Best Toasters 2024: Rated and reviewed

It’s no wonder we gave the Dualist 4 Slot Lite toaster a perfect five-star rating. Not only does it accommodate up to four large slices of bread, it boasts genuinely useful extra features that make the toaster especially reliable. 

The toaster has been around for years, in fact we reviewed the model back in 2017, but it’s stood the test of time and remains one of the best toasters available today. 

The 4 Slot Lite features four extra-wide 36mm slots, a dial to control browning, dedicated defrost and bagel buttons plus a genuinely useful ‘Peek & Pop’ function which allows you to check on your toast’s progress without cancelling the cooking cycle. 

This isn’t where the clever tools end. Dualit’s own ‘Perfect Toast’ technology adjusts the toaster’s settings according to its current temperature, so every slice is browned consistently. 

For example, if you’ve just used the device but still need to toast more, the toaster will automatically reduce its usual cooking time in order to match the results of the first batch.

Once your toasted items have finished you can then lift the lever to raise your item further by 1.5cm, which is enough to comfortably grab the goods without burning your fingers. 

To test the evenness of the browning, we toasted two slices of white bread vertically alongside two horizontally. After a full toasting cycle of two minutes and 15 seconds, we found both sets of toasts were toasted impressively evenly.

At a whopping 90cm, the 4 Slot Lite’s cable length is perhaps overly generous but luckily there’s cable management underneath so you can store away any unsightly excess. 

Although this isn’t the cheapest toaster available, it’s undoubtedly a worthy investment especially thanks to the built-in intelligent features which promise consistent results every time.

If you’re on a tighter budget but still need a reliable four-slice toaster, we’d recommend the Cuisinart Signature Collection 4 Slice Toaster which is slightly cheaper but still promises consistent results. 

Reviewer: Caramel Quin

Full review: Dualit 4 Slot Lite Toaster

With an anti-dust lid, extra wide toasting slots and easy-to-use controls, the Haier I-Master Series 5 Toaster is packed with features designed to remove any annoyances away from toasting. 

Its anti-dust lid sits on top of the toaster when it’s not in use and is designed to prevent dust from falling in whilst covering up the usual crumb-adorned top.

Its extra wide and deep slots are able to accommodate larger slices of bread and thicker items such as bagels and crumpets too. We particularly appreciated the large slots here as the usual annoyance of bread slices sticking out and not getting fully toasted is completely eradicated.

Using the toaster is easy, thanks to simple controls that sit on its side. Simply slide the lever down and the toasting level will light up, with plus and minus buttons for you to choose a setting between one and seven. 

You can even set the I-Master Series 5 to remember your optimum toasting level by pressing and holding the Favourite button. Then, simply tap this button just before you next make toast and it will recall your preferred settings. 

That’s not the only additional button. For toasting bagels, or anything else that benefits from being cooked on just one side, tap the Crispy Side button and one half of each slot is turned off.

There’s also a Small Slice button for smaller slices of bread and if you want to check on your toast halfway through without interrupting its cycle, you can just slide the lever up. 

We were seriously impressed with the I-Master Series 5’s performance and found that bread was not only evenly toasted but adjusting the levels really made a difference, with higher settings offering darker and crispier results. That may sound obvious but some alternatives, like the KitchenAid Toaster, don’t offer such versatility.

For a toaster that’s packed with useful features, has a sleek design and performs well, the Haier I-Master Series 5 is well-suited to most households.

Reviewer: David Ludlow

Full reviewer: Haier I-Master Series 5 Toaster 2 Slice

The Dualit Studio 2-Slice Toaster is a toaster that aims to deliver a stylish design and innovative technology at an affordable price. 

The toaster is slightly cheaper than the 2-slice version of Dualit’s 4-Slot Lite Toaster, but it has seen some of the more interesting functions pared down to standard ones. That said, it’s still a fast and consistent toaster. 

The Studio 2-Slice Toaster has a striking design that looks great in most kitchens without being overly distracting. It’s sturdy but lightweight and comes in sleek black, white and grey colours with a generous 90cm cable and hooks underneath to wrap it. 

There are defrost and reheat buttons on either side of the browning dial, which lights up in red to become a cancel button once the lever is pushed down. 

The slots are 3.5cm wide, but Dualit cautions that the thickest slice the toaster will fit is 2.8cm. However, the toasting slot isn’t the tallest, so we recommend toasting taller bread horizontally. 

We found setting 4 to be perfect for medium-white slices and the toaster is fast, browning bread in just 2 minutes and 10 seconds. Reheating takes 30 seconds and bread can go from frozen to crispy in under 2 minutes and 25 seconds. 

If you’re looking for a solid, straightforward 2-slice toaster with a stylish design, the Dualit Studio won’t disappoint. However, bigger families will want to look at 4-slice options on this list. 

