Aussies have rated Smeg as the top pick in Canstar Blue’s latest cooktop ratings, with five-star reviews in overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design and ease of use.
Our review compares cooktops on customer satisfaction, so you can find out what other Aussies think about the compared brands before you go ahead with a purchase. Think of it as like asking hundreds of your closest mates which cooktop they think is best!
Canstar Blue surveyed 784 Australians for their feedback on the cooktop that is installed in their home and has been used in the last six months.
The winning brand is the one that receives the highest Overall satisfaction rating once all the scores from the Overall satisfaction criteria are combined and averaged.
Find more detailed information on our Most Satisfied Customer methodology.
Not sure which cooktop to buy? Check out our buying guide below.
Smeg took out the competition with five star ratings for overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design and ease of use and a four star rating for value for money.
Italian appliance brand Smeg is well-known for its retro-style appliances with its toaster line-up, in particular, being a cult-favourite. However, the brand has taken a different direction with its cooktop collection and has instead painted its gas and induction cooktops with a modern design and innovative features.
One of the highlights is the integrated hood and extraction function in Smeg’s hobs. Some Smeg gas cooktops alternatively contain blade flame burners, which produce a vertical flame to supposedly improve efficiency and minimise energy consumption whilst still ensuring even heat distribution and similar power levels to a cooktop without the feature.
Miele acheived five star ratings for ease of cleaning and value for money, four star ratings for overall satisfaction, performance, features & functionality and design and a three star rating for ease of use.
Miele offers a feast of high-end models to choose from including induction, electric and gas cooktops. The brand also provides several induction cooktops with an integrated extractor as well as a mix of induction, gas and electric CombiSets. Miele’s cooktops contain several features claimed to be exclusive to the brand, such as intelligent pan recognition that allows the selected settings for a particular pan to ‘move’ with the pan whenever it gets transferred to a different cooking zone. Some cooktops also contain temp control to make sure the temperature stays the same to prevent food from burning.
Last year’s winner Westinghouse achieved a five star rating for value for money and four star ratings for all other categories including overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design and ease of use.
Westinghouse, a subsidiary of Electrolux, provides a solid line-up of home appliances including fridges and dishwashers, as well as ovens and cooktops, all of which are typically available at a variety of price points to suit mid to high-end budgets. It has a wide variety of cooktops to choose from – including ceramic glass, electric, gas and induction. Westinghouse also produces a few 60cm solid hotplates, with each electric cooktop containing four cooking zones to suit small and large cookware, corrosion-resistant hotplates and generally nine power levels.
Bosch achieved four star ratings for overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design and ease of use as well as a three star rating for value for money.
German brand Bosch is synonymous with technology and innovation, and its cooktops range is no exception. It boasts a wide selection of induction, gas, ceramic and vented cooktops, offering three to six burners on 60cm, 80cm, and 90cm units. Many Bosch cooktops also boast either a CombiZone or FlexInduction Zone, which combine two or more cooking zones to create one larger surface designed to fit bulkier items or multiple pots and pans. Another common feature is DirectSelect, which allows you to choose specific power levels and cooking zones directly via the control panel (rather than by repeatedly pressing the +/– symbol).
Electrolux received a nice even four star rating across all categories including overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design, value for money and ease of use.
Electrolux brings a slice of Sweden into your kitchen, with a mix of ceramic, gas, induction and hybrid cooktops to choose from. One standout feature in some of its models is Hob2Hood, which automatically switches on as you start cooking and adjusts the fan speed to match. Many gas cooktops also have a wok burner for what is claimed to be ‘fast boiling and intense cooking’. Electrolux cooktops additionally have a Stop & Go System, similar to fellow Electrolux Group brand Westinghouse, allowing you to step away from your cooking if the phone rings or the kids are in need of your attention. There is also a child lock design for safety.
Breville received a four star rating for overall satisfaction and ease of cleaning and three star ratings for all other categories including performance, features & functionality, design, value for money and ease of use.
Breville are a known brand in the kitchen appliance space offering appliances from kettles to toasters and coffee machines. Breville offers a very short and sweet range of cooktops with a singular portable product, the Quick Cook. The portable induction cooktop features 10 cooking power levels, has fast and efficient heating for even cooking and is a portable and compact size making it perfect for entertaining on the go or camping.
Chef received a five star rating for value for money, a four star rating for ease of use and three star ratings for all other categories including overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality and design.
Chef is an appropriately named brand that solely specialises in cooking appliances, but without the high-end price tag. It plates up a variety of gas, ceramic, electric and induction cooktops in sizes including 59cm, 60cm, 87cm and 90cm. The range provides four to five cooking zones, although most products feature the standard four.
Fisher & Paykel achieved a four star rating for ease of use and three star ratings for overall satisfaction, performance, ease of cleaning, features & functionality, design and value for money.
Fisher & Paykel is one of the global leaders when it comes to home appliances and serves up a wide range of cooktops to suit different households, including gas, electric, induction and combination models. There are two types of aesthetic styles to suit different tastes, including minimal and contemporary. Fisher & Paykel’s cooktops come in a variety of widths, including 30cm, 45cm, 60cm, 70cm, 75cm, 76cm, 90cm and 92cm. There are up to five cooking zones, depending on the model, with a wok burner also included in several gas on steel and gas on glass cooktops.
There are three standard types of cooktops – gas, electric and induction – all with their own pros and cons. Gas cooktops and electric cooktops are the most common, both split with 41% of respondents preferring them and induction following with (14%). A small pinch of those surveyed (4%) also own a combination cooktop containing multiple types of cooking zones, such as a wok burner in addition to the four other zones.
Gas cooktops have a connection to a home’s gas mains which creates an open flame on the stovetop for cooking. With this kind of cooktop you can char vegetables like capsicums and get a better view of how large the flame is to better adjust the heat.
Induction cooktops are a newer entrant into the cooktop market, utilising a safer way of cooking compared to gas and even electric cooktops. By using magnetic induction, the cooktop surface doesn’t heat up the same way an electric ceramic one does and will only produce heat if a compatible pot or pan is placed on top.
Electric cooktops are possibly one of the most simple and common choices for cooktop. Most models will feature a ceramic glass top with individual burners sectioned out that heat up when you set the dial to the desired temperature.
When looking at cooktops, you’ll need to think about what features are important to you and how these coincide with your budget. Some common features to look out for on modern cooktops are:
Cooktops vary in price depending on the type and the brand. Respondents spent an average of $974 on their cooktop, but some models can reach upwards of $2,000. The kind of cooktops you buy will also change the price, for example if you choose a five or six burner as opposed to a standard four you’ll spend a bit more.
This report was written by Canstar Blue’s Home & Lifestyle Content Producer Kate King. Kate holds a Bachelor of Creative Industries from QUT majoring in Journalism and Media and Communications, and has written for a number of publications over the past five years.
Samantha Howse is Canstar Blue’s Consumer Research Specialist, coordinating the consumer research program behind our customer satisfaction awards across Canstar and Canstar Blue in Australia and New Zealand. Sam has earned a Bachelor of Business (Marketing) from Griffith University and, with seven years in market research and 2 years in marketing, she is experienced in survey design, implementation and analysis, coupled with an understanding of marketing principles and best practice.
Here are the previous winners of Canstar Blue’s cooktops review:
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