Compare the Best MicrowavesMay 2021

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.

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!

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.

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 Prices

The price range of microwaves is from $40 to $3,699 and in total we found prices for 66 microwaves. The average price of a new microwave is $431 and the 80% of microwaves are priced between $89 and $1,180. The cheapest microwave that we found is the Haden Perth at only $40, and the most expensive is the Miele H6500BM at $3,699.

Microwave Brands - Price Range

Miele microwaves range in price from $2,199 to $3,699, and the average price of Miele microwaves is $2,733 which is the highest average price of all microwave brands.

The second highest average microwave price out of all brands is Siemens microwaves with an average price of $1,282. Siemens microwaves range in price from $985 to $1,579.

Bosch microwaves start at $165 and their most expensive microwave costs $1,855. The third highest average microwave price out of all brands is Bosch microwaves with an average price of $823.

Microwave Brands - Average Ratings

We have analysed 73 expert reviews and 19,700 user reviews for microwaves and used these reviews to calculate the average rating for each brand of microwave. Panasonic is the top rated microwave brand with an average rating of 89%. Hotpoint is the second best brand with 87% and Samsung is the third best brand with 86%.

Biggest Microwave Retailers

The biggest microwave retailer by number of products currently for sale is Overstock. We found 11 current microwave offers from Overstock. The second biggest retailer is Factory Outlet Store with 7 offers. That means Overstock is much bigger than Factory Outlet Store when it comes to microwaves. eBay is the third biggest retailer with 3 current offers.

When Are Most New Microwaves Released?

We looked at the release dates for new microwaves over the last 3 years, but couldn't see any evident pattern. Last year most new microwaves were released in June, with 27 new microwaves released that month. In January 2019, 28 new microwaves were released making it the biggest month that year for new microwave releases. The biggest month in 2018 for new microwave releases was November, with 43 new microwaves released that month.

How Fast Do Microwave Prices Drop After Release?

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

If you are prepared to wait then you could save an average of $25 on a typical $421 new microwave by waiting 6 months before buying.

Case Designs

The case design of the microwave shows whether it is meant to be free standing, or designed to be built into fixtures unobtrusively.

We found 780 microwaves that are freestanding microwaves, which makes this the most frequently found case design amongst new microwaves. The second most common case design amongst new microwaves is integrated. We found 482 microwaves that are integrated microwaves.

Microwave Powers

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

Across the range of microwaves, the microwave powers range from 500W to 3,300W. The microwave powers of most microwaves range from 800W to 950W. The microwave with the biggest microwave power is the Gastroback 42813, which is a 1,400W microwave and can be purchased for $204.58. The microwave with the smallest microwave power is the Avanti MO7103SST, which is a 700W microwave and is priced at $88.99.

Interior Capacities

'Interior Capacity' is how much the microwave can hold, measured in litres (L).

The interior capacities of microwaves range from 1.5L to 67L. The interior capacities of most microwaves range from 20L to 24L. The Panasonic NNSN966SR, which is on sale for $215.20, has the biggest interior capacity and is a 62L capacity microwave. The microwave with the smallest interior capacity is the Sharp R-1514, which is a 1.5L capacity microwave and sells for $399.99.

Available Colours

We found 505 microwaves that are microwaves that have a stainless steel coloured, which makes stainless steel the most popular colour amongst new microwaves. The second most frequently found colour amongst new microwaves is black. We found 490 microwaves that are microwaves that have a black coloured.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Microwaves?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying microwaves. For each retailer it shows the total number of microwaves where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying microwaves. 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 Overstock. 8 of their microwave prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of Microwaves for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for microwaves by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of microwave prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's microwave prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was Overstock. 72.7% of their microwave prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.