The Best 6Aggregated review·19 sources·updated August 2, 2026·checked August 2, 2026

Best Compact Induction Cooktops

The best compact induction cooktops — portable countertop burners that plug into a standard 120V outlet — ranked using the two most thorough independent tests available, from Serious Eats (17 models) and NYT Wirecutter. For built-in units that drop into a 24-inch cutout, see our 24-inch induction cooktop guide.

This guide aggregates 19 published reviews across 6 products; the thinnest-sourced pick rests on 1. How we rank.

Verdict is reader-supported. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Some links on this page are affiliate links — if you click through and buy, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Our ratings are sourced from independent publications, not sponsors.

Quick answer

Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop is our top pick for compact induction cooktops — an averaged 4.6/5 across 4 published reviews at about $1,499.95. Runner-up: Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop (~$84.99).

Read the Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop review →$1,499.95 · Buy at webstaurantstore.com

At a glance

Tap any product for the full review

#	Product	Rating	Price	Best for
1	Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction CooktopTop Score	4.6 4 sources3 derived	$1,499.95	Pastry cooks, confectioners and anyone whose failures come from temperature drift rather than lack of power — custards, curds, tempered chocolate, caramel, long low-temperature holds. Also a defensible buy for a small professional kitchen. It is the wrong appliance for a dorm room, an RV, or a counter where it would have to be put away between uses.	$1,499.95 · Buy at webstaurantstore.com
2	Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop	4.4 3 sourcesall derived	$84.99	Cooks who want one dependable countertop burner and no learning curve — renters without gas, small-kitchen cooks adding a third element, RV and dorm setups, and anyone who simmers stocks or sauces and wants the heat to stay where they set it. Skip it if deep-frying is your main use.	$84.99 · Check Price on Amazon
3	Hamilton Beach 34104 Portable Single Induction Cooktop	4.4 1 sourceall derived	$79.95	Countertop cooks who fry — shallow-frying cutlets, doughnuts, a Dutch oven of oil for onion rings — and anyone who wants to use a wide skillet on a portable burner without the rim going cold. Also a sensible pick as a second unit next to a slower burner, since it is frequently discounted.	$79.95 · Check Price on Amazon
4	Duxtop 9600LS Portable Induction Cooktop	4.3 6 sourcesall derived	$116.99	Renters, dorm and RV cooks, and home cooks who want an affordable second burner for simmering sauces, holding stocks and fast boils. The 10-hour timer and 20 fine power steps are the reason to pick it — not raw speed or deep-frying, where cheaper burners beat it.	$116.99 · Check Price on Amazon
5	IKEA TILLREDA Portable Induction Cooktop	3.9 3 sources2 derived	$74.99	One- and two-person households, first-time induction buyers, and anyone who wants an extra burner without a manual — small-kitchen cooks, studio apartments, and hobby setups where a seven- to eight-inch pan is the normal size anyway. Not the right burner if you cook for a family in a 12-inch skillet.	$74.99 · Buy at ikea.com
6	Nuwave PIC Gold Induction Cooktop	3.3 2 sourcesall derived	$107.99	Budget buyers who want a genuinely lightweight burner to move between a kitchen, a dorm room or an RV and who value a simple control panel over raw power. Its 1500W ceiling and the durability question mean it works better as an occasional second burner than as a primary one.	$107.99 · Check Price on Amazon

Derived means the reviewer published no score, so one was inferred from their written verdict. Everything else is a number the publisher printed. How we rank.

At a glance6 products ▾

1Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction CooktopTop Score

4.6

4 sources3 derived

$1,499.95Best for: Pastry cooks, confectioners and anyone whose failures come from temperature drift rather than lack of power — custards, curds, tempered chocolate, caramel, long low-temperature holds. Also a defensible buy for a small professional kitchen. It is the wrong appliance for a dorm room, an RV, or a counter where it would have to be put away between uses.

$1,499.95 · Buy at webstaurantstore.com

2Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop

4.4

3 sourcesall derived

$84.99Best for: Cooks who want one dependable countertop burner and no learning curve — renters without gas, small-kitchen cooks adding a third element, RV and dorm setups, and anyone who simmers stocks or sauces and wants the heat to stay where they set it. Skip it if deep-frying is your main use.

$84.99 · Check Price on Amazon

3Hamilton Beach 34104 Portable Single Induction Cooktop

4.4

1 sourceall derived

$79.95Best for: Countertop cooks who fry — shallow-frying cutlets, doughnuts, a Dutch oven of oil for onion rings — and anyone who wants to use a wide skillet on a portable burner without the rim going cold. Also a sensible pick as a second unit next to a slower burner, since it is frequently discounted.

