Best small air fryers 2023 UK - compact models for one or two people, reviewed

If you’ve got a bijou kitchen, or you usually cook for 1-2 people, there’s no need to invest in a huge capacity air fryer. With one of the best small air fryers you can still enjoy speedy weeknight dinners and tasty low fat chips.

Sometimes it can feel that there are too many appliances fighting for space on the kitchen worktop, so we love it when compact versions come along and they can perform as well as their bigger siblings. Air fryers have revolutionised the way many of us cook and if you’ve been avoiding taking the plunge because of a lack of space, it’s time you stopped missing out on the fun.

I’ve tried out all of the air fryers on this list in my own kitchen. I put them to the test feeding two people, to see what they’re really capable of. But if you’ve already decided a small air fryer won’t cut it, just head over to our main best air fryers guide to see our longer list of favourites.

Quick list - the best small air fryers

Best small air fryer overall

This COSORI Lite air fryer marries top performance with a reasonable price tag and a decent capacity. It’s a great all-rounder that will suit lots of smaller households. While it isn’t the most compact on the list, it’s a similar size and capacity to the Ninja AF100UK but at two thirds the price.

Admittedly, it doesn’t have the roast, reheat and dehydrate functions offered by the Ninja, but it does offer app connectivity. Once connected you can use the app like a remote control to adjust settings and to pause or stop cooking. Furthermore the app gives access to additional functionality like being able to select when it reminds you to shake.

On test it performed very well, frozen breaded chicken goujons were speedily cooked with an excellent crunch. Likewise chips cooked to perfection in just 22 minutes from raw, and bacon came out with perfectly rendered fat. It’s roomy enough for two people and the matte exterior looks nice on the worktop.

Read our full COSORI Lite Air Fryer review for more information.

The best small air fryer for maxing out on capacity

In comparison to the rest of the air fryers in this guide, the Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 is virtually a tardis. The 5.7 litre drawer offers enough space to feed up to four people, depending on what you’re cooking. 

Granted, it is also the largest air fryer on the list, but its footprint is relatively compact when you put it up against a lot of air fryers around. And giving up a few more centimetres of worktop might well be a sacrifice worth making for the additional cooking capacity.

This reasonably priced air fryer is a joy to use, with a fantastically intuitive control panel. And the additional cooking functions such as roast and bake, mean it’s a versatile choice that’ll earn its place in your kitchen.

From chips, to bacon, breaded foods, to vegetables. Everything I cooked in it was beautifully cooked and much faster and crisper than in an oven. And, uniquely, it has a viewing window in the front so you can keep an eye on your food as it cooks and make sure nothing is burning. What more could you want?

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

The best small air fryer for two

The Ninja AF100UK isn’t the most compact air fryer around, but it’s still much smaller than most. And its 3.8 litre capacity is almost double that of the smallest air fryers on this list. So it’s one of the best options if you don’t have much space but need to feed two adults.

Ninja is known as one of the leading air fryer brands and with that pedigree comes excellent performance. It cooks and crisps foods to perfection and it’s fast. Chips were cooked and golden in 23 minutes from raw, while bacon took just 6 minutes.

It is pricey in comparison to most on this list, but I think it’s worth every penny. The roast, reheat and dehydrate functions add additional versatility that you don’t get with the smaller, cheaper models. What’s more, the digital control panel is effortlessly easy to use.

Read our full Ninja AF100UK Air Fryer review for more information.

The best small air fryer for one

This little air fryer from Lakeland is one of the smallest I’ve ever reviewed. It barely takes up more space than the footprint of a kettle. It’s lightweight and compact, which means it’s convenient to move around, should you need to hide it away in a cupboard.

It has the capacity to cook up to 450g chips, which is enough for two very modest portions. On the whole though I wouldn’t recommend it for two people, it really is best suited to cooking single portions.

It crisped up bacon fat to perfection, but I could only fit two slices side-by-side. Chips took 28 minutes to go from raw potato batons to golden and tasty chips. Meanwhile, breaded foods developed a pleasing crunch. Keep in mind though that you won’t be able to fit long breaded fish fillets in the compact basket. That said, for its size, this is a surprisingly effective air fryer.

Read our full Lakeland Digital Compact Air Fryer review for more information.

The best small air fryer for ease of use

The Magic Bullet air fryer is quite possibly one of the simplest air fryers I've ever used. There’s no complicated digital display to figure out. It has two dial controls, one for time and the other for temperature. I’d go as far as to say that anybody could use this air fryer without ever glancing at the manual.

It has the capacity to make enough chips for two people, though it took around 5 minutes longer than my usual air fryer. Bacon crisped up nicely, but I could only fit three full slices in the cooking basket.

For some things like breaded chicken pieces or air fried veggies, it’ll cook enough for two people. But you won’t be able to cook chips alongside your scampi like you can in larger models. All-in-all this is a basic and inexpensive air fryer that’s a great starter model. It’s perfect for students or an elderly relative. But it won’t feed two very active adults who need to refuel after a session at the gym.

Read our full Magic Bullet Air Fryer review for more information.

How we tested the best small air fryers

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.

I cooked a wide variety of foods in each air fryer. The types of foods and recipes vary according to the capabilities and capacity of each 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.

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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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