Cosori Air Fryer Toaster Oven Review: Best Budget-Friendly Pick

By Kim Bussing

Tested by Annamarie Higley, Sheri Kaz and Dylan Fischer

Taste of Home's Editorial Process

Published on Oct. 20, 2024

Winner of our best budget award, the Cosori air fryer toaster oven packs a lot of cooking power into a wallet- and countertop-friendly appliance

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A few years ago, air fryers had a serious moment, and we’re excited to see that attention pass to air fryer ovens. Not only do they fit on countertops, but you get all of the power of a toaster, oven and air fryer in one.

While testing 10 of the best air fryer ovens—including options from Breville, Kalorik and KitchenAid—the Cosori air fryer toaster oven won us over not just for its performance but for its price. This small appliance allows you to bake, broil and roast without splurging.

With 11 functions, the Cosori air fryer oven allows home cooks to do everything from make a pizza to roast a chicken to air fry to their heart’s content.

Crafted with stainless steel, it’s a little on the heavier side, coming in at 22 pounds. It’s also taller than other models, but that allows it to have a 26-quart capacity. Because it’s a little bulky, it may be harder to store while not in use. While this air fryer oven is pretty typical in appearance, it has physical buttons and dials. Some testers on our Product Testing team thought these made it seem more approachable and less intimidating, while others felt they made it look less sleek.

The Cosori air fryer oven includes an oven rack, food tray, fry basket, crumb tray and recipe book. It also connects to Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.

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This budget-friendly option browns food nicely, is easy to clean and offers plenty of room for everything from chicken to sheet-pan cake.

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We started off testing the Cosori air fryer oven with six slices of bread. Based on the manual, we put the rack on the highest rung, turned the dial to the toast function and adjusted the temp/slices button and time/shade button. Toasting took 4 minutes and 45 seconds, and the inside filled with condensation. Each slice of bread was very evenly toasted on the top, but there was a little bit of inconsistency in browning based on where the slices were located. We weren’t wowed, but it was still decent.

Next, we tested the air-frying capabilities with French fries. We set the heat to 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 11 minutes. We spritzed the fries with spray oil. During this test, we encountered one difficulty with the air fryer: The preset timer immediately began counting down as soon as the appliance was done preheating. The French fries were not the Cosori air fryer oven’s best moment. While we may have slightly overfilled the machine, at least 75 percent of the fries were underdone, and only a few were golden brown. The floppy fries were good as far as floppy fries go, but we have higher expectations for such a basic air fryer task.

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Luckily, the Cosori proved itself during the sheet cake test. We baked it at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes, and the final result had a beautiful, consistent color across 80 percent of the cake, although a small part of it was a lot lighter than the rest. Knowing now how this countertop oven cooks, if we had rotated the pan, the finish could have been consistent across the entire cake.

Finally, we made it to the chicken test. We roasted our chicken at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour and 30 minutes, based on one of the recipes included with the machine. We found that the chicken cooked faster than anticipated, and when we pulled it out, some parts of the meat measured 172 degrees Fahrenheit, making them overcooked and drier (although part of that was user error). The trick was rotating the chicken (we did it at the 45-minute mark) to guarantee consistent cooking. Overall, we were very impressed. The bird had great color and was crispy, and our team enjoyed eating it. While the Cosori’s height didn’t make much of a difference for our other tests, we appreciated it while roasting the chicken.

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Some versions of the Cosori air fryer toaster oven have a power button. If yours does, all you need to do is press it to turn the machine off. If yours does not have a power button, press and hold the time/shade button for 3 seconds until the machine turns off. The toaster oven will also automatically turn off if it’s inactive for 30 minutes.

The manual advises hand-washing all the removable parts in warm, soapy water rather than using the dishwasher. For our cleaning, we hand-washed the baking tray and wiped the interior and exterior with a damp cloth.

The Cosori air fryer oven was one of many that our Product Testing team tested. Each air fryer was put through identical rounds testing different types of food. They were scored based on performance. The lower-performing options were eliminated each round. The Cosori air fryer oven was one of five that made it to the final round of roasting chicken. We also evaluated the options based on their accessories, features and budget. Plus, our team has years of experience testing small kitchen appliances, from food processors to single-serve coffee makers.

I’ve written many product reviews and gift guides and am well-versed in evaluating a product’s performance and features to meet consumers’ needs and budgets. As a consumer, I’m also very frugal, and I’m always excited to find high-performing, lower-cost options.

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Want to try an air fryer toaster oven—without splurging? The Cosori option blends performance and price.

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The Cosori air fryer toaster oven is available at Cosori, Walmart and Amazon for around $160.

Editor’s note: Cosori recently launched an updated version of this unit with a twelfth function: sous vide. Additionally, they made improvements to the power button and the general user-friendliness of the appliance.