Best four-slice toasters for busy family mornings

Manic mornings and busy breakfast times are a standard part of family life, but when you’re attempting to feed multiple hungry mouths before school, relying on a two-slice toaster can feel like a bit of a juggle, trying to avoid burned slices as you rush from one child to the next.

A larger four-slice toaster can not only be more efficient, but it can also provide additional space, helping accommodate larger slices and alternative breads such as ciabatta and sourdough. Many four-slice toasters also offer a specific setting for bagels (only toasting one side), as well as handy reheating and defrosting options, so you can serve up fresh, buttery toast even when your loaf is fresh from the freezer.

Like many modern kitchen appliances, the price of four-slice toasters can vary considerably, so how do you know which one is right for you and your family?

To bring you our pick of the best four-slice toasters with options to suit every budget, we first tapped into the tried-and-tested recommendations of Mumsnet users, seeking their views on the toaster brands they rate and would happily recommend to others. After considering wider consumer feedback and the views of consumer champions and experts, we’re confident our choices are some of the best toasters you can buy today. 

Looking for more kitchen inspiration? Don't miss our guides to the best integrated dishwashers and American fridge freezers, as recommended by Mumsnetters.

What to consider when shopping for a four-slice toaster

Here are a few things to consider when looking for the best four-slice toaster for your family:

• What do you want to toast?: How long and wide are the toaster slots? Some toasters can struggle with bread sizes that are larger than a standard loaf, so check the specifications carefully. Toasters with extra-wide and deep slots can accommodate bread of various heights and thicknesses including artisan breads, sourdoughs and pitta breads, without the need to flip the bread halfway through. If you’re a fan of unburned bagels and hot buttery crumpets, you may also want to look for toasters with specific bagel and crumpet modes.

• Variable browning control: Can you cook slices independently? The best four-slice toasters allow each ‘pair’ to be toasted together, meaning you can pick the perfect level of browning based on your family’s needs. While most allow you to specify the time or shade, some toasters come with innovative ‘lift and look’ settings, allowing you to check in on your toast mid-cycle without cancelling. 

• Extra settings: If your children’s toast obsession means you’re always running out of fresh bread, a frozen setting can be useful, allowing you to toast bread straight out of your freezer for fast and efficient breakfasts. A warming function can be handy if your child gets distracted in the morning, reheating the toast without further browning. 

• Cost: The cost of four-slice toasters can vary considerably - ranging from a budget-friendly £25 to an eye-watering £200+. While the more costly designs may feel like a huge investment, many Mumsnet users found that pricier models tend to last longer - especially if used regularly.

How do you clean a toaster?

It may go without saying, but before attempting to clean your toaster, you should make sure it’s unplugged from the mains and has had a chance to cool down after your usual breakfast routine.

Most toasters come with removable crumb trays, helping catch any bits and debris that may break off the bread during toasting. Crumbs can build up pretty quickly through regular use, so as part of your toaster’s regular maintenance, you should slide out the trays and empty the crumbs into your kitchen bin before washing them with warm water. Allow them to dry completely before popping them back into place.

If you’ve been toasting more rustic bread or thicker loaves, you may also want to turn the entire toaster upside down above the bin, gently shaking it to release any debris caught inside the toasting slots.

Stainless steel toasters and high gloss designs can show fingerprint marks which can look unsightly, so as a final touch, use a damp cloth to wipe down the exterior and restore shine.

Related: Best dishwasher tablets for effective cleaning

What are the different settings on a toaster?

While the exact settings will vary from one four-slice toaster to another, here are some of the most common settings to look out for and their uses:

• Number settings: Most toasters have a variable browning control, usually in the form of numbers 1 - 5. For pale, lightly toasted bread, the lower numbers may be just the ticket, but if your preference is for dark brown, crispy toast, you may want to up the dial. 

• Defrost setting: A defrost setting can be useful for toasting bread that has come straight from the fridge freezer - or simply defrosting bread when making sandwiches or packed lunches.

• Bagel setting: While you can, of course, add bagels to any toaster, a stand-alone bagel setting can produce better results by only toasting on one side. A bagel setting will brown the flat side of the bagel without burning the top, resulting in the perfect crunch. 

• Cancel button: A cancel button allows you to stop the cycle before it’s finished, turning off the heating elements and lifting the toast so you can release it. This can be useful if you think it’s browning more than you’d like. 

• Check button: While not all toasters have this, a ‘look and lift’ function allows you to sneak a look at your toast mid-cycle without cancelling the cycle altogether. 

Are pricey toasters worth it?

Based on Mumsnet users’ experiences, it certainly appears that you get what you pay for. While our Dualit top pick doesn’t come cheap, Mumsnet users rave about the brand's performance, ease of use, functions and longevity, with many sharing that their toasters have been used and enjoyed for years. That said, if you are less concerned with deep slots, bagel or defrost functions, it is possible to opt for a reliable budget-friendly choice.

How we chose the best four-slice toasters

Recommendations from real parents

All of our recommendations for the best toaster brands came from Mumsnet users themselves. We searched the Mumsnet forums for posts about the four-slice toaster brands that our users raved about, whether they were cooking plain old toast, bagels or hot cross buns. 

Expert opinions

Next up, we considered verified reviews and feedback from trusted food industry experts to find the top models from each brand. We want to be confident that the toasters we recommend are fit for purpose and excel when making your favourite toasted snack, so we looked out for award-winning products or those that were well regarded in the marketplace, including those recommended by consumer champions.

Authentic consumer reviews

We then thoroughly investigated genuine, in-depth customer reviews on retailer sites such as Amazon, John Lewis, and Argos to get wider consumer experiences regarding the products on our shortlist, so you can be confident our selection will help you serve the perfect slice every time. 

About the author 

Lucy Cotterill is a mum of two and a Content Writer at Mumsnet, specialising in lifestyle product reviews and round-ups. Having written reviews on her own blog Real Mum Reviews since 2012, Lucy loves to research and explore the pros and cons of products, scrutinising expert opinions and consumer feedback to help people make confident purchases.  

Lucy loves nothing more than a fresh slice of buttery toast to start the day. With two daughters who both have very different views on the perfect level of browning, the independent browning controls on her Dualit four-slice toaster have become a bit of a lifesaver on those manic mornings before school. 

Lucy has also written numerous kitchen guides for Mumsnet, covering everything from the best kettles for hard water to the top budget dishwashers, and she has even tested out every selection on our best Tupperware page, so she knows a thing or two about what Mumsnetters want from their kitchen purchases.

Why you should trust us

We work hard to provide honest and independent advice you can trust and we spend hours scouring the Mumsnet forums and online bestseller lists to find products that real parents rate.

Transparency is really important to us and that's why we're always upfront about where we find our recommendations. We write about products that we feel offer the best value to most parents – the ones that our users would recommend to their own friends and family.

Read next: The best tabletop dishwashers