5 Best Frying Pans of 2026, Lab Tested and Reviewed
Great picks for nonstick, cast-iron, stainless steel, and other versions
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Frying pans are versatile, and that’s why they’re a go-to tool for so many cooks. You can use one to make everything from a grilled cheese sandwich to a gourmet sauce.
But you’ll get the best results if you match the type of frying pan to the task. Consumer Reports rates several types of frying pans based on our rigorous testing, including nonstick, uncoated cast-iron, coated cast-iron, stainless steel, and carbon steel.
“We test all frying pans for cooking evenness, but many of the other tests are type-specific,” says Breann Chai, who oversees our frying pan testing. “For example, we test cast-iron and carbon steel pans for cornbread baking and searing steaks, since they’re suited to high temperatures. Nonstick pans, on the other hand, are tested for their food-release performance and the durability of the nonstick coating.”
Nonstick frying pans are the most popular type by far, but seasoned cast-iron skillets remain popular, too, and over time, they develop their own nonstick properties. If you’re stocking your kitchen from scratch, you can’t go wrong with either one. If you’re concerned about cleaning cast iron, we rate these and other frying pans for ease of cleaning, so you can choose a pan with the highest scores for that evaluation.
To find out which frying pan is best for you, check our guide to the best frying pans for the way you cook. Below are the best frying pans for each type, ranked by their Overall Score in our tests. For more information and choices, see our cookware buying guide and complete cookware ratings.
Best Nonstick Frying Pan
In our tests of this 10.5-inch nonstick pan from Caraway, fried eggs easily slid out one after another, and the surface heated evenly, leaving no hot spots. We found its handle super-sturdy, and it remained cool enough to handle without a potholder. The nonstick coating is ceramic and stood up well in our durability test, in which we abraded the surface with steel wool to simulate years of use, then fried eggs on the scratched pan to see how much they stuck—something you definitely shouldn’t do at home. Also note that nonstick pans should not be used over high heat because this could damage them.
See our full ratings for nonstick frying pans for other models.
Best Uncoated Cast-Iron Frying Pan
It’s hard to beat the price of the 12-inch Calphalon Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron frying pan, and only one other pan we tested (the pricey and now-discontinued Butter Pat Joan) beat its performance. This pan received excellent marks for searing when we tested it using a New York strip steak, and very good marks in our cooking evenness, cornbread baking, and cleanup evaluations. At 6.5 pounds, it’s a bit lighter than other pans in our tests, and it comes with a 10-year warranty.
See our full ratings for uncoated cast-iron frying pans for other models.
Best Coated Cast-Iron Frying Pan
The 12-inch Tramontina Enameled Cast-Iron Series 1000 excelled at searing a New York strip steak in our tests. We also saw very good results when we baked cornbread in it. But it received just a mediocre score for cooking evenness, meaning doneness can be inconsistent when using this pan. We found it very easy to clean, though, even after cooking eggs, cornbread, and steak.
See our full ratings for coated cast-iron frying pans for other models.
Best Stainless Steel Frying Pan
The 10-inch Oxo Stainless Steel Mira Series stainless steel pan would be a worthy addition to anyone’s kitchen. Cooking evenness is superb, so you won’t get a pancake that’s cooked in one place and underdone in another. The handle is comfortable and super-sturdy, and doesn’t get too hot as you cook. It’s pretty easy to clean, too. This pan is oven-safe to 600° F and comes with a limited lifetime warranty.
See our full ratings for stainless steel frying pans for other models.
Best Carbon Steel Frying Pan
Like cast-iron frying pans, carbon-steel pans like the 10-inch Matfer Bourgeat Black Carbon Steel can handle high heat, making them great for searing. They may need to be seasoned, but they’re far lighter-weight than cast-iron, so they’re easier to lift when moving them from the stovetop to the oven, a great use for this pan. The Matfer Bourgeat showed very good performance in our baking, cooking, evenness, and ease of cleaning evaluations, though its handle isn’t as sturdy as we’d like.
See our full ratings for carbon steel frying pans for other models.
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