Can An Air Fryer Replace A Toaster Oven? | Speed vs.

You bought an air fryer and now the toaster oven sits in the back of the cabinet. Could you just get rid of it? The short answer is yes, for a lot of cooking, but not without a few trade-offs.

An air fryer can handle toasting, reheating, and crisping faster than most toaster ovens. But if you bake often, cook for a family, or need to toast four slices at once, a toaster oven still does a few things better.

How Air Fryers and Toaster Ovens Actually Differ

The main functional difference comes down to air movement. Air fryers use powerful convection — hot air circulating at high speed — to mimic deep-frying with very little oil. Standard toaster ovens rely on static heat from top and bottom elements.

Any toaster oven with a built-in convection fan will get closer to air fryer performance, but it’s still not the same. The basket design of a dedicated air fryer forces hot air around food more tightly, which produces crispier results faster.

As The Spruce Eats explains, an air fryer mimics the effect of a convection oven but with smaller interior space and stronger airflow. That’s the secret to its speed and crunch.

Why the “Replace or Keep” Question Stubborn

Most people ask this because they’ve run out of counter space or want to simplify their kitchen. The real answer depends on what you cook most often — here’s how the two appliances stack up on the factors that matter.

• Speed: Air fryers cook roughly 20% to 30% faster than toaster ovens, according to general estimates. That means dinner in 12 minutes instead of 18.
• Crispiness: Lab testing shows dedicated basket-style air fryers consistently produce crispier food than toaster ovens with an air-fry setting. For frozen fries or chicken wings, the air fryer wins easily.
• Capacity: A toaster oven can fit a small sheet pan, a 9-inch pie, or several slices of toast at once. Air fryers are limited by their basket size.
• Versatility: Convection toaster ovens bake, broil, toast, and roast without the shape restrictions of a basket. They handle casseroles and whole meals more naturally.
• Energy use: If both appliances have similar wattage, the faster-cooking one (typically the air fryer) uses less electricity per meal.

For small households or single cooks, the air fryer’s speed and crispiness are the deciding factors. For families or bakers, the toaster oven’s flexibility often tips the scale back.

When an Air Fryer Can Replace a Toaster Oven

An air fryer can step in for a toaster oven on most everyday tasks — it can even make toast. CNET testing found that flipping sliced bread in an air fryer for a few minutes per side creates perfectly browned toast, though it’s a two-batch job for a family.

For reheating leftovers, air frying brings back crunch that a toaster oven’s static heat can’t match. It also works well for small roasted vegetables, chicken tenders, and frozen snacks. The temperature conversion is straightforward: if an oven recipe calls for 200°C, set the air fryer to 175°C for similar results.

As The Spruce Eats notes, the air fryer mimics convection oven technology, which is why it handles so many toaster oven jobs competently — as long as the portion fits in the basket.

The table shows the trade-offs in one glance. If your typical meal is a single portion of crispy food, the air fryer covers everything a toaster oven does — and does it faster.

When a Toaster Oven Wins

For larger jobs, the toaster oven pulls ahead. Here are the situations where it still earns a spot on the counter.

1. Baking a small cake or brownies. The even, static heat of a toaster oven is better for batters that need gentle rising. An air fryer’s strong airflow can create uneven tops.
2. Toasting multiple bagel halves. A toaster oven’s wide rack handles four to six pieces at once. An air fryer basket usually fits two.
3. Roasting a whole chicken or large casserole. A toaster oven’s rectangular interior accommodates dishes that simply won’t fit inside an air fryer basket.
4. Broiling for browning casseroles or cheese. Dedicated top-element broiling in a toaster oven gives you direct, high heat that an air fryer can’t replicate.

Serious Eats notes that a convection toaster oven is the closest you can get to a full-size oven, especially for volume and batch cooking. If those tasks describe your kitchen routine, keeping both appliances makes sense.

The Verdict Based on Kitchen Reality

Whether an air fryer can replace your toaster oven depends almost entirely on your cooking patterns. For one or two people who love crispy, fast meals, the air fryer is a worthy replacement for daily use. But if you bake cookies, make casseroles, or regularly cook for four, you’ll miss the toaster oven’s versatility.

Some manufacturers now sell air fryer toaster oven combos that combine both functions in one unit. Those hybrids solve the space issue, though they often compromise on either crispiness (compared to a dedicated air fryer) or even baking (compared to a pure toaster oven).

As Serious Eats puts it, a toaster oven replaces traditional oven more completely when you need to handle larger, varied jobs. If you’re considering a swap, think about the one appliance you use most — not just the features on a spec sheet.

The Bottom Line

An air fryer can replace a toaster oven for many common tasks like toasting, reheating, and cooking small crispy portions. But for baking, broiling, and batch cooking, a toaster oven (especially a convection model) still holds advantages you won’t get from a basket-style fryer.

If your kitchen can only fit one appliance and you typically cook for one or two, an air fryer is the smarter bet for everyday speed and crunch. For anyone who roasts a chicken or bakes on weekends, the toaster oven remains the workhorse that’s hard to retire.