Pans are the workhorses of the kitchen, and if you’re like most home cooks, you probably have more than one and more than one type. That makes sense, because not all pans are suitable for all kitchen tasks. For this reason, Consumer Reports tests several types of pans, such as nonstick, cast iron, stainless steel and copper.
“There are several things to consider when buying cookware. like the way you cook, durability and price,” says Lance Nitahara, an adjunct professor at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, New York. “At the lower end of the price scale are nonstick and cast iron; copper is at the top end. But each one does something different.”
Below you will find tips on how to choose the right pan for the way you cook, as well as the highlights of the high-performance pans from the tests of Consumer Reports, arranged alphabetically and not by rank. You can see the performance of all the pans we tested in our pan ratings and learn more about the different types of pans in our cookware buying guide.
Nonstick Pans
Ideal use: Scrambled or fried eggs, pancakes, fish, melted cheese and any food that has a high probability of sticking to a common pan. With nonstick pans, these foods slide easily from pan to plate.
Details: These pans solve the frustration of food from sticking and require little oil to cook. Plus, they’re lightweight, easy to clean, and affordable. But they can’t handle the heat like a cast iron or stainless steel skillet can. “You’re not going to be able to brown very much in a nonstick pan,” says Cindy Fisher, who oversees cookware testing for Consumer Reports.
And they don’t last as long as cast iron, stainless stainless or copper. “Nonsticks wear out faster,” says Nitahara. “The nonstick coating is brittle, and once it’s scratched, it’s hard to turn an egg.”
In our nonstick pan tests, we cooked four eggs in a row quickly. A rating of Excellent means all four eggs slide easily out of the pan. A rating of Poor indicates that some egg residue remained. To test the durability of the nonstick, we rubbed the pan with steel wool 2,000 times or until the coating wears off.
These are two recommended nonstick pans based on Consumer Reports testing.
Stainless Steel Pans
Ideal use: Virtually any food that needs to be fried, sautéed or browned. Because it’s ovenproof, stainless steel is also a good choice for foods that start cooking on the stovetop and then go to the oven to finish, like thick pork chops.
Details: Nitahara says that 95% of the pans used in teaching kitchens The CIA’s are made of stainless steel because they can withstand a lot of rough treatment. “The only time we don’t use them is on egg day, when we use the nonstick ones,” he says. He adds that the shiny surface of a stainless steel pan makes it easier to see if food is browning.
In Consumer Reports’ tests of stainless steel pans, we measured even heating of a skillet cooking pancakes and we evaluate the uniformity of a stir-fry by cooking potatoes until tender. We also run a cleaning test to see how easy it is to remove cooked food. You might think that all stainless steel pans clean the same way, but our tests show that some require much more scrubbing than others.
These are two recommended stainless steel pans based on testing from Consumer Reports.
Cast Iron Skillets
Ideal Use: Virtually any food that needs to be browned, like steaks and burgers. Cast iron skillets are ovenproof, so you can use them to roast meats like beef or pork, and also to bake cornbread, deep-dish pizza, meatloaf, and more. And they retain heat so well that they’re also a good choice for frying chicken, donuts, or other foods, because they keep the oil at a constant temperature.
Details: Cast iron pans are practically indestructible and in many families they are passed from generation to generation. That makes its normally low price even more attractive. And if cared for well, cast iron develops a patina that allows food to release almost as well as nonstick coating. But they are heavy and you have to be patient when heating them because they do not rise in temperature quickly. However, once they do, they retain heat.
Our cast iron skillet tests show just how versatile these cookware can be. We grill steaks, sauté scallops, and bake cornbread to see how well a cast-iron skillet works for home cooks. The best pans pass all these tests. We also evaluate how easy it is to clean them. All but two of the pans pass that test very well.
These are two recommended cast iron pans based on our tests.
Copper Pans
Ideal use: Delicate proteins such as fish and shellfish, melting sugar and making sweets and sauces.
Details: Copper pans are expensive, but offer excellent thermal conductivity. This means they heat up quickly and cool down just as quickly, allowing for more control when cooking something that needs to be watched closely, like a caramel sauce. “They’re at the opposite end of the spectrum from cast iron,” says Nitahara. “Because it heats up and cools down quickly, you can push a sauce to the limit and then take it off the heat before it gets too hot.”
You can put a copper pan in the oven if you’re making a dessert like a Tart Tatin, but remember that copper cannot withstand the heat of cast iron or stainless steel, so most manufacturers do not recommend temperatures higher than 450 degrees.
In our tests, we put copper pans through the same heating uniformity and sauté performance tests as stainless steel pans, which are also uncoated. We also cook foods that require controlled heat, such as risotto, a caramelized banana tart tatin, and melted white chocolate. “All copper pans work well,” says Fisher.
These are two recommended copper pans based on Consumer Reports tests.
Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright © 2022, Consumer Reports, Inc.
Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with the advertisers on this site. Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works with consumers to create a fair, safe, and healthy world. CR does not endorse products or services and does not accept advertising. Copyright © 2022, Consumer Reports, Inc.