Top 15 Best Multicookers in 2020 – Complete Guide

The 8 Best Multi-Cookers of 2020

From baking to roasting, multi-cookers can do it all

Our Top Picks

"It can roast a chicken, bake a cake, boil water for pasta, ferment yogurt, cook rice, and slow cook."

"Has over 80 Auto-iQ recipes for quick meals, layered bowls, poached foods, and more."

"It holds 4 1/2 quarts, so it’s also great for folks who already have a larger cooker but want an extra for side dishes."

"Boasts a dishwasher-safe cooking pot, so cleaning is easy when cooking and serving is done."

"The mirror-finished exterior will look classy in any kitchen and will look stunning on the buffet."

"Has a unique look, somewhat like the child of a toaster and a teakettle, with a jaunty lid and handy side handles."

"With a 7-quart cooking pot, it’s great for large families or for folks who like to entertain."

"The pressure release valve automatically sets to sealing so there’s no chance of cooking with the vent open by accident."

Best Overall: COSORI 11-in-1 Programmable Multi-Cooker

Courtesy of Amazon

It’s hard to find something this 6-quart multi-cooker won’t do. While a turkey wouldn’t fit, it can roast a chicken, bake a cake, boil water for pasta, ferment yogurt, cook rice, and of course, it can slow cook—at three different temperatures. The manual cooking function allows temperatures from 86 to 400 degrees, so it can gently warm leftovers, proof bread, or cook a roast on high temperature.

The inner cooking pot has two generous insulated handles so it can be removed easily, even when it’s hot. A delayed cooking function can be set 24 hours in advance. The keep-warm function can keep food warm for 8 hours, so it can be used on a buffet to keep food safe for serving or it can keep dinner ready when everyone is coming home at a different time. Even with all of these functions, this is priced well below many other cookers with fewer features.

Best Programmable: Ninja Auto-iQ Multi Cooker

This cooker goes beyond having generic buttons for chicken or stew—it has over 80 Auto-iQ recipes for quick meals, layered bowls, poached foods, and more—so you just add the ingredients and the cooker knows what to do. For your own recipes, it has slow cook, steam, stovetop (for searing and sautéing), and bake modes, so you can cook just about anything.

Unlike cookers that heat from either the top or sides, this heats from both, for more even cooking. This has a 6-quart capacity and a nonstick cooking pot for easy cleaning.

Best Budget: Hamilton Beach Digital MultiCooker

Great for singles and couples, and for vacation homes, RVs, dorms, and for anyone who needs extra cooking options for parties and extra warmers on the buffet table, this compact multi-cooker won’t break the budget. It holds 4 1/2 quarts, so it’s also great for folks who already have a larger cooker but want an extra for side dishes. It has 14 cooking presets for white rice, brown rice, sushi rice, whole grains, hot cereals, quinoa, sauté, steam cook, soup/simmer, sear/brown, and warm. It also has high and low slow cooking options, and a delay timer.

The included basket can be used for rinsing rice before cooking and for steaming vegetables while rice cooks below in the pot. For easy cleaning when cooking is done, the cooking pot is dishwasher safe.

When you’re cooking rice, it’s important to measure it properly. We’ve got the details to make you an expert.

Best for Easy Cleaning: De'Longhi Livenza 7-in-1 Multi-Cooker

This cooker boasts a dishwasher-safe cooking pot, so cleaning is easy when cooking and serving is done. One dial controls the cooking mode, with three slow cooking temperatures, an oven bake mode, browning and sautéing, steaming, and rice cooking. A second dial controls the temperature, so it’s easy to set the cooker for any of your recipes.

Settings can be programmed up to 24 hours in advance, and the keep-warm mode makes sure the food stays at the perfect serving temperature without overcooking. A recipe app is available that has 50 recipes designed specifically for this cooker.

Best for the Buffet: All-Clad Gourmet Plus Slow Cooker

Courtesy of William Sonoma

All-Clad might be best known for its quality cookware, but it also makes quality cooking appliances like this multi-cooker. The mirror-finished exterior will look classy in any kitchen and will look stunning on the buffet—that’s not just any chili, that’s gourmet chili!

The center dial sets the cooking mode for slow cooking, rice, steam, sear, or simmer, while buttons fine-tune the choices. The pot can be set to preheat, temperatures can be chosen, and the keep-warm/buffet button will keep food warm without overcooking it. The nonstick surface in the cooking pot is metal utensil safe, so there’s no need to panic when a guest grabs the wrong serving spoon, but softer utensils like wood or silicone are preferred. The lid and steam basket are dishwasher safe, but the insert should be hand washed.

Best Design: Candy Apple Red KitchenAid 4 Quart Multi Cooker with Stir Tower

There’s no doubt about it, this multi-cooker has a unique look, somewhat like the child of a toaster and a teakettle, with a jaunty lid and handy side handles. The control panel is arranged in a neat circle with settings for risotto, rice, sear, sauté, simmer, soup, yogurt, boil/steam, low or high slow cook, and keep warm.

The addition of the stir tower (this can be purchased without the tower as well) means that this cooker can stir food while it cooks, for perfect risotto every time, or perfectly cooked onions that won’t stick or burn. The tower has three constant-stir speeds and two intermittent modes so it can be customized to what’s cooking. The cooker has a 4-quart capacity, so it’s great for singles and couples, and perfect for side dishes.

Best for Large Families: Cuisinart MSC-800 Cook Central 4-in-1 Multi-Cooker

Most multi-cookers are 6 quarts, but this gives more cooking space with a 7-quart cooking pot, so it’s great for large families or for folks who like to entertain. This has four cooking functions: slow cook, roast, brown/sauté, and steam, so it’s great for all types of cooking. Even better, all functions except steam can be customized.

Slow cook can be set for high, low, simmer, or warm. Roasting temperature can be set from 250 to 450 degrees, so it’s great for low-and-slow cooking of a roast, or for high heat cooking for a great crust on a roast or crisp skin on a chicken. The brown/sauté setting can be cranked up to 500 degrees, for an impressive sear. The cooking pot has a nonstick coating, but it is dishwasher safe for easy cleaning when cooking is done.

Best with Pressure: Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus 9-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker

Electric pressure cookers today have evolved to be much more, making them true multi-cookers. This offering from Instant Pot, of course, can pressure cook, but it can also slow cook, sauté, steam, bake, sous vide, and keep foods warm. It has 48 presets for everything from beans to white rice along with buttons for the different modes of cooking.

The lid is designed for easy sealing, and the pressure release valve automatically sets to sealing so there’s no chance of cooking with the vent open by accident. Quick-cool technology helps it cool to naturally release pressure quicker, so those hungry diners won’t have to wait as long for the lid to open. This comes in a 6- or 8-quart size.

Why Trust The Spruce Eats?

Donna Currie tested one of the first multi-cookers on the market, giving it rave reviews for its ability to sear, roast, and bake. Since then, she’s had her hands on several more, and spent quality time researching the latest offerings, just in case it’s time for yet another upgrade.