The 8 Best Slow Cookers of 2023

Yes, it’s expensive, but the GreenPan’s excellent cooking performance, versatility, and good looks are worth the price. Our testing model had a glossy black exterior with beautiful stainless-steel handles, but it comes in several colors. It also comes in a Premiere stainless-steel model.

The Best Slow Cookers of 2023

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Cuisinart MSC-600

This handsome appliance is also multifunctional: In addition to slow cooking, it can brown/sauté, roast, and steam. Read More

Pros

• Keeps food at optimal temperature
• Sides and handles stay cool to the touch
• Dishwasher safe and easy to clean by hand

Cons

GreenPan Ceramic Nonstick 6-Qt Slow Cooker

This slow cooker has excellent cooking performance, versatility, and good looks. Plus, we love its nonstick surface and lightweight design. Read More

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Stovetop and oven safe
• Easy to clean

Cons

All-Clad SD800D51

Think of this stainless-steel model as the Rolls Royce of slow cookers. It gives top-notch cooking performance and includes many bells and whistles. Read More

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Programmable
• Nonstick

Cons

• Can’t be used on stovetop or oven
• Cooking vessel is not dishwasher safe

Instant Precision 6-quart Dutch Oven

This programmable and very versatile model has a heavy covered enameled cast iron pan rather than a ceramic crock or a metal pot. Read More

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Warm, braise, and sauté settings
• Stovetop, oven and dishwasher safe

Cons

KitchenAid 6-Qt. Slow Cooker with Standard Lid

This model is solidly designed with a brushed stainless-steel finish and is completely intuitive to program without checking the manual. Read More

Pros

• Keeps food at optimal warm temperature
• Programmable
• 4 slow cook settings
• Dishwasher safe

Cons

Updated October 20, 2023

When you can’t spend much time cooking, a slow cooker is ideal. After some prep work, just toss your ingredients in the cooker, set it, and forget it until dinner.

Slow cookers vary in price pretty drastically, and it may not be clear what spending extra gets you. After months testing different models, we found that the best slow cooker is the Cuisinart 6 Quart 3-In-1 Cook Central Multicooker (available at Amazon for $147.99) . It aced our performance and ease of use tests, and we loved its versatility.

If you’re looking to spend less, our best value pick is the Hamilton Beach Set and Forget 6-Quart Programmable Slow Cooker (available at Amazon). If you’re willing to splurge, we found that the GreenPan Slow Cooker (available at Willams-Sonoma) is worth the extra dollars.

The Cuisinart 3-in-1 is the best slow cooker we tested.

• Dimensions: 12 x 19 x 9.5 inches
• Capacity: 6 quarts
• Weight: 16 lbs.
• Pot material: Nonstick aluminum
• Dishwasher safe: Yes

The Cuisinart 6 Quart 3-In-1 is handsome and multifunctional. In addition to slow cooking, it can brown/sauté, roast, and steam. You can even sear food in the insert before simmering it. An ultra-low simmer slow cook mode can either cook food very slowly or keep it piping hot for serving.

The stainless-steel base features a series of buttons for settings. And there’s a small LCD panel displaying the cooking program and time. This was one of the few programmable models that was easy to set without referring to the manual. After cooking, it automatically switches over to the warm setting for eight hours.

During testing, pot roast cooked in the Cuisinart came closest to tasting like it was cooked on the stove. Both the meat and the vegetables were moist, tender, and flavorful. And the roast stayed intact so it could be cut into long, attractive slices.

The breasts and thighs in a butter chicken recipe melded with their spicy sauce, but still kept their shape and texture. My chili finished cooking with a rich sauce, chunky with beef and beans. Since the Cuisinart switches to an effective “keep warm” setting after cooking, your dinner won’t overcook if you come home late.

The only exposed part of this slow cooker that became too hot to touch was the rim of the cooking vessel. The front surface and the handles—the parts you’re most likely to touch—stay cool, leaving minimal chance of burning yourself.

