Best Induction Cooktops of 2023 (Top 7): Reviews and Buying Guide

Last Updated: January 3, 2023Induction cooktops have become popular for a variety of reasons, but will they be the right choice for you? Of course, induction cooking has quite the learning curve. But most people don’t go back to standard cooktops after using an induction cooktop for a reason.

They really are that good.

For one, the induction process produces less heat on the cooktop and heats cookware more quickly, both of which save you time and money.

Anyway, this article will cover some of the best induction cookers for 2023 available on the market today. And yes, we will cover affordable induction cooktops as well as portable induction cooktops because we understand not everyone wants to break the bank on an induction cooktop.

What’s An Induction Cooktop? How Does The Induction Process Work?

Induction uses electromagnetic energy, basically magnets, to heat special pots and pans that are on the surface of the electromagnetic. This is in direct comparison to traditional heating cooktops that involve heating the surface, which in turn heats the kitchenware.

The one caveat with induction cookers is that they only work with special kitchenware that is magnetic. An induction cooker will not generate heat on standard kitchenware!

In fact, this magnetic heat feature makes induction cookers much safer than the traditional heating model because the surface doesn’t generate any heat. Heat still forms, but it dissipates very quickly.

Induction, Gas, and Electric Cooktops – A Comparison

The type of cooktop you use in your kitchen boils down to three choices: gas, electric coils, or induction.

This section will detail the advantages and disadvantages of the different types, which will help you make an informed decision about the right type of cooktop for your kitchen.

Price/Installation

Gas cooktops are usually the most affordable cooktop you can purchase. They are slightly more affordable than electric stoves, and much more affordable than induction stoves. However, the portable induction stoves are usually affordable, but you will have to purchase special pots and pans.

As for installation, induction and electric coil cooktops will necessitate a 220V/30A outlet, which is standard in a modern home. It will usually cost a couple hundred dollars for an electrician to run a new line in your home.

Gas is a little easier if you already have a gas connection in your home. If you don’t have a gas connection in your home, then that will cost you. The exact amount varies wildly, but it can be quite expensive to run gas to your home. In addition to that, not all areas have gas available.

Efficiency

Gas is actually instantaneous when it comes to heat because you can see the flame. Plus, the flame will usually evenly heat the cooking surface. Most professional chefs for gas cooktops for this reason.
Induction cookers have similar properties as gas. But they will cool down much quicker than gas.

The real advantage of induction comes with the efficiency, though. Induction cookers are much more efficient than gas. For instance, induction stoves are the fastest when it comes to boiling a pot of water.

Electric coils are a good middle ground between gas and induction. They are a little more efficient than gas cooktops, but the efficiency comes at the cost of control.

Our recommendation is that you use induction if you’re most concerned with efficiency and control.

Design

Design is mostly personal preference. That said, here are the differences between the different types of stoves. It’s important to note that design differences mostly appear between gas and electric induction or electric coils.

There just aren’t many differences between electric induction and electric coils.

First, gas cooktops are almost only available in a geometric grate pattern that is rarely circular. Sometimes they will have a glass surface, which makes cleaning easier at the expense of being more fragile.

We’ll also add that gas cooktops are much easier to repair than electric or induction cooktops.

Next, the controls on gas cooktops are much more intuitive than the controls on some electric cooktops. Of course, induction cooktops have much more features on the controls that might include timers and an automatic shutoff to prevent overheating.

Finally, the induction cooker will always have the controls in front of the cooking surface.

Safety

Gas cooktops are the most dangerous type of cooktop. The open flame, gas buildup, and improper ventilation can all lead to major fire problems. Improper ventilation may also cause a severe drop in air quality.

Induction stoves are the safest because they don’t generate heat on the cooking surface. Of course, they do have some issues, but overall you won’t find a safer option than an induction stove.

However, some people have noted that induction cookers use EMF radiation, which may negatively impact your health if you stand too close to the cooktop. In fact, it’s recommended that pregnant women and anyone with a pacemaker not stand too close to an induction cooker.

