The Best Non-Toxic Air Fryers of 2025 (PFAS Free)

This post reviews the best non-toxic air fryers that are free from PFAS chemicals as well as other potentially harmful non-stick coatings and chemicals. We have included both air fryer ovens and basket style air fryers in this review.

Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links whereby if you purchase the product through that link I make a small commission. This does not cost you anything extra and allows me to keep this website running and pays for the research that goes into these articles. 

Table of Contents

• What is an air fryer?
• How do air fryers work?
• Are air fryers toxic?
• Benefits of air fryers
• Chemicals and coatings to avoid in air fryers
• Other coatings and disclosure issues
• Safe materials in air fryers
• The best non toxic air fryers:
• Brands I don't recommend:
• Frequently asked questions:
• Other health info you will want to read:
• Our expertise:

What is an air fryer?

Air fryers are a type of small kitchen appliances. An air fryer is basically like a small convection oven.

How do air fryers work?

Air fryers work by circulating hot air around the food to produce a crunchy, crispy texture. When food is cooked this way, it results in a chemical reaction known as the Maillard reaction, which occurs between an amino acid and a reducing sugar in the presence of heat. This reaction leads to changes in the color and flavour of food.

Because it uses circulating hot air to cook food, air fryers can grill and bake food, using little to no oil, and they can make delicious fried foods, without actually having to deep fry the food. They are great for making foods that are typically deep fried such as French fries. Because air fryers use less oil than deep frying, air frying is felt to be a healthier alternative to deep-fried foods.

Air fryers also work really well to cook foods from frozen.

Are air fryers toxic?

One issue with air fryer cooking is the high heat they use to cook with. This is not exclusive to air fryers however, but heating starchy foods to high temperatures can cause potentially harmful chemicals called acrylamides to form during the cooking process. Acrylamide has been classified as a probable carcinogen and exposure to acrylamide causes numerous cancers in animal models. However, whether acrylamide increases cancer risk in humans is still not clear. But this is why almost all air fryers have California Proposition 65 warnings in California. 

However, this doesn't automatically mean that air fryers are toxic to human health. Acrylamide forms in certain foods cooked during high-heat or high temperature cooking methods, including deep frying, baking, and air frying. Acrylamides form whenever you fry or toast food above 338°F and so acrylamide is actually found in up to 1/3 of the food we eat, including air fried foods. So if you really wanted to avoid acrylamide altogether you would not only need to avoid air-fried foods, but most baked goods, fried food, toasted food, grilled food etc, which is really not practical. As such, I personally still use an air fryer, but of course, you can do what feels right for you and your family.

If you are looking for delicious air fryer recipes I have a whole collection for you to enjoy!

Benefits of air fryers

You can cook many different foods in an air fryer, and because they are so quick and easy to use they have become a very popular kitchen appliance and popular choice with home chefs. There are many benefits of using an air fryer to cook with, and most important to me is that cooking food in an air fryer saves so much time! It is so much faster to cook food in an air fryer compared with cooking food in traditional ovens or baking, frying, or deep frying foods. 

Air fryers are also the best way I have found to cook crispy food without using deep fryers. They are also a better option compared to deep frying because they use less oil and therefore cook food with fewer calories, leading to healthier meals.

Another benefit is that the clean up usually really easy. You just stick the racks and the tray in your dishwasher after you're done using them. You also don't have to worry about making a mess of your counters or your oven. 

Chemicals and coatings to avoid in air fryers

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)

Unfortunately, most of the popular air fryers on the market are made with potentially toxic nonstick coatings, and/or Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as “forever chemicals.” I have written about the problems with PFAS many times before in articles like the best non-toxic mascaras, how to choose safe cookware and more.

If you aren't familiar with PFAS chemicals, PFAS are a class of chemicals that provide stain and water resistant coatings. For instance they are often used on non-stick pans, rain coats, stain resistant furniture, food packaging etc.

PFAS chemicals are known as “forever chemicals” because they are persistent, meaning they build up and don’t go away. They resist degradation in the environment and they remain in our bodies for years, and sometimes even decades after exposure. 

PFAS, even at low doses, can be harmful to health and are known to have a number of harmful effects or negative health effects including but not limited to:

• They are endocrine disruptors or hormone disruptors. 
• Can cause thyroid disease.
• They increase the risks of certain cancers including thyroid and kidney cancer.
• Can cause metabolic diseases including obesity and diabetes.
• Can contribute to cardiovascular disease.
• Increase cholesterol levels. 
• Can decrease sperm counts.
• Can increase the chances of miscarriages in pregnancy.
• Affects the growth, learning, and behaviour of infants and older children.
• Increases risk of allergies and asthma in children.
• Decreases chances of getting pregnant.

