Air Fryers Demonstrably Lower Indoor Pollutants Than Traditional Frying, Even with Fatty Foods

A University of Birmingham study using custom air-quality chambers finds air frying releases far fewer volatile organic compounds and ultrafine particles than shallow or deep-fat frying across foods with varying fat content. While some items (e.g., frozen onion rings and bacon) produced higher emissions, air frying still yielded 10–100 times fewer VOCs than deep-fat frying. Repeated use without thorough cleaning increased background emissions, highlighting the importance of design that enables deep cleaning. Overall, air fryers can improve indoor air quality, but maintaining low emissions requires good maintenance.