These Electric Griddles Will Make Cooking Meals Faster and More Efficient (2024)

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If you hear “griddle” and immediately think of a bacon-scented diner bustling with servers toting stacks of perfectly cooked pancakes, eggs, and waffles, then you’re on the right track. But that’s hardly the extent of what you can do with a griddle in your kitchen.

An electric griddle is an efficient kitchen appliance with ample cooking surface area that’s great for whipping up breakfast favorites, but will serve you just as well come lunch and dinnertime for steaks, fajitas, paninis, and more.

Griddles can free up space on the stove and oven, and many are large enough to prepare a meal for a big family or group of friends. Plus unlike your stove, they can be stashed away when not in use.

Whether you want to improve your rate of pancakes per hour, expand your culinary horizons, or just make a better grilled cheese sandwich, an electric griddle can help you achieve all of the above.

Best Electric Griddles

The Expert: I am a trained chef, recipe developer, food writer, and breakfast lover who is passionate about making the fluffiest and tangiest sourdough pancakes every Saturday morning, so my electric griddle is near and dear to my heart. I love that these devices heat evenly and provide enough cooking surface area to feed a hungry brunch crowd. For me, a great griddle is nonstick, easy to clean, and heats uniformly so there are no hot spots that might burn half a pancake. This list reflects the best electric griddles for every home cook.

What to Consider

Size

Electric griddles vary widely in size from those with cooking surface areas that will fit a couple of eggs and slices of bacon all the way up to ones that can fit 10 pancakes at a time, so you'll want to consider what size best works for you based on your available space and how you plan to use the appliance.

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If you plan to cook a full meal for the family, you'll probably want something with at least 200 inches of cooking surface area, but if you intend to use it just for single-person meals or in conjunction with your stovetop, you can probably opt for a smaller model, such as 180 inches or less. It’s worth noting that these appliances aren’t the daintiest or most compact, so if storage space is an issue, you may want a smaller griddle, or at least one that can be disassembled for easier storage when not in use.

Care

One of the biggest deciding factors when selecting an electric griddle is how much time you're willing to spend maintaining it; some models are dishwasher-safe, but most aren't. And even those that can be cleaned in the dishwasher will last longer if you do so by hand.

While our selections include both dishwasher-safe models and those that need to be washed by hand, all of the griddles we have chosen have reviews that say they're easy to clean. It's worth noting that if the griddle isn't dishwasher-safe, it's also best to use nonmetal utensils with it to preserve the griddle's nonstick properties.

Features

The handy extra features of an electric griddle can include things like a removable grease drip tray, an indicator light to show it has reached its optimal cooking temperature, or removable parts for easy stowing. Some models we recommend even have warming trays and grill plates as bonuses, or special coating features that bolster the strength of the nonstick cooking surface.

We selected a variety of features as well as some no-frills options for our list below. If you’re looking for fancier features or a griddle that does more than one-sided cooking (such as a panini press), you may have to spend a bit more, but it’s worth it to meet your culinary needs.

Safety

As with any cooking appliance—or any device that heats up, for that matter—be sure your griddle is turned off and unplugged when it's not in use. Let it cool down after use before handling it to clean it off and never stow it away while it's still hot, as this can pose a fire hazard. We’ve also included griddles with added safety features such as indicator lights that turn off when the surface is cool enough to clean.

How We Selected These Electric Griddles

To determine the best electric griddles on the market, we considered how people may use these appliances in their own kitchens and what they use them for. We also researched which models reputable home chefs and cooking outlets recommended most frequently, and learned what they love about their griddles.

We then reviewed both expert ratings and customer reviews to ensure these models delivered on their promises of functionality and durability. Considering different sizes, price points, and features, we've pared our selection down to the electric griddles you'll find below, and are sure you'll find something that'll fit your culinary needs.

Don't Get Riddled by Griddles. What to Know Before You Buy From One From Our Expert Elizabeth Briskin.