The original PFAS chemicals are known as “long-chain” because they have a long carbon and fluorine chain (Teflon is an example of this).

Today, the production of the long carbon chain chemicals like PFOA and PFOS have been largely phased out. Unfortunately, the long chain chemicals have now been replaced with new PFAS chemicals known as “small-chain” because they have a shorter carbon-fluorine chain. The problem with this new class of small chain chemicals is their smaller size, making them even more persistent in the environment and even more difficult to clean up.

As you can see, for health reasons, you want to avoid PFAS chemicals if you can. Unfortunately, most of the air fryers on the market are made with these chemicals so you need to be cautious when shopping.

Other coatings and disclosure issues

Unfortunately, when it comes to air fryers, many brands are not transparent with the chemicals they are using in their coatings. Many brands will advertise their products as being toxin free and PFOA free but don't actually tell you what chemicals or ingredients they are using in their devices. This is a problem because they are many other potentially harmful chemicals that can be used in air fryers.

Here are some of the issues I ran into when researching this review:

• Some brands do not use PFAS on food contact surfaces but do use them on the inside walls of the air fryer which is a problem because PFAS can aerosolize and drop down onto your food.
• Some companies won't disclose what they use in their coatings as the information is considered to be proprietary. After many years of reviewing and researching non toxic products I have learned that if a company won't disclose what chemicals they are using, it's safe to assume it's likely not safe.

Some of the other things you will want to be cautious of when shopping for an air fryer include:

Ceramic coatings

I have written about the potential health risks of ceramic coatings before but this information is not widely known so we will review it again here. Many (but not all) ceramic non-stick coatings are made with nano particles and ceramic cookware has been shown to release titanium dioxide nano particles into food when heated. This is concerning because ingestion of nano titanium dioxide has been shown to cause many different health issues in animal studies including: causing harmful effects on male fertility (including damaging sperm), damaging the liver, testicles, heart, brain, kidneys, as well as altering the gut microbiome and causing pre-cancerous lesions in the intestines.

Some of the more popular brands of ceramic coated cookware use nano particles in their ceramic coating including Our Place and Caraway. However, other brands including Green Pan do not use nanoparticles in their coating and instead use a silica base.

Safe materials in air fryers

When shopping for a non-toxic air fryer you want to look for one that is made with safe materials including glass, stainless steel, or ceramic that is made without nano-particles.

The best non toxic air fryers:

Now that we have reviewed some of the potentially harmful chemicals you need to watch for and avoid in air fryers, and the materials that are safe to choose, let's review the safest air fryers that are made without those potentially harmful chemicals or potentially toxic chemicals. All of these air fryers are PFAS free, made without any toxic materials, and are made without ceramic coatings that use nanoparticles. 

Note that not all the models made by the brands in this list are created equally, so I cannot recommend all the different models made by these brands, and if I haven't included a specific model in this list it is likely that it was left out for a reason. 

Nuwave Bravo Air Fryer Toaster Smart Oven

The Nuwave Bravo Air Fryer Toaster Smart Oven is another air fryer oven option with a very large capacity so it's a great choice if you have a big family or want to cook more food.

Food capacity: 30 quarts
Dimensions: 20.04"D x 16.57"W x 11.14"H
Temperature range: 50-500 degrees Fahrenheit
Materials: Stainless steel

Price: $169.99 USD

Pros:

• This is my overall top choice for the best non-toxic air fryer. It has a built in temperature probe that monitors the internal temperature of your food and automatically ends the cooking process when the desired internal temperature is reached so that you don't undercook or overcook your food. It also offers the largest capacity of all the air fryers in this review.
• Offers precise temperature control.
• Has 4 different rack positions and is programmed with 12 preset cooking functions for grilling, air frying, baking, broiling, roasting, dehydrating, reheating, defrosting, toasting and more.
• It is a large size so is great for large families. 
• Works well for cooking at lower temperatures as well.
• The parts are dishwasher safe (except for the internal temperature probe) which makes for easy cleaning.

Cons:

• Is a larger size so does take up more room on the countertop compared to some other models.

GreenPan Bistro 9-in-1 Air Fry Oven

If you prefer an oven style air fryer over a basket style air fryer the GreenPan Bistro 9-in-1 Air Fry Oven is a great option.

Food capacity: 4 pounds
Dimensions: 14"D x 14"W x 10"H
Materials: Ceramic, stainless steel

Price: $199.99 USD

Pros:

• It's a multi-function device: It can bake, broil, air fry, proof, dehydrate, slow cook, toast, warm, and act as a pizza oven.
• It's a beautiful kitchen appliance. It looks really nice on your countertop so for this reason alone it's one of my top choices!
• The large capacity fits a baking pan, toasts up to 6 slices of bread, up to a 13” pizza, and air fries up to 4lbs of food.
• It's easy to clean and is dishwasher safe.
• This is my top choice for the best ceramic air fryer oven.