Reviewer: Helen Harjak

Full review: Dualit Studio 2-Slice Toaster

The Dualit Domus Four-Slice Toaster has some of the biggest slots you’ll find, making it perfect for toasting almost any bread you might have in your kitchen. 

The Domus Four-Slice Toaster has a large, bulbous design that doesn’t quite have the same retro appeal as say the Dualit 4 Slot Lite Toaster or the Smeg TSF02 4-Slice 2-Slot Toaster. It’s even big and heavy compared to many other four-slot machines. 

However, this toaster is sturdy and feels fantastic to use. There are 9 browning levels and you have the option to lift the lever and peek at the toast without cancelling the toasting process. 

Like the Dualit 4 Slot Lite, the Domus Four-Slice Toaster adjusts the toasting time based on the background temperature to avoid over-cooking bread and give consistent results every time. 

The toaster also has the same frozen and bagel settings, though there’s no reheat button. This means there’s no way to warm up your toast again without risking browning it further and there’s no single-slot button to avoid heating up an empty slot when you want to toast an odd number of slices. 

The slots are 140cm long and are deep enough that you shouldn’t need to lay standard supermarket bread on its side to get an even browning. The toaster also produces some of the best toast we’ve ever eaten, with the large slots ensuring bread is toasted all the way to the edge. 

If you’re looking for a toaster that can handle chunky homemade bread and larger loaves, then the Dualit Domus is a great option. 

Reviewer: Simon Handby

Full review: Dualit Domus Four-Slice Toaster

The Smeg TSF02 4-Slice 2-Slot Toaster is a stylish toaster capable of browning four slices of bread in its two slots, making it a larger alternative to the brand’s two-slot, two-slice TSF01. 

The Smeg TSF02 has a glossy retro design that matches Smeg’s other appliances. It comes in a wide range of super shiny colours, including cream, white, black, red, pastel blue, chrome, pink and pastel green. 

The design is also sturdy, meaning the toaster is unlikely to tip over when you push the lever down, and there’s a long 88cm cable that can hook under the toaster for easy storage. 

Of course, the standout feature here is the two large slots. These are spacious, allowing you to toast very long bread, including slices of sourdough and halved baguettes. 

Beneath the lever, there’s a 6-level browning dial split into two increments, allowing you to toast your bread at 2.5 or 3.5 if you wish. There’s also a reheat button on the dial, meaning you don’t need to guess which level the dial should be at before hitting reheat. 

Like the Dualit 4 Slot Lite Toaster and the Dualit Domus Four-Slice Toaster, this toaster also has a specific bagel programme which can be used for bagels, flatbreads, muffins and baguettes. However, both slots do share the same set of controls. 

We found the slots to be not quite long enough to place two slices of supermarket bread horizontally without them overlapping, while horizontal slices were left pale at the top where they stuck out of the toaster. 

For this reason, we’d recommend either opting for smaller loaves when toasting four slices or sticking to just two slices at a time for the most even browning. 

The Smeg TSF02 is a gorgeous toaster with slots long enough for sourdough slices and half baguettes and a handy bagel function. However, there is only one set of controls so, for those looking to make two types of toast at once, opt for the Morphy Richards Evoke 4-Slice Toaster instead. 

Reviewer: Helen Harjak

Full review: Smeg TSF02 4-Slice 2-Slot Toaster

If you’re searching for a great-looking family toaster and prefer traditional-style controls then the Cuisinart Signature Collection 4 Slice Toaster is a fantastic choice. 

This toaster has a classic design with four parallel slots set in a relatively compact body. We reviewed the gleaming stainless steel version, but the toaster is also available with subtle metallic pearl, pink and green panels. 

Each pair of slots has its own lever and step-free rotary browning control marked from 1 to 6, along with buttons to reheat, defrost and toast bagels. There are no single-slot options, so you’ll need to heat an empty slot if you only want one (or three) slices. 

The slots themselves are advertised as extra deep, though we weren’t convinced by this label as they measured 130mm deep, 135mm long and 26mm wide in our own tests. Though they easily fit home-baked sliced bread, bagels and cut baguettes, the slots can be a bit small for standard supermarket bread. 

The toasting slots aren’t dampened so you can be sure you’ll hear when they pop up, and the buttons and controls feel quite old-school. However, they also feel durable and the toaster comes with a three-year warranty for added reassurance. 

When it comes to performance, we found the Cuisinart Signature Collection 4 Slice Toaster offered even toasting across the full range of breads we tested. Thick breads left a noticeable grid pattern, with bagels toasting nicely on setting 2 and chunky home-baked bread receiving a medium-light browning on setting 4. 

If you’re looking for a good family toaster with classic style, look no further than the Cuisinart Signature Collection 4 Slice Toaster. 

Reviewer: Simon Handby

Full Review: Cuisinart Signature Collection 4 Slice Toaster