Best Solar Oven Reviews 2018

With the increase in the awareness of healthier options in cooking and eating, solar ovens are gaining more recognition. These ovens contribute immensely to the preservation of our environment and also help people cook healthier meals. You may have decided to get a solar oven or replace the one you have, so it’s time to go shopping! There are many models and brands of solar ovens available for sale and this may pose a bit of a challenge. That is why we have carried out extensive research on the products that are out there. At the end of our research, we came up with a list of five products from five reputable brands. These companies all have more than one solar oven so feel free to check them out for more options.

Overview

PROS

CONS

SPECS

Design

Size

Temperature

Material

Use

Our Top Choice

GoSun Sport Solar Oven

GoSun manufactures environmentally safe items that offer green cooking solutions to consumers. These products are reasonably priced and help customers save money on energy bills.

Lightweight and compact. Doesn’t alter flavor of food. Works in every season. Doesn’t get hot to the touch. Easy to set up and use.

The vacuum tube is not large enough.

Vacuum tube

8 x 5 x 24 inches; 7.5 lbs

5500F

Stainless steel, glass

Bake, roast, steam

Best Value

Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven

Sunflair understands what it means to protect the environment and eat healthy meals. It provides eco-friendly cooking products for folks who prefer green cooking solutions.

Comes with cooking utensils. Easy to wash and maintain. Oven, dishwasher and microwave safe. Collapsible accessories. All-season cooking. One-year manufacturer’s warranty.

It doesn’t get as hot as some other solar ovens.

Reflector with mirror finish

19 x 15.5 x 2 inches; 4.2 lbs

2850F

Silicone

Boil, simmer, bake, dry

Sun Oven All American Sun Oven

SUN OVEN consistently provides environmentally safe cooking solutions that are all made in the USA for quality assurance.

Safe to use. Portable, compact and lightweight. Well-designed and sturdy. Easy to set up. Comes with extra accessories. Made with top-quality materials in USA.

Comes with a plastic smell.

Stove style

. 24 x 15.5 x 20.5 inches; 22 lbs

4000F

Anodized aluminum

Bake, boil, steam, dry

Solavore Sport Solar Oven

Solavore makes products that leave the smallest carbon footprints possible. Its ovens are products of hands-on experience and years of personal test runs by the founder.

Made of eco-friendly, BPA-free materials. Casing is made of recyclable nylon. Can hold two pots at once. Insulation is moisture-resistant. Well-balanced design.

No clips to hold the lips of the lid together.

Reflector with mirror finish

27.25 x 17 x 12.25 inches; 9 lbs

3000F

Granite, nylon plastic

Pasteurize, bake, simmer, roast

Haines Solar Cooker with Sleeve & Cover

Haines' solar ovens have extra features that enhance performance, efficiency and convenience. The company also strives to make its products affordable.

Made of durable anti-rust materials. Lightweight, compact and portable. Comes with extra accessories. Made in America. An eco-friendly and healthy option.

Ties get lost easily.

Reflector with sleeve

24 x 5 x 5 inches; 1.5 lbs

3250F

Metalized polyester/polycarbonate

Boil, bake, roast

(Updated November 28, 2017)

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Watch Our Solar Oven Review

How Do I Choose the Best Solar Oven?

Cooking is a universal chore, and the common denominator in every form of cooking is heat. Whether it is generated from the open fires of wood, gas ovens, electric ovens, or hot plates, heat must be present for a meal to be cooked.

Have you ever been in the middle of preparing a meal and had an interruption from the source of your power supply, maybe a situation where propane or other fuels ran out suddenly? You don’t want to relieve that experience, do you? What about people who love camping but are allergic to smoke, and need an alternative to campfires or camping stoves that use fuel?

A solar oven is a green cooking solution that is not only eco-friendly, but also reduces energy bills. These ovens are also useful appliances to have in case of emergency situations.

Price

Solar ovens are amazing inventions that help us use the free gift of sunlight to cook. These ovens can be found in a wide range of designs. Each style comes with different features, and this affects the price tags.

We found that you could get a good solar oven for as little as $45 and as much as $350. This wide price range is a reflection of the many designs and features that are available. This means that whatever your taste, preference or budget, there is a solar oven that will suit you.

