I grew up in Tampa, Florida, eating Cuban sandwiches: ham, Genoa salami, puerco asado, pickles, mustard, and Swiss cheese on a crusty baguette-like loaf baked with a palmetto frond, all pressed until crunchy and slightly warmed through. I was 30 when I made my first trip to study cooking in Tuscany and realized how much these sandwiches had in common with the Italian panini. Perhaps I’m slow on the uptake, but I also didn’t make the connection that the electric grills touted on late-night TV were quite similar to the sandwich presses I’d seen in both Tampa and Siena.
The best panini presses are great for making fancy grilled cheese, breakfast sandwiches, and more — doubling as a countertop grill or electric griddle, eliminating the need for multiple pans and overheating the kitchen. We tested 22 of these machines before selecting our top picks.
Our Favorite Panini Press
I recommend the All-Clad 5-Level XL Indoor Grill for its presets, easy-to-use interface, and large capacity. It has the size and power to handle everything, and it cooks food precisely.
Credit: Williams Sonoma
This grill from All-Clad comes with a slew of smart features. There are presets for eight types of meat in addition to grilled sandwiches, plus an internal-temperature indicator that takes into account the thickness of the item and the cook settings to accurately estimate when it’s rare, medium, and well done. This machine toasted a panino with the cheese nicely melted through in just over 3 minutes — I’d have preferred a little less color on the exterior, but that’s a minor complaint fixable by using the manual mode and custom settings. The All-Clad also cooked a medium-rare burger to the perfect temperature, as I verified with a probe thermometer.
This is a large press that you’ll need to dedicate some counter space to, as it’s 18 inches wide, a bit over 13 inches deep, and needs plenty of room above to open the top. But it provides ample cooking area when feeding a group. The All-Clad only comes with only ridged grill plates and not the flat plates of a panini-specific machine, but that’s just an aesthetic concern, as it cooked and toasted delicious test sandwiches with no problems. My main performance issue was that the burger didn’t get as browned as I hoped. By the time its internal temperature was spot-on, there were only moderate grill marks on the outside. There wasn’t enough grill contact time or intense heat to char the patty.
Dimensions: 13.5 x 18 x 6.8 inches | Weight: 16.5 pounds | Power: 1,800 watts | Temperature range: 250–525°F | Cooking area: 114 square inches
Credit: Amazon
Pros
Separate heat controls for the top and bottom plates make this a multipurpose grill, griddle, and sandwich press.
This press from Cuisinart lacks the automatic presets of the All-Clad above, but its many configurations and full temperature controls earned it the title of most versatile. The upper and lower plates have independent temperature settings that allow for, say, a sear on top and a lighter touch on the bottom. The grill also opens flat for hibachi-style cooking with two separate heat zones. The cooking plates can flip from flat to ridged sides, allowing you to grill and griddle simultaneously. The display and settings were intuitive to interpret and use in my tests.
Using the flat plates, the Griddler Elite produced a nicely toasted sandwich with cheese melted through in about 3.5 minutes at 375°F, and it cooked a burger to well-done in 3 minutes at the same temperature. The lid has multiple height settings to accommodate thicker foods, which is great in theory, but didn’t work so well in practice. The slider knob that allows for fully opening the top and setting the height jammed on me repeatedly, causing me some frustration.
Dimensions: 12.7 x 16 x 8.1 inches | Weight: 21 pounds | Power: 2,400 watts | Temperature range: 250–500°F | Cooking area: 240 square inches (open), 120 square inches (closed)
Credit: Amazon
This small panini press from Chefman provided unexpectedly good results in my tests. It’s less powerful than some others I tested and needed longer cook times, but I couldn’t argue with the results. I got a nicely crisped sandwich with the cheese almost melted through to the middle in 7 minutes and a medium-well burger with nice charring in 6 minutes.
The Chefman controls consist of a temperature adjustment dial, a timer, and a digital display. The plates are reversible for grilling or griddling, and the shallow ridges of the grill plates are very low, making cleaning them after the burger test quite easy. However, some of the burger grease ran down into the heating element after I opened the grill, which required some additional cleaning and could potentially be a safety hazard.
