The best slow cookers in 2024, tried and tested

A slow cooker is a set-it-and-forget-it device that lets you cook an entire meal safely while you work, go to school or otherwise go about your day. It’s one of the most forgiving kitchen devices that gets the job done without much thought. With a great slow cooker, even beginners can cook a tasty and hearty meal for their entire family.

To find the best slow cookers we prepared 54 chicken breasts, 14 pounds of black-eyed peas and dozens of onions over 100 hours. It truly was a slow — and delicious — process, and in the end, we found two great models that’ll let you prepare mouth-watering meals with minimal effort.

Best slow cooker: Cuisinart 3-in-1 Cook Central Multicooker

The Cuisinart 3-in-1 multicooker gave us great results and offers the best range of really usable features of the slow cookers we tested. We used the 4-quart pot, which easily feeds up to four people — the perfect amount for a breakfast, lunch or dinner for many families. It is also available in 6- and 7-quart versions if you have more mouths to feed.

The Cuisinart is technically a multicooker since it allows you to brown, sauté and steam as well as slow cook. It isn’t as full-featured as an Instant Pot, however, and is optimized for slow cooking, with the secondary functions mainly serving to let you prepare all stages of a dish in the same pot, reducing the amount of pots, pans and bowls you need to wash. The 3-in-1 even allows for combination cooking where you can switch between cooking modes in a single touch without having to turn the slow cooker off and back on again. Once your meal is fully cooked, the slow cooker will automatically switch to the warm setting for up to eight hours.

Because of the multifunctionality, the pot is aluminum with a nonstick coating. This makes it extremely lightweight and dishwasher-safe. While the coating used is PFOA-free — like all nonstick coatings produced for sale since 2015 — many other PFAS are still in use, and it’s unclear which compounds may be found in currently produced nonstick cookware and in many other consumer products. If you’re concerned about that class of chemical, it’s something you may want to keep in mind.

Aside from a perfectly delicious meal, we loved the housing and how all handles stayed cool to the touch. This helped maneuver the slow cooker and ensure no little hands were burned. The cord on this slow cooker was also one of the longer ones measured, which helps if your outlet is slightly farther away from your cooking space.

Since this slow cooker was one of our favorites, we went one step further to test the browning and sautéing functionality as well. We browned both chicken wings and onions before slow cooking them, and while it doesn’t switch modes automatically, we found the process extremely easy. Using this feature, we ended up with crispy chicken wings falling off the bone and mouthwatering onions with that little extra flavor. Most other slow cookers we tested didn’t have this mode, so if you want to brown ingredients you would have to do so on the stovetop first before throwing them in the slow cooker.

Best budget slow cooker: Hamilton Beach Portable 6-Quart Set & Forget Slow Cooker

The Hamilton Beach Portable 6-Quart Set & Forget Slow Cooker is one of the best if you are looking to stay on a budget. This programmable slow cooker has three different settings — program, manual and probe — which gives you range when using the appliance. While the Hamilton Beach took a little longer to get up to temperature than some of the more expensive models we tested, that didn’t impact our test meals, which were perfectly cooked.

The program mode lets you select a time and temperature, while the manual mode simply lets you cook on low, high or warm. In probe mode, you can program the slow cooker to cook until a desired temperature is reached instead of a specific time and then have the appliance switch to the warm setting. The measurement is made with an attached thermometer, which you place through a small hole in the lid. The temperature is also displayed on the LCD screen as it cooks. Even if you don’t use the probe mode, the port lets you test the temperature without removing the lid and allowing heat to escape.

The Hamilton Beach Portable also has latches that secure the lid, which is sealed with a gasket, making it fully spill resistant. This makes it easy to transport, whether you’re going to a party or tailgating. The side handles are a bit small but stay cool during the cooking process, which allows you to easily move the slow cooker once you’re done cooking.

Other features include interrupt protection, where the timer will continue to run so the slow cooker will continue to cook if there is a brief power outage. It also has a one-year warranty and a dishwater-safe lid and pot.

The fit and finish aren’t as nice as on our overall pick, but it comes at an extremely reasonable price — not that much more than a manual slow cooker. The Hamilton Beach Portable 6-Quart is perfect for anyone on a budget who wants a fully functional slow cooker.

How we tested

We tested 13 of the most popular and well-reviewed slow cookers, ranging in price from $38 to more than $250. During our testing, we cooked two different meals — a pulled BBQ chicken dish and black-eyed peas — and performed a water test to get a read on the temperature accuracy of each slow cooker.

During our water test, we filled each slow cooker with 10 cups of water at 67 degrees Fahrenheit. We measured the temperature of the water every hour for a full six hours on the lowest cooking setting. We wanted to make sure that each slow cooker reached an ideal cooking temperature of between 185 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

After six hours of cooking, we then adjusted each slow cooker (either automatically or manually, depending on the device) to its warm setting for another four hours. We took the temperature at the one-hour, two-hour and four-hour marks. This demonstrated if the dish continued to cook at a high temperature or if it truly just kept the food warm. We also wanted to ensure that the temperature didn’t get under 140 degrees Fahrenheit. According to the FDA, food left at temperatures lower than 140 degrees Fahrenheit can foster bacterial growth.

