I’ve lengthy thought of myself a pizza eater however not a pizza individual. You understand, somebody who slings pies of their yard on the common. However after attending culinary faculty in Italy, reviewing outside ovens, and testing Ooni’s first indoor mannequin final yr, that’s modified. I now love each consuming and making pizza.

Let’s circle again to indoor pizza ovens, although. Whereas Breville’s lengthy had the Pizzaiolo, the Ooni Volt burst onto the scene boasting a ridiculously excessive temperature vary. Once I examined it, I used to be astounded by simply how nice the pizza it made was, how scorching it bought, and the way the outside managed to remain lukewarm to the contact even when the within of the oven was at 850°F. 

I’ve used the Volt frequently since then. Nonetheless, the idea of indoor pizza ovens, as an entire, has consumed me. As a New Englander who experiences chilly climate 65% of the yr, I’ve discovered that making pizza inside is commonly extra dependable. However is the Ooni Volt actually one of the best there’s? To search out out, we put it to the take a look at towards 11 different indoor pizza ovens. 

The Winners, at a Look

This indoor pizza oven bought ridiculously scorching, cooking pies in 90 seconds. Its touchscreen and dial controls had been straightforward to make use of and the outside stayed relatively cool to the contact. Whereas this oven is sort of massive, its built-in handles make it simpler to maneuver.

The Pizzaiolo has a glossy, chrome steel physique that resembles a toaster oven. (It’s only a bit larger than a microwave.) It reached temperatures over its said 750°F, heated up shortly, and was straightforward to function.

This mannequin feels low-cost compared to the Volt or Pizzaiolo—but it surely’s additionally a fraction of the value. Impressively, it nonetheless bought as much as 725°F and charred pizza in some spots.

Kenji truly reviewed this oven many moons in the past. As a substitute of getting to show the pizza whereas it’s cooking, you place it on the Crispy Crust’s baking stone, shut the lid, and let the machine’s prime and backside heating components do the work. It takes longer to cook dinner pies, but it surely’s extra beginner-friendly.

The Exams

• Temperature Check: We set the indoor pizza ovens to their most temperature and took readings of the stones at 20 and half-hour utilizing an infrared thermometer.
• Cheese Pizza Check: We made a cheese pizza in every mannequin, taking the oven’s inside temperature earlier than and after cooking and timing how lengthy it took every to bake the pie. We additionally recorded the temperature 5 minutes after retrieving the pizza, to see how effectively the ovens recovered.
• Pepperoni Pizza Check: We repeated the above take a look at however with pepperoni pizza.
• Usability and Cleanup Exams: All through testing, we evaluated how straightforward the indoor pizza ovens had been to make use of and clear. We additionally famous how scorching the exteriors bought when in use. 

What We Realized

The Greatest Indoor Pizza Ovens Bought Sizzling, Sizzling, Sizzling

In the event you’re after a pillowy, leopard-spotted crust (the hallmark of a very good Neapolitan-style pizza), you want an indoor pizza oven that will get scorching. We’re speaking no less than 700°F. Our winners all achieved this, excluding the Crispy Crust (it bought to 605°F, however we predict some cooks may be prepared to commerce efficiency for comfort). The Ooni Volt reached 850°F in simply 20 minutes, leading to pies that had been prepared in 90 seconds, with noticed bottoms and puffy edges. The Breville Pizzaiolo bought to almost 800°F—larger than its marketed temperature.

That mentioned, simply because the inside of an oven will get blazing scorching doesn’t imply the skin must also. In truth, it should be the other: An equipment used inside ought to keep cool to the contact, or no less than get no hotter than a toaster oven. The Ooni Volt has a carbon metal shell that rose to merely heat in our checks.

Twin Heating Parts Cooked Higher

The very best-performing indoor pizza ovens had heating components on the tops and bottoms, blasting warmth everywhere in the pies and resulting in even cooking. The Breville Pizzaiolo has one heating ingredient beneath the ceramic deck and two concentric coils above the deck. The Ooni Volt has two heating components and routinely adjusts their output relying on the chosen temperature (although this may be manually overridden). As defined in our overview of the Volt, “Completely different kinds of pies require varied temperatures and profit from hotter higher or decrease components. If this sounds even mildly complicated, don’t fear: The oven features a information as to what temperature to make use of for every pizza kind. For instance, Neapolitan ought to be cooked at 850°F and the oven will favor the highest heating ingredient. New York pies, then again, ought to be cooked at 650°F, and the warmth shall be rather more balanced between the highest and backside components.”

Digital Controls Had been the Option to Go

Each the Volt and Pizzaiolo have digital controls mixed with dials for simply toggling the temp, time, and settings. This made for a vastly higher consumer expertise. That mentioned, they’re additionally much more costly. The analog controls of the Cuisinart labored superb however had been clunkier. 

