I Peeled 100 Eggs To Find The Best Egg Cookers

At one point in my career as a line cook, hard-boiled eggs became somewhat of an obsession. We had just put a dish on the menu that featured a pickled hard-boiled egg and, as part of my daily prep, I had to cook perfect eggs with uniformly smooth whites and no gray rings. I tried baking and boiling. I tried timing changes, temperature changes, egg aging, adding baking soda–everything I could think of. Some days, I would think I was getting close, just for the next day’s trials to result in a 15% success rate. A sign was hung over my head like a dunce cap, tallying the amount of eggs I had wasted to date—my chef’s somewhat cruel method of motivation.

All that led to the present day, where I cook hard-boiled eggs maybe once a year when a craving for an egg salad sandwich strikes. It hardly seems worth it to me. That is probably what kept me from adding an egg cooker to my kitchen. If I don’t eat hard-boiled eggs much, why would I need a better way to cook them? Still, I started this review with excitement and a tinge of apprehension. Could these cookers make a believer out of me? I got cracking to find out if egg cookers could deliver egg-cellent results or just leave me shell-shocked (sorry). 

The Winners, at a Glance

The Best Egg Cooker

Nostalgia Retro Large Hard-Boiled Egg Cooker

$17 at Amazon

Simple, compact, and affordable, the Nostalgia Egg Cooker is designed to churn out perfect hard-boiled eggs in a fraction of the time it would take on the stove. It egg-cels (hehe) at cooking poached and soft-boiled eggs as well—maximum versatility in one convenient machine.

The Best Large-Capacity Egg Cooker

Dash Deluxe Rapid Cooker Electric

$30 at Amazon View on Walmart

Cook a full dozen at once in the Dash egg cooker that has a clear lid for viewing those steamy eggs. It’s easy to use and comes with trays for cooking up to seven poached eggs or an omelette.

The Best Microwave Egg Cooker

Nordic Ware Egg Boiler

$16 $14 at Amazon View on Walmart View on Target

The Nordic Ware Egg Cooker uses your microwave instead of a built-in heating element to steam eggs to the perfect temperature. It’s a simple system that won’t burn out with time.

The Tests

• Hard-Boiled Egg Test: I started testing by using the machines for their primary function: hard-boiling eggs. I placed four eggs straight from the refrigerator into the cooker and followed the manual’s instructions for achieving perfect hard-boiled eggs. After the cooking cycle, I chilled the eggs, peeled them, and cut them in half to inspect the interior. I looked for even cooking of the whites and yolks without under- or overcooking issues like the dreaded green-gray ring.
• Poached Egg Test: Most of the models I tested claimed to be able to make poached eggs as well as hard-boiled, so I chose that for my next test. I doused the included pans in nonstick cooking spray and cracked a few eggs in, then added the requisite amount of water. Once finished, I slid the poached eggs out of the tray and onto a dinner plate to determine if any of the whites were unset or yolks overcooked.
• Soft-Boiled Egg Test (Winners Only): For the cookers that passed the previous two tests, I also tested each machine’s ability to produce soft-boiled eggs. The cookers use the same method as cooking hard-boiled eggs, but must nail the perfect time for a soft but not runny yolk. Again, I set the machines according to their included directions, then chilled the eggs to stop cooking before peeling and slicing them in half to view the yolk.
• Cleaning and Ease of Use: Throughout testing, I noted how easy or difficult the cookers were to set up and operate. I awarded points for dishwasher-safe parts and lids that could be lifted without steam burns.

What We Learned

How Do Egg Cookers Work?

All of the egg cookers I tested operate similarly (save for the Nordic Ware, which uses the microwave as a heat source instead of a built-in system). Much like a rice cooker, a certain amount of water is added to the appliance, and a metal hot plate on the bottom boils the water. The steam rises and cooks the eggs. The amount of water added to the cooker determines how well-done the eggs become: less for soft-boiled; more for hard-boiled. Once the water evaporates, the machine detects a temperature rise and shuts off automatically, sometimes with an accompanying audible alert. It’s a simple but smart system that takes the guesswork out of boiling eggs and saves you from babysitting a saucepan on the stove. 

Egg Cookers Are Time Savers

All of the egg cookers were able to hard-boil eggs in 10 to 20 minutes, with the Nordic Ware acting as an outlier at nine minutes 30 seconds, thanks to its microwave heating method. This speed isn’t just about wattage– microwave energy heats food by exciting water molecules directly, making it faster than an electric heating plate. Compare that to the 13 minutes that J. Kenji López-Alt outlines in his deep dive on hard-boiled eggs plus the time it takes a saucepan to bring three to four cups of water to a rolling boil, and you’re easily looking at 20 minutes or more on the stovetop. With an egg cooker, you can set it and walk away—no need to hang out in the kitchen. The egg cookers only need to bring less than an inch of water to a simmer to start cooking, and you can add the eggs at the beginning without risking cracking, in contrast to the volatile nature of the stovetop method. With both methods, you will still have to stop the cooking process with a dunk in ice water, but egg cookers streamline the process and are much more hands-off than cooking in a saucepan.

