Finding the perfect toaster oven for your British kitchen can feel like a daunting task. With an overwhelming array of sizes, features, and price points now available, selecting the right model requires careful consideration. Modern toaster ovens have evolved into incredibly versatile appliances, capable of air frying, baking, roasting, and even dehydrating, often rendering other countertop gadgets obsolete.
Our Top Toaster Oven Picks for Every Need
After an extensive three-month testing period, which involved roasting whole chickens, reheating pizza, and toasting countless slices of bread, we've identified the standout models. These appliances not only perform their basic functions with excellence but also bring genuine ease and efficiency to your cooking routine. The key considerations included intuitive controls, heating speed and evenness, size, and the usefulness of additional features.
Best Overall: Breville Joule Smart Countertop Oven Air Fryer
The Breville Joule stands out as the near-perfect toaster oven. It heats up with remarkable speed and, despite a substantial footprint, feels less enormous than some high-end competitors. Its thoughtful design includes a 'rotate remind' alert for even cooking and a heart button to save your favourite settings.
Connecting via Bluetooth to the Breville+ app unlocks a world of guided cooking, from tilapia fillets to accessing recipes from partners like NYT Cooking. While the £500 price tag is an investment, the feature set justifies the cost. Note that its automated cleaning cycle may still require some manual scrubbing for a sparkling interior.
Best Budget: Cuisinart AirFryer Toaster Oven with Grill
For those seeking a reliable, low-tech workhorse, the Cuisinart is a fantastic choice. Priced around £220, this model has proven its longevity, with testers reporting trouble-free use for up to seven years. It heats quickly, circulates heat effectively, and is compact enough for smaller kitchens while still being tall enough to roast a whole chicken.
Its operation is straightforward, using four simple dials to control time, temperature, function, and toast settings. The main drawback is that cleaning oil splatters from the interior can be somewhat challenging.
Best Compact: Zojirushi Micom Toaster Oven
If counter space is at a premium, the Zojirushi Micom offers advanced features in a streamlined package. Like its renowned rice cookers, this toaster oven uses sensor technology to adjust cooking time and temperature automatically for perfect results.
It excels at reheating food thoroughly and quickly, transforming cold pizza into an oven-fresh slice in just four minutes. While it lacks a dedicated air fry function, its performance in other areas is exceptional for its size. The main compromise is a slightly finicky crumb removal system.
Best Air Fryer Toaster Oven: Panasonic FlashXpress
For those who prioritise air frying, the Panasonic FlashXpress delivers consistent, fast results at a reasonable price. It's a step up from the basic Cuisinart without overwhelming you with unnecessary bells and whistles.
This model is relatively compact yet can accommodate a 12-inch pizza or a whole chicken. It features well-designed rack holders and a handy button to toggle between Celsius and Fahrenheit. Be aware that the top heating element can be more powerful, requiring occasional food rotation to prevent burning.
Best High End: Lotus Professional Series The Perfectionist Oven
For families or serious home cooks, the Lotus is a beast of a machine that closely mimics a full-size oven. Its standout feature is a temperature probe that takes the guesswork out of roasting meats and fish to perfection.
It toasts evenly, reheats pizza brilliantly, and its powerful convection setting makes it an excellent air fryer. Removable rack guides make cleaning the interior remarkably easy. The trade-offs are its large countertop footprint and a premium price of nearly £800, and it lacks the smart connectivity of the Breville.
Essential Toaster Oven FAQs
How does a toaster oven work? These appliances use heating elements on the interior top and bottom to produce thermal radiation that cooks food. Convection models include a fan to circulate hot air for even faster and more consistent results.
Do I need a combination air fryer and toaster oven? For most UK households, yes. Combination models have more powerful fans than basic toaster ovens. An added benefit is that you typically don't need to shake the basket mid-cook, as you do with many standalone air fryers.
How do I clean a toaster oven? Always unplug the appliance first. Wiping splatters off the door while it's still warm makes grease removal easier. None of the accessories from the models in this guide are dishwasher-safe, so all pans, baskets, and racks must be handwashed.
