Determining which cooktop is best suited for your home can be a difficult process. For many of us, a cooktop is something we use every day, so finding the right one is critical. We recommend you first confirm a gas cooktop offers the best choice for your home. Electric or induction models may be better suited to your needs depending on how often you cook, the level of safety you’d like to have and what sort of control you may need.
You should also consider the size of the cooktop and number of burners, as well as the cost and hassle of maintenance and cleaning. The availability of any smart features is a final consideration to make, but probably shouldn’t drive your decision-making process.
Gas vs. Radiant Electric or Induction
Heating technology is the first and most important choice you’ll make when deciding what kind of cooktop you want. Gas is one of three main options: gas, radiant electric or induction.
Radiant electric cooktops use electricity to heat the surface of the cooktop which, in turn, heats your pots and pans. Upsides to electric cooktops include the lack of gas-related risks, including leaks. Though the technology has certainly improved, radiant electric cooktops are not as precise with heating control and take more time to warm up and cool down.
Induction cooktops work similarly but instead of heating the cooking surface, they actually heat the pot or pan itself using magnetic energy created by running electricity through a copper coil beneath the cooktop surface. Induction cooktops are often quite expensive but are considered one of the safest and most efficient methods of cooking due to the minimal heat exchange anywhere except the pot or pan itself.
Gas cooktops are especially great for excellent, fine control over cooking temperatures. Popular among professional chefs, gas cooktops allow precise increments of heat control that respond instantaneously, unlike an electric surface that has to cool down or heat up before transferring that energy to the pot. Gas cooktops aren’t perfect: they are much messier and harder to clean because of the large protective grates and the burners to clean around. An open flame is much more dangerous than a hot surface and gas always includes a leak risk. Gas cooktops will continue to work even in the case of a power outage.
Size and Number of Burners
Once you’ve chosen the type of cooktop best suited for your kitchen, you will need to determine what size best fits your kitchen and the number of burners you would like. All the gas cooktops on this list are 30 or 36 inches—the most common standard sizes—but cooktops can come in a wide variety of sizes to suit your home and kitchen.
The number of burners can be a key consideration as well. While most cooktops feature four or five burners, some have as many as six. Additionally, while five or six burners may seem great, more burners may be less-desirable on a smaller cooktop because the space between burners can be severely cramped. You should pay special attention to the size of cookware you own or want and how it may best fit on a stovetop with four, five or even six burners.
Maintenance and Cleaning
A third key consideration you should make when choosing the best gas cooktop for your home is the potential maintenance, regular cleaning work and extra costs involved with using your cooktop. Since cooktops are used nearly every day, often multiple times a day, having a well-functioning cooktop with minimal maintenance requirements is important. Ensuring it’s easy to clean can save significant time and hassle. While many companies brag about how easy to clean their cooktops are, you should check customer reviews before purchasing to read how customers actually feel about these claims.
On top of that, while purchasing a high-end Italian gas stove may mean a significantly higher quality product, if something does go wrong, maintenance costs associated with shipping parts from across the ocean if necessary may cause a huge headache down the road. Your cooktop should last for years to come, so choosing a company with a great history of customer support ratings can provide some assurance that you won’t have to replace your entire cooktop when a single part breaks.
Smart Features
One final factor to consider when choosing the best gas cooktop for your kitchen is the smart features you want. Gas cooktops have fewer smart features than electric or induction cooktops but many still offer options you may want to consider. For example, some gas stove tops feature Wi-Fi-controlled monitoring so you can turn burners off from your phone. Samsung’s gas stovetops are Bluetooth-enabled and can communicate with Samsung range hoods to turn ventilation fans on and off with the burners.
Design and Aesthetics
An excellent gas cooktop should look as good as it performs, especially since it is a permanent fixture in your kitchen that will be there for years to come. Therefore, when shopping for the best gas cooktops, choosing one that complements your countertops and appliances well and fits your preferences is essential. Also, since most brands have multiple cooktop options, you can easily find one that will work with your décor and cooking style.
