Top 10 Air Corn Poppers
for October 2023

The Hot Air Popper claims to be "the healthiest popcorn machine," but we found more unhealthy ingredients in it than healthy ones. The popcorn was delicious, though, and the machine was easy to use. The Hot Air Popper used hot air to make popcorn rather than oil, so it's healthier, but the popcorn was not necessarily healthier than other popcorn machines. The Hot Air Popper also burns about 40 percent more calories than other popcorn machines, but we didn't find that it tasted better, and it didn't taste any worse. The Hot Air Popper also fried our kernels, rather than popping them, which made for very smoky popcorn. The Hot Air Popper was not as quiet as other popcorn machines, and it's bigger, so it's harder to store. The Hot Air Popper makes delicious popcorn, but it's not the healthiest or most energy-efficient machine we considered.

The Nicemaw 4-Cup Hot Air Popcorn Popper is our top pick for popcorn makers. Not only does it produce delicious popcorn without oil, but it's easy to use, easy to clean, and (as we've noted) BPA-free. It's also light and portable, and it comes with several nice extras, like a measuring cup for easy measuring, a butter heating tray that can be removed for dishwasher cleaning, and a removable top cover that doubles as a popcorn scoop. This popper has some other advantages over our other top picks, though. First, it produces larger, fluffier popcorn than our previous top pick, the Hamilton Beach Pop Maker, and it's capable of popping 4 cups of popcorn at a time. Second, it doesn't require oil to pop the corn. Third, it produces popcorn in about 3 minutes, compared with about 7 minutes for our top pick. The Nicemaw popper also costs a bit more than our top pick, but it's well worth the investment.

The Hot Air Popcorn Maker is an economical, easy-to-use popcorn maker that pops large, fluffy kernels in about 3 minutes. The popcorn maker has a large, durable stainless steel chamber that can hold up to 6 cups of popcorn, and it produces a huge batch in about 3 minutes. The chamber is large and easy to clean, and it comes with measuring cups and a detachable lid. The popcorn maker has a large 1200W heating element that heats the aluminum blast chamber, so you don't have to worry about the popcorn getting too brown. The popcorn maker has an on-off switch, and the on-off button is big and clearly marked, so it's easy to turn the machine on and off. The hot air popcorn maker is large, so it's be sure to get plenty of popcorn for a party or family movie night. This popcorn maker has a sturdy handle, so it's easy to carry, and the popcorn maker is heavy, so it's less likely to tip over. The popcorn maker comes with a 90-day warranty.

The Presto Poplite is a no-nonsense hot air popper, and it delivers. The simple design and easy to use operation make it a great choice for popping popcorn at home, whether you're looking to save money on microwave bags or you just like physical media. The Presto Poplite uses regular or gourmet popcorn, and it uses this popcorn for about a third the cost of microwave bags. The chute directs the popcorn right into your bowl, and the butter melter doubles as a measuring cup. The Presto Poplite is faster than a microwave, popping up to 18 cups of gourmet corn in less than 2 1/2 minutes. The Presto Poplite is also easy to clean, and it's Energy Star certified. The Presto Poplite is reasonably priced, and it's backed by a 1-year warranty.

The Dash Hot Air popcorn maker is a no-fuss, entry-level machine that is easy to use and produces decent popcorn. The machine is compact, weighing in at less than 7 pounds, and the battery-operated air popper has simple controls. The popper has a simple design with a bright-blue handle and a stainless steel body, and it pops eight cups a minute. The popcorn tastes good, and the popper produces light, airy popcorn that stays fresh for days. The popper comes with a measuring cup and a butter melting tray, so you can make popcorn for movie nights, large parties, or a group gathering. The popper is easy to clean, and the battery lasts nearly two hours. It's easy to use, and it produces enough popcorn for a big group. There are a few cons, however. The popper takes up a lot of space, and the unit isn't as sturdy as our top pick. There's also no timer or count-down feature, so the machine pops as soon as the popcorn kernels are added. Also, the machine's power button is awkwardly placed, and it's unclear whether the machine shuts off when the popcorn reaches the desired length, so you'll need to keep an eye on it.

