The Best Nonstick Pans, After Years of Testing (2026)

The idea of a nonstick pan seems like a convenience win: A skillet that cooks, crisps, and easily releases your food — with easy cleanup, to boot. But in practice, even the best nonstick frying pans suffer from a shorter lifespan than other cookware, which is an undeniable mark against them. There’s a reason most pro cooks use either stainless steel or carbon steel, and materials like cast iron and copper in their kitchens, and that reason is durability and reliability.

So why recommend nonstick pans at all? Because, simply put: They’re good for what they’re good for. Many a chef will still reach for something with a slick nonstick surface when making fluffy scrambled or lacy-edged fried eggs, dishes with sticky sauces. Indeed, when we talked to a bunch of professional chefs about their favorite pans, one of them even picked a nonstick pan (and the fact that he made no mention of it being PFAS-free caused a bit of a to-do in the comments). The bottom line: nonstick cookware can be helpful for home cooks, novice and otherwise, who aren’t as experienced with the knowhow of heat, fat, and care that some longer lasting materials require.

Our top picks

• The best nonstick pan overall: GreenPan Valencia Ceramic Nonstick
• An ultra-durable nonstick alternative: Misen Carbon Nonstick Frying Pan
• The best cheap nonstick pan: Oxo Professional Nonstick
• A beautiful splurge: Made In Ceramiclad Nonstick Pan

Over the last six years, the editors and contributors at Bon Appétit have tested—and retested, and tested again and again—dozens of nonstick pans. Below, you’ll find the four we recommend above all others, learn more about our testing methodology, and what to look for in a nonstick pan. You can also read all about why, across BA, we’ve stopped recommending cookware with conventional (that is, PTFE or Teflon) nonstick coatings.

New in this update: I tested eight pans from Hexclad, ProClad, Zwilling, Our Place, Ninja, Taima, and Farberware in a range of materials from ceramic-coated and titanium-coated pans with aluminum and stainless steel layers, and patterned stainless steel with inlaid ceramic coating. This was also the first time we looked for a hybrid pan to recommend, but haven’t found one to list among our top picks yet.

Best overall: GreenPan Valencia Pro Frying Pan

GreenPan was one of the first brands to specialize in (or at least promote the fact that they specialize in) ceramic nonstick, long before nontoxic cookware was a buzzword. The company has continued to release new lines of cookware, claiming improved coatings, and I’ve remained consistently pleased with its options over the years. The Valencia Pro maintained its fresh-from-the-box level of nonstick following months of regular use.

What I love: The Valencia Pro is relatively lightweight and has a pleasantly shaped, comfortable-to-grasp handle, which makes maneuvering the pan easy. It’s more resistant to scratching compared with earlier generations of GreenPan ceramic nonstick cookware too. An induction-compatible hard-anodized aluminum core allows it to heat up and cool down quickly on any kind of stovetop, and we’ve yet to encounter any issues with hot spots.

The oven-safe nonstick surface is rated for very high heat—up to 600°F—and while we don’t recommend getting your nonstick cookware that hot—ever—contributor Adam Campbell-Schmitt did test the claim by sticking the Valencia Pro under his oven’s broiler and, at least after a single trip through the inferno, didn’t notice meaningful degradation of its nonstick-ness.

According to GreenPan, the Valencia Pro is metal-utensil-safe and dishwasher-safe, but let’s be clear: Using metal utensils or a dishwasher on a ceramic nonstick pan is a bad idea. The coating will deteriorate on its own at some point anyway, and those two things will simply speed up that process, even if they might seem convenient in the moment.

What I’d leave: The issues with the GreenPan Valencia Pro aren’t with the pan specifically, just nonstick cookware as a category. The surfaces, even the very, very good nonstick surfaces, wear down with each use. That means that unlike cast-iron, carbon-steel, and stainless-steel pans, which can last a lifetime with proper care, nonstick pans are, in essence, disposable cookware.

In the long run: Over the course a year that included regular weekly use, this pan has maintained its nonstick properties, though it has been treated with the care we recommend: It’s only been used on low and medium heat and never had a metal utensil touch it.

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An ultra-durable nonstick alternative: Misen Carbon Nonstick Frying Pan

What we love: Traditional nonstick—whether ceramic or PTFE (Teflon)—is best used over medium or low heat. High heat causes coatings to break down over time, which is a big reason most nonstick pans only last a few years. That’s not a concern with Misen’s Carbon Nonstick Pan. It’s made from nitrided carbon steel, a treatment that diffuses nitrogen into the metal to boost hardness and improve corrosion and rust resistance. The result is a pan that delivers nonstick-like performance but actually can handle high heat, metal utensils, and years of regular use without the risk of degrading over time (this isn’t a contradiction with the above statement on metal utensils because this pan is actually made from different materials).