Our research also showed that there are some cheap solar ovens but we decided against featuring them in this review because we endeavor to present only products that are of high quality, durable, with high performance rate that would provide good value for money.

Features

Before buying a solar oven, there are features that you need to consider. Listed below are some of these qualities:

Style of Cooker – Of the three most generally known styles of solar oven, only one may have the features that would work best for you
Accessories – Some solar ovens come with custom-made pots and other utensils and accessories
Design and Weight – Affect portability and ease of storage
Size – Also effects portability, mobility and performance
Cooking Capacity – The quantity of food you can prepare at once, or the number of people you can cook for
Warranty – A manufacturer’s warranty is an important feature
Temperature and Heat Retention – How well it heats up and retains heat

Let’s consider in greater detail how these chararcteristics affect your purchase and the value you would get from it.

Construction and Design

The construction and design of a solar oven determine how convenient it is to use and how well it performs. The point of a solar oven is to harness the energy of the sun and convert it to heat that cooks meals to perfection. It makes sense that one of the vital things to look for when buying a solar oven is whether it catches the sun maximally and retains the heat generated. Solar ovens made of dark reflective materials are more efficient at converting sunlight to heat energy, and aluminum is usually preferable to ordinary metals for heat retention.

The style of the solar cooker you buy affects the type of food it cooks best. The ones with panels that heat up a bowl or pot are usually inexpensive and easy to carry around, but they usually don’t get as hot as other solar cookers. The oven style heats an encased box, and this is good for heat retention and ideal for baking. It is also great for food that you can cook without supervision for some hours. The third style uses the shape of a dish (like a satellite dish) to focus sun rays on a particular point. It usually heats up more than the other styles, but it has to be constantly repositioned as the sun moves.

Knowing the purpose for your purchase and what foods you want to cook with it will help you know which of these styles would work best for you.

Performance and Ease of Use

Most solar ovens have the type of pots and utensils that enhance performance. If you get a good solar oven and then use it with incompatible cookware, the purpose of your purchase is defeated. Most of the solar ovens featured either come with custom-made pots and utensils or have them available separately. Know whether the product you are considering comes with custom-made pots, or if they are readily available.

Although you can cook with a solar oven that has no cover, it is better to have one with a cover, because covers contributes greatly to heat retention. Covers come in different styles and designs, and each of these styles has advantages and disadvantages.

Many solar ovens are advertised as being portable and compact, but this is not always true. Examine the dimensions and weight of the oven to find out whether you can transport it easily, and also store it conveniently when it is not in use.

The size of the oven also affects the quantity of food it can cook. There are some ovens that can be used to cook for four to eight people. These can usually hold two ten-inch pots at the same time. Others can only be used to cook for a maximum of two people. This is something to consider before you settle on an option.

What is the Best Solar Oven?

As you read this review, pay attention to the features examined and the benefits you stand to gain from them. This will let you know what to look for when you go shopping for a solar oven. If you get the features right, you'll have the best solar oven for you.

Our Top Choice

With temperatures up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit, the easy-to-use GoSun Sport Solar Oven cooks quickly, so you can prepare meals for two persons in a relatively short time. If you want a solar oven that comes with some utensils, we recommend the GoSun Sport Pro Pack.

GoSun Sport Versatile Portable Solar Cooker

GoSun Sport Solar Oven 1SP1D1P1

Features

GoSun is run by engineers, designers and change agents who make unrivaled eco-friendly cooking solutions. It is enthusiastic about the way its products affect the lives of its customers. Since people are looking for ways of reducing carbon footprints on the environment, GoSun creates environmentally safe cooking solutions with low prices.

The GoSun Sport Solar Oven is a simple cooking apparatus that doesn’t need fuel of any kind to burn. All it needs is the sun! It cooks quickly and allows you to roast or steam food for two people in a relatively short time. It can reach up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit. This oven is great for camping, other outdoor activities, or those days when you don’t want to heat up the kitchen and just choose to prepare your meal outside.