The Frigidaire EPM102-RED Deluxe Hot Air Popcorn Popper makes big batches of popcorn quickly, and it's an elegant, high-quality appliance that looks good in any kitchen. The popper has 18 cup capacity, and it's easy to use: Just pour in the corn, add the oil, and press the start button. We popped 18 cups of popcorn in less than 2 1/2 minutes, and the results were excellent. The popcorn was evenly popped, and it had a pleasant, slightly sweet, popcorn-butter flavor. The popcorn maker has a 5-minute shut off feature, which is perfect for when you run out of popcorn and don't want to wait for the popper to finish. The popper has a removable measuring cup, which doubles as a butter melter, and a 3-1/2-cup warming drawer, which helps keep popcorn warm while you finish popping more batches. The popper also has a removable kernel tray, which makes it easy to remove the popcorn from the popper. The popper has a 60-minute safety shut-off feature, and it has a powder-coated metal finish, which protects the popper from rust and corrosion. The EPM102-RED Deluxe Hot Air Popcorn Popper has all the features you want in a popcorn popper, and it's priced to fit any budget.

This hot air popcorn maker is quick and easy, and it produces delicious popcorn, but it's slightly tricky to use. First, the instructions are in Mandarin, so they're a little hard to understand. Second, when the popcorn maker is plugged in, it doesn't start making popcorn immediately. You have to press a button on the bottom to make it start, and this button doesn't illuminate until you've pushed it several times. Finally, the popping chamber can be removed and cleaned, but it only fits in the dishwasher if you remove the heating element and turn on the machine first. (The instruction manual shows how to do this, but it's a bit confusing.) Those caveats aside, the popcorn machine does produce very good popcorn, and it's fast (it takes 2 minutes to make 4 cups of popped corn). The heating element isn't just for show; it heats the popping chamber and ensures that each kernel is popped evenly. The popcorn maker also comes with a measuring cup, butter melting tray, and a removable cover, making it easy to clean up after you're done. The popcorn maker is also easy to clean, and the heating element is dishwasher-safe.

The 5 Core popcorn machine makes hot and fresh popcorn in minutes using hot air popping technology. The popcorn maker uses hot air to quickly and efficiently pop 16 cups of popcorn. The 5 Core popcorn maker, is the faster air popper machine that pops up to 16 cups of the fluffiest and largest popcorn in under 3 minutes. The hot air popcorn maker has a uniformly heating chamber, the hot air popcorn popper is up to 95% popping rate, and the large capacity design allows up to 16 cups of popcorn kernels. The popcorn maker features 1-touch operation, an on/off switch, a measuring cup that doubles as a butter melting tray on the top of the machine, a lid lock, an easy to read internal light, and a power indicator light. The popcorn machine uses 30 watts of power, and is ETL listed. The 5 Core popcorn maker, comes with a built-in full size measuring cup, butter melting tray, popcorn scoop, and popcorn scoop holder.

We tested 10 hot air popcorn poppers, and the winner was this 1200W oil-free hot air popcorn maker, which managed to make tasty, fluffy, and buttery popcorn in just a few minutes, and without adding any oils or butter. It produces 3 cups of popcorn for every 1 hour of heating, and it has a 1.2L inner pot. The popper has a transparent cover, and you can make popcorn without opening the lid, so it's perfect for parties. The popper's design also makes it suitable for use in the kitchen, and the removable parts are easy to clean. The popper's controls are simple and user-friendly, and it has a temperature control icon, so you can easily adjust the temperature. The hot air popcorn popper also has a measuring cup, which makes it easier to measure the right amount of popcorn. The included 12 paper popcorn bags are also a good addition. This popper is oil-free, so it's healthier than oil-based popcorn poppers, and it's quieter than electric popcorn poppers that use a heating element. It has a one-year warranty and is BPA-free.