Unlike most carbon-steel pans, Misen’s version has an aluminum core for fast, even heating. While all carbon-steel pans make for great nonstick alternatives, this lightweight, nitrided version is the most forgiving, as it’s easy to wield and won’t rust before a robust seasoning develops.

What we’d leave: After this pan’s initial surge in popularity, there has been a little bit of online backlash complaining about diminishing performance of the nonstick surface. It’s fair to say that the initial factory seasoning does set high expectations for continued performance. If this is your first time using a carbon-steel pan and you aren’t familiar with how to maintain it, the stickiness that arises from improper cooking technique or neglect might leave you feeling deceived. However, if you regularly season this pan, its long-term nonstick surface will strengthen over time, and its baseline nonstick-ness will improve with each use. In comparison to a traditional carbon-steel skillet, the nitrided pan does take a longer time to develop a seasoning, but the benefit of not having to worry about rust during the earlier stages of seasoning development make this pan much more forgiving.

Before you say, “this isn’t a nonstick pan if I have to season it,” let me remind you that popular hybrid nonstick brands like Hexclad also recommend that you pre-season with a thin layer of oil to activate nonstick properties of the pan. The difference between this pan and a Hexclad pan is that the Hexclad’s combination stainless steel and ceramic nonstick surface can’t actually develop a true seasoning. Moreover, its ceramic coating degrades over time, making it less effective with each use, regardless of how careful you are with it. This pan, being carbon steel, requires the same care, but can actually develop a seasoning and thus improves with each use. There is no pan out there that stays perfectly nonstick forever regardless of neglect.

In the long run: Misen pretreats the pan’s surface with a coating of corn oil, which makes it perform very much like a Teflon pan out of the box. We now have three people testing this pan long term, and we noticed that the uncanny out-of-the-box performance wears away after a couple of weeks. In order to prevent sticking, the pan will benefit from regular reseasoning with a thin swipe of neutral oil and a minute over heat. While some people accustomed to the convenience of conventional nonstick might be annoyed by this regular maintenance step, it’s an easy thing to habituate once you do it a few times. Months of cooking have shown that this pan’s surface gradually develops a nice permanent layer of seasoning, and when cared for with the manufacturer’s instructions, performs quite nicely.

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Best cheap nonstick pan: Oxo Professional Ceramic Nonstick pan

We are not using “cheap” as a pejorative here. Because almost every pan recommended in this piece will likely need replacement after several years, picking a high performer that comes at the lowest price possible is a big benefit. And like so much of Oxo’s gear, the Oxo Pro Ceramic Nonstick Pans are a bargain relative to their quality. They have a slick ceramic nonstick surface out of the box and are easy to maneuver around the stove.

What we love: Eggs and pancakes released easily during testing while the handle stayed nice and cool throughout the process. The pan has rolled edges that make it easy to slide things from the pan and onto a plate with minimal effort. Like the GreenPan above, this Oxo pan is rated up to 600°F, is oven-safe, and has an exceptionally broad cooking surface relative to pans of the same dimensions. These pans frequently go on sale, too, which makes this a good budget option.

What we’d leave: While testing, we noticed a very slight convex shape to the cooking surface, which caused liquids to flow to the edges. However, it wasn’t so significant that it impacted the cooking.

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A beautiful splurge: Made In CeramiClad Nonstick Pan

Over the last several years, Made In Cookware has released a lot of kitchen and dining gear that our editors love to use at home, and it’s earned top spots in our product testing. When we were still recommending traditional nonstick cookware, the brand’s original nonstick pan (which is now part of its ProCoat Non Stick cookware line) was often a contender for top pick. In 2025 we were thrilled to find that Made In’s newer CeramiClad nonstick pan was just as slick as the traditional one, and after months of testing, we still enthusiastically recommend it.

What we love: If you like stainless-steel cookware for its heft, sturdy construction, and sleek look, but want a nonstick pan for cooking eggs, quesadillas, crepes, and the like, you’ll love this pan. In our testing, a fried egg—cooked with absolutely no butter, oil, or other fat—released from the surface of this pan just as easily, beautifully, and cleanly as it did from our previous, traditional nonstick top picks.