Dimensions: 13.2 x 12.2 x 7.5 inches | Weight: 9 pounds | Power: 1,500 watts | Temperature range: 175–450°F | Cooking area: 99 square inches
Credit: Amazon
Cuisinart’s Griddler Five may not have all the bells and whistles of the Griddler Elite above, but it also costs $100 less. Its top and bottom plates can flip from flat to grill sides, and the lid opens all the way to let you double the space and cook on both sides. The controls are incredibly easy, with only one dial for selecting a temperature and setting the timer.
The downside of the Griddler Five’s easy controls is that they’re limited. There are no presets, and the top and bottom plates can’t be turned to different temperatures. The lid is also quite light, which reduces the overall weight but means that you might want to apply extra pressure on the handle during cooking to get a fully flattened and toasted panino.
This machine has enough room to press two sandwiches with ease, but it saves a little space over the Griddler Elite and similar models — and a little money. If you’re cooking in a small kitchen or just don’t have that many mouths to feed, it’s a good choice.
Dimensions: 11 x 12.4 x 7.6 inches | Weight: 13 pounds | Power: 1,500 watts | Temperature Range: 175 to 450°F | Cooking Area: 198 square inches (open), 99 square inches (closed)
Credit: Walmart
The tiny George Foreman grill has been a necessity for dorm rooms and office kitchens for decades, and for the price, you can’t beat its performance on panini. It made nicely toasted bread with hot fillings and melted cheese in our tests, especially when we stayed nearby and pushed down on the lid a little to achieve more even cooking.
This machine costs a third as much as any other on our list, and its abilities are accordingly limited. It has no settings or modes at all; you simply plug it in and it turns on. There’s a light to indicate when pre-heating is complete, but no timer or temperature adjustment of any kind. You can theoretically cook meats and veggies on a Foreman grill, but results will vary, and you can’t fit more than a couple of servings of food at a time. It also lacks removable plates and a grease tray, which makes cleanup a bit of a pain. Still, for $37, you can’t do any better.
Dimensions: 10.5 x 3.1 x 7.5 inches | Weight: 3.6 pounds | Power: 760 watts
Credit: Food & Wine/Greg DuPree
Credit: Food & Wine/Katherine Polcari
How We Tested Panini Presses
In our first test, we put 19 panini presses through their paces, and since then I’ve tested three new models alongside the original winner. We evaluated the overall construction and user-friendliness of each machine, then cooked a variety of foods to test their abilities.
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Panino test: Obviously, the most important test of any panini press is how well it makes panini. I layered ham and Swiss cheese on thick, Cuban-style bread and set the press to a sandwich preset if available, or to between 350 and 375°F. I cooked a panino on each press with an initial time of 7 minutes, checking progress and removing the sandwich early if needed or giving it extra time if under-toasted. I tasted to evaluate the level of bread toasting, how well the cheese melted, and the temperature in the middle of each sandwich. I also noted how well the top grills fit over the panini, if there were any depth settings to accommodate thicker sandwiches, and the overall ease of use.
Zucchini test: As a test of general grilling ability, I cooked inch-thick slices of zucchini on each panini press, trying batches with the lid both open and closed if possible. After 10 minutes, I took note of the zucchini’s doneness and any grill marks that developed, as well as any difficulties I had with sticking.
Burger test: I cooked a basic hamburger patty on each press, using the burger preset or a temperature of 350 to 375°F. I cooked the burgers for 4 minutes, adjusting as needed for a patty that was just cooked and still juicy on the inside, with a deeply seared exterior. I checked the internal temperature of the burgers and noted the level (or lack) of browning at the end of cooking.
Cleaning: After completing these tests, I cleaned each panini press according to the manufacturer’s instructions. I rated the cleaning experience for ease, noting whether parts were disassembled for simplicity and the helpfulness of drip trays, cleaning tools, and other accessories.
