What to Buy Appliances Small Appliances The 8 Best Toasters of 2023, According to Our Tests We tested more than 20 toasters to find these top picks for getting the perfect crunch. By Rochelle Bilow Rochelle Bilow Rochelle Bilow is a graduate of the French Culinary Institute, and the former social media manager at Bon Appétit and Cooking Light magazines. She has also worked as a cook on a small farm in Central New York and a Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City. Her first book, a food and farming memoir titled The Call of the Farm, was published in 2014. Her second book, a romance novel set in Scotland, will be published in February 2023. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 6, 2023 In This Article Expand Jump to a Section Our top picks Reviews Other Toasters We Tested Factors to Consider Our Expertise We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. Food & Wine / Fred Hardy Although we’re living in the age of multipurpose, smart kitchen appliances, there are some tools we prefer to keep on the simple side. A quality toaster tops the list. After all, perfectly golden-brown toast, English muffins, and toasted bagels are the cornerstone of some of our favorite brunch recipes. But with so many options available, it can be tricky to decide which toaster makes the most sense to buy. Are luxury toasters worth it? Are cheap toasters a waste of money? We recently tested more than 20 top-rated options from brands including All-Clad, Breville, KitchenAid, and Smeg to find out. In our tests, we carefully evaluated each toaster across a variety of metrics, including ease of use, cleaning, performance, and design. After using the toasters daily and performing targeted tests, we landed on the below eight winning picks that we think are truly worth investing in. Here are the best toasters, plus a great toaster oven that aced our tests, too. Our Top Picks Best Overall: Breville Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Runner-Up: KitchenAid 2 Slice Long Slot Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best Value: Russell Hobbs 2-Slice Glass Accent Long Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best Splurge: Smeg 2-Slice Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best Smart: Revolution InstaGLO R180 Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best Digital: All-Clad 2-Slice Digital Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best 4-Slice: Zwilling Enfinigy Cool Touch 4-Slice Toaster at Amazon Jump to Review Best Toaster Oven: KitchenAid Digital Countertop Toaster Oven at Amazon Jump to Review Best Overall Breville BTA820XL Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Williams-Sonoma View On Wayfair Pros Minimalist and modern looking, moderately sized, and attractively priced, this is a highly efficient toaster with lots to love. Cons In our tests, we observed that anything toasted on a setting higher than level two produced very dark, almost burnt toast. We named Breville’s Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster as our top overall pick. In our testing notes, we liked this toaster so much that we described it as the “Rolls Royce of toasters” and a “wonderful upgrade.” The side grids expand and hug the bread when the start lever is lowered for maximum heating efficiency. And it’s not just for basic bread, either. We had no problem fitting chunky bagels and hamburger buns in the extra-wide slots. The “a bit more” function allows you to add a smidge extra time, although we noted the bread should be monitored closely. That’s easy to do with the “lift and look” feature, which pauses the cycle, allowing you to check on the toast’s progress. We were impressed with the consistency across tests. No matter what your preferred doneness level is, you can be certain it won’t vary. We also appreciated the controlled lower and release of the toast. When it’s done, instead of popping up, the toast gently raises to an easy-to-grab height — no helper forks or wooden utensils needed. It’s easy to clean, as well: the crumb tray glides out seamlessly. Price at time of publish: $160 Dimensions: 6.75 x 10.25 x 7.5 inchesWeight: 7.12 poundsFunctions: Five browning settings, “a bit more,” and “lift and look” features Runner-Up KitchenAid KMT3115ER 2 Slice Long Slot Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Wayfair View On Home Depot Pros This eye-catching toaster is narrow and tall, making it a good fit for counters with limited space. Cons It comes in just two colors, red and black. The lack of a stainless steel finish may not suit all design tastes. The doneness level varied slightly when toasting multiple rounds. KitchenAid’s 2-Slice Toaster is an appealing, efficient option at a nice price. Instead of side-by-side slots, this toaster has one long slot that allows you to toast two slices