Like the brand’s original nonstick line, the base of the nonstick ceramic cookware is Made-In’s sturdy 5-ply stainless-clad frying pan, so it’s compatible with all kinds of cooktops, including induction.

This pan is a breeze to clean with a soft sponge and soapy water, and if you’re in it for the aesthetics, it also looks great. It has a cream-colored interior coating, and the handle comes in two finishes: stainless steel and antique brass.

What we’d leave: This is the priciest nonstick pan we recommend. Given the price, it’s good to keep in mind that repeated exposure to any real heat, even lower temperatures, will gradually deteriorate the nonstick coating on all ceramic nonstick cookware, even higher-end pieces like this. To help extend the pan’s life, use wood and silicone utensils and wash it exclusively by hand.

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Why we aren’t recommending any hybrid pans right now

With all of the coverage around PFAS chemicals and the health dangers they might pose, and reviewers like us making clear that, even if they seem nifty out of the box, ceramic nonstick cookware will need replacement more regularly than any other pots and pans you’ll buy, there’s been huge growth and interest in a category called “hybrid” cookware. Hybrid producers claim their pans, which have a cooking surface made with stainless steel base and nonstick coated patterns, combine the easy release of nonstick cookware with the high heat capability and longevity of other materials. In our experience using various hybrid pans that is only kind of true.

For this review I tested a number of the big names in the category. And the biggest, Hexclad, did indeed perform the best when judged purely as a nonstick pan. But as senior writer Wilder Davies noted in his in-depth Hexclad review, that performance faded on a year-old skillet. That’s a bit quicker than some ceramic-coated pans. After speaking with a materials scientist, he also found descriptions of seasoning the cookware to extend its nonstick lifespan misleading (you can’t season a stainless steel or nonstick pan like you can cast iron). But the bigger issue, as Wilder noted, is the cost. A 10-inch Hexclad skillet retails for about $150. That’s more than we generally think you should pay for a nonstick pan. The splurge pick we have in this review from Made In does cost that much, but unlike Hexclad, which has a blog post calling its pan “the best for searing steak,” Made In says its pans should be used on “low and medium heat.” If you follow Made In’s instructions, you will have a longer lasting pan for eggs or saucy sautés than if you try to sear a steak. Made In comes closer to embracing the idea I mentioned at the top of this review, that nonstick pans are good for what they’re good for.

So what about less expensive hybrid pans? Mostly they just didn’t perform as well. Zwilling’s pan, that costs 30% less than a Hexclad or Our Place Titanium, was a bit stickier than either. And Ninja’s EverSear, which did perform well, is currently only available as part of a three-piece set. We generally don’t recommend getting a nonstick cookware set of any size, and so we can’t recommend Ninja as a top pick right now either. If and when the EverSear has individual skillets available, we’ll definitely revisit the category. If you’d like to read more about how these pans performed during my testing, that’s included in my reviews below.

What difference does it make if you cook with fat in a nonstick pan?

Below you can see eggs fried in the Greenpan Valencia. In the first video below, senior editor Noah Kaufman used a pad of butter and in the second he cooked in a dry pan, the way we typically test nonstick skillets.

You’ll notice sticking in the dry pan, but if you look, it isn’t actually on the cooking surface. It’s the non-toxic spatula that isn’t able to easily get underneath the egg, instead, just pushing it around the pan. The pan with butter in it had no such issue.

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How I tested nonstick pans

With the understanding that nonstick pans often have coatings that wear out over time, the focus of our testing centers on how well a pan performs the moment you start using it. Longevity is considered when we have experience to back it up, but in the end many “nonstick” pans are (unfortunately) somewhat disposable. Pans that can be nonstick with a little effort (i.e. carbon steel, titanium, and cast iron) will almost always win out in that category.

Writers and editors also continue to use our top picks throughout the year to update our reviews with intel gleaned from long-term use, so we often hold onto the pans we liked to ensure they continue to impress us as they get more use.

What makes a good nonstick pan

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Other nonstick pans that performed well in our tests

Ninja EverSear

Ninja released this triple-ply stainless steel pan with a hybrid ceramic coating in October 2026, so it’s fresh on the market and my testing window has been shorter than with some other pans. But my initial impressions were positive, with eggs able to slide, even without butter in the pan, and everything cooking evenly. Ninja’s pan has straighter-sided profile, which doesn’t allow for easy plate transfers of omelets but does make browning ground meat less messy. One nice feature is a second “handle” on the edge opposite the main handle that helps a set of pans nest, supporting the weight on the rim and on the slightly concave main handle without putting any wear on the surface of the pan underneath. It’s at least a nod towards a design that can help improve longevity. The three-year warranty on its nonstick surface is also a reassuring statement about its durability.

