Air Fryer vs. Oven: Cooking Methods Comparison & Differences | KitchenAid (2024)

An air fryer opens up a world of new possibilities for your favorite ingredients and recipes. Transform your favorite vegetables, juicy meats and decadent desserts into crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside air fried creations.

Learn how an air fryer works and how it compares to other cooking methods and appliances to find out if an air fryer is essential for your kitchen ambitions.

AIR FRYER VS. OVEN: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

The most obvious difference between a standalone air fryer and an oven is size. An air fryer is a countertop appliance that can usually cook one dish at a time while an oven is a full-sized appliance that can handle multiple dishes or larger portions. The second major difference is function. An air fryer rapidly circulates heated air to cook and crisp up a range of foods. A conventional, non-convection oven uses still air to cook food. This type of oven has additional functions like broil, bake and roast. If you have a convection oven, however, you can get closer to the results of an air fryer sinceit uses similar technology.

An air fryer can help add air frying or convection baking capabilities to your kitchen and offers a convenient size when preparing a single batch of chicken wings, bacon, salmon, zucchini fries or other fried favorites. However, an air fryer can’t replace a conventional oven when it comes to capacity. If you frequently prepare multi-dish meals or larger quantities, you’ll still want to have a full-sized oven in your kitchen.

Learn more about how air fryers work.

AIR FRY VS. BAKE: HOW DO THE COOKING METHODS DIFFER

An air fryer rapidly circulates heated air throughout the cooking cavity, helping to remove surface moisture from food and create a crispy exterior. Conventional, non-convection ovens use heating elements on the top and bottom of the cooking cavity, leaving the air fairly static. These ovens are better suited for baking delicate items and liquid batters.

Air fryers utilize a perforated basket to help expose all sides of your food for a nice, all-around crispy finish. While you can bake in some air fryers, you usually can’t air fry in a conventional oven.

Learn more about how to cook in an air fryer with our guide.

AIR FRYER VS. CONVECTION OVEN

An air fryer can be thought of as a sort of mini convection oven. Both appliances use a fan to circulate heated air throughout the cooking cavity. However, a convection oven has a larger capacity. Some convection ovens even have a dedicated Air Fry setting that optimizes the cooking environment for crispy, air fried results.

Because of its smaller size, an air fryer—or a countertop oven on the air fry setting—usually circulates the air a bit faster than in a convection oven. This can sometimes give you a crispier finish that is just a bit closer to an actual deep-fried finish, depending on your recipe.

A convection oven has the same advantages over an air fryer as a regular oven—size. If you’re making multiple dishes or batches of food, a convection oven can help prepare it all at once. But if you’re simply preparing one pan of crispy fried cauliflower, an air fryer might be just the right size and can save you the time of heating an entire oven.

For maximum flexibility, why not have both? Use your air fryer or countertop oven for single batches and your KitchenAid® convection oven for bigger jobs. Having additional countertop options is also helpful for when you’re preparing dishes with different cooking needs. Air fry some appetizers in your countertop oven while you slow-roast your entree in the convection oven.

Learn more about how a convection oven works and how to use it.

AIR FRYER VS. TOASTER OVEN

An air fryer is usually limited to the convection-like air frying function, while a toaster oven or countertop oven can offer a wider range of functions such as broil, roast and bake. Some countertop ovens even feature an Air Fry setting, maximizing your appliance’s functions.

Countertop toaster ovens with air fry capabilities enable you to explore new techniques beyond air frying with settings like dehydrate for dried fruits and meat jerky or highly specialized settings for pizza and dough proofing.

Both appliances come in a convenient countertop size that will usually prepare one batch of fried recipes like chicken tenders, sweet potato fries, spring rolls and more. Air fryers usually include a more vertical basket in which you layer food. This typically requires you to shake the basket or flip the food halfway through cooking. KitchenAid® countertop ovens with air fry feature a No-Flip Air Fry Basket and 360° Air Fry System so there’s no need to interrupt the cooking process.

SHOP KITCHENAID^® COUNTERTOP OVENS WITH AIR FRY

KitchenAid® countertop ovens with air fry capabilities feature between 9 and 12 essential cooking settings—from proofing and dehydration to toasting and baking. They offer many of the same possibilities as a full-size oven, with quality results in a convenient countertop size, so you can make air fryer beef jerky, fresh bread and more.

AIR FRYER VS. DEEP FRYER

Deep frying is a cooking method that involves submerging food in hot oil or other fat. Air frying achieves a similar result to deep frying by relying on hot, moving air rather than oil.

A deep fryer appliance usually consists of a deep container that is filled with oil and heated, along with a basket that allows you to lower food into the oil. There is little to no oil used with anfryer—food is simply placed within the cooking chamber using a basket or perforated pan.

AIR FRYER VS. MICROWAVE

Some microwaves are beginning to offer air fry settings or other features that help achieve crispy, fried-like results. One of the main differences between these two appliances is that an air fryer or countertop oven circulates dry heat that helps remove moisture from the exterior of foods, while microwaves use electromagnetism to accelerate particles within the food.

If you are looking for optimal results on your air fried creations, choosing an appliance specially designed for the task is a smart choice. However, just as with countertop ovens or full-sized ovens, many types of microwaves generally offer more functions than a standalone air fryer.

SHOP KITCHENAID^® MICROWAVES WITH CRISPWAVE^™ TECHNOLOGY

Depending on how often you plan to make air fryer recipes, you could opt for a microwave with crisping features. Select KitchenAid® convection microwaves feature Crispwave™ Microwave Technology and a Crisper Pan that can be used to brown, crisp, and pan-fry foods.

AIR FRYER VS. SLOW COOKER

A slow cooker is a large pot with a lid and a heating source that cooks food at a lower temperature and requires some amount of liquid to roast, steam, braise or simmer ingredients. An air fryer relies on a dry environment to rapidly circulate hot air around food and can fry, bake and roast.

AIR FRYER VS. PRESSURE COOKER

An air fryer can fry, bake and roast food using little to no oil, while a pressure cooker is made to quickly boil, steam and braise. To determine which appliance is better for you, consider your cooking needs.

A pressure cooker works by converting liquid to steam that can’t escape, thus creating the pressure used in this cooking method. Because moisture is the enemy of crispy fried exteriors, you can’t air fry in a pressure cooker unless you have special accessories or attachments. Likewise, you can’t pressure cook in an air fryer, because the seal is not airtight enough to build pressure from steam. If you want to both pressure cook and air fry foods, you will likely need two separate appliances.

SHOP AIR FRYERS FROM KITCHENAID BRAND

KitchenAid^® countertop ovens with air fry can help you get started with this technique and a whole range of additional cooking methods.Explore countertop oven options from KitchenAidbrand to bring full-size oven capabilities plus air fry to your countertop.