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By Kendra Vaculin , Anna Stockwell , and Wilder Davies
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The best nonstick pan The best Teflon pan How we tested What we looked for Other ceramic nonstick pans we tested Other Teflon pans we tested Why we prefer cast iron and carbon steel over nonstick How to care for a nonstick skillet
If cooking were a video game, using nonstick pans would be like playing on easy mode. The best nonstick pans are some of the most forgiving kitchen tools you can use. Do you happen to struggle a little with sautéing and stir-frying? Nonstick will minimize any burnt, cruddy mishaps. Are you scarred by pancake fails of years past? Nonstick pans practically do all the work for you.
GreenPan Paris Ceramic Nonstick Fry Pan
Zwilling Madura Plus Nonstick Frying Pan
Any individual who feels that their cooking skills are, shall we say, under-seasoned, will benefit from having a nonstick pan in their arsenal. However, it’s a good idea to not rely on them for too long. Nonstick coatings do not last forever; a pan’s lifespan can vary depending on the type of nonstick coating, but you can expect pretty much all of them to lose their flawless glide after a couple of years. Yes, even the pans boasting (limited) lifetime warranties. We hate to say it, but these pans, are disposable by design, which is why we suggest thinking a little before buying that appealing direct-to-consumer nonstick cookware set (and if you must go the pan set route, keep it to stainless steel).
That being said, we understand that there are many home cooks out there who just want to make dinner on easy mode, and not have to stress too much about technique and clean up. We aren’t immune to the nonstick pan’s charms either. Especially when cooking eggs in dishes like like crepes, omelets, and frittatas, nonstick properties are an undeniable boon.
We’ve spent several years searching for the best nonstick pans, and have put many different models through our comprehensive testing process in the kitchen. We’ve also gathered anecdotal evidence from Epicurious staffers who’ve owned and tested these pans at home for several years and can attest to how different nonstick coatings fare over time. Read on to learn more about our top picks for the best nonstick pan; scroll down for specifics about how we tested each pan and tips for how to care for your nonstick pan.
GreenPan Paris Ceramic Nonstick Fry Pan
Ceramic pans are prone to lose their nonstick-ness more quickly and more thoroughly than standard PFOA-free pans, so in general we like cookware made from this material less than others. However, after testing a number of ceramic pans, the GreenPan Paris Pro emerged as the clear winner. The pan heats evenly and has a Thermolon Minerals ceramic nonstick coating that’s PTFE- and PFOA-free. It’s scratch-resistant, induction-compatible, and oven-safe up to 600°F—a huge benefit if you often would like to transfer your nonstick pan from the stovetop to the oven (hello, baked eggs).
We loved the look, feel, and heft of GreenPan Paris Pro—its medium weight meant it was heavy enough to feel durable but light enough that it felt easy to maneuver, and pancakes and eggs lifted perfectly off the slick surface. And of all the ceramic pans we tested, this one appeared to have the most long-lasting nonstick coating. Customers on Amazon report having had theirs for more than three years and seeing minimal signs of wear. One reviewer notes that he had to replace his after seven years. The final bonus: This pan comes from GreenPan’s more economical Paris collection, so you won’t have to spend an arm and a leg for it. (We also tested a nonstick pan from GreenPan’s pricier Venice line; more on that below.)
There’s little to complain about here, but it is true that ceramic nonstick surfaces simply do not last. While you can carry on cooking with them, It’s highly unlikely you will be able to pull off an oil-free “egg slide” after a year.
Generally speaking, ceramic nonstick surfaces aren't known for their longevity, with the nonstick qualities of the Sol-gel surface degrading with each use. While they still can serve as functional cooking tools after their nonstick properties diminish considerably, what you are left with is a pan that's arguably less nonstick than a well-seasoned cast iron or carbon steel pan, and more vulnerably to scratches and heat stress.
GreenPan and other companies continue to release newer more updated versions of ceramic nonstick cookware that boast more durable and long-lasting surfaces, and see how they fare in longterm testing.
Sizes available: 8", 10", 12" Weight (of 10" pan): 2.1 lbs. Oven safe to: 600°F
Zwilling Madura Plus Nonstick Frying Pan
We'll note here that the Zwilling Madura Plus was our longtime top pick for nonstick pans. We made the decision to elevate the Greenpan above though because we are aiming to recommend PFAS-free cooking equipment whenever possible (more on that below). That said, the Zwilling is a thoroughly nonstick, nonstick pan. No matter how we cooked our eggs—scrambled, sunny-side up, over easy—they didn’t stick to the pan’s surface. In fact, the only reason you’d need oil or butter in this pan right out of the box is for flavor (we highly recommend flavor in your cooking).