$79.95 · Check Price on Amazon

4Duxtop 9600LS Portable Induction Cooktop

4.3

6 sourcesall derived

$116.99Best for: Renters, dorm and RV cooks, and home cooks who want an affordable second burner for simmering sauces, holding stocks and fast boils. The 10-hour timer and 20 fine power steps are the reason to pick it — not raw speed or deep-frying, where cheaper burners beat it.

$116.99 · Check Price on Amazon

5IKEA TILLREDA Portable Induction Cooktop

3.9

3 sources2 derived

$74.99Best for: One- and two-person households, first-time induction buyers, and anyone who wants an extra burner without a manual — small-kitchen cooks, studio apartments, and hobby setups where a seven- to eight-inch pan is the normal size anyway. Not the right burner if you cook for a family in a 12-inch skillet.

$74.99 · Buy at ikea.com

6Nuwave PIC Gold Induction Cooktop

3.3

2 sourcesall derived

$107.99Best for: Budget buyers who want a genuinely lightweight burner to move between a kitchen, a dorm room or an RV and who value a simple control panel over raw power. Its 1500W ceiling and the durability question mean it works better as an occasional second burner than as a primary one.

$107.99 · Check Price on Amazon

Derived means the reviewer published no score, so one was inferred from their written verdict. Everything else is a number the publisher printed. How we rank.

Reviews aggregated from

SeriouseatsThe New York TimesCenturylifeEngadgetSizzleandsearThecookingworldTherationalkitchenTechwalls

The full ranking

How we rank →

Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop

#1 · Top Score

Best for: Pastry cooks, confectioners and anyone whose failures come from temperature drift rather than lack of power — custards, curds, tempered chocolate, caramel, long low-temperature holds. Also a defensible buy for a small professional kitchen. It is the wrong appliance for a dorm room, an RV, or a counter where it would have to be put away between uses.

Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop

4.6

4 sources3 derived$1,499.95

The Control Freak is the outlier in this category and the reason is measurable. Serious Eats found that on ordinary portable induction burners a temperature setting can be hundreds of degrees away from what is happening in the pan; this one held cookware within 15 to 20 degrees of target and came with a probe to tighten that further. It is also 21 pounds, has no quick-boil, and costs more than ten times the price of the burners it beats. That is a specialist's trade, not a general one.

Strengths

— The only cooktop in Serious Eats' 17-model test whose temperature settings tracked reality, holding cookware within 15 to 20 degrees of the target
— Ships with a probe that attaches to the cooktop for closed-loop temperature regulation rather than open-loop guessing

Watch-outs

— Costs more than ten times what most of the other recommended portable induction cooktops cost
— 21 pounds and 13.7 by 18.5 inches — Wirecutter says it "takes up about as much counter space as a 1980s microwave"

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— The only cooktop in Serious Eats' 17-model test whose temperature settings tracked reality, holding cookware within 15 to 20 degrees of the target
— Ships with a probe that attaches to the cooktop for closed-loop temperature regulation rather than open-loop guessing

Watch-outs

— Costs more than ten times what most of the other recommended portable induction cooktops cost
— 21 pounds and 13.7 by 18.5 inches — Wirecutter says it "takes up about as much counter space as a 1980s microwave"

$1,499.95 · Buy at webstaurantstore.com Full review →vs. Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop →

Best for: Cooks who want one dependable countertop burner and no learning curve — renters without gas, small-kitchen cooks adding a third element, RV and dorm setups, and anyone who simmers stocks or sauces and wants the heat to stay where they set it. Skip it if deep-frying is your main use.

Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop

4.4

3 sourcesall derived$84.99

The 9100MC is the plainest cooktop in Duxtop's own lineup and, in the most thorough test available, the best one. Serious Eats ran 17 portable induction burners through boiling, frying, searing and simmering and this model won outright: it boiled a gallon of water fastest at 16 minutes and drifted less than five degrees across an hour of simmering. Its advantage is restraint — physical buttons, no presets to fight, no auto-timers that cut the heat early. The ceiling shows up in deep-frying, where it could hold 375°F oil only by running flat out.

