Which range cooker brand to buy in 2021

Broken oven lights and faulty door seals are the most common range cooker problems, according to our survey of range cooker owners in the UK. Nearly one in 10 owners said the oven on their cooker would not heat up properly, or even at all.

You might expect that paying more for a range cooker will get you a more reliable product. But our data has found that sometimes your extra cash doesn’t prevent faults.

Each year we send out our unique reliability survey, asking thousands of Which? members to tell us whether they are happy with their domestic appliances and whether they have experienced any faults.

Our results take into account the reported fault rates, severity of these faults, and the timeframe in which they occurred. In our latest analysis we've looked at the performance of the biggest range cooker manufacturers – including Belling, Rangemaster, Stoves and Smeg – and have calculated a reliability rating for each.

Best vs worst range cooker brands compared

There's a big difference between the most and least reliable range cooker brands, and the satisfaction scores reported by their customers. 

The most reliable range cooker brands

The table below summarises this year’s reliability results. Brands are ranked by customer score, which relates to whether customers would recommend them to a friend. The more stars for reliability, the fewer the problems reported.

* Viewing this on mobile? Scroll right to see the whole table

Only logged-in Which? members can view which brands achieved the ratings and verdicts in the table below. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

The above data is based on a survey conducted on 516 Which? members Sept-Oct 2018.

Common range cooker problems

• Faulty door seal or door not closing properly (13%)
• Cooker dials or controls break (10%)
• Electrical fault (9%)
• Based on a Which? Member survey in Oct 2018 of 516 range cooker owners

The most common problems people experience with their range cookers is the door seal failing or the oven door not closing properly. Both will affect the ability of the oven to retain heat, which could be bad news for anything you're cooking inside.

Another common fault is that the cooker dials or controls break. For example, a knob on the cooker could fall off or stop engaging the gas ignition, or other buttons used to control a timer or a clock could stop working.

Third on the list of most common problems is an electrical fault. This could include a blown fuse, issues with the connections between temperature sensors or faulty switches. You're likely to need an appliance repairer to fix these types of problem.

Which range cooker brand stays fault-free for longest?

The graph above shows how the brand that stays fault-free for longest compares with the worst brand, as well as the overall average. Which? members can see how brands compare for faults over a five-year period in the table below.

* Viewing this on mobile? Scroll right to see the whole table

Only logged-in Which? members can view which brands achieved the ratings and verdicts in the table below. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access. 

Results based on feedback from 516 range cooker owners, surveyed in Sept-Oct 2018.

How we measure faults and reliability in range cookers

The table data takes into account minor, major and catastrophic faults:

• Minor: A fault that doesn't affect the product's performance significantly, or that only occurs occasionally with minimal impact. This issue may be irritating or annoying but it isn't frequently problematic and you can easily work around it. For example, a faulty oven light bulb is a minor fault.
• Major: These faults have a noticeable effect on the product’s performance, affects how you use the product and can be problematic. For example, the door seal degrading and causing the oven to lose heat.
• Catastrophic: A fault that renders the product unusable. It will need to be repaired or have parts replaced before it can be used again. This would include an electrical fault that would be too expensive to repair.

Range cooker brands rated

Choose a brand from the list below to find out more detail about its performance in our survey.

Only logged-in Which? members can view the hidden results in the tables below. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

Head to our range cooker reviews

Know which range cooker brand you want? Use the links to go straight to our reviews and find your ideal model:

• Aga range cooker reviews
• Beko range cooker reviews
• Belling range cooker reviews
• Leisure range cooker reviews
• New World range cooker reviews
• Rangemaster range cooker reviews
• Smeg range cooker reviews
• Stoves range cooker reviews

How we calculate the best and worst brands

Which? has a wealth of information on Britain's favourite domestic appliance brands. Every year, we ask Which? members to tell us about the cooking products they own – from how likely they would be to recommend a brand, to how reliable the products are once they get them home. This year, nearly 10,000 Which? members told us about more than 30,000 products. We calculate a brand's reliability and its customer score based on the results of our annual survey.

Our reliability surveys, combined with our extensive lab tests, mean we can recommend the best range cookers you should buy.

This data is crucial for our testing, too. If a brand falls far below the category average, we take away the manufacturer’s Best Buy status and won’t recommend any of their products unless a marked improvement in reliability is shown.