Compare the 10 Best Microwaves

Trending Microwave Comparisons

Microwave Buying Guide

Capacity

A microwave is a necessity of any modern kitchen. It is a versatile tool that can be used for far more than just reheating leftovers - it can be used for all manner of cooking, from poaching salmon to baking potatoes.

Microwaves come in all different shores and sizes, and are primarily differentiated by their capacity. The bigger the capacity of your microwave, the larger the food you can cook in it. Some microwaves just fit single plates or bowls, while other models are large enough to fit an entire chicken or soup pot in.

Power Levels/Cooking Programs

Microwaves are all given a power level, rated in Watts. The higher the power level, the faster your food will be cooked. Most modern microwaves come with a range of power levels, allowing you great flexibility when preparing your food. They also come with specific setting for warming, reheating or defrosting food - extremely useful in speeding up cooking times, or reheating food previously cooked. Defrosting is an especially useful setting, meaning that joints of meat and frozen food can be brought up to room temperature in a matter of minutes.

Many microwaves now have a selection of automatic cooking functions as well. These allow you to input a type of food to cook (potatoes, chicken, soups, etc) and a weight, and the microwave will automatically calculate the power level and time needed to cook it perfectly. Conveniences like this can make preparing dinner hassle-free, and remove the guesswork and constant checking to see if your food is ready.

This automatic cooking function can also extend to defrosting and reheating leftovers, making the microwave an invaluable tool for easy food heating and prep. Some advanced models of microwave also offer a 'power defrost' setting, which can defrost frozen meat far quickly than usual defrost programs. However because this defrost cycle is far more powerful, care has to be given to make sure that you don't accidentally part cook the food while it's being defrosted.

Oven & Grill Functions

Some microwaves have the ability to function as ovens and grills in addition to standard microwave cooking. Microwaves that have an added grill function combine the normal microwave cooking with a heated element either on the top or the sides of the machine - this allows it to function similar to a standard grill. Microwave ovens, on the other hand, can cook and roast food exactly like a convection oven. Whichever model you pick, these types of microwaves greatly increase the types of food you can cook, and turn your microwave into the central cooking tool in your kitchen - you can roast fish and beef, roast vegetables and grill cheese toasties!

Steam Functions

More advanced models of microwave may also have a steamer function. As the name suggests, a steamer addition to the microwave uses boiling water to generate bursts of hot steam inside the microwave. This is a great method of delicately cooking vegetables so they retain the maximum amount of nutrients, and can also be used for cooking fish, dumplings, or Chinese-style pancakes for roast duck. While normally only found in the most high-level and expensive microwaves, it allows the appliance to become even more versatile as a cooking tool, and therefore may well be worth the extra expense.

Extra Features

Finally, some microwaves comes with a collection of extra features, to make cooking easier or more convenient. These can include recipe books detailing how to cook different types of food, baking trays designed to fit comfortably into the machine, or racks to allow multiple dishes to be cooked at once. Some microwave ovens even include a rotisserie spit, allowing you to cook spit-roasted chicken or pork.

Microwave Retailers, Prices and Features

Microwave Prices

We currently list 12 microwaves ranging from $31 to $1,599. The average price of a new microwave is $297 and the 80% of microwaves are priced between $83 and $350. The Siemens iQ700 is the cheapest microwave at only $32, and Miele M6160TC is the most expensive at $1,599.

Microwave Brands - Price Range

Miele microwaves range in price from $1,599 to $1,599, and the highest average microwave price out of all brands is Miele microwaves with an average price of $1,599.

Smeg microwaves range in price from $350 to $350, and the second highest average microwave price out of all brands is Smeg microwaves with an average price of $350.

Daewoo microwaves range in price from $214 to $349, and the third highest average microwave price out of all brands is Daewoo microwaves with an average price of $282.

Microwave Brands - Average Ratings

We have evaluated 2 expert reviews and 5,417 user reviews for microwaves available online and used this data to evaluate the average rating for each brand of microwave. The top three microwave brands are Belling, Samsung and LG. Belling has an average rating of 91%, Samsung has an average rating of 90% and LG has an average rating of 85%.

Biggest Microwave Retailers

We found 8 current offers for microwaves from Amazon US making it the biggest microwave retailer. That is significantly bigger than the second biggest retailer, eBay for whom we found 6 current offers for microwaves. The third biggest retailer is Appliances Connection with 5 current microwave offers.

When Are Most New Microwaves Released?

The most common period for new microwaves to be released in is between May and July. 49 new microwaves were released in May 2016 making it the biggest month that year for new microwave releases. The biggest month in 2015 for new microwave releases was July, with 128 new microwaves released that month. In 2014 most new microwaves were released in February, with 269 new microwaves released that month.

How Fast Do Microwave Prices Drop After Release?

On average microwaves drop in price by 3% in the first 6 months after release. On a typical new microwave costing $297, by waiting 6 months before buying you could save on average $8.

Microwave Powers

This denotes how strong the cooking power of the microwave is, measured in watts (W).

Comparing all microwaves, the microwave powers range from 500W to 2,800W. The microwave powers of most microwaves range from 790W to 880W. The DaewooManual Microwave Oven, which is available at $349.00, has the biggest microwave power and is a 1,200W microwave. The DaewooManual Microwave Oven, which sells for $223.02, has the smallest microwave power and is an 800W microwave.

A higher power level that food cooked in the microwave will cook quicker and more efficiently.

Interior Capacities

This is how much the microwave can hold, measured in litres (L).

Across the range of microwaves, the interior capacities range from 8L to 50L. The interior capacities of most microwaves range from 20L to 24L. The MieleM6160TC, which sells for $1,599.00, has the biggest interior capacity and is a 46L capacity microwave. The MieleM6160TC has the smallest interior capacity. This microwave is a 20L capacity microwave and currently retails for $349.00.

