Gas or Electric—Which Stove Is Better? (2024)

FAQs

Gas or Electric—Which Stove Is Better? ›

electric stoves: which is best? Both gas and electric ranges have advantages, depending on what and how you cook. Gas ranges offer more responsive heat control for switching between searing meats or stir-frying veggies, while the dry, even heat of electric range ovens may work better for certain baked goods.

Another reason the pros prefer gas is the control they have over the heat. Just as electricity takes some time to heat your pan, it also takes some time to adjust in temperatures, whether you need fast heat or need to cool the contents immediately.

About 51% of homebuyers prefer gas for cooking, and that's compared to about 39% of people who prefer electric, and that's according to a 2021 survey by the National Association of Home Builders. The rest of the folks said they had no preference or didn't know. So generally, homebuyers, homeowners prefer gas.

Compared to cooking with an electric stove, cooking with gas also produces twice as much harmful particulate matter, which can have health impacts on the heart and lungs. Gas stoves can also release formaldehyde, a human carcinogen, and carbon monoxide, which is odorless and can be toxic in high concentrations.

Cons. Electric stoves have slower temperature response times, leading to potential overcooking or undercooking. The lack of visible flame means it's easier to forget to turn off electric appliances.

A: You have good reason to want to trade your gas stove for an electric one. A growing body of research shows that cooking with natural gas is not good for the environment or your health, including a December study that linked the fuel usage to an increase in asthma risk among children.

Because electric burners make direct contact with pots and pans, you're more likely to retain heat within them. Induction models—a type of electric stove—use electromagnetism to generate heat within the cookware itself, and can result in little to no heat loss.

Electric Stove: Performance. Chefs tend to prefer gas because of the ease of temperature control. Electric stoves tend to heat up faster and have a narrow edge over gas when it comes to baking. Electric stoves also tend to be better at broiling and maintaining a consistent low simmer.

It takes three times as much energy to deliver electricity to your stove than gas, so buying a gas range could save you money in the long run. Your final bill will depend on how much time you spend cooking, but if you have an electric ignition, you can expect to pay less than half as much per month to run a gas range.

Both types of stoves carry a risk of burns and starting fires, so it's important to use any stove with caution. That said, electric stoves generally have a slight edge in terms of safety. Gas stoves have open flames, which can easily spread if a towel, oven mitt or another flammable object gets too close.

Are gas stoves being phased out? ›

In a post addressing misinformation on new appliance standards, the Energy Department has said that "claims that the federal government is banning gas stoves are absurd." The agency went on to clarify that there are no plans to ban gas stoves at the federal level.

Open flames also provide more versatile cooking options. The flames will evenly heat any cookware, even if it's not perfectly flat. Since electric stove burners are perfectly smooth, they often struggle to properly heat uneven cookware. You also have more cooking methods available with a gas stove.

Avoid overheating food, spilling food on burners, and clean spills and spatter before subsequent use. Use a microwave oven, air fryer, Instant Pot, electric kettle or hot water heater instead of a gas or electric stove. Clean stoves manually rather the using the self-cleaning cycles.

And it boils down to one question: Which cooks better, gas or electric? For most home chefs forced to choose between gas ranges that heat quickly or electric-coil stoves that are inefficient and ugly, the answer is simple: gas.

Range or Stove, 13-15 years:

Gas stoves last longer than their electric counterparts by 2-5 years, on average. Good everyday care will help extend the useful life, such as cleaning the stove after every use and regularly checking the burners.

“The most surefire way to eliminate risk of childhood asthma from gas stoves is to move to a clean cooking alternative like an induction stovetop or electric stovetop,” said Taylor Gruenwald, research associate at non-profit Rewiring America.

Gas ranges employ an open flame while electric ranges utilize metal heating elements. Both have their benefits: gas stovetops are highly responsive, allowing you to move between heat levels quickly while electric ovens tend to have dry, even heat that's ideal for baking and roasting.

Gas versus electric cooking styles

Gas ovens produce a more humid heat, while electric ovens are drier. For this reason, some people prefer gas ovens for bread and pies, because the crusts tend not to dry out and harden. On the other hand, electric ovens may be better for cakes because the heat is more even.

Chefs love induction cooking because of the extremely fast heating and precise heat control provided through a high-performance glass-ceramic surface. Also, induction technology warms the pan and not the surface or surrounding area, so very little heat escapes into the room.

If you ask a professional chef what range brand they fantasize about, nearly all will answer Viking. This is the perfect range for that restaurant feel at home due to its powerful and precise burners that provide the most even heat. It has only four burners, but they're all equally burly, putting out 15,000 BTU apiece.