in a single row. Although the obvious appeal here is in the counter space you’ll save, we found a lot to like about the versatility of the slots. During testing, we were able to fit in an entire piece of naan bread without rotating it halfway through. The KitchenAid performed equally well no matter what it was toasting. The display panel is intuitive to navigate, with simple pictographs on the front for choosing the desired browning level, plus other special features like toast from frozen. With six doneness settings that can be selected on a sliding scale, it was sometimes tricky to nail the desired color across a variety of tests, although we found that even the darkest setting produced attractively browned, never burnt toast. In our tests, we liked the high-lift lever, which safely popped the toast up well above the heating element. Price at time of publish: $80 Dimensions: 5.4 x 16.1 x 7.9 inchesWeight: 7 poundsFunctions: Six browning settings, toast from frozen, defrost, bagel function, “a little longer” function, cancel function The Spruce Eats / Jeanne Geer Food & Wine / Jeanne Geer Food & Wine / Jeanne Geer Best Value Russell Hobbs 2-Slice Glass Accent Long Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Walmart View On Orientaltrading.com Pros This nicely-priced toaster has a lot of desirable features for a fraction of the cost of other models in our winners list. Cons It gets very hot during use, and we experienced burning in the two highest settings. With a similar footprint and profile to the KitchenAid long slot toaster but a price that’s nearly cut in half, the Russell Hobbs 2-Slice Glass Accent Long Toaster is a great budget buy. We praised the “easy to operate” control panel, which is situated on one of the long sides of the toaster. The roomy slot could handle every item we toasted and was big enough to fit two Pop-Tarts side-by-side. There are six doneness settings, although in our tests we found the best results from four and below. It’s a consistent performer, with no variation in browning level, even after multiple rounds of sandwich bread. The standout of the special features is a “warming” option that works with a removable metal rack situated directly on top of the slot. In testing, we used it to warm cheese sticks, which we noted had the potential to become messy. But for less melty options (like keeping a homemade scone or other baked goods warm), this is a valuable added feature. Price at time of publish: $49 Dimensions: 5.2 x 14.8 x 7.8 inchesWeight: 4.1 poundsFunctions: Six browning settings, toast from frozen, bagel function, cancel function, warm function The Spruce Eats / John Somerall Food & Wine / John Somerall Food & Wine / John Somerall Best Splurge Smeg 2-Slice Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Williams-Sonoma View On Food52 Pros By far the most design-minded toaster we tested, Smeg’s toaster brings aspirational attractiveness to an otherwise basic appliance. Cons At $200, this is a very expensive toaster without special features like “just a bit more” to rationalize the cost. There’s no denying the visual appeal of this toaster. With retro appeal, the Smeg 2-Slice Toaster would be right at home on your favorite Instagram influencer’s countertop. There are over a dozen finishes to choose from, including matte pastel options and glossy metals. We had no problem navigating doneness levels during testing. Instead of buttons, browning is adjusted with a dial. The control panel is simple and intuitive to use. We particularly liked the extra-large “cancel” button which immediately released the toast upon pressing. As far as performance, this was a reliable, consistent contender in our tests. The four-to-five doneness range was ideal for moderately brown toast. We noted that oblong slices of bread stuck out of the top slightly and needed to be rotated midway through. However, traditional sandwich-style bread wasn’t an issue. The colorful powder-coated finish was easy to clean, and the slide-out crumb tray could handle a lot. On average, we only needed to empty it every other week. While we noted this may not be the best-performing toaster out there, it's by no means substandard. If aesthetics matter to you, the Smeg gets points for its visual appeal. Price at time of publish: $200 Dimensions: 7.75 x 12.25 x 7.75 inchesWeight: 5.4 poundsFunctions: Six browning settings, reheat function, defrost function, bagel function, cancel function The Spruce Eats / Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm Food & Wine / Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm Food & Wine / Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm Best Smart Revolution InstaGLO R180 Toaster Courtesy of Williams Sonoma View On Amazon View On Target View On Target Pros This innovative toaster uses smart technology to nail a perfect