Compare the Best CookersMarch 2019

A cooker is the central componant of many larger kitchens - they are usually made up of a freestanding oven, with a hob comprising of several burners on top. Their size mean that they have a sizable footprint in the kitchen, but can also be used to cook several dishes at once - making them invaluable for large families.

There are several different types and configurations of cooker, and your choice will be dictated largely by how much food you prepare on a regular basis, and whether you need the capacity for both oven cooking (such as baking cakes or pies) and hob cooking (such as boiling and frying).

Oven

The oven is the main section of a cooker, and is mainly used for baking, roasting and slow-cooking dishes. Most cookers will have a single oven with the hob placed on top - however some more expensive brands contain 2, 3 or even 4 ovens. In these cases there is usually one oven that is the larger 'main' oven (for cooking large dishes like turkeys or geese) and several smaller ovens.

The capacity of the oven(s) is extremely important since the larger the capacity, the bigger the dishes you can prepare. Oven capacity is measured in litres - we look both at the capacities of the individual ovens and the total capacity of the entire cooker to help you make an informed decision.

Hob

The hob is the second section of the cooker - a collection of hot plates or burners which allow several different dishes to be cooked at once. When comparing hobs on a cooker, it's important to look at the number of cooking zones (burners or hot plates) on the hob. Most cookers have 4 burners spaced evenly across the top of the machine - however some models have as few as 2, or as many as 7.

Another important consideration is whether to choose a gas or electric hob for your cooker. Both have advantages and disadvantages:

Gas Hob: Gas burners have no heat-up time, so are far quicker to use, and the heat levels are easier to control than electric. Gas flames tend to spread more evenly across the bottom of pans, meaning quicker heating and more even cooking. They are also cheaper to run than electric hobs, saving you money on daily use.

Electric Hob: Electric hot plates take time to heat up, and tend to have a far more concentrated heat radius, leading to uneven heat distribution with large pans. They are also more expensive to run than gas hobs - however they are easier to clean, and significantly easier to set up and use.

Power Level

The power level of both the oven(s) and hob is an important consideration - the higher the power level, the faster and more efficiently food can be cooked. All our ovens and cookers are measured in watts (W).

Extras

Finally, there are a multitude of smaller features and functions to consider when choosing a cooker. These can involve safety features such as child locks and automatic shut-off systems and pre-programmed settings to make cooking popular dishes extremely easy. We also have cookers in a wide range of colours and styles, so you can match it perfectly to the design of your kitchen.

Cooker Prices

Cookers range in price from $179 to $5,080 and in total we found prices for 17 cookers. A new cooker costs on average $1,712 and 80% of cookers are priced between $574 and $4,699. The cheapest cooker that we found is the New World 550 at only $180, and the most expensive is the Samsung NE59M6850 at $5,080.

Cooker Brands - Price Range

Thor Kitchen cookers range in price from $4,699 to $5,001, and the highest average cooker price out of all brands is Thor Kitchen cookers with an average price of $4,850.

Samsung cookers start at $649 and their most expensive cooker costs $5,080. The second highest average cooker price out of all brands is Samsung cookers with an average price of $2,595.

The third highest average cooker price out of all brands is Bosch cookers with an average price of $990. Bosch cookers range in price from $753 to $1,384.

Cooker Brands - Average Ratings

We have evaluated 14 expert reviews and 20,855 user reviews for cookers and used this data to determine the average rating for each brand of cooker. The top three cooker brands are Britannia, Amica and Hotpoint. Britannia has an average rating of 91%, Amica has an average rating of 88% and Hotpoint has an average rating of 87%.

Biggest Cooker Retailers

We found 12 current offers for cookers from eBay making it the biggest cooker retailer. That is much bigger than the second biggest retailer, Appliances Connection for whom we found 6 current offers for cookers. The third biggest retailer is Walmart with 2 current cooker offers.

When Are Most New Cookers Released?

We couldn't see any prominent trend in the release dates for new cookers over the last 3 years. The biggest month last year for new cooker releases was March, with 63 new cookers released that month. In July 2017, 162 new cookers were released making it the biggest month that year for new cooker releases. In 2016 most new cookers were released in October, with 334 new cookers released that month.

How Fast Do Cooker Prices Drop After Release?

In the first 6 months after release, cookers drop in price by 9% on average. That means that on a typical cooker costing $1,712 you could save on average $154 by waiting 6 months before buying.

Product Types

Product type denotes whether the cooker is designed to be free standing, or to be built in to fixtures unobtrusively.

We found 1,376 cookers that are freestanding cookers, which makes freestanding the most frequently found product type amongst new cookers. We found 18 cookers that are integrated cookers, making this the second most common product type amongst new cookers.

Oven Types

The category of oven e.g. gas, electrical.

Amongst new cookers, the most popular oven type is electric oven. We found 1,067 cookers that are electric oven cookers. Gas oven is the second most frequently found oven type amongst new cookers. We found 323 cookers that are gas oven cookers.

Hob Types

A hob (burner on top of cooker) can be gas, induction, ceramic etc.

Amongst new cookers, the most frequently found hob type is Gas hob. We found 831 cookers that are cookers that have a Gas hob hob type. We found 413 cookers that are cookers that have an Electric hob hob type, making Electric hob the second most popular hob type amongst new cookers.

Ovens

Some cookers have more than one oven compartment. The temperature of each compartment can be controlled separately.

The ovens of cookers range from 1 to 4. The ovens of the majority of cookers range from 2 to 3. The cooker with the most oven is the LG LDE4413, which is a 2 oven cooker and can be purchased for $1,199.99. The Zanussi ZCV550H1WA, which currently retails for $574.12, has the least oven and is a 1 oven cooker.

Burners / Cooking Zones

The number of burners (gas) or cooking zones (electric) on the hob.

The burners / cooking zones of cookers range from 1 to 8. The burners / cooking zones of most cookers range from 4 to 5. The cooker with the most burner / cooking zone is the Thor Kitchen HRG 4804U, which is a 7 burner / cooking zone cooker and is on sale for $5,001.00. The cooker with the least burner / cooking zone is the Zanussi ZCV550H1WA, which is a 4 burner / cooking zone cooker and currently retails for $574.12.

Main Oven Interior Capacities

'Main Oven Capacity' is a measurement of how much food can fit inside the main oven in the cooker, measures in litres (L).

Across the range of cookers, the main oven interior capacities range from 18L to 178.4L. The main oven interior capacities of the majority of cookers range from 65L to 75L. The LG LRE3061ST, which is available at $499.00, has the biggest main oven interior capacity and is a 178.4L 1st oven interior capacity cooker. The cooker with the smallest main oven interior capacity is the Zanussi ZCV550H1WA, which is a 54L 1st oven interior capacity cooker and is on sale for $574.12.

Energy Efficiency of Cookers

The Energy Efficiency Class of a cooker is a measure of how much energy is wasted when the appliance is in use.

The most common energy efficiency rating amongst new cookers is A. We found 883 cookers that have an energy efficiency rating of A. A+ is the second most popular energy efficiency rating amongst new cookers. We found 406 cookers that have an energy efficiency rating of A+.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Cookers?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying cookers. For each retailer it shows the total number of cookers where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying cookers. For each retailer we took all of their prices and looked at what proportion of those prices where the cheapest on the market. The cheapest retailer that we found was eBay. 12 of their cooker prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of Cookers for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for cookers by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of cooker prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's cooker prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was eBay. 100% of their cooker prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.