to the door, so we never felt it shift or move. 

The Joule’s accessories are almost all made of stainless steel that requires hand-washing, so they can hold up to regular use. In particular, we appreciated the roasting pan’s enameled finish, which allows it to conduct heat well and prevents rusting and even made cleanup easier. 

Controls and settings

The Breville Joule has a large backlit display that we found clear and easy to read. Its list of cooking options placed the more popular settings, like Toast, Bake and Air Fry, near the top and the more niche settings, like Proof and Dehydrate, at the bottom. We found that this design made it easy to locate the settings we were looking for, so we could set the Joule quickly, even when we were in a hurry.

We also appreciated that the control knobs were laid out in a way that makes sense for the user. The function knob is at the top, followed by the temperature knob in the middle and the time knob at the bottom. This setup was highly intuitive during testing because we found ourselves going through the settings in that exact order. We also appreciated that the rack position markings were listed right on the door, so we knew where to place the rack or basket based on our chosen setting. 

Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro vs. Joule

In addition to testing the Joule, we also gave the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro a whirl — and found that the two are pretty similar. They are roughly the same size — the Pro is 17.1 inches deep compared to the Joule’s 17.3 inches and 12.7 inches high compared to the Joule’s 12.8 inches — and offer the same capacity. Both ovens support the same 13 cooking functions, too. 

However, unlike the Joule, the Pro isn’t Wi-Fi-enabled, so it doesn’t connect to the Breville+ app for alerts or allow access to the Autopilot feature. During testing, we also discovered that the Joule was slightly more efficient when air-frying than the Pro. For example, the Joule needed just 13 minutes to make crispy, golden fries, while the Pro required 15 minutes. The Joule got our bacon extra crisp in just nine minutes, but the Pro took 10. Overall, though, their cooking results were pretty similar, with both ovens producing crisp, evenly cooked food.

It’s also worth noting that the Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro costs a little less than the Joule. So, it’s an ideal alternative if you don’t have your heart set on a Wi-Fi-connected oven. 

Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro review: Should you get one?

The testing team uses the Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro to test performance of its multiple cooking methods.

The Breville the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro is a premium countertop oven that can do everything from toasting bread to air-frying chicken wings to dehydrating fruit — and it does it all well. It’s ideal for home cooks who like to use multiple cooking methods, though its price may be too steep if you won’t use all the functions, such as dehydrating and proofing. 
 

Its extra-large capacity, with enough room for a 14-pound turkey, makes it a perfect choice for a large family or frequent entertaining. You’ll need more countertop space to support the Joule’s extra capacity, though, so it may not be the best fit for a small kitchen. 

The oven’s Wi-Fi connectivity also allows you to take advantage of hundreds of recipes in the Breville app that can inspire your cooking if you like to experiment. But the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro is a similar oven at a lower price if you don’t care about that access.