Anyway, some steps you can take to prevent injury with an induction cooktop include the following:

Top Induction cooktop Cookware

Induction compatible cookware must have enough ferrous metal in it to be heated by an induction cooker. For that reason, aluminum, copper, and stainless steel are not compatible with an induction cooktop.

A good test is to put a standard magnet on the bottom of your cookware. If the magnet sticks, then your cookware is induction compatible.

However, some induction compatible cookware uses a magnetic base with the rest of the cookware being composed of a better metal at conducting heat.

Anyway, here are some quick recommendations on some excellent induction compatible cookware:

1. Lightening Cookware Set – A 4 piece set of induction compatible cookware. We like the design of this cookware, and the silicone handles are helpful.
2. Nonstick Cookware Set 100% PFOA Free 15 Piece – Aluminum with a marble coating and wooden handles. Excellent design, too.
3. Gourmex Grill Pan – A fairly standard grill pan, but it is induction compatible.

One last note, bare cast iron is compatible with induction cooktops. However, it will damage the fragile glass surface of your induction cooktop.

We recommend using enameled cast iron on your induction cooktop if you have to use cast iron. But really, you should avoid using cast iron cookware on your induction cooktop.

Best Induction Cooktops Comparison Chart

So, what is the best induction cooktop for your kitchen?

Model	Cutout Dimensions	Weight	Plates	Rating
Empava 36 Inch	W 35.3 in. x D 20 in.	42.8 lbs	Five: 11 in. center zone, zone booster, plate cook timers		Check price
Ecotouch 24 Inch Cooktop	W 22.05 in. x D 19.29 in.	22 lbs	Four: 1 booster zone, plate cook timers		Check price
Duxtop Portable Cooktop	13 x 11.5 x 2.5 inches	6.5 lbs	One: cook by power gradient or temp., cook timer		Check price
Frigidaire 36 Inch	W 33.875‒36.125 in. D 19.125‒20.5 in.	54 lbs	Five: power boil, power boost, 10 inch center		Check price
Gasland Chef 30 Inch	W 22.1 in. x D 19.3 in.	24.7 lbs	Four: alert timer, cook timers, time safety shutdown		Check price
True Induction Single Cooker	W 11.31 in. x D 14.43 in.	10.05 lbs	One: 1600 Watts, overheat protection, 150min timer		Check price
K&H 24 Inch Double Cooktop	W 19 in. x D 10.6 in.	10.7 lbs	Two: 1850 Watts, 17 power gradients, cook timers		Check price

Reviews of The Best Induction Cooktops for 2023

We have chosen induction cooktops that come in a huge range of sizes and prices. We’ve even included built-in induction cooktops, single burner, and even the coveted portable induction cookers.

1. Empava 36 Inch Induction Cooktop – Best Purchase Overall
2. Ecotouch 24 Inch Cooktop – Best Priced
3. Duxtop Induction Cooktop – Best Portable Induction Cooktop
4. Frigidaire Gallery – Best Large 36 inch Induction Cooker
5. Gasland Chef – Top 30” Induction Cooktop
6. True Induction T1-1B – Top Single Burner Induction Cooktop
7. K&H Double Burner – Top Two Plate Induction Cooker

Here are our top picks for the best induction cooktops in 2023:

1. Empava 36 Inch Induction Cooker – Best Overall Induction Cooktop

The Empava uses separate controls that cover all cooking zones. It also includes a convenient 6 minute heat booster and even has an automatic cook timer to prevent you from burning anything.

The all-important central heat zone can handle 11” cookware.

Finally, Empava includes a nice 2-year warranty on this cooker.

Controllers and Aesthetics

We really like the layout. The large zones are located at the back, which allows you to boil water while doing more hands-on cooking tasks such as searing. Of course, it might get a little tight at only 36”, but it’s still possible.

The wide center heat zone is also nice. 11 inches gives you plenty of room. And it’s mostly meant for larger pots, a grill pan, or even a wok.

As for the controls, they are fine. Every plate has its own control panel, which makes checking the status of each burner easy. The controls are also reactive without being too reactive and difficult to use.

