Compare the Best MicrowavesOctober 2020

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

Microwaves range in price from $54 to $3,699 and in total we found prices for 94 microwaves. On average, a new microwave costs $321 and 80% of microwaves are priced between $80 and $708. The cheapest microwave that we found is the RCA RMW733-BLACK at only $55, and the most expensive is the Miele H6500BM at $3,699.

Microwave Brands - Price Range

The average price of Miele microwaves is $2,699 which is the highest average price of all microwave brands. Miele microwaves start at $2,199 and their most expensive microwave costs $3,699.

The average price of AEG microwaves is $749 which is the second highest average price of all microwave brands. AEG microwaves start at $749 and their most expensive microwave costs $749.

The third highest average microwave price out of all brands is Bosch microwaves with an average price of $695. Bosch microwaves range in price from $151 to $1,276.

Microwave Brands - Average Ratings

We have analysed 18 expert reviews and 2,447 user reviews for microwaves and used these reviews to determine the average rating for each brand of microwave. The top three microwave brands are LG, Panasonic and Whirlpool. LG has an average rating of 91%, Panasonic has an average rating of 90% and Whirlpool has an average rating of 89%.

Biggest Microwave Retailers

We found 96 current offers for microwaves from eBay making it the biggest microwave retailer. That is over 6 times bigger than the second biggest retailer, Walmart for whom we found 16 current offers for microwaves. The third biggest retailer is Overstock with 11 current microwave offers.

When Are Most New Microwaves Released?

The most common period for new microwaves to be released in is between November and January. If you wait until November 2020 then you might be able to get better features on your microwave. Also the price of the current microwaves may drop off just before the latest models are released in November. In 2019 most new microwaves were released in January, with 29 new microwaves released that month. The biggest month in 2018 for new microwave releases was November, with 42 new microwaves released that month. In April 2017, 67 new microwaves were released making it the biggest month that year for new microwave releases.

How Fast Do Microwave Prices Drop After Release?

On average microwaves drop in price by 7% in the first 6 months after release.

That means that on a typical microwave costing $316 you could save on average $21 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.

Amongst new microwaves, the most common case design is freestanding. We found 749 microwaves that are freestanding microwaves. Integrated is the second most common case design amongst new microwaves. We found 455 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 the majority of microwaves range from 800W to 950W. The microwave with the biggest microwave power is the Gastroback 42813, which is a 1,400W microwave and is on sale for $200.33. The microwave with the smallest microwave power is the Daewoo QT3R, which is a 600W microwave and sells for $165.28.

Interior Capacities

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

Comparing all microwaves, the interior capacities range from 1.5L to 67L. The interior capacities of the majority of microwaves range from 20L to 24L. The microwave with the biggest interior capacity is the Panasonic NN-SN936, which is a 62L capacity microwave and currently retails for $209.99. The microwave with the smallest interior capacity is the Sharp R-1514, which is a 1.5L capacity microwave and currently retails for $359.99.

Available Colours

We found 493 microwaves that are microwaves that have a black coloured, which makes this the most frequently found colour amongst new microwaves. We found 484 microwaves that are microwaves that have a stainless steel coloured, making this the second most common colour amongst new microwaves.

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 eBay. 89 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 eBay. 92.7% of their microwave prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.