The 10 Best Deep Fat Fryers of 2026, Ranked

Match the food capacity in kg of chips to the people you feed, because oil litres on the box are bigger than the usable load. A 2L fryer with about 0.8 to 1kg of food suits one or two people. A 3L to 3.5L model with 1 to 1.2kg feeds three or four, though the 3L Morphy Richards and Hamilton Beach filtration fryers take only about 0.8kg. The large Salter with three baskets suits a crowd or two foods at once. Larger fryers also need more worktop and cupboard space, and most models here are bulky.

A deep fat fryer gives the crisp, golden finish of battered fish, doughnuts and tempura that an air fryer does not copy. An air fryer uses a spoonful of oil or none, heats quickly and is simpler to clean, and our air fryer guide at /kitchen/air-fryers/ covers those. A fryer uses a few litres of oil that you filter and reuse, and a 2kW model costs roughly 18p for 20 minutes at around 27p per kWh. Choose a deep fat fryer for battered food, an air fryer for everyday chips and roasting.

Use a neutral oil with a high smoke point, such as rapeseed, sunflower, vegetable or groundnut oil. Most manufacturers list those and rule out olive oil, butter and margarine. Keep to the maximum and minimum fill lines in the bowl. Cool the oil fully before filtering it.

If you fry once a week or more, yes. The Tefal Oleoclean and Filtra One models, the Morphy Richards FilterPro and the Hamilton Beach PureFry filter the oil and store it, so you do not lift a hot pan to decant it. Tefal says the oil can be reused up to 8 times with its Oleoclean system. For an occasional fry-up, a removable bowl or pot, as on the Russell Hobbs and Tower models, is enough.

Most manufacturers suggest replacing oil after roughly 8 to 10 uses, and Tefal says up to 8 reuses with its filtration. Change it sooner if it smells, darkens or foams, or after frying fish. Store filtered oil cool, sealed and out of the light. Let used oil cool and put it in a sealed container for disposal, never down the sink, and check your council's rules.

They are safer than a chip pan on the hob, because the element is thermostat-controlled and most models have a lid with a viewing window. Look for overheat cut-out, a lid interlock and cool-touch handles, which the Swan, Tower and Hamilton Beach models list. Keep the fryer on a stable surface away from the cable edge, and never add water to hot oil. All use a standard UK 13A plug. The 2300W models draw most of a socket's capacity, so avoid sharing an extension lead.