Food & Wine/Greg Baker
Factors to Consider
Panini Press Size
Unless you’re cooking for a big group or large family regularly, you should look for a press that can comfortably accommodate two sandwiches at the same time, according to Levon Wallace, owner of FatBelly Pretzel Bakery & Deli in Nashville, Tennessee. This is a pretty standard size for a panini press, and you should use that as a baseline when considering how much counter or storage space you have. A larger press that can cook more food at once will be bigger, heavier, and more expensive, while one-sandwich models tend to be very cheap, with very limited functionality.
Food and Wine / Erin Keeffer
Panini Press Cooking Plates
The most traditional way to make a panino is to cook it between two flat plates, but many panini presses also have ridged plates more like a grill. These are often reversible, which allows you to use the same machine for many different purposes. Panini presses are often sold as electric grills, and some of these only have grill plates. You can make a panino using a ridged plate, though it won’t be cooked quite as uniformly. Wallace recommends opting for smooth plates over grill plates if you plan to use the press primarily for sandwiches.
Panini Press Controls and Features
We’ve found the best panini presses have fewer features and controls. An on/off switch, temperature control, and ready-indicator lights are about as many as you need, according to Wallace. A wider-ranging set of controls is great if you want to make things other than panini, but they’re not necessary and raise the price of machines that have them.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you clean a panini press?
Wallace says to treat the cooking plates of your panini press like you would a cast iron pan. Avoid harsh cleaners and scraping with metal tools. A gentle prod from a silicone spatula or other soft implement should be sufficient to remove any accumulated or stuck-on food, and a soapy sponge can take care of the rest. A quick wipe-down with a dishtowel should do the trick for any remaining oil or grease on the machine’s exterior, and most drip trays are easily removed and emptied, if not able to be thrown in the dishwasher.
What is the difference between a panini press and a sandwich press?
They’re the same thing. A panini press and a sandwich press are both appliances that heat up and toast a sandwich from both sides while compressing it. They come in different sizes and power levels, ranging from tiny to restaurant-level.
Some single-sandwich presses are made to cut the bread into triangles or to seal the edges of the bread, Uncrustables-style, This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it does limit the size and shape of bread you can use.
Can you use a panini press as a grill?
Yes, with some caveats. Panini presses are sometimes known as indoor or contact grills. You can cook with the lid open, and the hot grates will leave grill marks on burgers, kebabs, and vegetables. Many models will open all the way flat so you can use the lid to double the grilling surface.
No matter how powerful, however, a panini press or indoor grill can’t get as hot as an outdoor grill and won’t offer as effective searing.
Other Panini Presses We Tested
Strong Contenders
Breville Smart Grill & Griddle ($350 at Amazon)
Usable in open or closed mode, the Smart Grill is a versatile device with lots of space and plenty of power, but it’s awfully expensive. It’s one of our favorite electric grills, but it has some setbacks as a panini press. It has only a flat and a grill plate, so there are limitations in open-cooking mode. The temperature range is also a bit limited, and the combination of flat and grill plates produces a weirdly textured burger.
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Elite Gourmet 2-in-1 Nonstick Panini Press ($31 at Amazon)
The Elite Gourmet is similar to George Foreman above, with no settings options and a small surface. It’s still a good value in an indoor grill, especially if you want something sized for one, but it didn’t do quite as well in testing.
Cuisinart Griddler ($130 at Cuisinart)
Cuisinart makes several models of Griddler and all did well in testing, but this original version wasn’t our favorite. It doesn’t have all the functions of the Griddler Elite, and we preferred the digital controls of the Griddler Five, which is the same size and only a bit more expensive.
Brentwood Compact Dual Sandwich Maker ($24 at Amazon)
This sandwich-only model is the cheapest panini press we tested, and it made a pretty good single serving in testing. However, we found its lid latch to be a bit finicky, and you can’t really use it for anything besides sandwiches.
What Didn’t Make the List
Low-scoring panini presses had a variety of issues in our tests, whether it was poor performance, difficulty with cleaning, lack of features, high price, or a combination of all the above.
Our Expertise
Greg Baker is an award-winning chef and restaurateur turned food writer with four decades of experience in the food industry. His written work appears in Food & Wine, Serious Eats, and other publications. He’s an Italian cooking aficionado who loves a properly pressed panino.
Dining and Cooking