Because the core is made of forged aluminum, this sauté pan has efficient heat distribution, meaning food cooks evenly and the pan heats up and cools down quickly. Zwilling claims the four-layer DuraSlide material (what they name their coating) is 40 times more durable than traditional Teflon-coated pans. We found the model to be relatively lightweight and comfortable to use thanks to the heatproof plastic handle.
The pan performed well in all of our tests, creating evenly browned pancakes and a fried egg that straight-up slid off the pan and onto a plate. Numerous online reviews attest to the pan’s long-term longevity, as can associate food editor Kendra Vaculin, who put her own Zwilling Madura Plus through the wringer in her home kitchen for over a year. Plus, it’s less than $75 (at the time of writing), which makes this the best nonstick pan that (not a ton of) money can buy.
It is true that the Madura is not as oven-safe as other options we’ve tested—its rating only goes to 300°F. However we advise against putting any and all nonstick pans in the oven ever—we recommend other pans for that purpose. Other than the low oven safety rating, the only reservations we really have about this pan are the reservations we have about nonstick pans in general, which we go into more detail about below.
Sizes available: 8", 10", 11" Weight (of 10" pan): 5.9 lbs. Oven safe to: 300°F
The original nonstick cooking product was Teflon, trademarked by DuPont in the early 1960s. Treated with polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE—the chemical that puts the non in nonstick—these pans are the only true nonstick pans, with a surface that lets food slide right off. However, if you heat them above 500ºF, the molecules can start to break down and release harmful gasses that cause polymer fume fever. Metal utensils can also scratch tiny bits of PTFE off and cause it to leach into your food. That’s why, regardless of any claims on the box, we only use wood, plastic, or silicone utensils on nonstick and try to avoid putting it in the oven unless it is ceramic (more on that below). For a long time, PTFE nonstick coatings were manufactured with another chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA, which has since been identified as a being harmful to human health and the environment. Because of this, many nonstick pans advertise themselves as being PFOA-free, but PFOA and PTFE are just two types of the thousands of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS—so many acronyms, we know) used by industrial companies. And while PTFE has been identified as a much less harmful type of PFAS, scientific research is still ongoing to understand the full impact these chemicals have on our bodies and our environment.
What’s more, a PTFE coating that says it’s PFOA-free could very well use one of the thousands of lesser-known PFAS chemicals currently unreviewed by regulators in its place, and they don’t have to disclose it to the public because it’s considered trade-secret information. Neat, huh?
Because PTFE coatings have acquired the reputation they have, manufacturers use various names to obscure the fact that their pans contain PTFE. Terms and brands like T-fal, hard-anodized aluminum, Dura-Slide, DuPont Platinum—the list goes on—are all PTFE by another name.
The exception is ceramic nonstick, which comes from silica manufactured through something called a sol-gel process that creates a nontoxic nonstick cooking surface. The downside to ceramic nonstick is that it typically only lasts one to three years before losing its nonstick properties.
We mention all this not to be alarmist, but just to reinforce the point that you should be careful with your nonstick pan: Don’t subject it to the highest heat, don’t do anything that could scratch the coating like using metal, and do replace it every five years or so.
If all of this dissuades you from wanting a nonstick pan, that’s okay too. A nonstick pan is convenient, but it is not an irreplaceable piece of cookware. Sometimes, the best nonstick frying pan out there is a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet or carbon-steel pan. In the right hands (and with proper technique) a stainless-steel skillet can do pretty much everything you need a pan to do as well. Check out our reviews for the best cast-iron, carbon-steel, and stainless-steel pans for more information.
To assess the merits of each nonstick frying pan, first we cooked pancakes in them—no butter or oil allowed—to see how easily the pancakes pulled away from the surface and how evenly they browned. Then we fried an egg in each pan, again without using fat. Finally, we made scrambled eggs in a dry pan to check for even heating and to note how much food residue would get left behind. We also took into consideration the weight of the pans, how quickly they heated up and cooled down, and how easy they were to clean.
This was a simple one: If we couldn’t flip a pancake, fry an egg, or make scrambled eggs without a cooking fat when it was brand-new, the pan wasn’t worth our time.
We split the nonstick pans into two camps—ceramic and traditional PTFE-based nonstick. We paid attention to the longevity claims regarding the surface and made note of any warranty information provided by each brand that could be used to back those claims up.