Features We Like

We really like that each zone has a controller with 9 different power settings with a heat boost option. The heat boost will give maximum heat for 5 minutes. After which it will revert to the previous setting.

Another interesting feature is the timer. All you have to do is press a button, enter a time, and begin the timer. It’s a countdown timer that is always visible, which makes it easy to know exactly how much longer you have to cook.

Finally, we’re huge fans of the 2-year warranty on this cooktop. Most manufacturers only include a 1-year warranty, so it really shows how much faith Empava has that they give a 2-year warranty on their cooktop.

Things We Don’t Like

An annoying problem with this cooktop is that zones have a tendency to turn off if you move cookware around too much. This is because it doesn’t have a pause feature, so it automatically turns off when nothing is detected on the stovetop.

It’s annoying, but not the biggest problem. This problem doesn’t exist on the premium version of this model. However, that model costs a little extra money.

Installation Tips

This cooktop is a bit smaller than 36 inch cooktops from other manufacturers, so if you’re replacing your cooktop or upgrading, you may or may not have to do some counter modification. This appliance needs to be hardwired to a 220~240 volt junction box with a 40 amp circuit breaker.

Positives

Negatives

2. Ecotouch 24 Inch Cooktop – Best Priced Induction Cooktop

Looking for an affordable induction cooktop with no extra features?
The Ecotouch is for you.

A cooktop with only plates is good enough for most people. On top of that, the EcoTouch only takes up 24” of counter space. We also like the slightly smaller 7” cook zones because it makes everything much less cramped.

Unfortunately, a 7” cook zone means you can only use smaller cookware.

The power isn’t the highest on the plates, but it’s strong enough. You get 1500 watts on the small plates and 2000 watts on the larger plates. The front plate also has a small boost that allows it to boost up to 2200 watts to make boiling water a little faster.
Both zones have controllers that allow you to adjust between 9 different power settings. A child lock, timer, and overheating protection are a feature of every cook zone on this cooktop.

In our opinion, the specs on this cooktop are good enough for most people. We do find the lack of information about EcoTouch a little strange, but they do respond to emails and customer reviews, so they are a real company. They just don’t have much online presence.

Positives

Negatives

3. Duxtop Induction Cooktop – Best Portable Induction Cooktop

Looking for a portable induction cooktop?

Look no further than the Duxtop. This is one of the most popular induction cooktops on the market because of its weight, price, and excellent features.

The Duxtop portable induction cooker is possibly the top selling portable induction stovetop on the market. However, people have reasons for liking it that are often very specific. It’s also important to note that Duxtop is a subsidiary of Secura, which is an American company.

Things We Like

First, it’s lightweight at only 6.51 lbs, which makes it very portable. On top of that, the power cord is long at 5 feet. This makes it a little more portable. And you can still use an extension cord with this because it’s compatible in a standard 110V outlet, but you will want a ground pin because it requires 30A.

Our favorite feature is that you can control the power gradient or the temperature. The majority of induction cookers only allow you to control the power, which is nice. But it means you have to guess on the temperature.

Unfortunately, you can only control the temperature in 30 degree increments, but it’s still nice for a ballpark estimate.

Most induction cookers have a timer. Duxtop took it a step further by including a 170 minute timer that includes automatic shutdown in the event of overheating.

Things We Don’t Like

We don’t like the temperature controls being stuck in fixed increments of 30 or 40 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s just not very precise.

The heating zone is only 8 inches, which is small. It’s expected on a portable induction cooker, though. So that’s not a big problem.
The bigger concern is that larger cookware can interfere with the controls.

Finally, the lack of adjustable legs is especially annoying because it’s not a difficult feature to include. Of course, you probably won’t have much need to cook on an unlevel surface, but it would be nice if Duxtop included adjustable legs.

We should also mention the lack of the child safety lock. Many reviewers have complained about this missing feature, but we don’t find it too big of a problem because this is a portable cooker.

