Which Ooni Pizza Oven Should You Buy? We Compared Them All

When it comes to pizza ovens, Ooni is one of the most well-known names. Over the years, we've tested pretty much every one of their offerings, including gas-powered and electric options. We've been impressed. But which Ooni pizza oven should you buy? We interviewed pizza and bread expert Andrew Janjigian and dug through our testing notes to break down each oven's pros and cons so you don't have to.

This new oven from Ooni is big—and that’s a great thing. Its 18-inch stone easily accommodates pies of this size, but you can cook smaller pizzas without worrying about enough space for launching, turning, and retrieving. In our tests, it cooked pizzas in less than two minutes, thanks to its dual flames that arc around the sides and up the top of the oven. We liked its digital screen, too, which brightly displayed the oven’s internal temperature. Its tempered glass visor traps heat in the pizza oven, allowing for little to no recovery time in between pies. It came nearly fully assembled, too, and the most we had to do was attach the digital screen.

Best For: If you want one of the biggest, baddest, gas-only ovens around, this Koda 2 Pro fits the bill.

Challenges or Shortcomings: This oven’s dual flames deliver blasts of concentrated heat, so be sure to turn pies often.

Key Specs

• Fuel type: Gas
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time taken to reach recommended temperature: 30 minutes
• Weight: 66 pounds
• Stone diameter: 18 inches
  

If you’re looking for a gas-only oven, this is one of our top picks. It heats up relatively quickly, produces pies in about one to two minutes, and has a large, 20.5-inch opening that makes turning and retrieving pies easy. Its L-shaped flame—located at the back and on the left side of the oven—licks up its walls and partly up its ceiling, so more of the pizza is exposed to the flame. It has a single ignitor/temperature dial located on the right side of the oven and is incredibly easy to assemble: you just need to take it out of the box and unfold its legs. While it is quite large, we found it easy enough to store thanks to its foldable legs. It was also a cinch to ignite. 

Best For: If you want a gas-only pizza oven that’s easy to turn on and adjust the temperature. It also offers a large, 16-inch cooking surface.

Challenges or Shortcomings: For outdoor pizza novices, the concentrated, L-shaped flame might lead to hot spots and has more of a learning curve. It’s also gas-only, which might be unappealing for some. 

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Gas (propane or natural gas)
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 25 minutes
• Weight: 40.1 pounds
  
• Stone diameter: 16 inches
  

This is a hardwood pellet-only oven. When its fire is really going, it preheats in about 15 minutes. To use it with wood pellets, you add the pellets to the fuel tray, light them, and slide the tray back into the oven. After those starter pellets have burned, you add more pellets through the cylindrical hopper located at the back of the oven. It cooks pizza in less than two minutes.

Best For: If you want a wood pellet-only pizza oven, this is the way to go (Ooni’s other multi-fuel ovens aren’t compatible with wood pellets). It’s also the cheapest Ooni oven at $349.

Challenges or Shortcomings: There’s more setup involved with this model. We recommend checking out this video for help. The small hopper requires tending to keep the airflow ideal and ensure that the pellets are burning efficiently. This can even mean repositioning the oven mid-cook. The oven’s door is meant to be kept open at all times unless adding or removing your pizza. While this isn’t a huge deal, taking off and putting a door back on a bunch of times feels finicky. The chimney and hopper can make storage tougher, but they can be both removed and placed inside the oven. It’s not a multi-fuel option.

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Wood pellets
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 15 to 20 minutes
• Weight: 22 pounds
• Stone diameter: 12 inches

This oven has a digital screen that displays its internal temperature. It has a hatch at the back of the oven for adding wood or charcoal, and we recommend wearing gloves for this task, as the flames can lick up the hatch when the lid’s off. Its glass door that lets you watch pizza/monitor the flame as you cook. To use this oven, you have to first remove the chimney cap and adjust the pin (called a baffle) to open the chimney and ceiling vent. The vent can be totally opened for gas or closed partway for wood or charcoal as a means of controlling the oven’s internal temperature. The flame is located at the back and radiates outwards and upwards, cooking pies in less than two minutes. 