The pot has oversized plastic handles that make it easy to lift out of the base. The cooking insert’s aluminum and nonstick finishes are easy to clean compared to the heavy ceramic crocks most models use. Cuisinart also supplies a very thorough manual with attractive slow cooker recipes.

Pros

• Keeps food at optimal temperature
• Sides and handles stay cool to the touch
• Dishwasher safe and easy to clean by hand

Cons

With functions like reheat, the GreenPan Slow Cooker not only excels at slow cooking but includes several versatile features.

• Dimensions: 19 x 13.5 x 11 inches
• Capacity: 6 quarts
• Weight: 13 lbs.
• Pot material: Aluminum with ceramic nonstick coating
• Dishwasher safe: Yes

Yes, it’s expensive, but the GreenPan’s excellent cooking performance, versatility, and good looks are worth the price. Our testing model had a glossy black exterior with beautiful stainless-steel handles, but it comes in several colors. It also comes in a Premiere stainless-steel model.

On the bottom are small buttons for programming the various heat settings and an LCD display. The slow cook mode includes low, high, and warm settings, as well as a simmer for keeping food hot. It also includes a “reheat” setting, which is fairly unique for a slow cooker.

The brown/sauté and steam functions let you brown stew meat or a roast right in the unit before slow cooking, to avoid getting a skillet dirty. After cooking, the GreenPan automatically switches to a keep warm mode for eight hours.

During testing, a slow-cooked pot roast emerged perfectly. The meat was moist and flavorful and could be carved into beautiful thin slices. And the vegetables were fork-tender, but still held their shape.

The butter chicken thighs and breasts were exceptionally tender and didn’t shred. The ground beef and beans in a chili recipe kept their texture, while the sauce stayed a rich red color with a complex flavor. When kept warm for two hours, the chili remained at a serving temperature—not a cooking temperature.

While cooking, the outside of the unit and the outer and inner handles stayed cool to the touch. However, you’ll need a potholder to lift the glass lid. The insert can also be used on the stovetop or in the oven.

While the pot is dishwasher safe, it’s also easy to wash by hand. On top of its durable nonstick coating, its light aluminum construction makes it easy to maneuver in the sink.

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Stovetop and oven safe
• Easy to clean

Cons

Other Slow Cookers We Tested

All-Clad 7-Quart Gourmet Plus Slow Cooker with All-In-One Browning

• Dimensions: 21.25 x 15.75 x 11 inches
• Capacity: 7 quarts
• Weight: 21 lbs.
• Pot material: Nonstick cast aluminum
• Dishwasher safe: No

Made completely of gleaming stainless steel, the All-Clad 7-Quart Gourmet Plus Slow Cooker is the Rolls Royce of slow cookers. As you’d expect for its astronomical price, it gives top-notch cooking performance. Food comes out ultra tender but not overcooked. In addition, the All-Clad sports just about every bell and whistle imaginable.

It can slow cook on low, high, or a combination of the two. It also has steam, rice, sear, simmer, reheat, buffet, and warm settings. An LCD screen displays the heat level and time selected. With the exception of the sear mode, the slow cooker automatically goes into keep warm mode after cooking, with the maximum time depending on the setting.

Unfortunately, having so many options can make it confusing to choose one—and to program the cooker. The manual details how to set the controls and includes charts for rice cooking and steaming, but it doesn’t explain the difference between the various programs. Further confounding things is that it’s difficult to read the wording on the small buttons.

The outside of the unit and the outer handles stay cool to the touch, but you will need oven mitts to lift the lid and the insert out of the base. The aluminum cooking vessel can’t be used on top of the stove or in the oven. The lid is safe for dishwasher cleaning, but the pot has to be hand washed. Fortunately, its nonstick coating makes the job easy.

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Programmable
• Nonstick

Cons

• Can’t be used on stovetop or oven
• Cooking vessel is not dishwasher safe

The Instant Precision 6-quart Dutch Oven, from the company that gave us the Instant Pot multi-cooker, is an unusual slow cooker. Rather than a ceramic crock or a metal pot, the insert is a covered enameled cast iron pan. When it’s removed from the base, it looks just like a traditional Dutch oven and makes a great serving piece.

