How to find the best air fryer deals – bag the best savings on Ninja, Instant and more with this handy guide
Where, when and how to shop to ensure the best deals on air fryers
If there's one kitchen appliance I find it hard to imagine ever living without, it has to be my air fryer. Whether you're looking to pick up for your first ever one of these modern kitchen essentials or are looking to upgrade to benefit from the latest technology, finding tasty air fryer deals means you can get what you want for a bargain price tag.
As Ideal Home Kitchen Appliances Editor, I've got you covered to explain where and when you should be shopping for air fryers from Ninja, Instant, Tower, Phillips, and more, with these discounts ongoing at all of our favourite retailers, from John Lewis to Amazon. I've been testing and rating the best air fryers for years now, so I'm well-placed to tell you which models to pick up with a nice, hefty discount. Here's how!
Where to find the best air fryer deals
- Amazon: discounts on Tower, Ninja, Tefal and more
- Argos: shop air fryers from £40
- Currys: a great range of deals on dual zones
- John Lewis: up to £100 off selected air fryers
- Lakeland: shop name and own brand for less
- Robert Dyas: save on Daewoo, Salter and Tower air fryers
- Very: save up to £80 on Ninja air fryers
When to find the best air fryer deals
As with so many things in life, finding the best air fryer deals is all about timing. There are a handful of periods over the year when you are most likely to be able to get the best savings.
- Amazon Prime Day: For the last couple of years Amazon has put on its massive two dales sales event twice in a year, usually in June/July and October. You have to be a Prime member to benefit but you can usually snag amazing deals on air fryers, often including some Amazon exclusive bundles and colourways.
- Black Friday: This imported US sales event is celebrated every year on the Friday that follows Thanksgiving. It's the prime time to bag an air fryer deal if you're in the market. Many retailers offer discounts the whole month if you want to bag one as an early Christmas present too.
- Boxing Day: This isn't as big a sale day for air fryers (it's amazing for sleep essentials!) but you can still manage to find some great deals from key retailers. The sales typically start on Christmas day or even Christmas Eve but are mostly an online affair these days.
- January Sales: Like Boxing Day, this isn't the biggest sales period for air fryer deals, but as many retailers are wanting to clear out stock for the year ahead you have the chance to snap up some good discounts if you want to start the year afresh.
How can you tell if you have found a good air fryer deal?
When shopping around for an air fryer, compare the key specs of each deal such as size, capacity, programs, as well as crucially, the price. I always say that a deal is only a good deal if the product is good.
The first thing you should do is check the reviews if it isn't an air fryer you have seen in person and coveted until sale time. Don't be lured by a super low price and have the false economy of having to replace the appliance after barely any use. You'll know you've got a good deal when you've found a high-spec air fryer for a competitive price.
If you spot an amazing air fryer deal that feels too good to be true, it probably is. Minimise the risk of being duped by shopping from reputable retailers you trust, and avoid unfamiliar sites or sellers.
I've been reviewing a host of air fryers according to our rigorous testing protocol for over two years now, with a particular emphasis on finding models that provide truly great value for money. I've tested, and continue to test, all of the air fryers from popular brand names, such as Ninja and Instant, alongside lesser-known brands such as COSORI and Dreo.
What is a good price for an air fryer?
The price range for air fryers (and appliances in general) varies a lot. Because there are so many types, capabilities, performance and manufacturers, it is hard to come up with a reliable benchmark for air fryers.
Prices tend to start from around £60 for a basic model but can ramp up to more than £200 for the largest and most-capable appliance.
My advice is, know your budget, bring your expectations in line and then shop around for the best model you can get for that budget.
Though there are air fryers available for the lowest prices (we're talking extremely cheap) we'd always recommend choosing a reputable brand over one you've not heard of before. We've tested a few from COSORI, which are available on Amazon and of great quality, as well as great picks from Instant (best known for their Instant Pots!).
FAQs
How much does an air fryer cost?
If you're new to air frying and want something budget-friendly to get you started, we recommend the Instant 4-in-1 air fryer. While it's small it's also affordable, and it's of excellent quality. This air fryer shows what the hype is all about, but if you go for a cheaper brand that comes in at around £20, you may not get to experience all the added cooking functions and sensitive temperature controls that make us love air frying in the first place.
Premium air fryers can cost as much as £300, like the Ninja FlexDrawer Air Fryer, so the festive period is a great excuse to upgrade to something capable of keeping up with busy family life if you see a breakout deal. After all, many air fryer owners are such big fans that one air fryer is not enough!
What types of air fryer are there?
There are two main types of air fryer, a basket air fryer, or an oven air fryer. In America, people also use toaster ovens, but those are less common in the UK market.
Basket air fryers
Most of the top air fryers we've tried were basket air fryers. This means there is a central heating element with a basket that can simply be inserted into place. You can use the handle on the basket to pull out your chips or veggies and give them a shake midway through your cooking cycle, which is very helpful for keeping your hands safe when cooking.
Basket air fryers sometimes come with a removable insert that separates food from any liquid or fat that drips away during cooking. This insert can usually be lifted out to allow you to cook in the flat base of the air fryer, particularly in Ninja and Instant air fryers, but other models like Swan and Cosori will depend on the model. The removable insert has its pros and cons, because while it can make your air fryer more multi-functional, it will also make it harder to pour out your food without also pouring out the liquid that's gathered at the bottom of the fryer.
Oven air fryers
We've reviewed a few oven air fryers from Tower and Breville, and they are more of a cross between a regular oven and a drawer air fryer. The drawer air fryer will only have one cooking compartment, but an oven air fryer can distribute numerous shelves through the inside of the cooker.
Our favourite oven air fryers which we've tried are detailed in our Lakeland Digital Air Fryer Oven review and our Sage Smart Oven Air Fryer review. These two air fryers proved useful for cooking different elements of a meal in one go, and also make cleaning easier thanks to their tray systems. Convection ovens circulate hot air in the same way an air fryer does, so in many ways, an oven air fryer is more of a mini convection oven.
So now you should have all the information you need to make an informed decision on when and where to shop the best air fryer deals around. And if this is for the first purchase of these appliances, then welcome to the air fryer fan club!