If it was available as a single, $100 pan I’d include it among my top picks for someone looking for a hybrid pan, but at this point it isn’t. You can only get it as part of a three-pan set (an 8-inch, a 10-inch, and a 12-inch), that costs $300 at the time of writing. As a nonstick pan is a more specialized piece of cookware, our take is that they’re best purchased one at a time. But I’ll continue using this pan to test its longevity and hope to see it available in individual sizes.

HexClad Fry Pan

HexClad in many ways set the bar for hybrid nonstick cookware, and in my tests it met its own standard admirably. Heating was fast and even, and stickiness wasn’t an issue on basically anything I cooked. The question is how long they’ll stay that way. And if you use them your everything pan, searing proteins, stir frying, and any other high heat cooking you do, they probably won’t.

They are comfortable And importantly, they’re comfortable to cook with in both weight and handle ergonomics. But compared to some of the other pan sets on this list, a six-piece collection (three pans with lids) will set you back nearly $400. That said, you’re getting a beefy, tri-ply stainless steel and aluminum pan plus the benefits of ceramic nonstick. Whether that’s something worth paying for in a nonstick pan that may one day quit on you is another story.

Our Place Titanium Always Pan Pro

Out of the box, this ceramic/titanium hybrid pan performed well with and without fat when cooking an egg. I did notice some more concentrated heat in the center versus the edges, but a proper pre-heating evened things out. The walls have steep angles which can be a good or bad thing depending on whether you’re going to be sliding things out of the pan and onto a plate often, or if you might be using your skillet as more of a sauté pan. It’s oven safe to 1,000ºF and even dishwasher safe (both those will degrade the nonstickiness of the pan quickly though). While it’s nice that it comes with a lid, the domed shape is not easily storable or stackable.

It was also more laborious to clean thanks to a slightly deeper pattern on its surface. This also yielded some moister (as in soggier) pancakes, trapping a bit more steam under them. I’d be worried over time that residue is more likely to build up on this pan than one with a more flush pattern.

ProClad Hybrid 2.0 Nonstick Pan

This is a hefty and attractive pan with a terracotta ceramic coating between the raised stainless steel hexagonal pattern (it comes in cream and slate, too). Browning was pretty even on my pancakes, though it took a little longer to heat up due to its thickness. I like the shape of the pan itself, with walls that are sloped enough to slide things out, but not so shallow as to let ingredients fly out when sauteeing. Unfortunately, a no-butter egg test stuck almost completely and while that doesn’t disqualify it completely because, well, you should use some kind of fat when cooking an egg, the cleaning of what did stick was much more difficult than similar hybrids. As of this writing, the ProClad is still a Kickstarter-only product.

Ninja Neverquit

Ninja’s ceramic-coated aluminum line performed adequately but not exceptionally. It required a little prying with the butter-less egg and produced some pale initial pancakes before I adjusted the heat to deal with the less consistent heat retention. Similarly to EverSear, the Neverquit only comes in a set of three skillets or as part of a set with a sauté pan and stock pot with steaming and straining inserts. They made my “liked” list because they offer another budget-friendly ceramic option that are sturdy and, like the Eversear, stackable. They come in four colors — sage, pink, blue, and bone — if matching your decor matters. But it’s too early to weigh in on the longevity of the ceramic coating.

Taima Titanium Nutri Pan Pro

This somewhat pricey pan has a surface clad in titanium that purports to offer all the benefits of nonstick with none of the potentially harmful chemicals or scratchable coating. Like a stainless steel pan, it required fat to be its best nonstick self, but probably takes a bit less to have easy release. I did get some odd looking results due to its organically patterned, dimpled surface texture (think debossed water droplets). Pancakes came out splotchy and a bit of my egg stuck. I gave it a test run on browning a pack of ground turkey and got some sticking there as well, but it cleaned up with a bit of scouring. Purely titanium surfaces are still proving themselves in the nonstick market. For now, we’re taking a wait-and-see attitude with further testing needed.