Other qualities of this oven include:

Ease of use – Just unpack it, put your food in the pot and make sure that the oven's facing the sun
Doesn’t alter food taste and flavor – Cooks food fast while preserving flavor
Compact and lightweight – Folds into a slim package
Works in every season – As long as the sun is out, this oven will work
Stays cool – Since there is no open fire, it's safe to use around children
Vacuum tube – Works as an almost perfect cocoon that converts over eighty percent of sun rays to heat

Not the right oven for you? Consider one of GoSun's other terrific solar ovens.

Best Value

The Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven is compact and portable, allowing you to carry it wherever you want it. All you need to do is tilt it to face the sun and you can start cooking. If you are looking for a solar oven at a lower price and don’t mind fewer features, we recommend the Sunflair Mini Portable Solar Oven.

Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven with Complete Cookware, Dehydrating Racks and Thermometer

Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven – Complete Kit

Features

The Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven was born out of adversity. When her oven was faulty and she couldn’t repair it or buy a new one, Melinda Seller found that it was possible to cook meals with the heat energy harnessed from the sun. A brand was born, and the founder discovered a means of helping other people who needed to cut down on energy bills, cook and eat healthier meals, and also protect the environment. Sunflair is committed to the goals it started with: making reasonably priced products that offer green cooking solutions.

The Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven is a portable item that you can fold to a compact size and carry along with you wherever you want it. It's inexpensive, considering its functionality. All you need to do is tilt it to face the sun, relax, and watch it cook your food. It has more great features that provide so much value, including:

Mimics a regular kitchen – It comes with cooking utensils that you use in your kitchen, and it can be used to cook for four to eight people
Easy to wash and maintain – The silicone pots are dishwasher safe, which makes it easy for you to clean
Oven and microwave safe – In a situation where the sun fades and temperature goes down, you can complete your cooking in an oven, or heat up your food in the microwave with the silicone pots
Collapsible accessories – The silicone pots are collapsible, for a kit that is compactly packed and portable
All-season cooking – You can use it to cook in any season, although the temperature will be hotter on sunnier days
Manufacturer’s warranty – Comes with one-year warranty and thirty-day money back return policy

If you want to check out other options before making a choice, Sunflair has more solar ovens that you can examine.

The Sun Oven All American Sun Oven has a sturdy design that will withstand heavy use for many years, saving you money on energy bills. If you want a safe, eco-friendly alternative cooking solution, this is it. For a lower-priced solar oven with most of the same great features, try the Sun Oven GLOBAL SUN OVEN.

Sun Oven All American Solar Oven

Sun Oven Solar Oven All American Sun Oven

Features

Sun Oven has an uncomplicated model of business. Its main purpose is to help people conserve energy and money, and to be prepared for emergency situations. It uses part of its profits to help developing countries learn how to cook with solar energy. For over 25 years, it has made its ovens in the United States of America. It has adopted the methods of the private sector to help solve the problems others often leave to governments and NGOs; one of these is to develop projects that sustain themselves in under developed countries.

The Sun Oven All American Sun Oven allows you to harness the energy of the sun to steam, boil and bake your food. It’s also an energy-saving means of rehydrating frozen food. It can either cook your food slowly or as fast as regular ovens, depending on the season. Sunnier days allow it to be hotter while days that are not so sunny work for slow cooking. Here are some of the other great features that this wonderful appliance has:

Safe to use – There’s no risk of fire accidents. This means that you can safely use it wherever you want to
Portable, compact and lightweight – Can be folded to the size of a little suitcase and weighs only 23 pounds. This makes transportation and storage easy
Comes with recipes CD and emergency preparedness CD/videos – This equips users to be able to survive in hostile or emergency situations
Well-designed and sturdy – Built to withstand years of tough use
Easy to set up – Doesn’t need any installation; just load up your food and set it to face the sun
Top-quality materials – The aluminum reflectors are rust-resistant, well-polished and anodized for high performance, effectively trapping sun rays for cooking
Comes with extra accessories – Includes collapsible one-piece reflectors, built-in cooking thermometer, spill-resistant levelator and a leg that helps to level the oven

If you want to see other choices, Sun Oven has more solar ovens that you can look at.