We put about two tablespoons of water in each pan before turning on the burner. We timed how long it took for the water to boil or start “dancing around the pan.” We took note of the pans that were remarkably fast or insanely slow to heat up. We also checked if the pan conducted heat evenly across the surface. When we flipped our pancakes, we looked for areas that were lighter and darker, which would indicate cool spots and hot spots, respectively. We also gave props to pans that were induction cooktop friendly, but as most pans are actually induction compatible, that did not make or break any decisions.
Outside of function, we considered how much work we had to put into caring for the pan. Was it easy to clean? Did it take up a lot of space due to an extra-long handle? Was it uncomfortably heavy to use with one hand? Did it come with a removable silicone handle? We stuck to pans in the 10- to 12-inch range to keep cooking surface consistent, but differences in weight and handle shape and length abounded.
Last but not least, we researched durability, and specifically how the nonstick coating fared over time. This involved interviewing Epi team members who own these pans themselves. We also scoured online reviews for mentions of wear and longevity, though we gave these less weight than our experienced staff's notes. Ultimately any complaint about nonstick pan's lifespan from someone who has owned more than a couple of years should be taken with a grain of salt. As mentioned earlier, no ceramic or PFAS-based nonstick coating will last forever.
The Caraway Fry Pan is ceramic-coated and comes in an array of pleasant colors and can withstand high temperatures. It is ceramic and oven-safe up to 550°F—an unusually high temperature rating, even among the ceramic-coated pans. The nonstick surface performed extremely well during testing; we were able to slide an egg off of it with with ease, but we found the coating was far from scratch-resistant: It scuffed quickly and easily, which was hard to get past.
The GreenPan Venice Pro performed similarly to the Paris pan, but thanks to its stainless-steel core, it’s noticeably heavier. We don’t see much benefit to using a nonstick pan with a stainless-steel core over an aluminum one, and considering the price difference, the Paris Pro is a better bet.
GreenPan Venice Pro Stainless Steel Healthy Ceramic Nonstick
The Kyocera Ceramic Coated Nonstick Pan is sealed with a proprietary coating that’s PTFE-, PFOA-, and cadmium-free, and it has a thick aluminum base clad with a stainless-steel plate that makes for quick and even heat distribution. However, Epi contributor Anna Stockwell reported that the ceramic coating on her Kyocera pans stopped working after just a few months, and we found a number of online reviews that claimed the same thing.
Kyocera Ceramic Nonstick Fry Pan
The Great Jones Large Fry—measuring just over 10 inches wide, so not that large—is aesthetically very pleasing but tripped up big on one test. While it heated quickly and made evenly browned pancakes, the fried egg stuck to the pan’s cooking surface; gently trying to nudge it free with a rubber spatula resulted in a broken yolk.
The ceramic Five Two Essential Nonstick Skillet has a heatproof welded-on handle—meaning no rivets where scrambled egg gunk can get stuck. Like all ceramic pans, it didn’t perform as well as its standard nonstick counterparts with the same (or lower) prices, but it cooked eggs and pancakes evenly.
Five Two Essential Nonstick Skillet
The Scanpan Classic Fry Pan is Stockwell’s preferred tool. In testing it took a little longer than the others to come up to a high heat, but once it was up to temperature, the Scanpan provided an effective nonstick surface for both our pancake and egg tests.
The Hestan Professional Clad Nonstick Skillet is a nice nonstick pan at a premium price point. It demonstrated excellent heat distribution and sturdy tri-ply construction typically reserved for high-end pans. However, considering that all PTFE-based nonstick pans retain their optimal nonstick properties for at most five years, we feel like this pan may be gilding the lily a bit. Perhaps check out their stainless-steel collection.
Hestan ProBond Nonstick Skillet Fry Pan, 11-Inch
The Oxo Good Grips Nonstick Pro 12-inch skillet was one of the largest standard nonstick pans we tested, and it performed very well across tests; it is slightly heavier than its competitors, which made it a bit more difficult to maneuver with one hand. However, given its low price, it’s a worthwhile purchase if you’re often cooking for more than two people at a time. Just don’t expect it to last; Vaculin said it lost its nonstick abilities at about the two-year mark.
DEAL: OXO Good Grips Pro 12" Frying Pan
Like the other top performers, the All-Clad Nonstick Pan has a stainless steel handle, aluminum core and multiple layers of PFOA-free coating. It’s a solid choice, but the Zwilling Madura Plus felt more durable in testing.
DEAL: All-Clad HA1 Hard Anodized Nonstick 5 Piece Fry Pan Set
The Made In Nonstick Frying Pan performed in the middle of the pack. We love the brand’s stainless-steel cookware and were keen for this nonstick version to be a hit as well; it’s ultimately a fine choice, but we preferred the skillets that were lighter weight and easier to maneuver.
