Compare the Best CookersMay 2020

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

The price range of cookers is from $179 to $4,999 and in total we found prices for 16 cookers. The average price of a new cooker is $1,321 and the 80% of cookers are priced between $451 and $1,955. The most expensive cooker that we found is the Thor Kitchen HRG4808U at $4,999, and the cheapest is the New World 550 at only $180.

Cooker Brands - Price Range

The average price of Thor Kitchen cookers is $4,999 which is the highest average price of all cooker brands. Thor Kitchen cookers start at $4,999 and their most expensive cooker costs $4,999.

The average price of Stoves cookers is $1,819 which is the second highest average price of all cooker brands. Stoves cookers start at $1,465 and their most expensive cooker costs $2,173.

LG cookers range in price from $1,000 to $1,955, and the average price of LG cookers is $1,352 which is the third highest average price of all cooker brands.

Cooker Brands - Average Ratings

We have analysed 19 expert reviews and 23,231 user reviews for cookers and used this information to determine the average rating for each brand of cooker. The top rated cooker brand is Rangemaster with an average rating of 87%. The second best brand is Bertazzoni with 82% and the third best brand is Belling with 82%.

Biggest Cooker Retailers

We found 9 current offers for cookers from eBay making it the biggest cooker retailer.

When Are Most New Cookers Released?

The most common period for new cookers to be released in is between March and April. That means that most of the latest cooker technology was released in within the last 3 months, and now is good time to buy. April was the biggest month last year for new cookers, with five new cookers released that month. In 2018 most new cookers were released in March, with 77 new cookers released that month. In July 2017, 158 new cookers were released making it the biggest month that year for new cooker releases.

How Fast Do Cooker Prices Drop After Release?

New cookers drop in price by an average of 9% in the first 6 months after they were first released.

That means a saving of $108 on a typical $1,198 new cooker if you wait 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.

Amongst new cookers, the most popular product type is freestanding. We found 1,559 cookers that are freestanding cookers. We found 19 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.

We found 1,208 cookers that are electric oven cookers, which makes this the most common oven type amongst new cookers. The second most common oven type amongst new cookers is gas oven. We found 367 cookers that are gas oven cookers.

Hob Types

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

The most frequently found hob type amongst new cookers is gas hob. We found 917 cookers that are cookers that have a gas hob hob type. We found 473 cookers that are cookers that have an electric hob hob type, making electric hob the second most common 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 Stoves Sterling S1000DF, which is a 4 oven cooker and is priced at $2,173.05. The Samsung NE59J7850WG, which is priced at $1,149.99, 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 1zone(s) to 8zone(s). The burners / cooking zones of most cookers range from 4zone(s) to 5zone(s). The cooker with the most burner / cooking zone is the Stoves Sterling S1000DF, which is a 7zone(s) burner / cooking zone cooker and currently retails for $2,173.05. The cooker with the least burner / cooking zone is the Nordmende CTG51LPGWH, which is a 4zone(s) burner / cooking zone cooker and can be purchased for $450.73.

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 179L. The main oven interior capacities of most cookers range from 65L to 75L. The LG LRE3061ST, which sells for $1,099.99, 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 Belling Cookcentre 90 DFT, which is a 35L 1st oven interior capacity cooker and is priced at $1,093.24.

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.

A is the most common energy efficiency rating amongst new cookers. We found 1,061 cookers that have an energy efficiency rating of A. We found 410 cookers that have an energy efficiency rating of A+, making this the second most popular energy efficiency rating amongst new cookers.

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. 8 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. 88.9% of their cooker prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.