The cost of living crisis has affected nearly all aspects of life, especially when it comes to trying to save money in buying and preparing food.

One particular item has skyrocketed in popularity over the past few months as a result, and that is the air fryer.

The appliances have a heating element on the top with a large fan to distribute the heat, meaning that they do not need much time to pre-heat and the food cooks quickly and evenly.

This suggests that it is cheaper to run than an oven, but how much exactly does it cost to run an air fryer?

Gazette Series: Air fryers have increased in popularity these last few monthsAir fryers have increased in popularity these last few months (Image: Kieran Doody/Newsquest)

How much does it cost to run an air fryer?

Research from Uswitch.com has said that an air fryer running on 1,000 watts costs 17p per 30 minutes of use and 34p per 60 minutes of use.

Meanwhile, a 1,500W air fryer costs 26p for 30 minutes and 51p for an hour, whilst a 1,800W air fryer costs 31p for 30 minutes and 61p for an hour.

Overall, this makes savings compared to cooking with an oven, with a 2.5kW oven costing 34p for 30 minutes and 68p for an hour.

This worsens for a 2.5 kW oven (43p and 85p respectively) and a 3.5kW oven (60p and £1.19 respectively).

Ben Gallizzi, the energy expert at Uswitch.com, said: “There are lots of ways to prepare a hot meal, some of which use a surprising amount of energy - especially if you’re cooking for a lot of people.  

“Using an oven is one of the most common ways to prepare dinner, but ovens are often more expensive to run, due to their size and energy consumption. If you’re only using one shelf of the oven for a meal, there might be more effective ways of cooking. 

“Air fryers have become very popular in recent years and can be cheaper to cook in than an oven as they take less time to heat up and have a speedier cooking time.

“While some large air fryers use a similar amount of power to an oven, you save money as you often cook for a shorter time.

“Whereas it can take up to ten mins for some ovens to get up to temperature, most air fryers are ready in just three.”

Your Money Matters

Your Money Matters is a campaign launched by us and our sister titles across Newsquest to help you overcome the surge in the cost of living.

This year has seen a whole host of household price increases — from the energy price cap rise to surging inflation and food prices — costing your family hundreds or even thousands of pounds extra per year.

We’re making it our mission to look out for your cash, offering money-saving deals, competitions, giveaways and insightful stories from your community on the impact this cost-of-living crisis is having on our readers.

The worldwide energy crisis exacerbated by the Ukraine invasion, the financial impact of the Covid pandemic, record inflation figures and a surge in the cost of goods, fuel and travel means we will all feel the pinch.

Through our newspaper, we want to do what we can to help make your cash go further because we know your money matters.