Top 10 Best Stone Frying Pan Brands To Buy In 2020 Reviews

Best Cookware Sets of 2020

Familiar names such as Anolon, Calphalon, and Cuisinart do well in CR's tests—but so do a few newcomers

Is it time to replace your cookware? If the bottom of a pan is warped (which can create hot spots that burn food), or if handles are loose or broken, it’s time to shop. And when the coating of a nonstick pan is flaking, it's got to go.

Cookware is sold in sets—consisting of about five to 15 pieces—or as individual pots and pans, typically called open stock. But keep in mind that a 12-piece set won't contain a dozen pots and pans. “In boxed sets, manufacturers count a lid as a piece,” explains Marion Wilson-Spencer, CR's market analyst for cookware. “Even utensils and a cookbook may count as pieces.”

We buy and test cookware sets ranging from less than $100 to $600 or more, from well-known brands such as All-Clad, Anolon, Calphalon, Cuisinart, and Zwilling J. A. Henckels, as well as sets sold under the names of celebrity cooks like Ayesha Curry, Rachel Ray, and the Pioneer Woman.

In our tests, we evaluate heating evenness, speed of heating, sauté performance, nonstick durability, handle sturdiness, and more. We cook pancakes, fry eggs, boil water, and simmer tomato sauce.

For more information, see our cookware buying guide, which includes a primer on different types of cookware and the materials they're made of.

Below are the best cookware sets from CR’s latest tests—six nonstick sets and four uncoated sets—listed alphabetically by type.