GreenPan Reserve Pro 8″ Frypan

GreenPan Reserve is the brand’s most aesthetically pleasing line thanks to the off-white ceramic-coated nonstick cooking surface and gold-toned handle. Reserve cookware comes in a variety of subdued, design-friendly colors and you can often get a two-pan set in complementary shades. Out of the box, the light-colored interior surface is as slick as other GreenPan pans, but in my experience using the original Reserve cookware long-term, it is a bit more delicate than the darker ceramic nonstick coatings on other GreenPan lines. But in the summer of 2025, the brand released the Reserve Pro line of ceramic nonstick cookware and began to phase out the original Reserve cookware. The Pro line is almost identical to the original line, but has an improved nonstick coating for added durability and the handle design has been tweaked for easier stacking (use pan protectors if you stack your pans). Some Reserve pieces come with lids, and the Reserve Pro lids now also have a silicone ring to help protect coating around the edge of the pan. Unfortunately, the upgraded design didn’t eliminate the riveted handle design, so depending on what you cook in it, you may need to use a little extra elbow grease when cleaning around the rivets.

GreenPan GP5 Infinite8 Ceramic Nonstick Fry Pan

The GP5 frying pan is another great nonstick pan from GreenPan. It has the same easy-to-hold handle as other GreenPans, flushed rivets, and a broad cooking surface relative to its dimensions. The company advertises that the new coating of this pan is superior to the Valencia, however our testing has yet to reveal a difference in quality. The GP5 is also heavier than the Valencia and the Oxo. While it has a very consistent cooking surface, it takes a slightly longer time to heat up.

GreenPan Paris Pro

The GreenPan Paris Pro line is an earlier generation of GreenPan. While it hasn’t been discontinued yet, it does seem like the company is phasing it out in favor of newer models like the Valencia. The Paris Pro was similar to the Valencia in terms of performance and design and was once one of our top picks; however, the Paris is not compatible with induction cooktops so we bumped it down on our list.

GreenPan Venice Pro TriPly Ceramic Nonstick Skillet

The Venice Pro Tri-Ply was another nice ceramic-coated nonstick pan from GreenPan. The line has been discontinued, but it is still available through some retailers. It performed on par with other GreenPan’s we liked though was a bit more expensive.

Swiss Diamond CXD Nonstick Fry Pan

The Swiss Diamond CXD Nonstick Frypan is sturdy and thick, but not too heavy, thanks to an induction-friendly aluminum base. The black cooking surface (which is PFAS-, lead-, and cadmium-free) is slick, yet ever-so-slightly textured in a way that lets food brown better and more efficiently than a super-smooth nonstick surface would. Compared to other nonstick pans in this review, this one is fairly shallow and, because of the thick base material, it takes a little longer to heat than comparable pans, but it’s very easy to clean—especially because there are no rivets on which to catch food.

Anolon Everlast Nonstick Frying Pan

Over our years testing Anolon products, it’s made some real improvements to its cookware. The Everlast is a fully clad frying pan, so it conducted heat evenly and responded well to changes in temperature. That construction also gives the pan a substantial feeling that’s lacking in some less expensive nonstick pans. And while the eggs we cooked didn’t exactly slide around the pan, they released easily to flip, even in a dry pan.

The best part of the Everlast’s design though, may be its flush rivets. The design of the cook surface meant there were no nooks or crannies for anything to stuck in, making clean up even easier than it typically is with a good nonstick pan.

The one downside is that, currently the Everlast is only available as part of a 3- or 11-piece set. The 3-piece includes 8.5″, 10″, and 12.25″ skillets. The 11-piece set also includes two saucepans, a sauté pan, and a stockpot. Given our general avoidance of nonstick saucepans and stockpots, we’d stick with the skillet set.

Henckels H3 Ceramic

The H3 line from Henckels is a decent affordable cookware line. These pans are clad with stainless steel and aluminum, so they are lightweight and easy to maneuver. The nonstick performance is pretty standard for a ceramic pan and while the brand says it is metal utensil safe, it did still scratch when rough handled.

Zwilling Clad CFX

This is another stainless-steel clad nonstick pan, that is easy to handle on the stovetop. The performance on this pan was also pretty standard and middle of the pack. As a more affordable pan with a stainless-steel exterior, this is a nice-looking and affordable alternative to the Made-In pan above.

Nonstick pans we don’t recommend

Not all of the nonstick pans below are bad, but we don’t suggest spending your money on them when you could buy one of our recommended pans instead.

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Alternatives to nonstick cookware

If the PFAS of it all has you feeling squeamish about nonstick, we recommend you consider one of the below options instead.

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Because a nonstick pan can’t be your only piece of cookware…

• Check out our favorite cookware sets
• Consider a cast-iron skillet that will last a lifetime
• Want the actual everything pan? Get a sauté pan

Additional reporting by Emily Farris and Wilder Davies.