Electric Cooktops

Also known as radiant cooktops, electric cooktops offer centralized heat. Electric cooktops have an electrical current that flows through a metal coil underneath the glass or ceramic surface. The coil becomes hot and starts glowing due to the electrical resistance. It will transfer its heat through the glass using infrared energy. This means the burner holding your pot or pan is the one that gets hot. Your food is then cooked by the transfer of heat between the cooktop and the pot. There is residual heat for an undetermined amount of time with electric cooktops, which is why these ranges tend to have an indicator light letting you know that the burner is still warm.

Often, cooktops are mistaken for the upper portions of ranges (which are more correctly referred to as stovetops). Other times, cooktops are used to describe any kind of cooking appliance installed into a countertop. But unlike rangetops, which also install into the counter, cooktops fit directly into a counter with their controls parallel to the surface. By contrast, rangetops feature an exposed anterior lip panel with front-control knobs, and instead of installing into a closed cutout within a countertop, they slide in like a peninsula.

Electric cooktops come in three varieties:

1. Electric coil: Ceramic coil heating elements use electricity to transfer heat directly to cookware. This is the most traditional electric cooktop variety, as well as the cheapest on the market.
2. Smooth top: Ceramic glass spans across the entire cooktop surface for a sleek and modern look that’s also low maintenance.
3. Induction: Although considered its own category, induction cooktops use electricity to power electromagnetic waves and heat up cookware.