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Title: The best pizza oven for 2025

Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2025 09:00:36 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/home/kitchen-tech/be...

Pizza ovens are having a moment. Companies like Ooni have popularized the
ability to make restaurant-quality pies at home by giving you ovens that get
hot enough for various pizza styles. Some burn wood while others run on gas,
and some options can even do both with the proper accessories. IΓÇÖve broken
down what to look for when youΓÇÖre shopping for a pizza oven along with my
top picks for the best pizza oven in various categories. If you prefer to
stay in your kitchen, IΓÇÖve got options for you too. Plus, thereΓÇÖs a list
of the pizza ovens on my upcoming slate of reviews.

Table of contents

Best outdoor pizza ovens for 2025

Best indoor pizza ovens in 2025

What to look for in a pizza oven

How to prepare before outdoor cooking

Upcoming pizza oven reviews

The best pizza accessories for the oven you already have

Best outdoor pizza ovens for 2025

Best indoor pizza ovens in 2025

Let me preface this section by saying you probably already have an indoor
option that you can use to make some great pizza. Whether thatΓÇÖs the main
oven in your kitchen or a multi-function countertop unit, with some
affordable accessories, you can easily up your game without spending $1,000
on a dedicated appliance. For example, my Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer has a
convection pizza setting that automatically adjusts cook time based on the
size, oven temperature and whether the pie is fresh or frozen. A key
consideration here is size. These things are massive, about the size of a
large microwave, so you likely wonΓÇÖt want to keep them out all the time
unless you have a huge kitchen.

What to look for in a pizza oven

When shopping for a home oven or dedicated pizza oven, youΓÇÖll first want to
consider what types of pies you plan to make. Most portable pizza ovens from
the likes of Ooni, Solo Stove and others use wood burning fuel and are
primarily designed for the high-heat cooking required for light and airy
Neapolitan-style pizzas. WeΓÇÖre talking high temperatures up to 900 degrees
Fahrenheit. These units can certainly cook different styles of pizza at
cooler temperatures, but the learning curve is easiest when youΓÇÖre running
them wide open with a full load of wood.

You'll also want to consider alternate fuel types. If you purchase a propane
or natural gas burner, you can adjust temperatures easily by turning a knob.
For this reason, I recommend you spend the extra $100 or so on that
accessory. This dual-fuel option makes your pizza oven a lot more versatile
and gives you the option to still have a freshly fired pie when you donΓÇÖt
feel like messing with wood or charcoal. If you only want to cook with gas,
there are models available that only use propane or natural gas.

The other key consideration for aspiring pizza makers is size. Most companies
make ovens that fit 12-inch pizzas, a perfect size for a personal pan pizza.
TheyΓÇÖre also great for pizza parties, since people can customize their own
without having to pick off toppings they donΓÇÖt like. If you want to make
larger pizzas or plan to use your oven for other things (pans, etc), consider
a larger version that can accommodate more than just small pies. The interior
dimensions ΓÇô or at the very least the pizza stone size ΓÇô will be listed
on most product pages.

How to prepare before outdoor cooking

Making good pizza at home requires a considerable amount of counter or table
space. YouΓÇÖll need room to stretch and prep your pizza dough, lay out your
mozzarella, other cheeses and toppings and load pies onto a peel. Of course,
some folks will be comfortable working in the tight confines of a small
kitchen, but IΓÇÖve found it much easier to use extra space to make sure
IΓÇÖm not constantly moving things around during the various steps in the
process.

ItΓÇÖs also less hassle to set up your pizza-making station in close
proximity to your oven. As a pizza-baking beginner, I did the running back
and forth from the kitchen to the back porch. ItΓÇÖs far from ideal. ItΓÇÖs
difficult to maintain your fire (if using wood or charcoal) when youΓÇÖre
unable to watch it closely. The good news is a patio table can be easily
converted into a pizza station with a large cutting board. This also gets
your oven off the ground so itΓÇÖs easier to access.

Ooni sells tables for its ovens that also offer shelving and storage for
peels and other accessories. Solo Stove has a rolling stand for its Pi oven
too, with small side shelves and a spot for your propane tank underneath. Of
course, you can find other tables and stands to suit your needs, just make
sure they can withstand any heat that may radiate from the bottom of the oven
while cooking. Most ovens are either well insulated or donΓÇÖt project too
much excess heat toward the table, but you can never be too careful. For that
reason, a stainless steel or metal surface is a good choice to set up an
outdoor model.

Most of these ovens heat up quickly and cook at high temperatures, especially
if youΓÇÖre making Neapolitan pizza. Having everything you need nearby so you
can keep tabs on the oven and quickly make the next pie ΓÇö especially the
first pizza ΓÇö will ease a lot of unnecessary headaches. When your cook time
is two minutes or less, you donΓÇÖt want to venture too far.

The best pizza accessories for the oven you already have

If you want to make a good pizza that rivals that of your favorite pizzeria
(and without spending hundreds of dollars on a dedicated oven), you can
definitely do it with the home oven you already have in your kitchen. With a
few gadgets, you can improve your game without splurging on a Breville, Ooni
or Solo Stove. First, IΓÇÖd recommend a high quality baking steel or stone.

Baking stones are great for getting better browning on the bottom of your
pies than a pizza or sheet pan. You can also use them for bread, cookies and
other items. The stone absorbs heat to cook pizza quickly, so you donΓÇÖt
need to worry about preheating it, and youΓÇÖll get that charred crust like a
brick oven provides. TheyΓÇÖre also more affordable compared to baking
steels. Those metal slabs do have one key advantage: higher heat
conductivity. This means a steel will cook your pizzas faster since it can
absorb more heat from your oven. While baking steels can be used as griddles
on your stovetop and for other types of baking, theyΓÇÖre not ideal for some
leavened breads.

The second item youΓÇÖll want is a pizza peel. These come in all shapes and
sizes, made out of a variety of materials. I typically use a bamboo or wooden
peel when topping and launching my pizzas and then a metal one for retrieving
them. IΓÇÖve found that dough doesnΓÇÖt stick as easily to bamboo during prep
and the metal resists the high heat of the oven when turning or retrieving a
finished pizza (bamboo will burn). There are also perforated peels which
allow both steam and excess flour to escape. A peel is a great tool for
loading and turning pizzas, getting them in the back of the oven, and since
youΓÇÖll typically be cooking them with your oven at 500 degrees or hotter,
using something like parchment paper to move them around wonΓÇÖt work.

And if youΓÇÖre going for a New York style pizza, just make sure your dough
recipe and ingredients are geared toward that thinner, crispy crust ΓÇö the
right accessories alone wonΓÇÖt be enough.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/home/kitchen-tech/be...
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