Strengths

— Fastest boil of the 17 cooktops Serious Eats tested — a full gallon of room-temperature water in a 4.5-quart Dutch oven reached a boil in 16 minutes
— Held an hour-long simmer with less than five degrees of fluctuation, the steadiest low-heat behavior in that test group

Watch-outs

— Ran out of headroom deep-frying: Serious Eats had to hold it at maximum power for the entire onion-ring test just to keep the oil at 375°F, and it would not push past that
— No boil or keep-warm shortcut buttons, so routine heat changes take more presses than on cooktops that have them

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— Fastest boil of the 17 cooktops Serious Eats tested — a full gallon of room-temperature water in a 4.5-quart Dutch oven reached a boil in 16 minutes
— Held an hour-long simmer with less than five degrees of fluctuation, the steadiest low-heat behavior in that test group

Watch-outs

— Ran out of headroom deep-frying: Serious Eats had to hold it at maximum power for the entire onion-ring test just to keep the oil at 375°F, and it would not push past that
— No boil or keep-warm shortcut buttons, so routine heat changes take more presses than on cooktops that have them

$84.99 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →vs. Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop →

Best for: Countertop cooks who fry — shallow-frying cutlets, doughnuts, a Dutch oven of oil for onion rings — and anyone who wants to use a wide skillet on a portable burner without the rim going cold. Also a sensible pick as a second unit next to a slower burner, since it is frequently discounted.

Hamilton Beach 34104 Portable Single Induction Cooktop

4.4

1 sourceall derived$79.95

Hamilton Beach's 34104 finished second to the Duxtop 9100MC in Serious Eats' test of 17 portable induction cooktops, and it wins outright on the one job the Duxtop struggles with. It was the fastest and most efficient burner in the group at heating oil, comfortably clearing the 375°F frying mark on full power. The cost is a slower boil — 20.5 minutes for a gallon — and a touch panel sensitive enough that the tester kept triggering a 30-second Boost function she could not find a use for.

Strengths

— Heated frying oil faster and more efficiently than any other burner in Serious Eats' 17-model test, and could push past the 375°F frying target on full heat
— Strong temperature stability across long cooks, which Serious Eats called out specifically alongside its ease of use

Watch-outs

— Took 20.5 minutes to boil a gallon of water, four and a half minutes slower than the Duxtop 9100MC in the same test
— Touch controls are oversensitive — Serious Eats hit the Boost button by accident more than once during testing

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— Heated frying oil faster and more efficiently than any other burner in Serious Eats' 17-model test, and could push past the 375°F frying target on full heat
— Strong temperature stability across long cooks, which Serious Eats called out specifically alongside its ease of use

Watch-outs

— Took 20.5 minutes to boil a gallon of water, four and a half minutes slower than the Duxtop 9100MC in the same test
— Touch controls are oversensitive — Serious Eats hit the Boost button by accident more than once during testing

$79.95 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →vs. Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop →

Best for: Renters, dorm and RV cooks, and home cooks who want an affordable second burner for simmering sauces, holding stocks and fast boils. The 10-hour timer and 20 fine power steps are the reason to pick it — not raw speed or deep-frying, where cheaper burners beat it.

Duxtop 9600LS Portable Induction Cooktop

4.3

6 sourcesall derived$116.99

The Duxtop 9600LS is a single-burner 1800W portable induction cooktop, and reviewers repeatedly name it a top pick under roughly $250 on the strength of its 20 power and 20 temperature steps and a 10-hour timer that few budget units match. It boils water quickly in testing (CenturyLife saw about 3.5 minutes) and holds low simmers better than cheaper Duxtop models. Precision is not its game: the fan is loud (around 56 dB), it can whine at full power, the temperature sensor reads roughly 15F low, and it pulses at the lowest settings. On an inexpensive countertop induction burner, those are expected trade-offs rather than dealbreakers.

Strengths

— NYT Wirecutter's top pick after testing more than a dozen portable induction cooktops, praised as "the easiest to use for everyday cooking"
— 20 power settings and 20 temperature settings — the most of any model in Wirecutter's test group, and more than the 15 on the cheaper Duxtop 9100MC

Watch-outs

— Serious Eats could not get frying oil above 350°F on it even after an hour, missing the 375°F target that the cheaper Duxtop 9100MC and the IKEA TILLREDA both reached
— Slower than its cheaper sibling in the same test: 18.5 minutes to boil a gallon of water against the 9100MC's 16, at roughly 1.4 times the price

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— NYT Wirecutter's top pick after testing more than a dozen portable induction cooktops, praised as "the easiest to use for everyday cooking"
— 20 power settings and 20 temperature settings — the most of any model in Wirecutter's test group, and more than the 15 on the cheaper Duxtop 9100MC

Watch-outs

— Serious Eats could not get frying oil above 350°F on it even after an hour, missing the 375°F target that the cheaper Duxtop 9100MC and the IKEA TILLREDA both reached
— Slower than its cheaper sibling in the same test: 18.5 minutes to boil a gallon of water against the 9100MC's 16, at roughly 1.4 times the price

$116.99 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →vs. Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop →

Best for: One- and two-person households, first-time induction buyers, and anyone who wants an extra burner without a manual — small-kitchen cooks, studio apartments, and hobby setups where a seven- to eight-inch pan is the normal size anyway. Not the right burner if you cook for a family in a 12-inch skillet.

