Best electric ranges from Consumer Reports' tests

Remember coil-top ranges? Style and status aren’t the reasons to buy one but it’s good to know that for well under $500 you can buy an excellent range. Electric smoothtop ranges are the big sellers, and induction deliver the fastest cooktop heat yet have been slow to catch on in the U.S. Here’s a look at some of the best electric ranges Consumer Reports has tested. All are top range picks.

Smoothtop
LG LRE3083W, $1,000
Here’s the deal: Superb simmering and fast cooktop heat helped put it on top. Baking and self-cleaning were impressive, broiling was superb.
Need to know: There are four rangetop cooking elements, including two high-powered that are handy for quickly bringing large pots of water to a boil and good for searing and stir-frying. The range-top warming element keeps side dishes warm while you do the rest. The large oven has a timesaving convection option and the steam-clean feature is meant for light cleaning.

Slide-in smoothtop
GE Café CS980STSS, $2,800
Here’s the deal: The control panel and knobs are up front so there’s no back panel and the look is built-in and stylish. That’s why it’s priced so high. This range was excellent at simmering, baking, and broiling, and impressive at delivering fast cooktop heating.
Consider this: Oven cleaning was so-so and while there are five range-top elements only one is high-power.
Need to know: The large oven has convection and there’s a warming drawer below.

Smoothtop double oven
LG LDE3037SB, $1,300
Here’s the deal: Pairs a smaller top oven with a larger oven below. It was the only smoothtop to ace all our tests and is top rated. It was superb at simmering and delivered fast cooktop heat. Baking, broiling, and self-cleaning were excellent and the combined capacity of ovens is excellent.
Consider this: It costs less than most double-oven ranges in our tests and you might be able to get by using the smaller oven for daily dinner and the larger for hosting holiday and dinner parties.
Need to know: Four range-top elements, including two high-power, and a warming element. The ovens have a steam-clean function for light cleaning and the lower oven has convection. But since there are two ovens there’s no drawer to store pots—something had to go.

Induction
Kenmore 95073, $1,530
Here’s the deal: Induction rangetop heat is the fastest we’ve tested—about 25 percent faster than smoothtops. In addiition to being fast, this Kenmore delivers precise simmering and control. The large oven offers impressive baking and broiling, and this is one of the few induction ranges that excelled at self-cleaning.
Consider this: It costs less than the other induction ranges we tested but all induction models require magnetic cookware.
Need to know: It has four cooktop elements, including two high power, convection option, and a warming drawer.

Coil top
Kenmore 94142, $430
Here’s the deal: It’s a basic range and a CR Best Buy. Will you see Kelly Ripa hawking it on TV? Nope. But it’s the best of the coil ranges. Fast heat, superb simmering, and a large oven that was impressive at baking are what you get. This range even aced our tough self-cleaning test.
Consider this: Broiling is so-so, and when we said basic, that’s what we mean. Forget convection.
Need to know: There are four range-top elements, including two high-power. It’s available in stainless.

More choices. There are dozens of electric, gas, and pro-style ranges in our range Ratings. Use them to find the one that fits your space and budget.

—Kimberly Janeway

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