The previous iteration of this oven is the one that Andrew uses at home. Of that version he says, “I’m using the Karu now, and I love a few things about it: 1) the door, which makes it heat up more quickly and efficiently, 2) the thermometer, which makes heating easier to manage, 3) the fact you can use either gas or wood/charcoal, and 4) the roominess, which lets you make large-sized (12- to 14-inch) pies without risk of them burning too easily.” 

Best For: If you want the ability to use multiple fuel types and value extra features, like a built-in internal temperature gauge. For someone who frequently makes multiple pizzas back-to-back, the Karu 2 Pro retains heat incredibly well and requires zero recovery time between pies.

Challenges or Shortcomings: If you’re using the oven’s gas burner attachment, it’s located at the very back of the oven, which is less of an intuitive placement than to the side. 

Key Specs

• Fuel type: Gas, wood, or charcoal
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time taken to reach recommended temperature: 15 minutes
• Weight: 62.6 pounds
• Stone diameter: 17 inches

This multi-fuel oven is compatible with wood, charcoal, or gas (its gas burner is sold separately, as with all Ooni multi-fuel models). When its fire was really going, we found it preheated in about 20 minutes. To use it with wood, you add the kindling to a tray at the back of the oven. The tray has a heat-resistant handle for easy use. It cooks pizza in about one minute, 30 seconds. Opening or closing the baffle allows you to control the airflow of the oven, depending on the fuel source or when you want longer, slower cooks.

Best For: If you want a lightweight, multi-fuel pizza oven with a slightly more compact cooking surface (it's 13.2 inches, so best for smaller pies).

Challenges or Shortcomings: The gas burner is located at the back of the pizza oven, by the hopper. This is a less intuitive placement than having the burner on the side of the oven, like with the Ooni Koda 16. Its chimney makes it tougher to store, though it can be taken off and placed inside the oven to make things more compact.

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Wood or charcoal—it is not compatible with wood pellets; gas (gas burner sold separately) 
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 15 to 20 minutes (for wood)
• Weight: 26.4 pounds
• Stone diameter: 12 inches

This is like a souped-up version of the Karu 12 and is also compatible with gas, wood, or charcoal, though the gas burner must be purchased separately. It has a door, which helps it heat up faster than the Karu 12 (the Karu 2 took just 15 minutes). However, we found it cooked pizzas in about the same time as its predecessor, in about one minute, 30 seconds. There’s a temperature gauge on its side, too.

Best For: If you’d like a compact multi-fuel pizza oven with more bells and whistles.

Challenges or Shortcomings: There’s a gap at the back of the oven you could turn and trap a pizza in. Like the Karu 12, the compatible gas burner is located at the back.

Key Specs

• Fuel type: Gas, wood, or charcoal
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time taken to reach recommended temperature: 15 minutes
• Weight: 33.6 pounds
• Stone diameter: 12 inches

This oven is a smaller version of the Ooni Koda 16 and, therefore, has a smaller cooking surface and isn’t suitable for larger pies. It heats in about 15 minutes (fast!) and cooks pizzas in about a minute to one minute and 30 seconds. Its legs fold down for compact storage.

Best For: If you’re looking for a smaller, gas-only pizza oven that’s easy to store. At $369, it’s one of the cheapest Ooni models. 

Challenges or Shortcomings: Because it has a smaller opening, we found it harder to turn and retrieve pizza, so we recommend investing in a smaller peel and/or turner to go with it. Its ignitor/heat control knob is located at the back of this oven. And, of course, it’s gas-only, so it's not ideal for those who want a multi-fuel option.

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Gas 
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 15 minutes
• Weight: 29 pounds
• Stone diameter: 12 inches
  

We reviewed the Ooni Volt—the brand's first indoor-outdoor, electric oven—and found it to be exceptionally powerful and easy to use. It heated up to 850°F in just 20 minutes and cranked out beautiful pies in 90 seconds to two minutes. There's no flame to fiddle with or hopper to monitor: all you have to do is set the temperature.

Best For: If you're looking for an indoor pizza oven that can be used inside and out, and have the capital to invest.

