Nonstick cookware has a long history. It was invented in 1954 and introduced to the American market in 1961. And you can’t write about nonstick without talking about the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which was what made nonstick, well, nonstick and has been linked to negative health implications, increased risks of certain cancers, and environmental dangers. It’s since been eliminated from Teflon cookware (since 2013, in fact).
Nowadays, traditional nonstick coatings are made from polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), which is sprayed onto the surface of the cookware in several layers. It’s generally regarded as safer than PFOA, but research is still ongoing. However, PTFE nonstick coatings can still wear, chip, and scratch easily. The coating can also break down at 500℉, so the pans shouldn’t be used at higher heats in the oven (many are oven-safe up to 400℉, though) and shouldn’t be preheated at a high heat or for a prolonged period of time empty on the stovetop. This can cause them to off-gas, releasing harmful pollutants into the air that have been linked to polymer fume fever.
However, this can be easily avoided by not heating a nonstick skillet empty, and certainly not using it for high heat applications. It also can be avoided by simply not using nonstick at all (as Daniel’s noted, you could use a well-seasoned carbon steel or cast iron pan for most everything). This all being said, there are certain cooking tasks where a nonstick pan is helpful to have on hand. This includes egg dishes like omelets, or delicate crepes.
Because we seldom recommend using it, we’ve never fully reviewed nonstick skillets. But, if you’re going to have one, you might as well get a good one that performs well and is easy to use. So, we rounded up 16 of the most popular nonstick skillets—priced between $20 and $220—and put them to the test.
The Winners, at a Glance
The Best Nonstick Skillet Under $40
T-fal Professional Total Nonstick Thermo-Spot Heat Indicator Fry Pan
Amazon
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$33
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$38
A solid performer at a reasonable (about $30) price, it did well in all of our tests. It’s dishwasher-safe and oven-safe to 400℉.
The Best Nonstick Skillet Under $50
Tramontina 10-Inch Professional Aluminum Nonstick Restaurant Fry Pan
Amazon
View On Amazon
$29
View On Walmart
$37
This was also oven-safe to safe to 400℉ and featured a handle with a removable, non-slip silicone grip that we particularly liked.
The Best Mid-Priced Nonstick Skillet
All-Clad HA1 Hard Anodized 10-Inch Frying Pan
Amazon
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$61
View On All-clad.com
$60
The surprisingly affordable All-Clad HA1 Hard Anodized 10-Inch Frying Pan handled the durability tests like a pro. It was one of two models we tested that had less-sloped sides which yielded a larger cooking surface that some cooks may prefer.
While this model gave us a bit less cooking surface than other skillets we tested, it was the best ceramic pan we tried. The warranty is a disappointment, though, since the user has to pay a fee for a replacement.
The Tests
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
What We Learned
Does Nonstick Surface Material Make a Difference?
We tested traditional nonstick pans, ceramic nonstick pans, and even one nonstick-stainless steel hybrid.
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
Each one of the pans we tested had a different nonstick surface, although the exact material was hard to determine since manufacturers use proprietary coatings and give them their own names. Some surfaces were smoother than others, some were noticeably rough, two had ceramic rather than a Teflon-based material, and the Anolon X was a hybrid of nonstick and stainless steel. While there were slight differences with both the eggs and omelets in terms of how the eggs behaved in the pans (sliding easily or slighty suctioning to the surface, for example), in terms of everyday cooking performance, there was nothing to complain about with any of the pans. It was almost disappointing how similar the results were.
However, if you’re concerned about PTFEs and off-gassing, then you might want to consider just buying a ceramic nonstick pan since there’s no risk of it releasing fumes at all/at higher temps. These are not without their general cons, though. The coating on ceramic nonstick is made from sand and it’s very glass-like and, like glass, more brittle. As America’s Test Kitchen noted in their review of ceramic pans, ceramic is more prone to cracking and therefore becoming less-nonstick more quickly than traditional, PTFE-based nonstick.
What About Pan Material—Does That Matter?
The material of the pans—stainless steel vs. aluminum vs. multi-metal—made more of a difference in performance than the coating. However, this was more about the user adjusting to the pan, rather than the pan being a good or bad performer. The thicker, heavier, pans, with more stainless steel, took longer to preheat and retained heat longer. The thin aluminum pans heated faster, and cooled down faster. This, however, isn’t confined to nonstick cookware. This may be the best argument for buying a nonstick pan that is similar to the cookware that’s already in your kitchen, since you'll be more used to its heating profile.
Which Nonstick Pans Were the Easiest to Use?
While this is more subjective than data-driven, as we sorted pans into the go and no-go stacks to determine which would be the cream of the crop, we looked at things like the handles and whether they were comfortable to hold, and whether the pans felt balanced as we carried them or flipped food. In general, but not always, we preferred rounded, rather than squared-off handles and found added silicone grips to be a nice touch.
Can Any Nonstick Pans Withstand Scratching?
All of our favorite models withstood our durability tests with very minor or no damage.
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
While many kitchens are fully armed with silicone and wood cooking tools (we don’t recommend nylon, as it’s not as heat-safe as silicone), the constant rubbing of even the softest utensils can damage some nonstick surfaces. We accelerated the damage by rubbing the pans with steel wool 20 times each in two directions in a "plus" (+) pattern, and scraping a metal spatula 10 times each in two directions in an X pattern across the surface as though we were getting under food to lift it. The surprising result was that there were a handful of pans—our ultimate winners— that showed little or no damage. That bodes well for their longevity in the kitchen.