doneness every time. It completes toasting cycles quickly, too. Cons This is the second-most expensive toaster we tested, and is only a smart investment if you plan to use the smart settings. The first-ever touchscreen toaster, the Revolution InstaGLOW R180 uses smart technology that adjusts to whatever you’ve popped in the slots. It’s faster than conventional toasters. During testing, we noted that toasting on level 4 produced perfectly done toast almost faster than the time it took to retrieve our serving plate and butter dish. It’s a consistent performer, too: we detected no difference in doneness, even after four consecutive rounds of toasting. Like all smart technology, this one has helpful maintenance features; in testing, we were alerted that the crumb tray was full and needed to be cleaned. The display panel is entirely digitized, all accessed through a touchscreen. When not in use, it displays either a digital or analog clock, a handy feature we appreciate. It’s easy to dial in the settings for your perfect piece of toast — or bagel, waffle, etc. — and we noted that this would be a smart buy for families with picky eaters. Price at time of publish: $350 Dimensions: 6 x 11.5 x 8.33 inchesWeight: 6.6 poundsFunctions: Seven browning levels, bagel function, waffle function, English muffin function, toaster pastry function, reheat function, defrost function The Spruce Eats / Michael Navarro The Spruce Eats / Michael Navarro Food & Wine / Michael Navarro Best Digital All-Clad TJ822D51 2-Slice Stainless Steel Digital Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Wayfair View On Sur La Table Pros This toaster has a countdown clock and a digital display, as well as other, more common features (like defrost and reheat). Cons This toaster gets quite hot to the touch when in use. The All-Clad 2-Slice Stainless Steel toaster toaster makes good use of a digital display. The doneness level is selected with a dial, and you can monitor time to completion with a countdown clock. This was one of our favorite features, and we also liked the beep alert that sounded with three seconds to go. There’s a “more time” button that adds 25 seconds to your cycle and can be pressed at any time during the toasting process. The All-Clad was one of the most consistent toasters we tested; 12 slices of bread toasted on the first setting came out perfectly, even once the toaster was warmed up after multiple rounds. As far as aesthetics go, this glossy stainless steel toaster has a classic look and isn’t too bulky. We noted that the button placement (on one of the long sides) allowed it to be “scooched back” against a wall, which freed up counter space. The slots are adequately roomy, and although we did struggle to fit homemade bread in, it can easily accommodate bagels. Price at time of publish: $130 Dimensions: 5.29 x 12.91 x 8.98 inchesWeight: 4.89 poundsFunctions: Five browning levels, bagel function, reheat function, defrost function, more time function, cancel function Food & Wine / Rachel Shalla Food & Wine / Rachel Shalla Food & Wine / Rachel Shalla Best 4-Slice Zwilling Enfinigy Cool Touch 4-Slice Toaster Amazon View On Amazon View On Williams-Sonoma View On Walmart Pros This toaster gets top marks for a consistently browned piece of toast, every time. Cons The matte black finish shows smudges easily. The Zwilling Enfinigy Cool Touch earned top honors in our best 4-slice toaster tests. With four wide slots that can accommodate hearty bread or bagels, you’d be hard-pressed to find something the Zwilling can’t handle. There are seven doneness settings, allowing for a wide variety of preferences. No matter what we toasted, it came out evenly done, with a nicely crispy exterior and no scorched hot spots. There’s an “extra lift” feature that allows the toast to be raised safely above the heating unit, and in testing, it was hard to ignore its eye-catching matte black finish. Despite its extra large size, this attractive toaster could be left on the counter without detracting from the decor. Price at time of publish: $180 Dimensions: 11.3 x 12.2 x 8.1 inchesWeight: 8.38 poundsFunctions: Seven browning levels, defrost function, reheat function, bagel function, cancel function Best Toaster Oven KitchenAid Digital Countertop Toaster Oven Amazon View On Amazon View On Target View On Walmart Pros Toasting and broiling capacities are impressively consistent in this moderately priced toaster oven. Cons Compared to fancier models with oodles of functions, this is pretty much “just” a toaster oven. Need to make a lot of toast at once? The KitchenAid Digital Countertop Toaster Oven has a 6-slice capacity, so you can handle breakfast for a crowd much faster than with a traditional toaster. It’s also a smart option for those who plan on using the other functions; in our testing of the best toaster ovens, we were