Best air fryer for a family of four in 2024 UK - air fryers with the perfect capacity for families

Air fryers are essentially mini countertop ovens. They cook food fast and are easy to use, so it’s no surprise that they’re becoming an essential kitchen appliance for speedy weeknight meals. And choosing one of the best air fryers for a family of four will be a game changer when you need to get food on the table in a hurry.

I’ve had hands-on experience with all of the air fryers in this guide. I’ve used them all in my own home to bring you an honest opinion of each. For families with big appetites, there’s a large capacity model from Ninja. Meanwhile if you’ve got young kids, Instant offers a great medium size option that’ll fit the bill. 

So whether you need one drawer or two, a large capacity, or a more budget friendly option. There’s something for everyone here, but crucially, they all have the capacity to cater to a family of four. And for further recommendations you can also check out our longer best air fryers guide if you’re interested in our broader list of favourites. 

Quick list

The best air fryer for a family of four

As Ninja’s biggest air fryer to date and certainly the largest capacity air fryer I’ve ever reviewed, this is a great option if your family of four includes hungry teenagers. With additional cooking functions such as roast and bake, it’s far more than just an air fryer, and yet it remains effortlessly easy to use.

Given that the ginormous cooking zone can also be divided into two separate zones - with each capable of cooking at different temperatures and on different modes - it’s one of the most flexible air fryers around. It is bulky and expensive, but if you need to cook up large quantities, it’s well worth it.

I used it to cook all sorts, from chips to bacon to cheese toasties, I even roasted a whole leg of lamb and made a lemon loaf cake. Everything cooked to perfection and I was mightily impressed with the results. When it comes to performance there’s no question that this air fryer is up to the job and can easily cater to busy family life.

Read our full Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer review for more information.

Best compact air fryer for a family of four

As the most compact air fryer on this list, it’s no surprise that this Instant Vortex Plus air fryer also has the smallest capacity. Nevertheless, its 5.7 litre drawer is ample for families with young children. Though as your children grow, you may need to upgrade to a bigger model that can cater to increasing portion sizes.

It includes some lovely design features like the angled touch control panel that’s super straightforward to get to grips with. But for me, the standout feature is the viewing window in the front of the drawer, which combined with an interior light, allows you to check your food without having to open it up.

It automatically preheats, so that cook times are speedy. Everything I cooked in this air fryer was evenly browned, crisp and cooked to perfection. Bacon fat rendered nicely and chips were golden on the outside and fluffy on the inside, and there was space for a huge batch of roasted veg. Quite simply, it’s a joy to use and as it’s often discounted, it’s easy on the wallet too.

Read our full Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer review for more information.

The best medium capacity air fryer for a family of four

Like the Ninja Flexdrawer, the Instant VersaZone has a flexible cooking space that utilises a divider to split it from one big zone into two separate smaller zones. The main difference being that this Instant version is slightly smaller, and therefore cheaper than the one from Ninja.

I love the two big chunky handles for lifting out the larger drawer, but don’t let the two handles fool you into thinking the zones can be removed separately. Instead, when using as two individual cooking zones, you simply slide a divider down the middle and then you can set each side to whatever cooking mode and temperature you like.

Instant is a pretty reliable air fryer brand so I wasn’t surprised that the interface was straightforward to use. And again, it made pleasingly crisp and golden chips, while breaded scampi cooked alongside it with a delicious crunchy crumb.

The single zone is big enough for a whole chicken or medium size joint of meat, so soon enough your oven will be redundant. This is a great choice for any family, offering endless flexibility that for me means it’s worth every penny.

The best budget friendly air fryer for a family of four

This Lakeland air fryer is the only model on this list that doesn’t offer any cooking modes other than air frying, which is one of the compromises you’re making to bag yourself a dual drawer air fryer with an affordable price tag.

It’s not devoid of features though, the two cooking drawers both have a light inside and a viewing window, which is something we rarely see, especially at this price. Furthermore, it has sync cook capabilities, and each side can air fry at a different temperature simultaneously.

On test it did the job, cooking some foods was a tad slower than other air fryers I’ve reviewed, but again, given the price I don’t think waiting an extra few minutes is a deal breaker. Chips crisped and browned beautifully, in a respectable 25 minutes from raw, so no complaints there.

My biggest niggle was that the touchscreen control panel took a bit of getting used to. It wasn’t as straightforward and intuitive to use as the ones on the leading brands, like Ninja and Instant. But you do get used to it and if you need a family size dual zone air fryer on a budget it’s not a bad option.

Read our full Lakeland Dual Basket Air Fryer with Easy View review for more information.

The best air fryer for a family of four for combination cooking

Uniquely, in addition to standard air frying the Tefal Easy Fry 3in1 doubles as a steamer and grill. The included grill plate helps to create bar marks on your food. And for more juicy results you can steam foods before finishing off with the grill or air fry mode to brown and crisp skin. In fact some of the presets use a combination of both.

With some complicated options, I was disappointed by the unhelpful instruction manual. It offers very little help and advice, so you’ll need to be comfortable with some trial and error. The other downside is that it’s a big bulky appliance that looks quite dominant on the worktop.

But aside from the issues above, it offers flexible cooking options and the spacious cooking basket can easily cater to a family. I successfully made scampi and chips, toasties, and tasty bacon. I even made a fantastic crumble in this air fryer.

The grill and steam modes both work well too, I enjoyed steamed broccoli and grilled lamb chops. You’ll struggle to find an air fryer for other brands that includes a steam function, so if you’re a fan of steamed foods, this air fryer might be the one for you.

Read our full Tefal Easy Fry 3-in-1 Air Fryer review for more information.

How we tested the best air fryers for a family of four

As part of Ideal Home's commitment to testing products recommended in buying guides, I tried each of these air fryers in my own home on separate occasions. I used each of them in place of my usual air fryer for at least a week. During this time I was able to evaluate how easy they were to clean and how intuitive the interface and settings were to use on a daily basis.

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I cooked a wide variety of foods in each air fryer. The types of foods and recipes vary according to the capabilities of the air fryer, for example, if it had modes other than air fryer, I might try these too. But generally speaking, I usually air fry home made chips, as well as bacon and something breaded from the freezer. These core foods form a good basis for comparison across all models. If recipes are supplied in the manual, I like to try out one or two of these too.

With a lot of air fryer reviews under my belt, I can quite quickly gain an understanding of how capable the air fryer is and whether it’s up to the job. I then take into consideration the size, price and versatility of the appliance to determine the overall score.

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