Air Fryer vs. Convection Oven: What's the Difference?

First, let's discuss what exactly an air fryer is and how it works. Air fryers are much more compact than a convection oven, typically a bit larger than a toaster oven. They can live on your countertop but are compact enough to be stored in a pantry or cabinet when not in use. Air fryers use convection heating to circulate air around your food, which is held inside by a basket. There is a fan inside that rapidly keeps the circulation going, giving your food the same texture as if it had been deep-fried to yummy, crispy goodness–except without the oil and additional fat. Overall, it's a much healthier alternative.

Convection ovens, which can be either gas or electric, produce heat that disperses into the oven over a slow period of time, building up until it reaches the desired temperature.

Much like an air fryer, convection ovens use a fan to circulate hot air throughout the cooking cavity. But the compact size of an air fryer allows it to reach cooking temperatures much more quickly than a convection oven can. The compact size also helps air fryers circulate the heat more evenly, eliminating hot spots that overcook and over crisp your food.

Many homeowners assume that an air fryer is a healthier alternative to baking in the convection oven. And while this is true, the devil's in the details. In other words, it's not that straightforward.

Due to the efficient method in which they create and circulate heat, air fryers require absolutely no oil. They're able to crisp up your food simply by how hot the interior gets. However, with little to no oil being added to your dish or meal, it can be just as healthy as being baked in a convection oven.

So air fryers seem like a pretty great small kitchen appliance to have, especially if you love fried foods. But let's discuss in further detail and specifically point out some of the drawbacks and disadvantages.

• When using your air fryer, you can't check on it as easily as you can with a convection oven. While some home chefs are perfectly fine to set it and forget it, others have a tendency to monitor the doneness of the food to get it just right.
• Air fryers are considerably louder than a convection oven, reaching 65 decibels or so, according to Philips. To give you an idea, this is the same noise level of a vacuum cleaner. So, not exactly quiet. But then again, lots of kitchen appliances (blenders, for example) are loud, too.
• Cleaning air fryers takes some effort. You have to clean a perforated basket along with its bucket. And if you're cooking, let's say buffalo chicken wings, you'll have to clean any drippings they leave behind, too. The convection oven is a clear winner here as all you have to do is clean the pan. For an even easier cleanup try lining the pan with aluminum foil before filling it with wings and loading it into the oven.