especially impressed with the evenness of the broil function. This model comes with a few extra accessories, too: a 9 x 13-inch baking pan, a metal drip pan and crumb collector, and a chrome-plated steel oven rack. It’s very easy to use, with just one dial to adjust the cooking time, which is projected onto an LCD digital screen. Simply put, this is the best classic toaster oven we’ve tried, at a very attractive price. Price at time of publish: $150 Dimensions: 16 x 17 x 11.3 inchesWeight: 23 poundsFunctions: 9 preset functions: toast, bagel, cookies, roast, pizza, bake, broil, reheat, keep warm Other Toasters We Tested Strong Contenders Revolution Cooking InstaGLO R270 Toaster ($400 at Revcook.com) The R270 is an even more luxe version of our pick for Best Smart Toaster, with the same touchscreen capabilities and even more toasting options. During testing, we liked the visual aids for making perfect toast every time, and the toastie press insert was a simple, safe way to make grilled cheese in a toaster. But the $400 price tag is hard to swallow. Zwilling Enfinigy 2-Slice Toaster ($110 at Williams Sonoma) Although the 4-slice version of this toaster took home the overall best title in another review, the 2-slice Zwilling Enfinigy didn’t impress us as much. It’s a basic toaster without many bells or whistles, and we noted in testing that not all bread shapes and types fit into the slots. Smaller items, like English muffins, were tricky to retrieve without burning our fingers. What Didn't Make the List Amazon Basics 2-Slice Extra-Wide Slot Toaster ($27 at Amazon) We noted that this is a truly “no frills” toaster. It can handle bread of all sizes (including thick Japanese milk bread), but the coloring was uneven in some settings, and the construction felt a little cheap. Beautiful by Drew Barrymore 2-Slice Touchscreen Toaster ($40 at Walmart) With its gold-finished lever and flashy touchscreen display, this toaster is a looker. But it performed just average in our tests and didn’t come with features that are standard on most toasters, like the ability to adjust the timing mid-cycle. We have also noted its tendency to break down within a year or so. Factors to Consider Ease of Use A toaster with a large variety of settings and features can come with a learning curve. Our recommend toasters that are intuitive to use, whether or not they have a plethora of doneness options. We also recommend toasters with roomy slots, easy-to-adjust buttons and dials, and pronounced springs. If you plan on toasting smaller items, like English muffins, an “Extra Lift” feature or springs will help raise the bread to safe heights. Aesthetics You don’t have to store a toaster on the counter, although many cooks choose to. If you have the space and plan on using it at least daily, it’s worth keeping out for ease of use. In evaluating our tested toasters, we considered design and aesthetics. While not the most important factor, a good-looking toaster can add to your decor, rather than detract from it. You can choose a toaster that’s made to stand out (like the Smeg) or one with a more classic look that will blend in seamlessly with any kitchen decor (like the Breville). Settings How much control do you want over your toast? Generally speaking, the ability to choose between toast, bagels, and a defrost setting is standard. All of the 2-slice toasters we tested had at least four browning settings, too. Toasters with more settings, including options for toaster pastries and reheating, tend to cost more. Size In the age of pressure cookers and XL air fryers, a toaster is likely not the largest appliance on your counter. Still, you’ll want to consider how much space it takes up. Special features like wide slots add to a toaster’s bulk. A couple of toasters on our list, the KitchenAid and the Russell Hobbs, were elongated. Of course, four-slot toasters will be bulkier than two-slot models. Special Features Some of the toasters we tested had highly specific features. If you appreciate smart appliances, you may want to spring for a smart toaster, like the Revolution InstaGLO. A digital toaster is another option. Slightly more affordable with many of the dialed-in features that allow for custom toasting are digital toasters. We recommend the All-Clad 2-Slice Toaster as a great option. Our Expertise Rochelle Bilow is a food writer and editor with over a decade of professional experience. Previously a senior associate editor and social media manager at Bon Appétit and Cooking Light magazines, Rochelle is also a novelist, a culinary school graduate, and a former professional baker and line cook. In researching this article, Food & Wine editors tested over 20 toasters across all budgets, evaluating based on ease of use, performance, design, and ease of cleaning. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit