Hot, Fast and Everywhere: The Rise of the Air Fryer in the American Kitchen

It’s Wednesday, around 6 p.m. It’s been a busy day, but I’m already carving a perfectly roasted chicken on my favorite ebony cutting board, the bird’s juices spilling out from under crispy skin and filling up the board’s reservoir like a moat. 

For years, Ina Garten’s roasted chicken — or some variation of it — has been something of a Sunday tradition for me. It’s not particularly decadent or overly involved, but it’s reserved for Sundays because of its 2-hour total cooking time. Now, the same recipe, but adapted for the air fryer, hits the table in well under an hour. 

After months of owning an air fryer and experimenting mostly with versions of traditionally fried foods, such as wings, fries and chicken cutlets, I made my first air fryer roast chicken on a whim. Stunned by the speedy cooking time — 25% faster than traditional roasting — tender meat and impossibly crispy skin without the usual tablespoon of butter, I haven’t put a bird in the oven since.

Of all the kitchen tools I’ve collected, and there are many, the air fryer has shifted my cooking paradigm the most, making cooking easier, faster and more foolproof. Few and far between are air fryer fails, and frequent are the discoveries of something I’d been “making wrong” all along until I roasted it quickly under spiraling superconvection heat.

Save for the rare batch of cookies or large cut of meat for a dinner party, the air fryer has all but replaced my oven. I plan meals around it: If a recipe calls for the use of my oven — meat loaf, roasted salmon, charred cauliflower — I consider how I might adapt it for the air fryer. 

Celebrated chef and restaurateur Stephanie Izard shares my enthusiasm. “It’s such a versatile tool,” the James Beard Award winner tells me. “I use mine all the time for dinners,” she adds, naming fried rice, marinated chicken and salmon as a few of her go-tos. “It’s like making one-pot meals — but roasted!”

We’re not alone. 

According to a CNET survey, over 70% of US adults either own or plan to own an air fryer within the year. Additional studies estimate that about 60% of American households have already made the purchase.

To put that in perspective: Since the turn of the century, only the smartphone has matched this level of rapid, widespread adoption for a new category of consumer technology. And no other kitchen appliance even comes close. Even at its peak, the limited available sales data suggest that the Instant Pot never reached such heights. Instant Pot sales have steadily declined following the multicooker boom, and the company that made most of them filed for bankruptcy in 2023. The air fryer, meanwhile, has rocketed from trendy novelty to everyday essential in record time and shows no signs of slowing.  

Guy Fieri, the chef, restaurateur and impresario of TV cooking shows, is another high-profile acolyte. “An air fryer has a permanent place on my kitchen counter,” Fieri tells me. He cites wings, roasted potatoes and leftover egg rolls as a few staples that are regulars in his air fryer. “You can crisp, roast or reheat and still get that pro-level finish every time.” 

Once pitched as a healthier alternative to deep-frying, air fryers are now edging out ovens, toasters and grills for everyday use. For many people I spoke to, the air fryer has become the most frequently used appliance in their kitchen, reshaping cooking routines and eating habits.

Every member of my own family and most of my friends keep an air fryer planted on the counter. Some, like my sister, who regularly cooks for her family of five, uses it so often for quick snacks and meals that she jokingly refers to life “before and after the air fryer” as two very different realities.  

An entire ecosystem has emerged around air fryers as well. Recipe bloggers, cooking influencers, accessory makers and air fryer manufacturers have all contributed to the movement, solidifying the device’s place at the center of fast and modern home cooking.

What is everyone air-frying?

Air fryers may have made their debut as the go-to gadget for crisping up wings and fries, but fans have quickly realized that these countertop convection powerhouses can handle much more than game-day fare.

Take Jenny Catton, a UK-based food blogger who bought her first air fryer in 2022. Three years and one torrid affair with a small appliance later, Catton now runs The Air Fryer Kitchen, a popular recipe blog dedicated to air fryer cooking.

Like many, Catton initially used her air fryer for frozen foods and pub-style snacks, but her approach quickly evolved. Now, her weekly staples include air-fried salmon wrapped in foil with herbs and butter and batches of homemade granola.

Her readers have also moved beyond the basics. Two of the most-visited recipes on The Air Fryer Kitchen? Banana chocolate chip muffins and pork steaks.

A quick internet search surfaces dozens of other websites dedicated to air fryer cooking, and old-guard food magazines are getting in on the act. Epicurious, Food & Wine and others have lists of air fryer recipes that are many scrolls long and include fare decidedly not for game day. Think air fryer burrata and air fryer roast chicken with rosemary and orange sauce. 

While the air fryer’s top-down heat and smaller size may not be suitable for all things — large roasts and most baking projects are still best in a traditional oven — one could go months using only an air fryer and not run out of new things to cook. And one — me — often does.

For a prior story, we asked chefs about the best vegetables to air-fry, and the list was long. Most meat and seafood also transform into something rather delicious under air fryer conditions.

In our own testing, we unearthed even more unusual air fryer success stories. The fierce, fast heat of the air fryer is enough to char a burger patty to medium-rare in minutes (and you can toast the bun while you’re at it). Grilled cheese turns out crispier and less soggy than when pan-fried in oil, and hot dogs earn their coveted caramelized snap without having to fire up the Weber. For reheating leftovers, the microwave consistently falls short of what an air fryer can do in roughly the same amount of time.

So what’s really behind the surge in air fryer popularity? For Catton, it all comes down to speed. 

“Air fryers can handle nearly any dish you’d cook in a traditional oven, but in a fraction of the time,” she says. “They’re ideal for busy people. Once someone tries an air fryer, they usually tell their friends, and then those friends want one too.”

CNET’s survey supports her claim: 64% of respondents said they use their air fryer because it cooks faster, and 65% cited its simplicity.

Another big driver? A healthier approach to comfort food. Air fryers promise the crispy indulgence of fried favorites with a fraction of the oil. 

According to Ninja, one of the leading producers of air fryers globally, the mighty convection cookers use 75% less oil than deep-frying to achieve the same or similar results. 

To arrive at this figure, the company, which has a sensory team dedicated to refining the recipes and real-world functionality of its kitchen appliances, conducted extensive testing and consumer research. First, it identified the ideal french fry texture when cooked in oil, then cooked fries in the air fryer using a bit more oil every time until taste testers declared them equal to their deep-fried counterparts.

Healthier fries that taste like the real thing would be reason enough for many of us to splurge, but Ninja’a precise calculation applies to dozens of other traditionally fried foods. For serial snackers, the appeal of the air fryer is sizable and clear.

Who’s buying air fryers? Everyone

If you’d asked me a decade ago which kitchen gadget would revolutionize home cooking, I would’ve confidently said the multicooker. Fast forward 10 years: Instant Pot sales have cooled, and the air fryer has undeniably claimed the mantle.

By the late 2010s, air fryer sales were already soaring — an impressive feat for any new product category. Then the pandemic hit. Like many home-centric devices, air fryers saw explosive growth during lockdown, with sales jumping 76% from 2020 to 2021. That surge translated to 25.6 million units sold and nearly $1 billion in revenue.

It would be easy to chalk that up to a pandemic-fueled fad, but the momentum didn’t stop. During the height of COVID-19, approximately 36% of Americans owned an air fryer. That number has since nearly doubled. Last year, sales rose another 10.2%. 

The US leads the charge by far. In 2023, American consumers accounted for $233.8 million of the more than $1 billion in global air fryer sales. The UK, the second-largest market, trailed with under $90 million.

Interest in air fryers spans generational lines as well. Our survey found that 62% of Gen Xers use an air fryer, followed by millennials and Baby Boomers at 56% each, and Gen Z at 51%.

In short, everyone seems to be hot on air fryers. According to Statista, if current trends continue, 113.6 million more air fryers will be sold by 2029.

The rise of the air fryer: How did we get here?

The air fryer made its market debut in 2010, when Philips acquired a patent for “rapid air technology” from the late Dutch inventor Fred van der Weij, who developed the prototype four years earlier.

The idea was straightforward: intense convection heat, driven by a high-powered fan, circulates hot air around the food at high speed. This rapid airflow crisps the outer layers while keeping the inside moist — mimicking the effect of deep-frying, but without all the oil.

At first, the air fryer seemed like another passing gimmick, something destined for the QVC clearance bin alongside Slap Chop, Juicero and countless other overhyped, underused kitchen tools.

The somewhat awkward name didn’t help its credibility. Nor did early endorsements from overexposed celebrity chefs like Emeril Lagasse and Gordon Ramsay, both known for chasing product deals and pushing branded cooking gadgets with perhaps a little too much enthusiasm.

Yet, the air fryer slowly earned its place in home kitchens, building a loyal fan base and influential backers. A turning point occurred in 2016 when Oprah included it in her cult-followed “Favorite Things” list. From there, its status began to solidify — joining the ranks of the blender, slow cooker and cast-iron skillet as an indispensable cooking tool. Ten years later, an air fryer — this time Cosori’s TurboBlaze smart oven — maintains a coveted spot on Winfrey’s curated gifting list. 

Dave Farmer, CEO of Versuni, which acquired Philips’ air fryer business in 2021, recalls another landmark moment that signaled the world was taking air fryers seriously. 

“At a certain point, we saw consumer packaged goods including air fryer cooking instructions on the back of the box, along with stovetop, oven and microwave,” he tells me. “Now air fryer directions are standard on bags of french fries, boxes of veggie burgers and other quick-fire frozen foods.”

The glass air fryer era is upon us

Until recently, air fryers largely came in one of two forms.

The most common type is a basket-style air fryer, recognizable by its pull-out drawer. These models typically include a single basket with a perforated tray — or a nested perforated basket — that allows air to circulate around the food for even crisping.

There are also oven-style air fryers, which resemble a standard toaster oven but are supercharged with air fryer technology. These versions typically come with multiple racks and baking trays, offering more cooking space. They’re also more expensive, on balance, and decidedly more onerous to clean.

But last year, Ninja disrupted the category with a bold new design: a glass-chamber air fryer called the Crispi. Unlike anything else on the market, the nontoxic Crispi quickly shot to the top of our best air fryers list after we tested more than 24 models. It’s the one I use at home and has become my recommendation for readers, friends and family.

According to Ninja, the Crispi didn’t just impress me — it made waves across the industry, earning widespread acclaim and garnering over 715 million social media impressions since its launch.

Less polished versions of the glass air fryer preceded the Crispi, and several brands, including Kismile, quickly launched copycat models. Like a boom within a boom, these transparent, nontoxic and high-performance air fryers are poised to become the new norm — or at least a defining option — in future design.

As a longtime leader in home appliances with a rosy market outlook, Ninja isn’t taking its foot off the gas.

I visited Ninja’s sprawling campus headquarters, just outside Boston, where the team was preparing to launch the Crispi Pro, a $280 upgrade of its headline-making appliance. The brand, known also for its powerful vacuums, blenders and other small home appliances, currently has 20 air fryers on the market and many more products featuring an air fryer setting or similar technology.

I was invited to Ninja’s test kitchen, where the sensory team tests air fryer recipes and delivers its findings back to the folks in engineering. Ninja’s 3D printing operation enables them to create physical representations of air fryer concepts in just hours, allowing for consumer-ready models to be on shelves faster than ever. 

Gregory Fish, Ninja’s head of product design, is bullish on the air fryer segment and credits the Crispi’s success to two standout features: its glass cooking chamber and modular design. The glass allows home cooks to watch their food cook in real time, and the entire chamber is 100% nontoxic, with no nonstick coating. That also makes it easier to deep clean, whether by hand or dishwasher.

“Much of the insight came from seeing people use their air fryers for everything from simple reheating to full meals,” Fish says. 

Beyond the added capacity, convenience and toxin-free makeup of the larger, more modular Crispi, what really struck a chord with consumers was this air fryer’s potential to replace their oven altogether.

Can air fryers really replace ovens?

With air fryers now in roughly six out of 10 US homes and ownership growing steadily, it’s fair to ask: How far can this air fryer thing go?

Among owners, usage is impressively high. According to Data Bridge Market Research, the average household turns to its air fryer 4.2 times per week, replacing traditional oven use for 35% of cooking occasions.

I asked Catton, the air fryer recipe blogger, whether she thinks air fryers will eventually overtake full-size ovens. For her, it’s not a question of if, but when.

“I think this will happen,” Catton says. “As living spaces shrink, especially in cities, an air fryer could be more practical than a full wall oven.”

Capacity is one of the few advantages that traditional ovens still have over their modern counterparts. You’ll still need them for your Thanksgiving turkey. However, air fryers excel in speed and energy efficiency — they cook faster, use less energy and don’t require preheating.

They’re also relatively cheap, with budget models available for as little as $50. Higher-end air fryers exist, but it’s not a complex technology. If you’re paying more than $200 for an air fryer, you’re probably paying too much. 

Ninja, which gathers extensive user feedback, shares Catton’s optimism. “We’re seeing people cook entire meals — chicken on one side, Brussels sprouts on the other,” a rep for the company told me. “In many ways, it’s replacing how people use their oven.”

Traditional oven manufacturers have taken notice. Many modern models, including my Samsung induction oven, now feature built-in air fryer settings. I’ve tested a few — they get the job done, but they lack what makes standalone air fryers shine: a compact chamber that circulates hot air quickly and evenly for that signature crisp.

What health experts say about air fryers

Most health experts agree that air fryers can be a healthier alternative to deep-frying. By using little to no oil, one can reduce calories by up to 80% and significantly lower fat intake.

In an investigation into the health benefits of air fryer cooking by the Cleveland Clinic, dietitian Julia Zumpano noted that air fryers “eliminate the need for added oils entirely.” Research shows that air frying can reduce acrylamide — a potentially carcinogenic compound found in fried potatoes — by up to 90%.

But let’s be clear: air fryers aren’t a panacea for an unhealthy diet. They can’t remove saturated fat from bacon or trans fats from highly processed snacks. Cooking refined carbs with less oil still leaves you with refined carbs.

The British Heart Foundation echoes this nuance. Air frying doesn’t offer extra health benefits for foods that don’t typically require added fat to begin with, such as sausages, bacon or pre-breaded chicken. In those cases, it’s just a different way to cook, not necessarily a healthier one.

And so the quest for healthy bacon continues.

What chefs think about air fryers

While dietitians are quick to praise air fryers, it’s harder to find career chefs who share the sentiment, with many dismissing them or refusing to offer comment.

Stephanie Izard is an exception. A champion of Top Chef and Iron Chef, Izard owns six acclaimed restaurants, most of which are located in Chicago, and proudly admits that she “always has an air fryer on the counter.”

“I love using it to bake small batches,” Izard says. “It [cooks] so evenly compared to my convection oven, and it heats up incredibly fast. They’re perfect for crisping pork belly or other proteins, and for roasting vegetables like squash or Brussels sprouts to get that nice crunch without deep frying.”

As for using an air fryer in one of those six restaurant kitchens, Izard laments that “they’re just not big enough to be practical. I wish someone would make a supersized version.”

Fieri, who soared to celebrity status with the show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, is so enamored with air fryers that he has added one to his kitchen collection, featuring a steam function designed to keep food from drying out. (Phillips also makes a steam air fryer.)

Asked about the use of air fryers in professional settings, Fieri says, “I’m starting to see more chefs use air fryer-style tech for quick tests or catering gigs. They’re efficient, cleaner and great for nailing texture without dropping everything in oil.” 

That love for the air fryer doesn’t extend to all chefs and food influencers. 

YouTube chef Brian Lagerstrom has been notably vocal in his criticism, calling air fryers “kinda dumb” and advocating instead for traditional stove-oven combinations. Other culinary pros, such as TV chef James Martin, expressed similar doubts, dismissing air fryers as merely tabletop convection ovens with limited applications and middling results.

Whether air fryers find their way into restaurant kitchens and favor with the culinary elite is, in some ways, irrelevant. Consumers are plunking them down on their counters at a record clip and, according to many I’ve spoken with, finding more ways to use them. More than 15 years into the air fryer era, with sales still on the rise, it feels safe to move the air fryer from a cooking trend to a kitchen staple.

As Fieri puts it, using his unmistakable parlance, “I’m about tools that make cooking more fun and flavorful. Whether you’re a new cook or a pro, it’s the easiest way to bring the heat and still keep it healthy.”

To understand the unique value an air fryer offers the average home cook and, thus, its breakneck rise in popularity, you needn’t look further than my Sunday roast chicken — now available on weekdays. 

Simply put, air fryers cook food fast and with less oil or grease. The results, at least for many foods cooked with superconvection, are as good or better than other clunkier, slower, greasier methods — a sentiment backed by a few of the world’s most celebrated chefs. 

That a reliable unit can be had for less than $75 only bolsters its quest for a home in every kitchen.

While some drag their feet, still, writing the air fryer off as a nothing gimmick; nothing more than a toaster oven with a funny name, unworthy of the countertop real estate it demands, I’ll be here enjoying my chicken, salmon, grilled cheese and whatever revelation comes next. 

CNET commissioned YouGov Plc to conduct the survey cited here. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,190 adults, of whom 839 own an air fryer or are planning on buying one in the next 12 months. Fieldwork was undertaken Sept. 24-25, 2025. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all US adults (aged 18 plus).  

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