Made In Non Stick Frying Pan, 10-Inch
The Zwilling Carrara Pan has a beautiful white interior, and because of how well the standard pan by this brand fared, we had high hopes for it. Unfortunately, the nonstick coating was questionable right out of the box, and we quickly had to resort to using more cooking fat than we wanted to during a first use in order to avoid a stuck-on mess.
The Swiss Diamond Nonstick Fry Pan has a unique shape that makes it interesting to cook with; rather than sloped sides that gently curve up from the cooking surface, it has straighter walls, which increased the size of the flat cooking surface but also created corners where scrambled eggs could get stuck while stirring. The weight was perfect and the handle felt very easy to work with, but it didn’t outperform the Zwilling and it cost more.
Swiss Diamond Fry Pan, 10.25-Inch
The Tramontina Professional Aluminum Nonstick Pan heated up extremely quickly and came with a nifty removable silicone grip sleeve for the handle, but after just one use, the light metallic bottom of the pan showed some signs of scorching.
Tramontina Nonstick Fry Pan, 10-Inch
The Hexclad Hybrid Pan has a textured surface, with raised stainless steel and nonstick depressions for a nice crispy sear. Because of this, the brand says the pan needs a seasoning layer of oil for the full nonstick capabilities. We feel that this is misleading as “seasoning” can’t build up on stainless steel the way it can for a cast-iron skillet or a carbon-steel one. We also don’t like that there is PTFE on the bottom of the pan in direct contact with the heat source.
The Misen Nonstick Pan ($55) has a comfortable ergonomic handle and solid nonstick performance, but several reviews online criticized the surface longevity and reported flaking. It’s also currently on “final sale,” which has been a precursor to long, and in some cases, seemingly permanent “out of stock” status.
The finishes on this pan were nice—it had flushed rivets, a nice ergonomic handle, and a balanced weight—but the rough surface designed to allow metal utensil usage ultimately made it much less nonstick than smoother PTFE-coated pans. Oil is pretty necessary with this type of nonstick pan, which sort of defeats the purpose of a buying a nonstick pan.
Anolon Ascend Hard Anodized Nonstick Frying Pan, 10-Inch
This pan performed decently—eggs released themselves from the surface and rolled with a tilt of the wrist. However, it very quickly began to show signs of wear after the first use, which made us doubt its longevity.
Nordic Ware 8.25-Inch Nonstick Skillet
This pan performed similarly to the Anolon Ascend, in that it’s a metal utensil-safe style with a textured surface that also reduces the effectiveness of its nonstick coating. Sure, it just needs a little bit of oil and it’s fabulous, but if you’re going to be using oil anyway we think you’re better off with stainless, carbon steel, cast iron.
Calphalon Premier Hard Anodized Skillet
While we certainly won’t deny that there are benefits to using a nonstick skillet—perhaps you’ve seen the enticing egg slide videos on your feed—through our collective years of testing, we’ve come to the conclusion that any cook can forgo the nonstick entirely for a well-seasoned carbon-steel or cast-iron pan instead.
There are a couple of reasons for this. As we mentioned above, we aren’t crazy about cooking on plastic nonstick coatings. They only last a couple of years, most are prone to scratching and wear, and there’s a lot we still don’t know about the overall safety of PFAS nonstick coatings. But beyond their better longevity and safety, cast iron and carbon steel can also be used with metal utensils, which, frankly, often work better than plastic. They can also go in the oven and under a broiler, making them more versatile than even the best nonstick frying pans.
At the same time, we are well aware of the reputation carbon steel and cast iron have for being fussy and high-maintenance. We hear you, but, that little extra maintenance and care that cast iron (less so with carbon steel) requires is worth it in the end, and it just takes a little getting used to. For information on how to take care of cast-iron pans, you can visit our guide here and check out our test of the best cast-iron pans. As for carbon steel, editor Joe Sevier wrote a guide for carbon-steel care and you can find our favorite carbon-steel pans here.
The best cookware, in our minds, is cookware that is built to last a lifetime, and we will always recommend that over something that needs to be replaced every few years. Expiration dates are for food, not for pots and pans.
Now that you have a high-quality nonstick pan picked out, you need to make sure to care for it properly. Here are a few tips to keep your cooking surface in top pancake-sliding shape for as long as possible.
We’ve said it a lot, but it’s so important: Do not using metal utensils! Though many new nonstick skillets claim to be impervious to them, wood and plastic are safer for the surface and will keep your pan in better shape for longer.
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