Cons:

• It is more expensive than some other air fryers.

GreenPan Matte Black 13-in-1 Air Fryer Slow Cooker & Grill

The GreenPan 13-in-1 Air Fryer and 6.5QT Oven is a multi-function device that can do so many things besides air frying. It's such a useful small kitchen appliance.

Food capacity: 6.5 quarts
Dimensions: 10"D x 22"W x 15"H
Temperature settings: 
Materials: Ceramic, stainless steel

Price: $180-200 USD

Pros:

• It has many functions including: broil, grill, air fry, bake, roast, dehydrate, rice cooker, steam, stew, yogurt, sear/sauté, slow cook and warm.
• It includes a die cast ceramic nonstick grill plate, easy-to clean nonstick air frying basket, and a stainless steel steamer.
• It's easy to clean because the bowl pops out and rinses clean, plus it’s dishwasher safe.
• I love the look of this air fryer!
• This is my top choice for the best non-toxic basket style air fryer.

Cons:

• Is more expensive than some other air fryers.

Nutrichef Convection Countertop Toaster Oven

The Nutrichef Convection Countertop Toaster Oven is another large air fryer with an 18 quart capacity! The large size makes this one a great option for families. 

Food capacity: 18 quarts
Dimensions: 13.4"D x 15.8"W x 13.8"H
Temperature settings: Up to 480° Fahrenheit
Materials: Glass, stainless steel

Price: $56.49-$64.99 USD.

Pros:

• Free from PFAS chemicals. 
• The 18 quart capacity means it's a great size for cooking meals and if you have a large family.
• The glass bowl allows you to see the food as it cooks. 
• This is the most affordable non-toxic air fryer in this review so for that reason it is one of my overall top choices.

Cons:

• The larger size can make storage trickier. 

Big Boss 16 Quart Large Air Fryer

The Big Boss 16Qt Large Air Fryer is a large capacity air fryer that is easy to use and perfect for family meals. 

Food capacity: 16 quarts
Dimensions: 12.5"D x 16"W x 13.5"H
Temperature settings: 149° - 482° Fahrenheit
Materials: Glass, stainless steel

Price: Ranges from $77 to $92 USD. 

Pros:

• It is free from PFAS coatings. 
• Has a large capacity so is great for larger sized meals. 
• It comes in a variety of colours so you can match it to your kitchen decor and color scheme. 
• It is not just an air fryer. It has many different functions and a wide temperature range from 180℉ to 400℉, so you can use it to air fry, bake, grill, roast, and toast.
• The glass frying basket is dishwasher safe so the clean up is really easy. 

Cons:

• Compared to some other air fryers it is a little more expensive. 
• Because of its large size it may be harder to store. 

Classic Cuisine 12-17 Quart 1200 W Halogen Tabletop Oven

The Classic Cuisine 12-17 Qt 1200 W Halogen Tabletop Oven is another large size air fryer that is easy to use and family friendly.

Food capacity: 12-17 quarts
Dimensions: 16.5"D x 13"H
Temperature settings: 250° to 480° Fahrenheit
Materials: Glass, stainless steel

Price: $59.49 - $69.95 USD.

Pros:

• Free from PFAS chemicals. 
• Energy saving compared to using an oven. 
• The glass cooking bowl allows you to see your food while it's cooking. 
• You can cook the food in a variety of ways given the temperature range. 
• More affordable compared to some other air fryers. 

Cons:

• Is a larger size so storage may be a challenge. 

Brands I don't recommend:

There are many air fryers and brands of air fryers that advertise themselves as non-toxic, but either won't disclose what chemicals they use (so we can't ensure that they aren't using harmful substances), or do use chemicals that have health concerns (such as non-stick materials or ceramic with nano-particles) and as such we cannot recommend them. Some of these popular brands include:

• Aria
• Black and Decker
• Chefman
• Cuisinart
• Ninja air fryers
• InstantPot
• Our Place - use nanoparticles in their ceramic coatings
• Caraway - use nanoparticles in their ceramic coatings
• Oster

Frequently asked questions:

Other health info you will want to read:

• The best non-toxic cookware
• The best non-toxic bakeware
• Is stainless steel cookware safe?
• Health benefits of air frying
• The best non-toxic mattresses

Our expertise:

Dr. Erin Carter, MD, FRCPC, is a physician with board certifications in internal medicine and rheumatology. She is passionate about preventative healthcare including nutrition, environmental health and low toxicity living.