With a casing made from strong recyclable materials and moisture-resistant insulation, the Solavore Sport Solar Oven is an efficient, high-performing cooking solution that’s built to last and cope with tough weather conditions. If you want a sun reflector as a good accessory for your solar oven, consider the Solavore Sport Solar Oven High Performance Reflector.

Solavore Sport Solar Oven with All Season Solar Reflectors and Other Accessories

Solavore Solar Oven 867010000112

Features

Solavore was launched by Ann Patterson in 2015. Her first experience with solar oven was with the ones made by the Solar Oven Society, a humanitarian society based in Minnesota. Years later, when the group no longer had funding and couldn’t continue production of these ovens, Solavore was born. Since it was founded by someone who has used solar ovens for a long time, it offers ovens that are made from hands-on experience and tested in different climates and situations. Solavore’s goal is to contribute greatly to the preservation of the environment. It seeks not only to make profit, but to be socially and environmentally relevant and responsible.

The Solavore Sport Solar Oven provides top-rated performance and efficiency, and is easy to set up and use. This is a convenient way to cook, because clean-up is easy and the oven won't burn your food. It has other great features that include the following:

Strong recyclable casing – The nylon plastic can weather tough conditions
BPA-free – This makes it safe for anyone to use
Moisture-resistant insulation – This enhances its performance and also helps prevent rust
Oven parts are all made in USA – To help ensure that quality is maintained
Compact and lightweight – This allows you to easily carry it wherever you want, and conveniently store it when it's not in use
Extra accessories – The reflectors let you concentrate sun rays on cloudy days or in situations where some trees may be blocking access to the sun. The two pots with lids are just the right size for the oven, and the user manual has some quick recipes to get you started
Holds two pots at once – Allows cooking two items at the same time
Transparent two-layer lid made from long-lasting polymer – Lets in optimum sunlight and also retains the heat
Well-balanced design – Makes it aerodynamically stable and harder to knock over
Can be used in every season – Designed to catch the sun at different angles in all seasons

If this isn’t the oven you want, browse the other solar ovens Solarvore has in stock.

With temperatures that can reach up to 325 degrees Fahrenheit, and slow cooking at lower temperatures, the Haines Solar Oven is great for the outdoors. If you want a solar oven with a pot, look at the Haines Solar Cooker & Dutch Oven Kit.

Haines Solar Oven with Extra Accessories Including Circular Cover, Reflector & Cooking Sleeve

Haines Solar Oven 2

Features

Haines started manufacturing solar ovens to solve some of the issues in other solar ovens. Some of these issues included awkward and expensive oven bags, constant repositioning of the pot to catch the sun, and the bulk and design of the oven. Haines made cooking sleeves that insulate the pots and keep the lids easily reachable as you cook. This eliminates the need for disposable oven bags. Its reflectors help catch the sun, to avoid repositioning the pot while cooking, and the transparent plastic cover helps keep cooking pots stable in windy conditions. Haines constantly seeks to make its ovens highly efficient, easy to use and very affordable.

The Haines Solar Oven is an ideal appliance for any kind of outdoor activity. It can help keep your kitchen cool when the weather is hot (as you can cook your food outside), and it keeps you prepared for any emergency situation. It cooks your food like a regular oven, but because it cooks slowly, your food hardly ever gets burnt. This oven gets as hot as 325 degrees Fahrenheit. It has more great features which include the following:

Eco-friendly and healthy – Slow cooking preserves nutrients in food while leaving minimal carbon footprint
Lightweight, compact and portable – Weighs less than two pounds, which makes it easy to transport and store
Long-lasting materials – Rust-resistant and guaranteed to last up to five years
Extra accessories – Circular cover, reflector and cooking sleeve to enhance the performance and convenience of use of the oven

Want another type of oven? View the rest of Haines' solar oven line.

Get the Best Solar Oven of 2018!

We are glad you took the time to read this review. Now you have enough information to be able to make a decision on the right solar oven for you. Make the purchase so you can enjoy eco-friendly cooking!

Our Top Choice

GoSun Sport Solar Oven

Best Value

Sunflair Deluxe Solar Oven

Sun Oven All American Sun Oven

Solavore Sport Solar Oven

Haines Solar Cooker with Sleeve & Cover