The 7 Best Toasters, According to Our Tests

Best Toaster Overall

Breville Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster

$150 at Amazon $150 at Williams Sonoma $158 at Walmart

Breville’s Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster earned the top spot on our list for good reason. In fact, we liked this toaster so much that we described it as the “Rolls Royce of toasters” in our testing notes. The side grids expand and hug the bread when the start lever is lowered for maximum heating efficiency. And it’s not just for basic bread, either. We had no problem fitting chunky bagels and hamburger buns in the extra-wide slots.

The “a bit more” function allows you to add a smidge of extra time, although we noted the bread should be monitored closely. That’s easy to do with the “lift and look” feature, which pauses the cycle, allowing you to check on the toast’s progress. We were impressed with the consistency across tests. No matter what your preferred doneness level is, you can be certain it won’t vary. We also appreciated the controlled lower and release of the toast.

When it’s done, instead of popping up, the toast gently raises to an easy-to-grab height — no helper forks or wooden utensils needed. It’s easy to clean, as well: the crumb tray glides out seamlessly.

Dimensions: 6.75 x 10.25 x 7.5 inches | Weight: 7.12 pounds | Functions: Five browning settings, “a bit more,” and “lift and look” features

Best Toaster Overall, Runner-Up

KitchenAid 2 Slice Long Slot Toaster

$100 at Amazon $90 at Wayfair View on Webstaurantstore.com

KitchenAid’s 2-Slice Toaster is an appealing, efficient option at a nice price. Instead of side-by-side slots, this toaster has one long slot that allows you to toast two slices in a single row. Although the obvious appeal here is in the counter space you’ll save, we found a lot to like about the versatility of the slots. During testing, we were able to fit in an entire piece of naan bread without rotating it halfway through, and the KitchenAid performed equally well no matter what it was toasting.

The display panel is intuitive to navigate, with simple pictographs on the front for choosing the desired browning level, plus other special features like toasting frozen bread. With six doneness settings that can be selected on a sliding scale, it was sometimes tricky to nail the desired color across a variety of tests, although we found that even the darkest setting produced attractively browned, never burnt toast. We also liked the high-lift lever, which safely popped the toast up well above the heating element.

Dimensions: 5.4 x 16.1 x 7.9 inches | Weight: 7 pounds | Functions: Six browning settings, toast from frozen, defrost, bagel function, “a little longer” function, cancel function

Best Value Toaster

Russell Hobbs 2-Slice Glass Accent Long Toaster

$59 at Amazon $11 at Walmart View on Orientaltrading.com

With a similar footprint and profile to the KitchenAid long-slot toaster but a price that’s nearly cut in half, the Russell Hobbs 2-Slice Glass Accent Long Toaster is a great budget buy. We praised the “easy to operate” control panel, which is situated on one of the long sides of the toaster. The roomy slot could handle every item we toasted and was big enough to fit two Pop-Tarts side-by-side.

There are six doneness settings, although in our tests we found the best results from four and below. It’s a consistent performer, with no variation in browning level, even after multiple rounds of sandwich bread. The standout of its special features is a “warming” option that works with a removable metal rack situated directly on top of the slot. In testing, we used it to warm cheese sticks, which we noted had the potential to become messy. But for less melty options (like keeping a homemade scone or other baked goods warm), this is a valuable added feature.

Dimensions: 5.2 x 14.8 x 7.8 inches | Weight: 4.1 pounds | Functions: Six browning settings, toast from frozen, bagel function, cancel function, warm function

Best 4-Slice Toaster

Zwilling Enfinigy Cool Touch 4-Slice Toaster

$215 $130 at Amazon $130 at Williams Sonoma $130 at Wayfair

The Zwilling Enfinigy Cool Touch earned top honors in our best 4-slice toaster tests. With four wide slots that can accommodate hearty bread or bagels, you’d be hard-pressed to find something the Zwilling can’t handle. There are seven doneness settings, allowing for a wide variety of preferences. No matter what we toasted, it came out evenly done, with a nicely crispy exterior and no scorched hot spots.

