Whats the best food dehydrator to buy

Stocking your pantry with non-perishable snacks like apple chips, fruit leather, and beef jerky is not a frugal task. Neither is filling your spice rack with all the dried herbs you might need to flavor your dishes. Turns out, there's a kitchen gadget that can make all of those things and more.

Food dehydrators are growing in popularity—and for good reason. The appliance removes the moisture from foods in order to preserve them up to five years. While there is, of course, a financial investment to be made up front, many food dehydrators will save you money if you plan to use them regularly, rather than buying packaged dried snacks. Bonus: Dehydrating foods also concentrates and intensifies their flavors. Sounds like our air fryers are about to get some company on the countertop.

Below, we're sharing our top four food dehydrators from our PEOPLE Tested lab.

Amazon

Buy It! $119 (was $190); amazon.com

Pros: The most user-friendly of all the dehydrators we tested, the Magic Mill easily and evenly dried the food we tested.

Cons: This model must run empty for 30 minutes before first use, and it was slow to dry herbs.

Ease-of-use is the name of the game with food dehydrators. What should be a fun way to make homemade snacks just turns into a bummer if you've got a complicated set-up or loads of hand-washing to do afterward.

Everything about the Magic Mill is easy. The machine dried evenly on every rack, and the food peeled off easily after dehydration. Once the desired temperature was reached, it stayed there for nearly the entire dehydrating process. A medium-sized, medium capacity appliance, the Magic Mill takes up a moderate amount of counter space, according to our testers. Curious cooks can watch the dehydration progress through the clear door, which stays open when you need to access the contents on the trays. "I like the digital time and temperature controls, and they are easy to use," said one of our testers.

We dehydrated thyme as well as fruit (to make a "fruit leather") in testing each of the 23 models. Like most that we tested, the Magic Mill was slow to dry the thyme sprigs. But with the addition of a special fruit leather tray, the process of converting fruit puree to a chewy leather took just over four hours. The fruit dehydrated evenly with a quality end result.

The Magic Mill holds seven dishwasher-safe trays that easily slide in and out like oven trays, and the machine is quiet while in use. It also features a timer (from 30 minutes up to 24 hours), a keep-warm feature, and an automatic shut-off. It comes with two mesh trays for small or sticky items, and two nonstick solid sheets. A cookbook with recipe ideas is also included, plus a free silicone oven mitt. Between its price point and performance, we found the Magic Mill to be an ideal option for many buyers.

Amazon

Buy It! $45; amazon.com

Pros: This is a solid starter model if you're new to food dehydrating, with an easier price point to swallow.

Cons: It's very basic and noisier than other models.

The Elite Gourmet Food Dehydrator is a small but mighty entry-level option among food dehydrators. It's a very basic model, with five round BPA-free plastic drawers, and lacks the bells and whistles of some of the other models we tested. But with a list price under $50, it delivers everything you need to try out food dehydration.

Our tester noted that food dried more quickly on the bottom than on the top and middle levels, and the dehydrator never reached the desired set temperature. That said, it did dehydrate fairly evenly, making it "probably the best of the compact models," according to our tester.

A small machine with a small footprint, the Elite Gourmet's capacity still felt larger than the other compact models. The controls are very basic, as there is just one temperature knob that is not highly adjustable if you're looking for specific temperatures. While in use, the noise level with this model was medium to low.

If you're new to food dehydrating or need a small and economical model, the Elite Gourmet is a solid bet.

Amazon

Buy It! $550; amazon.com

Pros: The digital display and sleek look make this efficient appliance a visually appealing addition to your kitchen.

Cons: It's a significant investment.

If you're going to go all-out on a food dehydrator, the Tribest Sedona Express might be the one for you. With 11 trays that slide in and out of the machine, you've got plenty of room to work with, and the appearance is modern and sleek with its digital controls. Of all the machines we tried, it's "the most aesthetically pleasing, with a clean and simple design," noted our tester. "I wouldn't hate leaving this out on the counter."

In addition to winning the aesthetic contest, this dehydrator also wins the least disruptive award—minimal noise from this quiet workhorse simply faded into the background. In testing, we found that it evenly dried from top to bottom — and quickly, to boot. Fruit leather came off the trays easily, in one piece, and in less than four hours. It's got a large capacity without being too bulky. Since this model is taller rather than wider, however, it may not fit underneath all kitchen cabinets.

Pros: This is the only dehydrator we tested that fully collapses into a compact carrying case for storage.

Cons: Budget some extra time—and cash—for this model as it does not have the easiest set-up of those we tested. Plus, it's on the pricey side.

While the Sahara Folding Food Dehydrator is designed to be stored away with minimal bulk thanks to its collapsable construction, when it's in use, it takes up considerable space on your countertop. Many of the machines we tested occupy more vertical space, but this one is rather wide. But although it has a large capacity, it's got a simple utilitarian look to it. Our tester reported that it feels durable, too, and it's got an auto shut-off feature.

In our fruit leather test, the drying proved to be uneven. While the bottom and middle layers dried well, the top was only about 80 percent dried. The right side also appeared to dry more slowly than the left on every level. While the results weren't perfect, given the easy storage aspect, we'd recommend this model if your priority is a good quality machine that can be stored out of sight while not in use.

Food dehydrators come in a wide range of price points, from around $50 all the way up to $550. Consider the cost-per-use when making your final purchase.

Do you have room on your countertop for a tall/wide machine? Or do your current appliances take up the bulk of your counters? Be sure to note the dimensions (or consider a collapsible model like the Sahara Folding Food Dehydrator if you have storage space).

If you're new to dehydrating food, perhaps you don't need the bells and whistles or the best, fastest drying time. But if you like to make beef jerky in bulk or you're looking to cut down on store-bought fruit snacks, a higher-performing model may be right for you.

Our testers tried out a total of 23 food dehydrators. They evaluated the ease of setup and cleaning for each model as well as the aesthetics, size, and speciality features. Dehydration tests were performed, noting the time and temperature consistency with each model, as well as the noise level of the machine while in use. Ease of use was prioritized within the scoring system.

So many foods work well in a dehydrator! Fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, and herbs are all great candidates for dehydration. You can also dehydrate things like milk (to turn it into a powder), bread (for breadcrumbs), and cooked pasta (to increase its shelf life).

No, because they dry food at a low temperature, food dehydrators use less electricity and are more energy-efficient for drying food than a standard oven.

According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, properly stored dried foods are good for between four months and one year.

The time to dehydrate varies by type of food, moisture level, and thickness. Most fruits and vegetables take from six to 16 hours, meats from six to 12 hours, and herbs from two to four hours. Check the instructions for your particular food dehydrator for specific guidance.

We created the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval to help you find the very best products for your life. We use our unique methodology to test products in three labs across the country and with our network of home testers to determine their effectiveness, durability, ease of use, and so much more. Based on the results, we rate and recommend products so you can find the right one for your needs.

But we don't stop there: We also regularly re-review the categories in which we've awarded the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval — because the best product of today might not be the best of tomorrow. And by the way, companies can never buy our recommendation: Their products must earn it, fair and square.

In short, PEOPLE Tested provides recommendations you can trust — every day, every purchase.

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