Which toaster brand is the most reliable?

We investigated the performance and reliability of some of the most popular toaster brands including Morphy Richards, Kitchen Aid and Philips.

In our unique small appliance survey, we asked more than 8,000 Which? members and members of the public if they’re happy with their toaster, and if they’ve experienced problems, so you can see which brands are worth the money.

Want the very best toaster for your budget? Head to our best toasters guide to find out which models impressed in our tests. 

Which toaster brands develop the fewest faults?

This table summarises what we found about how quickly toaster brands develop faults, based on toasters bought in the past seven years.

Only logged-in Which? members can see the full results of our brand reliability survey. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

Do you have dexterity or sight issues? See our guide to the best easy-to-use toasters for our top user-friendly models.

Which toaster brands do owners recommend?

 As well as faults, our survey also revealed which toaster brands owners feel happy with – and which they’d recommend to a friend.

These results are shown as each brand’s customer score, and are based on toasters bought in the past seven years.

Only logged-in Which? members can see the full results of our brand reliability survey. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

Head to our toaster reviews to see all of our reviews on your chosen brand.

The three most common toaster faults

Most toaster faults are not typically DIY fixes, though sometimes a good clean and inspection of your toaster can help fix minor issues. Always remember to unplug your toaster before inspecting it.

1. Heating element stops working (29% of faulty products)

The heating elements in a toaster are a grid of wires wrapped around an insulating board. The wires heat up to dry and char the bread – the closer the wires are to the bread, the quicker the bread will toast. 

Patchy browning sometimes happens when the wires on a toaster's heating element are unevenly wrapped or have ends sticking out.

An issue with the toaster's heating element was the most reported fault in our survey. Usually, if a toaster's heating element has blown, your bread comes out partially or completely untoasted.

This isn't something you can repair at home unless you're a qualified electrician. It can also point to an issue with the thermostat, but again, we wouldn't recommend trying to replace this yourself.

2. Faulty pop-up function (19%)

A faulty pop-up function covers a myriad of problems, such as the lever failing to move bread down into the toasting slot and toast not popping up when it's ready. Not only is this inconvenient, but it could become dangerous if you have to risk burning yourself to prise out items.

Pop-up issues accounted for almost a fifth of problems among our survey respondents, and some brands were affected much more than others.

Your best bet to try to fix this issue is by giving your toaster a thorough clean. Often, crumbs can sneak into the mechanism and stop things from working as they should. If this doesn't work, the spring that operates the lever might have slipped or broken, so it will need to be replaced.

3. Stopped working (12%)

It can be frustrating when a product breaks for no apparent reason – and this was the case for 12% of owners who dealt with toaster faults.

Unfortunately, for nearly two thirds who reported this issue, it rendered their product completely unusable.

Appliance failure can be caused by anything from issues with the internal electrics or mechanics of the toaster to a faulty power cord. Sometimes, wear and tear just takes its toll over time.

See our advice on toaster maintenance.

How easy is it to repair a toaster?

There's a very limited list of toaster problems that you'll be able to successfully fix at home and, sadly, most of the other common issues we discovered in our survey would need to be looked at by a professional.

However, faulty pop-up functions can often be easily rectified without needing to call an expert – sometimes the toaster needs to be emptied and cleaned to start working again. Regular maintenance can keep your toaster working for longer.

Dealing with a faulty appliance is inconvenient, but depending on how long you've owned it, you may be able to get a refund if it was of unsatisfactory quality, unfit for purpose or not as described.

If it's time for a new toaster, dispose of your old one responsibly – see how to recycle electrical items.

Which toaster brands offer the best guarantees?

Most toaster brands have a guarantee between one and two years, but there are a handful that offer longer cover, including:

• Dualit offers a one-year parts-and-labour warranty, but New Gen toasters with patented ProHeat elements have an additional two-year warranty.
• Smeg offers a two-year manufacturer's warranty with all appliances, but depending on the model, you can get up to a five-year guarantee.
• Tower offers a three-year guarantee when you register your product after purchase.

Bought a faulty product? Here's how to get a refund, repair or replacement.

How we discover the most reliable toaster brands

Which? has a wealth of information on your favourite toaster brands. 

We regularly contact Which? Connect panel members and ask them to tell us about the kitchen appliances they own, including how long they remained problem-free once they got them home and whether they would recommend the brand.

This year, 7,643 Which? members and 6,978 members of the public told us about more than 48,000 individual products, including 8,226 toasters. We calculate each brand's customer score, fault rate and reliability rating using the results of our annual survey.

Our survey, combined with our rigorous lab tests, means we can recommend the best toaster to buy

Head to how we test toasters to find out how we separate the best from the rest.