The Standards: What to Search for in an Indoor Pizza Oven

The very best indoor pizza ovens reached temperatures exceeding 700°F, leading to stunning pizzas we’d fortunately eat any day of the week. Plus, most residence ovens can attain a most of 500°F, so a better temperature makes a devoted indoor pizza oven well worth the funding. The controls ought to be intuitive (digital is finest, although ovens with these are dear) and the skin of the oven ought to keep comparatively cool to the contact. 

Our Favourite Indoor Pizza Ovens

What we preferred: The Ooni Volt is essentially the most highly effective indoor pizza oven we’ve ever tried. It reached 850°F in 20 minutes, cooked pizza in 90 seconds, and yielded pies with stunning leopard recognizing and pillowy crusts. It has two heating components, which the oven will routinely modify based mostly on the chosen temperature. The clear glass door opens and closes easily, and it has handles constructed into its aspect. The outside additionally stayed pretty cool to the contact, even after we used it for hours. 

What we didn’t like: In fact, this oven is depraved costly. It’s additionally heavy and big—and we will’t think about having a big sufficient kitchen the place this might keep out full-time. So, you’ll need to have a devoted storage spot for it.

Key Specs

• Weight: 39.7 kilos
• Dimensions: 24.2 x 20.8 x 10.9 inches
• Temperature vary: 150 to 850°F

What we preferred: Smooth and concerning the dimension of a microwave, this indoor pizza oven has impressed us for years. It has three heating components and, in our checks, it reached 797°F, which is larger than its said most temperature of 750˚F. Pizza from it had stunning char spots and pillowy crusts, and the warmth recovered shortly in between pies. As we mentioned in our devoted overview of the Pizzaiolo, “The Breville recovers its goal temperature within the time it takes to stretch and prime the subsequent pizza, whereas an everyday residence oven takes some toggling (switching from broil again to bake) and no less than a couple of minutes to return again as much as temp.” Additionally a boon had been its digital controls and dials, which had been straightforward to function and allowed you to select from totally different pizza kinds (like pan and skinny and crispy).

What we didn’t like: Just like the Volt, this can be a very costly indoor pizza oven. Nonetheless, it didn’t warmth as evenly because the Volt.

Key Specs

• Weight: 32.3 kilos
• Dimensions: 18.1 x 18.5 x 10.6 inches
• Temperature vary: 350 to 750°F

What we preferred: This oven bought as much as 725°F—spectacular, given its sub-$300 worth. It took a suitable half-hour to preheat and baked up good pizzas, although it took longer than different ovens (extra on this under). Its controls had been analog and clearly labeled. This isn’t the fanciest indoor pizza oven, however that’s okay.

What we didn’t like: It took a full 4.5 minutes to bake a pizza, which resulted in a chewier-than-desired crust. There’s additionally a scorching spot behind the oven, so we needed to be vigilant about turning pies.

Key Specs

• Weight: 25 kilos
• Dimensions: 17.5 x 19 x 11 inches
• Temperature vary: 350 to 750°F

What we preferred: Kenji reviewed this indoor pizza oven years in the past and he preferred it. We felt the identical method after retesting it. As Kenji wrote, “Fortunately, I can report that the oven does certainly carry out as marketed, pumping out 10-inch pies in about 7 minutes, crisp backside crust, first rate charring, and all.” It’s largely hands-free, too: Pop the pizza on the stone, shut the lid, and wait. There’s no pie-turning concerned. 

What we didn’t like: It took a very long time to warmth up and bake pizza and didn’t attain the excessive temps of our different winners. It additionally provides much less warmth management. Nonetheless, we predict newbie cooks or these trying to make selfmade pizza with out fuss might just like the Crispy Crust.

Key Specs

• Weight: 14.8 kilos
• Dimensions: 13.5 x 18 x 10 inches
• Temperature vary: As much as 572°F

The Competitors

FAQs

Can I take advantage of an Ooni pizza oven indoors? 

You can not use an ordinary Ooni pizza oven (or any outside mannequin, for that matter) indoors. They use propane, kindling, charcoal, or wooden pellets and have an open flame, which might be harmful inside (to not point out the carbon monoxide danger). The Ooni Volt, nevertheless, is the corporate’s first electrical indoor-outdoor pizza oven.

Is it price getting an indoor pizza oven? 

In the event you like to cook dinner pizza, stay in an space vulnerable to inclement climate, and lack outside area however have storage area, an indoor pizza oven might be price it.

Why We’re the Consultants

• Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm is the senior commerce editor at Severe Eats. She’s been with the positioning since 2021 and beforehand labored at America’s Check Kitchen and Food52. 
• For this overview, we examined 12 indoor pizza ovens, evaluating how scorching they bought, how lengthy they took to warmth up, the qualities of their pizzas, and extra.