There’s an “extra lift” feature that allows the toast to be raised safely above the heating unit, and in testing, it was hard to ignore its eye-catching matte black finish. Despite its extra large size, this attractive toaster could be left on the counter without detracting from the decor.

Dimensions: 11.3 x 12.2 x 8.1 inches | Weight: 8.38 pounds | Functions: Seven browning levels, defrost function, reheat function, bagel function, cancel function

Best Smart Toaster

Revolution InstaGLO R180 Toaster

$350 at Amazon $350 at Target $350 at Williams Sonoma

The first-ever touchscreen toaster, the Revolution InstaGLOW R180 uses smart technology that adjusts to whatever you’ve popped in the slots. It’s faster than conventional toasters. During testing, we noted that toasting on level 4 produced perfectly done toast almost faster than the time it took to retrieve our serving plate and butter dish. It’s a consistent performer, too: we detected no difference in doneness, even after four consecutive rounds of toasting. Like all smart technology, this one has helpful maintenance features; in testing, we were alerted that the crumb tray was full and needed to be cleaned.

The display panel is entirely digitized, all accessed through a touchscreen. When not in use, it displays either a digital or analog clock, a handy feature we appreciate. It’s easy to dial in the settings for your perfect piece of toast — or bagel, waffle, etc. — and we noted that this would be a smart buy for families with picky eaters.

Dimensions: 6 x 11.5 x 8.33 inches | Weight: 6.6 pounds | Functions: Seven browning levels, bagel function, waffle function, English muffin function, toaster pastry function, reheat function, defrost function

Best Splurge Toaster

Smeg 2-Slice Toaster

$200 at Amazon $200 at Williams Sonoma $200 at Wayfair

There’s no denying the visual appeal of this toaster. With a retro design, the Smeg 2-Slice Toaster would be right at home on your favorite Instagram influencer’s countertop. There are over a dozen finishes to choose from, including matte pastel options and glossy metals. We had no problem navigating doneness levels during testing. Instead of buttons, browning is adjusted with a dial. The control panel is simple and intuitive to use. We particularly liked the extra-large “cancel” button which immediately released the toast upon pressing. 

As far as performance, this was a reliable, consistent contender in our tests. The four-to-five doneness range was ideal for moderately brown toast. We noted that oblong slices of bread stuck out of the top slightly and needed to be rotated midway through. However, traditional sandwich-style bread wasn’t an issue. The colorful powder-coated finish was easy to clean, and the slide-out crumb tray could handle a lot. On average, we only needed to empty it every other week. While we noted this may not be the highest-performing toaster out there, it's by no means substandard. If aesthetics matter to you, the Smeg gets points for its visual appeal.

Dimensions: 7.75 x 12.25 x 7.75 inches | Weight: 5.4 pounds | Functions: Six browning settings, reheat function, defrost function, bagel function, cancel function

Best Digital Toaster

All-Clad 2-Slice Digital Toaster

$130 at Amazon $130 at Sur La Table $186 at Macy's

The All-Clad 2-Slice Stainless Steel toaster toaster makes good use of a digital display. The doneness level is selected with a dial, and you can monitor the time to completion with a countdown clock. This was one of our favorite features, and we also liked the beep alert that sounded with three seconds to go. There’s a “more time” button that adds 25 seconds to your cycle and can be pressed at any time during the toasting process. The All-Clad was one of the most consistent toasters we tested; 12 slices of bread toasted on the first setting came out perfectly, even once the toaster was warmed up after multiple rounds.

As far as aesthetics go, this glossy stainless steel toaster has a classic look and isn’t too bulky. We noted that the button placement (on one of the long sides) allowed it to be “scooched back” against a wall, which freed up counter space. The slots are adequately roomy, and although we did struggle to fit homemade bread in, it can easily accommodate bagels.

Dimensions: 5.29 x 12.91 x 8.98 inches | Weight: 4.89 pounds | Functions: Five browning levels, bagel function, reheat function, defrost function, more time function, cancel function