Challenges or Shortcomings: Well, it's really expensive. It's also quite large, so it wouldn't be at home always hanging out on your countertop.

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Electric
• Max temperature: 850ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 20 minutes
• Weight: 39.2 pounds
• Stone diameter: 12 inches
  

The Ooni Koda 2 Max is Ooni's biggest gas-powered oven yet. It sports a whopping 24-inch cooking space, two separate burners, and connectivity to the Ooni app. The premise of such a big oven is that you can throw two pizzas at once or flame-cook different foods at the same time. And, in our tests, we were easily able to bake up a Detroit-style pie alongside a Neapolitan crust without feeling cramped. The oven heated up surprisingly fast, too, reaching 850°F in about 38 minutes. Overall, it's a spacious oven that truly brings the heat.

Best For: Folks who make pizza on the reg and have the outdoor space for a massive pizza oven.

Challenges or Shortcomings: It's big and heavy, and it'll cost you a lot. The app lost connectivity with the oven when we went inside.

Key Specs

• Fuel source: Gas
• Max temperature: 950ºF
• Time to reach recommended temperature: 30 minutes
• Weight: 95 pounds
• Stone diameter: 24 inches

Other Gear We Recommend for Outdoor Pizza Oven Success

• Stainless steel table: Any stainless steel table will work, but a rolling one will be easiest to move and store. Ooni sells its own table (which has hooks for tools, among other features), though it is pricey.
• Pizza peels: We recommend having a wooden peel for throwing (like this one from The Baker's Board) and a metal peel for retrieving (like the one from Ooni or American Metalcraft).
• Pizza turner: This isn't strictly necessary, but it's way easier than a peel to fit into the mouth of an oven for turning your pies while cooking.
• Pizza cutter: For easily slicing up pies, we recommend this pizza cutter from OXO. Modestly priced, it glides nicely through sauce, cheese, and dough.
• Cover: Ooni sells covers for each of their ovens, so choose whatever one fits the model you have/get.

FAQs

How long should you preheat a pizza oven?

How long to preheat a pizza oven depends on the model you’re using and the fuel source you chose. Ooni ovens advertise a high temperature of 950ºF, and we found that anywhere from 15 to 40 minutes was sufficient to reach these temps.

Which Ooni oven takes wood pellets?

Only one Ooni oven (the Ooni Fyra) uses solely wood pellets as fuel. Wood pellets are an efficient fuel source that burns longer than split kindling, but the burner has to be designed to use them. Using wood pellets with one of their multi-fuel ovens “will keep your oven from getting up to temperature,” the company says.

What's the best way to store an Ooni pizza oven?

Pizza ovens should be stored in a dry, covered place. We recommend getting cover, too, to protect both the exterior and interior of the oven. Ooni sells a variety of covers for all of their different models, and while they're advertised as weather-proof, we still recommend bringing the pizza ovens indoors during the winter.

Do you need a special table to put your oven on?

You don’t need a special table—any heat-safe surface will do (we just wouldn’t recommend plastic or glass). However, a stainless steel prep table, especially one with wheels, can be helpful while in use and for storage/transport. You can find ones on Amazon, however, Ooni also sells its own, which has both shelves and hooks for placing or hanging pizza peels and turners. Just be sure to measure your pizza oven so you can order the correct table size.

Is gas or wood a better fuel source for an Ooni oven?

Both gas and wood can generate high temperatures in an Ooni oven, but gas provides a more consistent flame, while wood-burning requires the user to monitor the flame and feed the burner to keep temperatures consistent. People who are new to high-temperature pizza ovens might benefit from practicing with a gas burner before trying wood.

Why We're the Experts

• Riddley Gemperlein-Schirm is the associate editorial director at Serious Eats. She's reviewed kitchen equipment professionally for about seven years and previously worked at America's Test Kitchen and Food52. She's authored many equipment reviews and how-tos for this site, including dinnerware sets and indoor pizza ovens.
• For this review, we interviewed Andrew Janjigian, who's been teaching classes on bread and pizza making for more than 10 years.
• We tested nearly all of Ooni's ovens, evaluating how fast they heated up, how easy they were to use, and the kind of pies they produced.