The Best Electric Egg Cookers for the Perfect Doneness Every Time

Best Overall

Cuisinart Egg Central

$40 at Amazon $50 at Walmart $42 at Wayfair

This cooker will steam-cook eggs to hard-, medium-, or soft-boiled and can cook up to 10 eggs at a time in two tiers—a dream if you're preparing deviled eggs for a party or egg salad sandwiches for the family. Handles on the side make it easier to lift the lid, but oven mitts are a good idea, since it does get hot during cooking.

The Egg Central also includes removable trays so you can poach four eggs at once or make three-egg omelets. However, we felt that any more than two eggs likely would have overflowed the tray when cooking, as the contents of two were cutting it close—and you likely won't be able to add toppings, either, without things spilling over. It took about 15 minutes to cook this two-egg omelet and 9.5 minutes to poach one egg (this is normal for up to four eggs).

The cooking time is controlled by the amount of water added, using the included measuring cup. There’s a simple on/off switch and a blue LED light, audible alert, and standby mode to help keep the eggs from overcooking. (Though you'll have to manually turn off the buzzer once it's done cooking). This also comes with a piercing pin to poke a small hole in the eggshell for easier peeling. As far as cleaning goes, all removable parts can be washed in hot, soapy water or on the top rack of the dishwasher. The heating plate can be wiped with a damp cloth. Hovering around $40, this is a pretty low-maintenance option that delivers great results, as long as you're not primarily using it to make omelets.

Capacity: 10 eggs | Weight: 2.1 pounds | Dimensions: 6.30 x 7.30 x 7.75 inches | Warranty: 3 years

Best for Small Households

Dash Rapid Egg Cooker

$19 at Amazon $30 at Walmart $17 at Target

If you’re looking for an egg cooker that won’t cost a lot but still gives you quality performance, consider this one from Dash. It lets you make up to six hard-, medium-, or soft-boiled eggs, plus individual omelets, two poached eggs, or scrambled eggs. The device comes with a poaching tray, measuring cup, omelet tray, and six-egg holding tray. It’s simple to use, and all the non-electronic parts are okay to toss in the dishwasher.

Apart from the budget price, we liked how intuitive this was to use and clean, and how delicious the eggs turned out. While we noticed some slight inconsistencies in texture (but not in taste) when poaching multiple eggs, hard-boiled eggs turned out perfectly and tasted delicious. The audible indicator is another helpful feature that keeps you from having to constantly check for the indicator light to know when your eggs are ready, and you don't even have to set a timer. Just like our best overall pick, the amount of water you add to the maker indicates how long it needs to cook; the included measuring cup indicates how much you need to use for each doneness.

While some eggs did inevitably crack while cooking (this is common with egg makers in general), the minor splatters are easy to clean. All parts, except the heating plate, are dishwasher-safe, though a quick cleaning by hand with a soapy sponge is really all it takes.

Capacity: 6 eggs | Weight: 1.1 pounds | Dimensions: 6.3 x 6.3 x 7.4 inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best Multitasker

Hamilton Beach 37530A Digital Food Steamer

$49 at Amazon $50 at Walmart $60 at Target

If you like the idea of an appliance that will make egg-cooking foolproof, but don’t like the idea of a gadget that has only one use, you might like this food steamer. It has two stackable steaming trays that have divots for holding eggs upright. You can use one or two trays at a time or remove the center divider if you need to steam larger foods, like a whole head of broccoli. The trays nest for more compact storage.

Since this isn’t just for eggs, it has higher-end features, like a digital touchpad, an automatic keep-warm setting, a count-down timer, and a delayed-start feature. You can use it for fish, chicken, sausages, or vegetables. A rice bowl is included for steaming rice or keeping small food contained. Even with all of these features, it’s quite affordable. Just keep in mind, the warming feature will continue to cook the food.

The steamer beeps, flashes its display, turns the heat off automatically and lights up the low water indicator if the water runs low. You don’t need to remove the food to add water—just pull out the water drawer to refill and restart the steamer to continue cooking.

In addition to being able to steam eggs using the indented divots in the basket, its versatility makes it a game-changer in the kitchen. We steamed meats and veggies at the same time and tried it out with broccoli, salmon, green beans, rice, carrots, and even pears—and it worked perfectly in each test.