IKEA TILLREDA Portable Induction Cooktop

3.9

3 sources2 derived$74.99

The TILLREDA is IKEA's answer to the argument that portable induction is complicated: four buttons, no temperature mode, no presets, no menu. Serious Eats found it genuinely powerful for the price — it boiled a gallon in 18.5 minutes and cleared the 375°F frying mark with headroom — and easy enough that it removes the induction learning curve entirely. The catch is a seven-inch coil and a stated 7.9-inch pan ceiling, the tightest cookware limit in the field.

Strengths

— Four buttons total — Power, Lock, Plus and Minus — which Serious Eats called "dead simple" and the shortest learning curve of anything in a 17-model test
— Cleared the 375°F frying target easily on full heat, one of only two burners in that test to do so with room to spare

Watch-outs

— IKEA's stated pan range is 4.7 to 7.9 inches — the narrowest of any burner in Serious Eats' test, and a real constraint if you cook for more than two
— Serious Eats put a 12-inch skillet on it and the chicken around the rim of the pan did not brown evenly

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— Four buttons total — Power, Lock, Plus and Minus — which Serious Eats called "dead simple" and the shortest learning curve of anything in a 17-model test
— Cleared the 375°F frying target easily on full heat, one of only two burners in that test to do so with room to spare

Watch-outs

— IKEA's stated pan range is 4.7 to 7.9 inches — the narrowest of any burner in Serious Eats' test, and a real constraint if you cook for more than two
— Serious Eats put a 12-inch skillet on it and the chicken around the rim of the pan did not brown evenly

$74.99 · Buy at ikea.com Full review →vs. Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop →

Best for: Budget buyers who want a genuinely lightweight burner to move between a kitchen, a dorm room or an RV and who value a simple control panel over raw power. Its 1500W ceiling and the durability question mean it works better as an occasional second burner than as a primary one.

Nuwave PIC Gold Induction Cooktop

3.3

2 sourcesall derived$107.99

The Nuwave PIC Gold is one of the cheapest ways into precise portable induction cooking: a 1500W element with 52 temperature steps from 100°F to 575°F and three selectable wattage levels, all in a roughly 5-pound, sub-14-inch footprint. For the money it heats fast, runs comparatively quiet, and brings real safety features like auto pan-detection. Reviews agree on the trade-offs too: a relatively small 8-inch coil that hot-spots under bigger pans, occasionally wobbly heat-hold, and a ferrous-cookware-only limitation. It suits budget-minded and space-constrained buyers more than anyone chasing professional-grade evenness, where pricier 1800W models like Nuwave's own Pro Chef pull ahead. Treat it as a capable value pick within the compact-induction category rather than a top performer.

Strengths

— Inexpensive entry point into induction cooking, with a manufacturer MSRP around $139.99 and frequent street prices below $100, far cheaper than most precision portable burners.
— Genuinely fine temperature control: 52 temperature settings from 100°F to 575°F in 10°F increments, with six pre-programmed presets for common tasks.

Watch-outs

— Wirecutter could not access the advertised 10-degree temperature increments at all, finding the burner effectively limited to six preset heat levels — "which isn't enough for everyday cooking"
— Serious Eats found it so lightweight that it "feels cheap" and questioned how long it would last

▾Why it's ranked here

Strengths

— Inexpensive entry point into induction cooking, with a manufacturer MSRP around $139.99 and frequent street prices below $100, far cheaper than most precision portable burners.
— Genuinely fine temperature control: 52 temperature settings from 100°F to 575°F in 10°F increments, with six pre-programmed presets for common tasks.