A bigger capacity means that the microwave is capable of holding - and therefore cooking - more food at once.

Colour of Products

We found 196 microwaves that are microwaves that have a black coloured, which makes this the most popular colour of product amongst new microwaves. We found 185 microwaves that are microwaves that have a stainless steel coloured, making stainless steel the second most frequently found colour of product amongst new microwaves.

Case Designs

The most frequently found case design amongst new microwaves is countertop. We found 214 microwaves that are countertop microwaves. We found 163 microwaves that are built-in microwaves, making built-in the second most common case design amongst new microwaves.

Biggest Microwave Retailers

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Microwaves?

The cheapest store by number of microwave for which they offer the cheapest price is v with the cheapest price on 5 microwaves.

Proportion of Microwaves for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

The cheapest retailer by number of microwave for which they offer the cheapest price is eBay with the cheapest price on 83.3% of its microwaves.

	Child Lock 3
	Turntable 4
	Defrost Function 5
	Reheat Function 1
	Grill 3
	Steam Cooking 0
	Rotisserie 0

	Samsung 0
	Russell Hobbs 0
	Panasonic 2
	Bosch 0
	Daewoo 2
	Sharp 1
	Hotpoint 0
	Neff 0
	LG 1
	Whirlpool 0
	Siemens 1
	AEG 0
	Smeg 1
	Kenwood 0
	Gorenje 0
	Severin 0
	Baumatic 0
	Igenix 0
	CDA 0
	Amica 0
	Beko 0
	Belling 0
	Zanussi 0
	Swan 0
	Candy 0
	Miele 1
	Electrolux 0
	Indesit 0
	Teka 0
	Caso 0
	Tower 0
	Clatronic 0
	Exquisit 0
	Domo 0
	Bauknecht 0
	KitchenAid 0
	Orbegozo 0
	Inventum 0
	Haier 1
	Franke 0
	Infiniton 0
	De Dietrich 0
	Logik 0
	Breville 0
	GE 0
	Taurus 0
	Rommelsbacher 0
	Flama 0
	Essentials 0
	Constructa 0
	ROMMER 0
	Avanti 1
	Schaub Lorenz 0
	ECG 0
	Klarstein 1
	DeLonghi 0
	White And Brown 0
	Gastroback 0
	Stoves 0
	Medion 0
	Zelmer 0
	Fersay 0
	Rangemaster 0
	Fisher & Paykel 0
	Scholtes 0
	Olimpic 0

	Cream Colour 1
	Titanium 0
	Chocolate 0
	Metallic 0
	Mirror 0
	White 3
	Carbon 0
	сhampagne 0
	Champagne 0
	Chocolat 0
	Chrome 0
	Cream 2
	Gold 0
	Anthracite 0
	Beige 0
	Black 0
	Blue 0
	Bordeaux 0
	Brown 0
	Brushed Steel 0
	Graphite 0
	Green 0
	Grey 1
	Purple 0
	Red 1
	Silver 1
	Stainless Steel 5
	Tan 0
	Pink 0
	Ivory 0
	Navy 0
	Orange 0

	Countertop 6
	Over the Range 0
	Built-in 3
	Freestanding 3

98 Value for Money	Excellent
89 Features	Fully-Featured
88 Running Costs	$303 / 10 Years
90 Overall Score	Excellent

Compare the 10 Best MicrowavesAugust 2017

Search Filters

#1 Siemens iQ700

#2 Panasonic NN‑SU656W

#3 Haier HMC1035SESS

#4 Avanti MT09V0W

#5 Sharp R‑21LCF

#6 Daewoo Digital Eco

#7 Panasonic Compact Inverter Microwave

#8 LG LMS1531ST

#9 Smeg MI20XU

#10 Klarstein Fine Dinesty

No matching products found.

Trending Microwave Comparisons

Microwave Buying Guide

Capacity

Power Levels/Cooking Programs

Oven & Grill Functions

Steam Functions

Extra Features

Microwave Retailers, Prices and Features

Microwave Prices

Microwave Brands - Price Range

Microwave Brands - Average Ratings

Biggest Microwave Retailers

When Are Most New Microwaves Released?

How Fast Do Microwave Prices Drop After Release?

Microwave Powers

Interior Capacities

Colour of Products

Case Designs

Biggest Microwave Retailers

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Microwaves?

Proportion of Microwaves for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

97 Value for Money	Excellent
84 Features	Fully-Featured
74 Running Costs	$370 / 10 Years
85 Overall Score	Excellent

97 Value for Money	Excellent
85 Features	Fully-Featured
76 Running Costs	$336 / 10 Years
85 Overall Score	Excellent

88 Value for Money	Excellent
80 Features	Fully-Featured
75 Running Costs	$303 / 10 Years
79 Overall Score	Very Good

79 Value for Money	Very Good
75 Features	Good Features
63 Running Costs	$336 / 10 Years
72 Overall Score	Very Good

65 Features	Good Features
83 Running Costs	$269 / 10 Years
51 Overall Score	Average

56 Value for Money	Average
68 Features	Good Features
54 Running Costs	$319 / 10 Years
59 Overall Score	Average

67 Value for Money	Good
71 Features	Good Features
52 Running Costs	$370 / 10 Years
64 Overall Score	Good

47 Value for Money	Mediocre
68 Features	Good Features
75 Running Costs	$269 / 10 Years
58 Overall Score	Average

37 Value for Money	Mediocre
65 Features	Good Features
74 Running Costs	$269 / 10 Years
53 Overall Score	Average

	Award winners only 0