Read the Manual

When I’m not testing an appliance, I don’t usually read the manual before using it. Most often, I can intuit the way to operate the machine without step-by-step instructions. These cookers are a bit different. The success of each egg cooker depends not just on the design of the machine itself, but also on how well the included instructions guide water measurement. Some models come with clearly marked measuring cups that make it easy to get consistent results, while others led to under- or overcooked eggs, even when I followed the directions to the letter. I appreciated manuals that included the water measurements in addition to the cup, like the Dash, Hamilton Beach, and Bella. For the others, if you lose the included measuring cup, you’re on your own for calculating how much water is needed to cook eggs to your desired doneness. 

Skip the Piercer

Many of the egg cookers included a sharp metal piercing tool attached to the measuring cup to puncture the egg’s shell so that steam can escape. The idea is that piercing helps prevent eggs from cracking during cooking and can make them easier to peel. But after testing, I’m convinced this feature causes more problems than it solves. Not only does the Egg Board of America explicitly recommend against piercing (to avoid introducing bacteria), but in several cookers, like the Elite Gourmet Rapid Egg Cooker, the piercer led to egg whites leaking out and burning on the hotplate, creating a mess. Even on winning models that included a piercer, like the Dash Rapid Egg Cooker, I found that peeling went just fine without using this tool. Bottom line: A built-in piercer isn’t an upgrade or an essential feature. If your cooker includes a piercer, you don’t have to use it, and don’t worry if your model skips it—it’s not a deal-breaker.

Small Details Make a Big Impact

While my testing focused on the main operation of each cooker, small design details made a surprisingly large difference in ease-of-use. Cookers with longer power cords were easier to position on crowded countertops and away from wood cabinets that might be damaged by the released steam. Clear lids, like the one on the Dash Egg Cooker, made it easier to monitor cooking without lifting the lid and disrupting cooking. Plus, I actually found myself enjoying watching all the little eggs take their turn in the sauna. 

Even something as simple as non-slip feet or a well-placed handle on the lid made the process feel smoother and safer. It’s these little conveniences that helped separate the adequate models from the winners.

The Criteria: What to Look for in an Egg Cooker

A good egg cooker should do one thing well: cook eggs to your desired doneness without much fuss. Look for an egg cooker with simple controls, a clearly marked measuring cup, and an audible alert to let you know when the cycle is finished. Capacity is important, and if your household consumes a lot of eggs, then you’ll want a cooker that can accommodate at least 10, if not a full dozen.

Design-wise, I appreciated certain small details, like longer power cords, clear lids you can peek through, and lids that lift off easily without scalding you with steam or requiring two hands. Accessories like poaching or omelette trays are nice to have and add to the cooker’s versatility. 

Our Favorite Egg Cookers

The Best Egg Cooker

Nostalgia Retro Large Hard-Boiled Egg Cooker

$17 at Amazon

What we liked: It’s always great when the best item in a review is also one of the most affordable. The Nostalgia Egg Cooker rings up at an affordable price and was the only cooker to deliver perfect results across all three tests. Like many of the other models, the Nostalgia egg cooker relies on steam and evaporating water to cook the eggs and signal the end of the cooking cycle. This model was by far the fastest, whether I was poaching eggs or hard-boiling. For example, the Nostalgia completed cooking hard-boiled eggs in just under 13 minutes, while the Chef’s Choice did the same in a whopping 19 minutes. Likewise, the Nostalgia cooked poached eggs in four minutes and 38 seconds, with the second fastest (Elite Gourmet) trailing at seven minutes and five seconds. Based on these results, I could safely infer that wattage has little to do with cooking speed, as the Nostalgia has one of the lowest wattages of any in this review.

What we didn’t like: The manual does not include the water amounts for cooking, so keep track of the measuring cup. The single omelette tray doubles as the poached egg tray, which cuts down on loose pieces but also limits you to cooking a single poached egg at a time unless you want to nestle two eggs together. The plastic parts are not dishwasher-safe, but they were easy to clean by hand. 

Key Specs

• Materials: Plastic
• Dimensions: 6.34 x 6.34 x 7.17 inches
• Wattage: 350
• Egg capacity: 7
• Accessories: Omelette tray, poached egg tray, measuring cup with egg piercer
• Cord length: 22 inches
• Dishwasher-safe parts?: No

The Best Large-Capacity Egg Cooker

Dash Deluxe Rapid Cooker Electric

$30 at Amazon View on Walmart

What we liked: The Dash egg cooker is a double-decker model and a meal prepper’s dream. It’s the largest egg cooker I tested, with enough room to hard-boil a dozen eggs in one go, poach up to seven eggs, or cook a three-egg omelette with minimal effort. The cleverly designed two-tiered rack system keeps eggs snugly in place, and the clear dome lets you peek in as they cook. Despite the height difference, both tiers delivered evenly cooked results, even when fully loaded.