Final Verdict

All things considered, this is a pretty decent induction cooktop. We wish it had a few extra features, but overall we can’t complain for the price and portability.

One more thing to mention, this cooker requires ventilation, so you can’t place it in your countertop. People have asked about this, and it just doesn’t work.

Save yourself the trouble and purchase a built-in induction cooktop.

Positives

Negatives

4. Frigidaire Gallery – Best Large 36 inch Induction Cooker

Are you in search of a huge induction cooktop? Perhaps you have a large family or cook a lot of big meals?

Frigidaire has you covered with there induction cooktop – Gallery.

It’s a good looking cooktop with a glass cover that makes cleaning and maintenance easy. In addition to that, the 10 minute temperature boost is available on all the cooking plates.

The thing about appliances is that you generally want to avoid the cheap options for one reason:

Safety

Sure, the Frigidaire might cost a little more, but it’s one of the safer induction cooktops on the market. Additionally, a quality induction cooktop will require much less maintenance than one of the cheaper options.

With that in mind, you can’t go wrong with spending a little extra money for extra quality.

Controls and Design

This induction cooktop has a standard layout – high powered front cooking zones for more hands-on tasks and low powered back cooking zones for the less hands-on tasks. Don’t worry, you can still easily simmer on the front if you prefer that because an induction cooker works well at low power, but the high power is only available at the front.

Anyway, we like that the zones at the front have a maximum wattage of 3200W, which allows for fast searing or other intense cooking. We recommend using the big 10” center zone for a stock pot or even with a griddle since it’s so large and power.

Finally, the Frigidaire has independently paired control units that allow you to run all the zones at maximum simultaneously. This is convenient if you want to sear multiple dishes at once.

One more point to add, the separate controls are really something we can’t emphasize enough – it makes temperature management so much easier!

Plus, the big, clear numbers make it easy to know the settings with a quick glance.

Features We Don’t Like

The vast majority of reviews are positive. However, we really expect a timer for the price of this cooktop.

Of course, it has a normal timer, but you can use your phone for that. We would expect a timer that has an automatic shutoff at this price.

We also don’t like the lack of pause feature on this stovetop. If you remove a pot or pan from the stovetop, then the burner shuts down.

Other than those two problems, we don’t have any complaints. Personally, the timer isn’t that big of a problem since most people don’t use it. But the lack of a pause button is more of a problem in our opinion.

Positives

Negatives

5. Gasland Chef – Top 30” Induction Cooktop

Are you searching for a basic induction cooktop that has some size to it?

Look no further than the Gasland Chef induction cooktop.

First, you get two cooking zones that have 1500W and 2000W plates, which is good for any searing. Stir flying might take a little bit longer, though. Unfortunately, the cook plates are 7.1”, which means you shouldn’t use cookware larger than 8”.

We do like the timer because it has a maximum time of 99 minutes and includes an automatic shutdown. However, the timer with the lowest time remaining is the only one that shows, which is a little difficult. The power level does always display, so that’s a positive.

The three safety features are the perk we like the most. These include the standard child lock, overheating shutdown, and an automatic shutdown after a certain amount of time. This is 8 hours for level 1 and 2 hours level 9.

The final safety feature really does prevent a lot of the problems that you may experience due to forgetfulness. It’ll also save you a lot of money.

We can’t complain about extra safety features like that.

Positives

Negatives

6. True Induction T1-1B – Top Single Burner Induction Cooktop of 2023

What is so special a single burner induction cooktop?

The True Induction is special because you can use it as a portable burner or a built-in cooktop, which makes it rare. Most portable induction cooktops cannot be used as built-in ones due to ventilation requirements.

We also like the automatic shutdown timer and the 2-year warranty.

As mentioned earlier, it’s really difficult to find a single burner induction cooktop that isn’t exclusively portable. True Induction is a little better than that because it’s portable and can be used as a built-in induction cooktop.

Anyway, we recommend this cooktop as an additional cooktop for your kitchen. It’s great for boiling water or frying while you perform other tasks on your main stovetop.

