Get $40 to spend at Costco when you buy an annual membership for $60 | Read Review
Credit:
Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser
Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.
Credit:
Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser
Reviewed's mission is to help you buy the best stuff and get the most out of what you already own. Our team of product experts thoroughly vet every product we recommend to help you cut through the clutter and find what you need.
Learn more about our product testing
The KT Thermo's accuracy, readability, and two-year warranty make it a clear favorite. Read More
Though it wasn't the most responsive or accurate model we tested, its appealing large face makes it easy to read. Read More
The no-frills model reported temperatures with great accuracy and responded quickly to any changes in heat. Read More
This petit oven thermometer registers temperatures in °F and °C in 50-degree increments, but that makes the face cluttered and challenging to read. Read More
The AcuRite is a clear and easy to read oven thermometer registering consistent temperatures and a helpful range of indicators up to 600°F. Read More
We've all been there: You follow a recipe perfectly, pop your masterpiece in the oven, and wait. Thirty minutes later, it's just barely done—or worse, it's overcooked.
Many ovens struggle to reach or stay at the target temperature—a sticking point we've noted repeatedly in our oven testing. When you need an oven to bake a cake at precisely 350°F or roast perfectly caramelized veggies at 425°F, it's frustrating to find your cook times and final results wildly off base.
Luckily, there's a simple fix to playing this never-ending temperature guessing game with your inexact oven: a humble dial-face stainless-steel oven thermometer.
We discovered, after testing several of the leading oven thermometers, that the KT Thermo Oven Thermometer (available at Amazon) stands out from the pack as the best oven thermometer. Not only is it highly accurate (an obvious must for thermometers), it has easy-to-read and wide-ranging temperature markings, and it fits snugly onto oven racks. We also love the Taylor for its large, easy-to-read face and high ratings in accuracy and responsiveness.
KT Thermo is one of the most accurate and easy-to-read oven thermometers we tested.
The Taylor oven thermometer has a large dial that is easy to read.
The Admetior oven thermometer has bold numbers that are easy to read.
The Cooper-Atkins oven thermometer is small and reads in °F and °C.
Clear markings
Consistent temperatures
Starts registering at 150°F
Wide temperature range
Inaccurate
Difficult to read
Unsteady base
We put a collection of the most popular oven thermometers to the test to help you decide which to buy.
To test the oven thermometers, we hang four thermometers at a time from a rack placed in the middle of an oven. We then position a separate thermometer (one of our best-tested probe thermometers which we use for all our oven testing) in a ceramic dish, oriented so the body of the probe is exposed to the open air near the thermometers.
We preheat the oven to 350°F and let it hold for 5 minutes before turning the oven off. During this sequence, we record the temperatures of both the thermometers and the probe once per minute.
We then repeat this process at a 450-degree setting. Finally, we evaluate each thermometer's performance during everyday use.
The Taylor oven thermometer has a large dial that is easy to read.
Cooking food—especially baking — is all about chemistry. And many of those essential chemical reactions are temperature-dependent. The problem is, ovens are notoriously idiosyncratic (to put it nicely) and often wildly inaccurate.
If you’re following a recipe, it’s pretty much a given that your oven won’t operate in the same way as the oven of the person who developed the recipe in the first place. So if the instructions read “Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes,” using an oven thermometer will let you know when you’re truly at the right temperature.
This set-it-and-forget-it tool features an internal mechanism that expands and contracts, which moves a dial to indicate the true temperature of your oven. The heat-proof glass face is surrounded by a steel body and is fitted with a hook to hang it on an oven rack, as well as a base if you’d rather sit it flat on top of the grates.
One of the most popular questions about oven thermometers is where to place an oven thermometer in the oven. To get the most accurate reading, it’s best to place an oven thermometer in the center of the oven. Ideally, hang it from the crossbar of the rack directly in the center, facing forward so you can read it.
If you place the oven thermometer too close to one of the sides of the oven, it may read hotter than the true average temperature of the interior of the oven.
Clearly, accuracy is key, or why bother in the first place? To find a good oven thermometer, look for a durable stainless steel construction with easy-to-read markings and large numbers that you can see through the oven door without opening it (or risk ruining your perfectly inflated souffle).
The ticks should be large and the face uncluttered. That said, Celsius indicators are helpful if you’re working within the metric system, as are markings that register every 10 or 25 degrees if you do a good deal of baking. The thermometer should stay firmly in position, so it’s not easily knocked off the racks if hung, or subject to falling over if set on its base. And it shouldn’t be so large that it dangles in front of (or prevents access to) lower racks.
Also, ensure that the thermometer is "NSF certified" or "NSF approved," which means the product meets the standards of the National Safety Foundation.
Sarah Zorn
Contributor
Sarah Zorn is a food writer, cookbook author, and product tester for Reviewed, Wirecutter and the Food Network. She regularly contributes to outlets such as Saveur, Esquire, and Civil Eats, and has very much passed her food obsessions down, as her beloved rescue hound, Rowdy, regularly deglazes his kibble bowl.
Managing Editor, Kitchen & Appliances. Danielle has a B.S. from Syracuse University and a AAS in Culinary Arts from Newbury College. Previously, Danielle was a Test Cook and Associate Editor at America's Test Kitchen, as well as a freelance recipe developer and food writer. She’s the mom of two boys and loves making pizza on Friday nights.
Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.
Shoot us an email