In each slow cooker, we prepped and cooked the same pulled BBQ chicken dish. We selected this meal for the test since chicken breast can easily dry out if overcooked. We evaluated if the chicken was undercooked, overcooked or just right and whether or not it pulled apart easily.

We also prepared a black-eyed pea dish to see whether the beans would stay fully intact and keep their shape or end up as a bowl of mush.

After all that cooking, we used the following criteria to assess each model:

Build and design

Performance

Care and maintenance

Price

Everything you need to know about slow cookers

While most slow cookers have a similar oval shape, sizes can range from 1.5 quarts to 8 quarts. So, if you’re a party of one or a party of 10, you have options. Additionally, if you’re more adventurous with your cooking, you may opt for the 3-in-1 functionality with browning and sautéing. Or you can take it one step further and look at the Instant Pot multicookers that steam, pressure cook, brown, sauté, sous vide and bake. You also may be particular to the materials with inserts made out of ceramic (the most common), stainless steel or aluminum with nonstick coating.

Regardless of the materials or whether you choose a manual device or something digital and programmable, the goal with slow cookers is to cook your food while you’re away. Simply prep in the morning, come home from work and have a meal ready to go. The name of the appliance says it all: You are cooking the meal slowly.

While it’s always best to truly understand the functions of your particular slow cooker before tossing a bunch of food in and hoping for a delicious meal, there are some things to remember as you use any slow cooker. If you have one with a timer, use the suggested time for whatever it is you’re cooking and check to make sure it will automatically flip to a “keep warm” setting if you’re not home once it finishes the cooking program or cycle.

If it doesn’t have a timer, make sure to set an alarm for yourself so you know when to turn it off or to flip it manually to “keep warm.” And while you’re cooking, don’t open the lid too often to check on the food. Allowing the heat to escape could tack on another 15 to 20 minutes of cooking time.

Other slow cookers we tested

The All-Clad Gourmet Plus 7-Quart Slow Cooker lives up to the brand’s reputation for quality, high-end cookware. With its stainless steel exterior, handles and rivets and ceramic insert, this slow cooker looks top-notch and elegant and can heat a perfectly warm dinner. It also offered the most programmability and one of the longest cooking times of the models we tested.

This slow cooker heated up fast, reaching a safe target temperature of 190 degrees Fahrenheit in just under two hours and stayed at that same temperature for the remaining four hours. Once switched over to the warm setting, the temperature dropped quickly, sitting around 170 degrees Fahrenheit for the duration of the test. This slow cooker also offers a continuous 26-hour run time (up to 20 hours of cooking plus six hours of warming), which is longer than most others we tested.

This consistent and predictable temperature worked wonders. Our pulled BBQ chicken dish simmered to the perfect temperature and made a delicious meal. The meat was tender and pulled apart quite easily. Our bean dish was also evenly heated and had the perfect consistency.

Uniquely among the models we tested, the All-Clad lets you set two temperatures for a given cooking cycle. If your recipe requires you to set your slow cooker on high for a certain number of hours and then switch to low for the remaining time, you can set the “Hi/Low” setting at the beginning of your program and walk away. With the other slow cookers we used, if you’re cooking a meal that requires both hot and low temperatures to be used, you’ll have to manually change the settings. This requires you to be home to make the switch.

Of course, no slow cooker is perfect, and while the All-Clad Quart Slow Cooker is a top-notch product, there were a few flaws. The buttons and labels on the base are quite small, and the handle on the lid got incredibly hot during cooking. Additionally, the cooking pot isn’t dishwasher-safe; however, in all our testing, we found cleaning the pot to be incredibly easy.

One of our favorite functions of this GreenPan slow cooker was the ability to brown meat and then slow-cook a meal, all within the same pot. The cooking pot is also dishwasher-safe and can be used on the stovetop or in the oven. There’s also a cord holder on the back, allowing you to neatly store the cord without wires flopping around.

One major selling point with all GreenPan products is that the company prides itself on creating healthy nonstick cookware with ceramic materials that are PFAS-free. When cooking, using materials without any harmful PFAS chemicals is better for your health, and fortunately, from our testing, it didn’t compromise the quality of our dishes.

When slow cooking on low, you can set the timer for up to 24 hours — which is significantly longer than most other slow cookers — and your food will stay warm for up to eight hours.

Unlike many other slow cookers we tested, the pot on this Calphalon slow cooker has a nonstick ceramic coating, which might be a concern for those who prefer to avoid nonstick material (like all nonstick cookware currently on the market, it’s PTFE- and PFOA-free, though there is no way to guarantee that no other PFAS may be present). The pot is lightweight and easy to clean but isn’t dishwasher-safe, and the handles got incredibly hot throughout the cooking process.

The pot is also circular which doesn’t work well if you want to cook a roast or a full chicken. But at a 5.3-quart size with tall sides, this slow cooker will take up the least amount of space on your countertop.