The clearly marked measuring cup takes the guesswork out of doneness. Just fill to the line, press the button, and walk away. Once you’re done, it’s easy to wash. Every part but the base is dishwasher-safe. The poached egg trays are thoughtfully shaped to at least somewhat resemble a traditionally poached egg. The egg-shaped device is available in a rainbow of colors, so this cooker isn’t just practical—it’s kind of cute, too. 

What we didn’t: The soft-boiled eggs came out a bit overcooked, more like medium-boiled. Overall, I was willing to overlook this due to the machine’s large capacity and given the fact that one could simply make a mental note to add slightly less water for this method of cooking to nail the consistency. The size of this cooker is larger than others, but it’s a worthy trade-off if capacity is important to you.

Key Specs

• Materials: Plastic
• Dimensions: 8 x 8 x 9 inches
• Wattage: 500
• Egg capacity: 12
• Accessories: Omelette tray, poached egg tray (makes 7 at once), measuring cup with egg piercer
• Cord length: 28 inches
• Dishwasher-safe parts?: Yes

The Best Microwave Egg Cooker

Nordic Ware Egg Boiler

$16 $14 at Amazon View on Walmart View on Target

What we liked: This cooker relies on a simple circuitry-free design to cook eggs. That means no buttons to press, no cords to plug in, and no chance of malfunctioning electronics. Just fill the base with water, pop in the eggs, and microwave according to the included chart, which gives you timing instructions based on how many eggs you want to cook and your microwave’s wattage. It’s lightweight, easy to clean, and the smallest I tested at just over six inches high. The lid nests into the base for even more compact storage. For folks who have limited counter space or those who just want a no-fuss tool that gets the job done, this one’s refreshingly straightforward and affordable.

What we didn’t: It can only cook four eggs at once and can’t make omelettes or poached eggs. Beyond that, the biggest downside is that getting it out of the microwave was a little sketchy. The base stays full of boiling water, and there's no handle or heat-proof grip to help with maneuvering. One wrong tilt and you’re risking a steam burn or a lap full of boiling water. (Grippy oven mitts will help.)

Key Specs

• Materials: Plastic and aluminum
• Dimensions: 5.5 x 5.5 x 6.2 inches
• Wattage: Not applicable
• Egg capacity: 4
• Accessories: None
• Cord length: Not applicable
• Dishwasher-safe parts?: No

The Competition

• Cuisinart Egg Central: This cooker gave great results until I tried to make soft-boiled eggs. The measuring cup has the egg doneness printed next to two different water level lines, with the manual suggesting to fill between the lines for soft-boiled eggs. I followed the instructions…which led to disastrously undercooked eggs that collapsed into a pile of egg and shell goo.
• Chef’s Choice Gourmet Egg Cooker: This is the only electric cooker in the test that doesn’t rely on an evaporative technique to determine doneness. Instead, you fill the reservoir with water—no need to measure—and choose your preferred doneness. The trouble with this method lies with the trickiness of the dial. There was no real way to know if the dial was accurately counting down, leading to inconsistent results. The hard-boiled eggs were at times overcooked and other times perfectly done.
• Bella Electric Egg Cooker: This cooker overcooked poached eggs and produced some eggs that were hard to peel cleanly.
• Hamilton Beach Electric Egg Cooker: I really wanted to like this cooker because of its hefty nonstick trays. However, it doesn’t have an audible alert to let you know when the eggs are done cooking, and it consistently overcooked the poached eggs. The hard-boiled eggs came out nice, and this machine could still be a good option if you want to make egg bites.
• Elite Gourmet Rapid Egg Cooker: Eggs cooked unevenly in this cooker, with one bordering medium-boiled while the other three were solidly hard-boiled.

FAQs

How do you use an egg cooker?

All the cookers I tested for this review used steam to cook the eggs. The basic idea is that you add the eggs to the cooker, add some water, and cook, either by the machine’s built-in heating element or a microwave. Most models come with a measuring cup that tells you exactly how much water to use depending on how many eggs you’re cooking and how soft or hard you want the yolks. 

How do you clean an egg cooker?

Always double-check your egg cooker’s manual to determine the best way to clean it. Many of the machines I tested had a heating plate that could be cleaned with a wet cloth or rubbed with vinegar in the event of hard water residue. Some had dishwasher-safe parts and trays, while others had to be hand-washed.. 

Why We’re the Experts

• Taylor Murray has worked in food and food media for over 10 years, including in award-winning restaurants like Eleven Madison Park. She has written extensively for Serious Eats. (Check out her reviews of enameled cast iron skillets and vacuum sealers.)
• Taylor tested eight egg cookers by cooking dozens of eggs in each. She used the machines to prepare hard-boiled, soft-boiled, and poached eggs.