Watch-outs

— Wirecutter could not access the advertised 10-degree temperature increments at all, finding the burner effectively limited to six preset heat levels — "which isn't enough for everyday cooking"
— Serious Eats found it so lightweight that it "feels cheap" and questioned how long it would last

$107.99 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →vs. Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop →

Reviews aggregated from

SeriouseatsThe New York TimesCenturylifeEngadgetSizzleandsearThecookingworldTherationalkitchenTechwalls

Spec comparison

6 products

Spec	Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop	Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop	Hamilton Beach 34104 Portable Single Induction Cooktop	Duxtop 9600LS Portable Induction Cooktop	IKEA TILLREDA Portable Induction Cooktop	Nuwave PIC Gold Induction Cooktop
Type	Portable countertop induction (commercial)	Portable countertop	Portable countertop	Portable countertop	Portable countertop	Portable countertop
Model	CMC850 (SKU CMC850BSSUSA)	9100MC / BT-M20B	34104	—	TILLREDA, IKEA art. 104.935.20	30211
Burners / Zones	1	1	1	1	1	1
Total Power	1800W	1800W	1800W	1800W	1800W	1500W (600/900/1500)
Temperature Range	77–482°F (25–250°C); 397 settings	140–460°F (15 settings)	175–450°F (15 settings, °C selectable)	100–460°F (20 steps)	None (power settings only)	100–575°F (10°F steps)
Power Levels	3 intensity settings (slow / medium / fast)	15 settings (200–1800W)	10 settings	20 (100–1800W)	9 settings (200–1800W)	52 temp / 3 wattage
Burner Diameter	10 in	8 in	8.5 in	—	7 in	—
Recommended Pan Diameter	5.5 in minimum	5 in minimum	4–10 in	—	4.7–7.9 in	—
Timer	Up to 72 hrs, 4 end options	Up to 170 min; 2-hr idle auto-off	Up to 150 min	Up to 10 hrs (1-min steps)	None; 2-hr idle auto-off	Delay + 1-hr resume
Cord Length	36 in	55 in	45 in	—	55 in	—
Dimensions	13.7 × 18.5 × 4.3 in	14 × 11.3 × 2.8 in	13.88 D × 11.73 W × 2.68 H in	14 × 11.4 × 2.5 in	12.8 × 10.6 × 2.5 in	13.8 × 12.4 × 2.5 in
Weight	21 lb	6 lb	6.4 lb	7.3 lb	6.2 lb	5.15 lb
Controls	—	Physical push-buttons	Touch panel with Boost	LCD sensor-touch, child lock	Touch — Power, Lock, Plus, Minus	Touch + 6 presets
Voltage	—	120V / 60Hz, standard 15A outlet	120V ~ 60Hz	120V	120V	120V
Lock Function	—	No	—	—	Yes	—
Warranty	—	—	1 year limited (US)	1-year limited	2-year limited	1-year manufacturer's warranty
Surface	—	—	—	Glass-ceramic (11 × 11 in)	—	Ceramic glass (12 in; 8 in coil)
Material	—	—	—	Glass	—	Ceramic
Wattage	—	—	—	1800 watts	—	1500 watts

Spec	Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop	Duxtop 9100MC Portable Induction Cooktop
Type	Portable countertop induction (commercial)	Portable countertop
Model	CMC850 (SKU CMC850BSSUSA)	9100MC / BT-M20B
Burners / Zones	1	1
Total Power	1800W	1800W
Temperature Range	77–482°F (25–250°C); 397 settings	140–460°F (15 settings)
Power Levels	3 intensity settings (slow / medium / fast)	15 settings (200–1800W)
Burner Diameter	10 in	8 in
Recommended Pan Diameter	5.5 in minimum	5 in minimum
Timer	Up to 72 hrs, 4 end options	Up to 170 min; 2-hr idle auto-off
Cord Length	36 in	55 in
Dimensions	13.7 × 18.5 × 4.3 in	14 × 11.3 × 2.8 in
Weight	21 lb	6 lb
Controls	—	Physical push-buttons
Voltage	—	120V / 60Hz, standard 15A outlet
Lock Function	—	No
Warranty	—	—
Surface	—	—
Material	—	—
Wattage	—	—

Frequently asked questions

Which compact induction cooktop should I buy?

Breville Control Freak CMC850 Induction Cooktop holds the top score for compact induction cooktops — 4.6/5 averaged from 4 published reviews. The Control Freak is the outlier in this category and the reason is measurable. Serious Eats found that on ordinary portable induction burners a temperature setting can be hundreds of degrees away from what is happening in the pan; this one held cookware within 15 to 20 degrees of target and came with a probe to tighten that further. It is also 21 pounds, has no quick-boil, and costs more than ten times the price of the burners it beats. That is a specialist's trade, not a general one.

Is this compact induction cooktop guide up to date?

This guide was last re-checked in August 2026. Prices, links, and source ratings are re-verified on a rolling basis, and the ranking updates when the underlying scores change.

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