The appliance has an LCD screen and a button to control the functions. Rather than high or low slow cook settings, a manual mode lets you choose the precise cooking temperature. There’s also a braise program, which browns food and then lowers the temperature for simmering, and a sear/sauté setting for browning. After slow cooking or braising, the Dutch oven automatically switches to a keep warm mode for three hours.

On slow cook, this model simmers at an ideal temperature so that food comes out fork-tender without being overcooked. The chicken breasts and pot roast weren’t stringy and could be cut into neat slices. The chili’s ground beef didn’t become overly soft and tasteless, and the beans didn’t turn to mush. The “keep warm” setting keeps food piping hot without further cooking it.

While the exterior of the cooker stays cool to the touch, the cast iron insert and its lid get very hot. While you don’t have to worry about accidentally burning yourself by brushing against the exterior, you do need a pot holder to lift the lid or remove the pot from the base.

The unit includes Silicone handle covers and a trivet. Although the Dutch oven has a 6-quart capacity, its rounder shape means long items like a corned beef or rack of ribs may not fit unless you cut them into pieces.

At over 9 pounds, the pot is extremely heavy to lift and maneuver in the sink while washing it. Fortunately, it’s also dishwasher safe if you have room for it. The entire appliance weighs over 20 pounds, so it will take some strength to lift it in and out of a cabinet. A booklet of appealing recipes is included.

Pros

• Keeps food warm at optimal temperature
• Warm, braise, and sauté settings
• Stovetop, oven and dishwasher safe

The 8 Best Slow Cookers of 2023

Donna Currie is a food writer and blogger specializing in recipes and kitchen gadgets. She covers kitchen tools and gadgets for The Spruce Eats and is the author of Make Ahead Bread.

It might seem contradictory that an appliance that cooks your food slowly over the course of several hours can actually help save you time, but busy cooks know slow cookers are the secret to getting easy meals on the table without much, if any, hands-on cooking time. Whether you want a slow cooker that can function as a multi-cooker or are looking for one that is programmable, portable, or budget-friendly, there’s a model out there to meet your demands.

Best Overall

Hamilton Beach Programmable Set and Forget 6-Quart Slow Cooker

• Even cooking
• Patented temperature probe setting
• Portable
• Affordable price

• Thin casing
• Control panel is difficult to read

This slow cooker checks all the boxes on your wish list. It can be programmed or operated manually, there’s a temperature probe to check the temperature of your food as you cook it, and at 6 quarts, it’s the perfect size for most uses. When the cooking time or temperature is reached, the cooker even automatically switches to a warming setting for up to two hours. Cooking time maxes out at 12 hours, not including the additional two hours on warm mode.

There are three settings total: program (which allows you to set a cooking time), probe (which uses the temperature probe to determine doneness), and manual (which lets you set high, low, or warm temperatures without setting a cooking time). We were really impressed by the ease of use; as the name implies, you really can set it and forget it. Not a single dish had any hot spots: Everything came out evenly cooked and delicious.

For anyone needing to travel with their slow cooker, this model has sturdy handles and a gasket on the lid, which clips on tightly so you can take it to a potluck or family dinner. We successfully transported honey-glazed ham to a Friendsgiving with zero spills. For serving, there’s a spoon that clips onto the unit to keep it from getting lost in transit.

Another feature we really liked is that if you live in an area with frequent power glitches, this model will return to it on during brief outages (up to five seconds) and keep cooking or keep your food warm until you get home. Just note that the casing is thin, making it more prone to dents, and the control panel can be difficult to read because it lacks brightness and contrast with the gray background. That said, we did not find either of these to be dealbreakers.

Price at time of publish: $80

Capacity: 6 quarts | Pot Material: Stoneware | Weight: 12.8 pounds | Dimensions: 11.25 x 17.5 x 11.75 inches

“The temperature probe mode allowed us to cook poultry and meat to an exact internal temperature before the appliance switched over to the warm setting.” — Gayle L. Squires, Product Tester