Our main concern with this slow cooker was that at the four-hour mark of our water test on the low setting, the water started to simmer, and by the five-hour mark, it was fully boiling at a 212-degree Fahrenheit temperature reading. Most slow cookers don’t hit boiling temperature until the seven- to eight-hour mark, which means your dish might be simmering longer than you’d want with this slow cooker. While this didn’t impact our bean dish, we did find that our chicken dish was dry and not as tender as we would have liked.

With this Instant Pot slow cooker’s circular design and lightweight body, bringing your meal to your next potluck dinner is incredibly easy. The handles stayed very cool throughout our testing, making the entire slow cooker or even just the pot transportable after cooking is complete.

However, similar to the Calphalon Digital Saute Slow Cooker, the pot has a nonstick ceramic coating. While this helps reduce the overall weight of the slow cooker, it’s something to be aware of if you prefer avoiding nonstick material appliances.

We also found that the pot didn’t clean up too well. During our testing, we first hand-washed the pot, only to find a decent amount of residue remaining. We then ran it through the dishwasher (as it’s dishwasher-safe), but unfortunately, the water spots and discoloration on the inside of the pot didn’t go away.

At a significantly lower price point than the Instant Pot, the Instant Superior Cooker Chef Series offers many capabilities and cooked our food to perfection.

This slow cooker from KitchenAid didn’t get as hot as the rest, so you might have to add more time to your recipes. We did this, adding about 30 minutes to the cooking time for our chicken dish and 15 minutes for our bean dish to get similar perfectly cooked results as we got with the other cookers.

With this slow cooker, you can cook on the low setting for 24 hours — which is the longest time we saw. The warm setting will only automatically stay on for four hours, but during our water test, it did get down to 145 degrees Fahrenheit at the four-hour mark. Although that’s above the food safety temperature for bacteria growth, we wouldn’t recommend having food stay in the warm setting any longer.

While programming this Crock-Pot slow cooker was easy, the screen was small and not very clear. The outer layer also got incredibly hot — one of the hottest ones we tested, along with the manual Crock-Pot appliance. This made handling the ceramic piece more difficult.

This slow cooker from Cuisinart has a sleek design with stainless steel housing, chrome-plated handles and easy push-button controls. This is also the only slow cooker we tested that offers a retractable cord — ideal for both aesthetics and safety. But if you want to save some counter space, the full rectangular base makes this option much bulkier than the other slow cookers we tested.

This slow cooker from Instant Pot left a lot to be desired. When we cooked our chicken dish at a low setting, the meat had a chewy texture. And even though the chicken had an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit, we felt like it needed more time to cook. We then prepared the same dish again and cooked it on a high setting, but the chicken was then a little too tough for our liking.

We had similar results with our bean dish. After cooking it for three hours on high — the same setting we used with all the other slow cookers — it didn’t have the same consistency as the rest. It took another full hour to cook properly.

However, if you are a family that avoids PFAS chemicals, the stainless steel pot might make it a better choice over a slow cooker with a nonstick-coated or ceramic insert.

This was actually one of the only slow cookers we tested where we had to read the manual before starting. It wasn’t nearly as intuitive as others but we eventually got it to cook our prepped food the way we wanted.

Unlike the Instant Pot, however, our chicken came out perfectly cooked on a low setting after the properly allocated time. The chicken pulled apart easily, and the beans were cooked just right.

This slow cooker will not automatically shut off or switch to a warming setting once the time is over. Instead, you need to use an external timer and ensure you’re home once the timer goes off. Otherwise, you’ll have to live with the results of cooking continuously in your selected setting until you get home.

Additionally, this slow cooker heated up fast and simmered for the majority of the cooking period during our water test. During our tests, the lid was extremely shaky and loud during cooking. The ceramic pot of this slow cooker was also the hardest one of the bunch to wash. The sauce from the chicken we cooked was left on the side and required a lot of soaking and elbow grease to get fully clean.

With this slow cooker, you have to manually turn it off or adjust the warm setting if you aren’t eating your meal right away. Like the other manual cooker we tested, it isn’t a “set and forget” device, a cook has to pay attention to get predictable results.

Unless you want the simplest possible device at an extremely reasonable price point, we recommend spending a little more for a programmable slow cooker. You can get this manual Crock-Pot in various sizes such as 3-quart, 4-quart, 6-quart, 7-quart and 8-quart versions. They also come in several color options.

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CNN Underscored editors extensively test all the products we cover and provide full transparency about how we test them. We have an experienced team of writers and editors who have many years of testing experience, and we ensure each product is properly vetted.

For this article, freelancer Jennifer Yellin rolled up her sleeves and cooked over 60 pounds of chicken, black-eyed peas and onions for over 100 hours to ensure the best slow cooker thoroughly heated meals. Yellin is an experienced product-testing writer who has years of experience testing gear and appliances ranging from cutting boards to ski and snowboarding bags. She is also passionate about finding the best deals, especially for tried-and-tested products.