Capacity: 16 eggs | Weight: 3.97 pounds | Dimensions: 12.6 x 13.7 x 7.28 inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best Budget

Elite Cuisine by Maxi-Matic Egg Cooker

Orig. $17 $15 at Amazon $29 at Walmart View on Brandsmartusa.com

Instead of having measuring lines inside the cooker that can be hard to read, this comes with a measuring cup that has measurements for soft-, medium-, and hard-boiled eggs. It can handle seven eggs at a time for boiling or two eggs for poaching. There’s also a tray for making two-egg omelets or steaming vegetables.

This is a compact, space-saving design that comes in a variety of colors to match the kitchen or add a pop of color. It’s easy to operate, with a large button to turn it on, a buzzer to let you know the eggs are done, and an auto-off feature to prevent the eggs from overcooking (though several reviewers mentioned the buzzer is annoying). This is less than $20 and has more than 8,000 sparkling reviews.

Capacity: 7 eggs | Weight: 1.4 pounds | Dimensions: 6.2 x 6.2 x 7.25 inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best High-End

Chef'sChoice Gourmet Egg Cooker

$63 at Amazon $69 at Walmart $50 at Wayfair

One of the more expensive machines on this list, the Chef'sChoice egg cooker makes it easy to cook to different levels of doneness in the same batch. For example, while eggs are soft boiling for breakfast, a few eggs can be hard-boiled for later use. As eggs are done, they need to be removed and the timer set for the remaining eggs, but it’s simple to do since the controls account for the previous cooking time.

Since this relies on a timer, there’s no need to precisely measure water for different batches of eggs—just fill the reservoir to the line and start cooking. This cooks seven eggs at a time and has an audible alert and an on/off button, so it doesn’t need to be unplugged to stop the cooking. The egg tray is designed so it can be lifted safely with one hand to rinse the finished eggs under cold water after cooking.

Capacity: 7 eggs | Weight: 2.02 pounds | Dimensions: 8 x 7 x 7.125 inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best Large-Capacity

Dash Deluxe Rapid Cooker Electric

Orig. $28 $25 at Amazon $32 at Walmart $25 at Wayfair

If you need to cook a dozen eggs at a time, this is the cooker for you. You can make soft-, medium-, or hard-boiled eggs, or up to seven poached eggs in one go. The included omelet tray can be used for omelets or scrambled eggs.

Though some reviewers noted uneven cooking, the versatility is definitely a highlight. You can use this machine to steam bao or vegetables. This has automatic shut-off, so you don’t need to be there when the eggs are done. If you don’t need to cook as many eggs or want a more compact cooker, this brand has a similar appliance that will cook seven eggs at a time.

Capacity: 12 eggs | Weight: 2 pounds | Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 8.3 inches | Warranty: 1-2 years

Best for Egg Bites

Hamilton Beach Electric Egg Bites Cooker & Poacher

$25 at Amazon $35 at Walmart $25 at Home Depot

Sous vide egg bites have become a popular treat, but not everyone has a sous vide device or molds to cook them. This handy egg cooker cooks egg bites right on the counter, two at a time, and makes it easy to add extra flavors with cheese, herbs, or sausage.

This egg cooker also makes perfect poached eggs for breakfast or to top your favorite pasta. The cooker is simple to operate, with a power light that indicates that the cooker is powered on and a second light that turns on when the eggs are done (though it lacks any sound alert). Cleanup is easy since the tray and lid are top-rack dishwasher-safe.

Capacity: 2 eggs | Weight: 2 pounds | Dimensions: 5.69 x 8 x 4.6 inches | Warranty: 1 year

Best for the Microwave

Nordic Ware Egg Boiler

$16 at Amazon $17 at Walmart $18 at Target

It seems impossible, but this microwave cooker lets you steam-cook hard-, medium-, or soft-boil eggs in 10 minutes or less. You don’t have to pierce the shells first, and the eggs won’t explode; the secret is that the cooker shields the eggs from the microwaves, while at the same time, the microwave heats the water to create steam to cook the eggs. The result is evenly cooked eggs without hotspots that sometimes occur with microwaved eggs—it’s just like steam-cooking on the stovetop or in an electric cooker.

This cooker only holds four eggs, and when you’re done cooking, you can just pop it in the dishwasher. But since it doesn’t get very dirty during cooking, it’s just as easy to give it a quick wash in the sink.

Since microwaves vary in power, it might take a few tries to find the perfect cooking and resting time to get your eggs just the way you like them, but once you’ve figured it out, it will produce nearly foolproof eggs every time.

Capacity: 4 eggs | Weight: 0.6 pounds | Dimensions: 5 x 5 x 5.3 inches | Warranty: 5 years