How Long Do Nonstick Pans Last, Anyways?
This all being said: nonstick pans have a limited lifespan. Their surfaces just aren’t durable enough to last several years and they will scratch, chip, and degrade over time. It’s why we’ve historically recommended buying cheap nonstick cookware and why our top picks max out at $60. Because while there are some nice nonstick pans in the $100-plus range that performed well and were very pleasant to use, unless you’re wanting to spend gobs of money every few years, we just don’t think they’re worth it.
The Criteria: What to Look for in a Good Nonstick Skillet
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
First, a nonstick pan should truly be nonstick. Food should come out of the pan cleanly, with no sticking, and the pan should be easy to clean. While some pans are rated as dishwasher-safe (and we tested them), we’d recommend hand-washing to preserve the nonstick coating. Usability was also a major consideration. Even if food was skating around the pan like it was on ice, that’s not going to be enough if the handle was uncomfortable to hold or got painfully hot during cooking. Weight also played a role. While a heavier pan wasn’t necessarily bad, it could feel unwieldy.
The Best Nonstick Skillets
The Best Nonstick Skillet Under $40
T-fal Professional Total Nonstick Thermo-Spot Heat Indicator Fry Pan
Amazon
View On Amazon
$33
View On Walmart
$38
What we liked: While this wasn’t the cheapest pan we tested, the price was still affordable, and the performance was very good. There was little damage to the cooking surface after both scratch tests, which bodes well for a long-ish life. Its handle was comfortable, with a non-slip silicone grip. It was dishwasher-safe, too, though that’s not our recommended cleanup method for nonstick.
What we didn’t like: This pan has a red logo on the cooking surface that’s supposed to fade when the pan is preheated and ready to cook. However, we think it’s best to ignore the indicator, given PTFE’s tendency to off-gas.
Price at time of publish: $32.
Key Specs
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
The Best Nonstick Skillet Under $50
Tramontina 10-Inch Professional Aluminum Nonstick Restaurant Fry Pan
Amazon
View On Amazon
$29
View On Walmart
$37
What we liked: This pan was well-priced, its handle was comfortable and non-slip thanks to its (removable!) silicone grip, and it performed incredibly well. It was lightweight, too, but still balanced.
What we didn’t like: For those with induction cooktops, this model isn’t compatible. It also had a slightly smaller cooking surface.
Price at time of publish: $42.
Key Specs
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
The Best Mid-Priced Nonstick Skillet
All-Clad HA1 Hard Anodized 10-Inch Frying Pan
Amazon
View On Amazon
$61
View On All-clad.com
$60
What we liked: This pan is surprisingly inexpensive, considering it’s All-Clad. Also, surprisingly, the surface held up better in the scratch tests than the more expensive All-Clad pan we tested. It handled cooking tasks well, and cleaning was easy.
What we didn’t like: This pan was one of the heavier ones we tested. It was well-balanced, but cooks who want a lightweight pan may prefer the T-fal or Tramontina. And while we liked the handle (it has a divot running the entire length of the top of the handle, like all All-Clad cookware that provides a natural thumb rest and leverage), we can see how others might prefer a smoother, rounded handle.
Price at time of publish $60.
Key Specs
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
What we liked: If you’d rather buy a PTFE-free ceramic pan, this one fared well in our durability tests, with very little visible damage. While it was pretty basic looking, we found it lightweight and easy to handle.
What we didn’t like: After the scratch tests, this pan wasn’t quite as slidey as it was when new, but ceramic cookware is more brittle anyways. The larger issue, though, was that although the pan is sold as a 10-inch pan, the sides are sloped much more than others we tested, making the usable cooking surface smaller. It might be wise to buy the 12-inch size instead. Also, one of the rivets wasn’t tight against the pan, leaving space for food to get stuck. It’s not induction-compatible.
Price at time of publish: $20.
Key Specs
Serious Eats / Donna Currie
The Competition
FAQs
Should nonstick pans be seasoned?
Some nonstick pans, and particularly ceramic ones, may require seasoning, which involves heating the pan with a bit of oil coating the cooking surface. Seasoning a ceramic pan is similar to seasoning carbon steel, though you should check with the manufacturer for specific instructions around time and temperature to be used.
When should you throw away a nonstick pan?
Nonstick pans have outlived their usefulness when the coating is no longer nonstick. While it can be expected that pans will slowly lose their super-slippery surface, if eggs are welding themselves to the pan or cleaning requires serious scrubbing, it’s time to retire the cookware. Also, if there are deep gouges, peeling coatings, or chips in the cooking surface, the pan should be discarded. While most of the pans in the tests had warranties, they seldom cover wear-and-tear. It’s worth asking, though.
What size nonstick pan should you get?
We recommend a 10- to 11-inch nonstick for most home cooks. But, if you’re just looking for a pan to fry an egg or two in the morning, an 8-inch skillet might be worth considering too. Since we don't recommend nonstick pans for most cooking applications, it's better to get a more universal size that can accommodate more food at once.
Can nonstick pans be stacked for storage?
During testing, the pans were not treated gently. They were stacked on top of each other to move them around, and to save space when they weren’t being tested. While most were unscathed, some sustained damage—particularly, their rims chipped. If you’re looking to stack your pans at home, we recommend placing a paper plate or some sort of buffer in between them.
What is a nonstick pan?
In short, nonstick pans have a coating that prevents food from sticking, making both cooking and cleaning easier. They’re most often used for cooking egg dishes. They can also be used for cooking foods with sticky sauces that tend to burn.
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