It’s also great if you don’t do much cooking, but still want options for cooking. You can also use it in a smaller kitchen where space is a bigger priority than a larger kitchen.

We will say that the power is a little light at 1600W when compared to portable induction cooktops that typically have 1800W cooking zones. It will still get up to 450F, though. And that’s plenty for most needs.

Just keep in mind that it will take slightly longer than other induction cooktops.

One other thing to note is that customers have reported that it doesn’t work well with some of the more budget friendly cookware. This is likely due to the lack of magnetism in lower quality cookware, so make sure to only use higher quality cookware if you purchase this cooktop.

Anyway, we like the timer because it has a longer maximum time of 150 minutes. The cooktop can only run for 150 minutes before requiring a reset, which is a nice safety feature.

We also like the 110V plug because it makes installation a breeze. You can plug this into any normal outlet!

One last thing, make sure to have proper ventilation if installing this in a countertop. True Induction recommends plenty of ventilation and even drilling vent holes if you have a counter that is thicker than 2 inches. You might need a pro to install this, so keep that in mind before making your purchase.

Positives

Negatives

7. K&H Double Burner – Top Two Plate Induction Cooker

A two plate induction cooktop certainly has benefits. In fact, it’s one of the more popular options for those that have a small kitchen.

And when it comes to two plate induction cookers, you can’t go wrong with K&H. The K&H Double Induction Burner has highly adjustable power settings, timers, overflow protection, and can even be stood up on your countertop.

We really like the horizontal design of this cooktop. Why?
It makes everything easier to reach because you don’t have to reach across the top. Plus, the distance separating the zones is a little larger at 2.75”.

The most unique feature about this cooktop, however, is the controller. First, it’s a touch controller, which isn’t particularly unique, but it is not too common. More importantly, you can micro adjust the level by tapping twice on the number.

For instance, if you tap 5 once the power is set to 5. If you tap 5 twice, then the power level is set to 5.5.

This is simply a level of adjustment you don’t see in induction cooktops.

We als like the large cook zones – 8.3” to be exact. Each one has a nice 1850W of power, but the maximum power can’t be used simultaneously. You only 1550W when using maximum power simultaneously.

Not bad.

For reference, an 8.3” cooking zone allows you to use cookware that’s about 9.5” in diameter.

Finally, some extra features worth mentioning include the cooking timer (99 minutes), which does have an automatic shutdown. The child safety lock and liquid overflow automatic shutdown are also nice features.

As for the warranty, it’s the standard 1-year warranty. However, it does include all shipping and handling fees in the event you need to return or replace the cooktop.

Positives

Negatives

Cleaning an Induction Cooktop

You obviously want to keep your cooktop clean. It looks good, makes cooking easier, and is much healthier.

Fortunately, induction cooktops are easy enough to clean. They’re much easier than coil stovetops. However, you do need to know how to clean an induction cooktop if you don’t want to damage it.

With that in mind, here are some tips on cleaning your induction cooktop.

1. Wipe the glass cover with a wet rag or sponge. You don’t need to scrub it or anything. Just remove any dust, oil, or condensation from the glass.
2. Use a scraper designed for smooth tops if you need to clean a hardened spill. Do not use any abrasive cleaner on the glass because it will scratch it.
3. White vinegar works great for those water stains that just won’t disappear.
4. Dry the cooktop with a dry paper towel.

As you may have noticed, you don’t want to use anything that can scratch the glass. We really recommend not using chemicals on the glass, either.

Soap, water, and sponges will work fine for cleaning your induction cleaner. It doesn’t have to look perfect, but you do want to remove any of the larger stains that will form on the glass.

Also, if the manufacturer recommends using a particular cleaner, then you should use that. Not doing so may void the warranty.

Final Thoughts

Well, that about covers it for the best induction cooktops 2023 on the market. The options listed above are all great for different uses. And not one induction cooktop listed is better than other.

It all depends on your wants and needs.

That said, we do recommend an induction cooktop if at all possible – they’re so much more convenient than electric coils and a little safer than gas. Plus, they’re easy to maintain.