✔️ Type of Fuel: While most of the time your choice of fuel is dictated by what kind of fuel line is available in your house or building, if you have access to gas you can choose between a traditional gas range or a dual-fuel range. A traditional gas range uses gas to fuel both the cooktop and oven, while dual-fuel uses gas to fuel the cooktop and electricity to fuel the oven, though it does require a higher-volt power supply source. If you are able to install a dual-fuel range you will get the best of both worlds, a quick and powerful cooktop and an oven that bakes evenly.
✔️ Size: There are a variety of different range sizes to choose from. Most ranges vary from 30 inches wide to 60 inches wide. The larger the range, the more space there is for additional burners. The capacity of most household ovens varies from 4.5 cubic feet to 6.6 cubic feet. Any oven over the size of 6 cubic feet is considered a large-capacity oven and is great if you need to cook large quantities.
✔️ Burners: Most gas cooktops have between four and six burners, with five being the most common. While the number of burners is important, you should also consider the layout of the burners on the cooktop. Five cramped burners are no more useful than four well-spaced ones.
- Size: The size of burners varies from small to extra large and quite often correlates with their BTUs. If a burner is a lot smaller than the pan sitting on top, the heat won’t distribute as evenly. Look for at least one large burner in the front that will be able to hold a sauté pan or a large Dutch oven.
- Power (BTUs): The power of each gas burner is measured in BTUs, or British Thermal Units which is defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit. Some range cooktops offer a variety of different burner BTUs, while others share similar BTUs. You’ll want to look for a gas cooktop with a good variety of burners — so you can do everything from quick boils to gentle simmers — and a high average BTU. One 20,000-BTU power burner for boiling water is great, but it’s best to have a couple of burners above 12,000 BTUs.
✔️ Grates: Gas cooktop grates come in a variety of styles, but the most important thing to look for is that the grates are continuous, meaning they cover the surface of the cooktop end-to-end to prevent gapping, tipping and shifting of pots and pans. You also want elevated grates that can be easily lifted to clean up messes. Most grates are cast iron, which is heavy and durable but harder to clean and risks scratching your cookware. Some grates are enameled cast iron, which is easier to clean but risks chipping.
✔️ Oven settings: Newer gas ranges offer more oven settings than ranges of the past. Newer settings range from air fry to convection to steam cook. While these settings will help you unlock new cooking techniques, they are not completely necessary to get great use of your oven. Air fry settings use convection fans to circulate air rapidly to achieve crispy ingredients. Convection circulates air less rapidly than air fry for quicker and more even browning on delicate bakes like cake or cookies. Steam cook incorporates moisture, requiring less oil in your baking, and it’s great for delicate ingredients that are prone to drying out in the oven like broccoli or salmon.
✔️ Self-clean: Most ovens feature a self-cleaning option, which traditionally uses extremely high heat to remove the grime. Newer models feature a steam clean option to loosen dirt and baked-on messes. Steam cleaning is a much quicker process since it doesn’t require as much heat and allows for a quicker cool-down time. But while it’s quicker, it may not be as effective as the traditional high-heat self-cleaning method — and ultimately requires more elbow grease.