Best Overall
Easy-Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner
- A few quick sprays on the walls, floor, and door of a warm oven melts away carbonized food and greasy splatters in three to five minutes.
A few quick sprays on the walls, floor, and door of a warm oven melts away carbonized food and greasy splatters in three to five minutes.
- You must wear gloves and turn on a vent to use this product.
You must wear gloves and turn on a vent to use this product.
The Easy-Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner worked remarkably fast (about five minutes in a 200-degree oven) and broke down years of baked-on food and oily stains when I tried it in my oven at home. It can work in a cold oven, too, which requires six or more hours to let it penetrate, and while I appreciated that option, I was eager to see it work quickly. And did it ever!
I was careful to wear gloves when using it, as the label recommends, and I also noticed some irritating fumes after I sprayed it, even after closing the oven door quickly, but the odors seemed to dissipate by the time the oven was ready for rinsing. It’s important to turn on a vent when using this product as well.
It took two or three rounds of wiping with a wet sponge to get all the gunk and leftover product off the oven, but considering how much crust this cleaner removed, it was easy work. No scrubbing or rubbing was required, and the oven was practically sparkling when I was done. It’s cleaner than it’s ever been.
Product Details: Type: Spray | Size: 14.5 oz. | Cleaning Time: 3 to 5 minutes in a warm oven, overnight in a cold one | Scent: Fresh
Best Budget
Goo Gone Oven and Grill Cleaner
- This cleaner’s thick foam clings to vertical surfaces and breaks down greasy residue.
This cleaner’s thick foam clings to vertical surfaces and breaks down greasy residue.
- While it softens stains, it requires some scrubbing to fully remove them.
While it softens stains, it requires some scrubbing to fully remove them.
Goo Gone is well known for making products that dissolve sticky adhesives, so it’s not surprising that its oven and grill cleaner would be tough on grease. The budget pick sprays in a thick foam that holds fast to the walls and ceiling of an oven to sink into the crust and dissolve it.
It also works in a cold oven and is ready to wipe with a sponge or paper towel after two to 10 minutes. My one complaint when I tried it at home is that it didn’t dissolve grease as quickly as some of the other products I tried, and it required a second pass to get the oil-splattered oven door squeaky clean.
The cleaner also releases some fumes upon spraying, despite being advertised as odorless, so opening windows or activating a vent would be wise when using this product. For the price and the size of the bottle, though, it’s one of the best oven cleaners on the market.
Product Details: Type: Spray foam | Size: 28 oz. | Cleaning Time: 2 to 10 minutes | Scent: None
Best Professional
Zep Oven and Grill Cleaner
- This professional-grade oven cleaner can dissolve years-old stains in just a few minutes.
This professional-grade oven cleaner can dissolve years-old stains in just a few minutes.
- It’s tricky to remove the childproof cap.
It’s tricky to remove the childproof cap.
Given how quickly this Zep cleaner obliterated sticky stains on my oven door, I’m not surprised that professional cleaners swear by this product (and this brand). It powers through old, oily drips and crusty blackened marks and leaves behind nothing but a shiny, smooth surface.
As with many of the best oven cleaners, this one requires open windows or a running vent to pull fumes out of the kitchen while you’re using it. You should also use rubber gloves and goggles when applying it, and other surfaces, such as the floor, should be covered to shield them from overspray. And I had the darndest time removing the cap! (At least that proves it’s really childproof.)
That said, if we could recommend only one cleaner for a long-neglected oven covered in splotchy stains and old grease, it would be this one. It truly is professional-grade.
Product Details: Type: Spray | Size: 19 oz. | Cleaning Time: 5 to 10 minutes | Scent: None
Best Fume-Free
Everneat Oven Scrub Cleaner
- It uses plant-based ingredients and a metal scrubber for extra cleaning power.
It uses plant-based ingredients and a metal scrubber for extra cleaning power.
- Its metal scrubber is not safe for self-cleaning ovens.
Its metal scrubber is not safe for self-cleaning ovens.
Composed of plant-based ingredients including baking soda, washing soda, calcium carbonate, and pumice stone, Everneat’s Oven Scrub Cleaner is surprisingly powerful.
It comes with a metal scrubber, which you dip into the cleaner and then use to scour away carbonized food, spills, and even greasy splotches. Choose between two spa-like scents (both derived from essential oils) or an unscented version. You can also buy an oven-cleaning kit that includes a spray bottle of surface cleaner.
Unlike the other cleaners on our list, this scrub does require some elbow grease—but not as much as one might expect. And when the scrub dries, it leaves a cloudy haze on the oven door, which might have to be rinsed a few times to remove. The metal scrubber is also not safe to use on self-cleaning ovens.
But these are small complaints considering how lovely it is to clean the oven with something that smells so good and scrubs so thoroughly.
Product Details: Type: Liquid and metal scrubber | Size: 16 oz. | Cleaning Time: Less than 5 minutes | Scent: Purify (peppermint, eucalyptus, lemon, and tea tree essential oils), Lift (rosemary, lemongrass, and lemon essential oils), or Clear (no essential oils)
Best for Self-Cleaning Ovens
Easy-Off Fume-Free Oven Cleaner
- It’s one of the few chemical cleaners on the market recommended for self-cleaning ovens.
It’s one of the few chemical cleaners on the market recommended for self-cleaning ovens.
- The oven must be cold and empty, with the self-cleaning cycle turned off, to use.
The oven must be cold and empty, with the self-cleaning cycle turned off, to use.
If you happen to have a self-cleaning oven, you might wonder why you’d buy an oven cleaner at all. And it’s true: You might not ever need one because your oven is likely designed to heat up to 900 degrees to incinerate food spills and grease stains on its interior, turning it all to ash.
But running the self-clean cycle has its drawbacks: It can heat up the house, and take two hours or more. Hence, why you might pick up a can of Easy-Off Fume Free Oven Cleaner, which is one of the few commercial products safe for self-cleaning ovens. To use, make sure the oven is completely cold and empty, and that the self-cleaning cycle is not running.
I found it to be true to its name, with no noxious odors, and just as effective as my other favorite cleaners on old stains baked into the walls and door of the oven. The deep-cleaning function takes a while (75 minutes), but it’s mostly hands-off time where you can set a timer and do something else. The product can also be used for spot-cleaning if you notice a small stain in between self-cleaning cycles.
Product Details: Type: Spray | Size: 14.5 oz. | Cleaning Time: 1 minute for spot cleaning; 75 minutes for deep cleaning | Scent: Lemon
Best Eco-Friendly
Astonish Oven and Grill Cleaner
- The lack of harsh chemicals means you might not even need gloves with this product (though they can’t hurt if your skin is sensitive).
The lack of harsh chemicals means you might not even need gloves with this product (though they can’t hurt if your skin is sensitive).
- This cleaner requires more elbow grease than other options.
This cleaner requires more elbow grease than other options.
If you’re skeptical of “natural cleaners” and how well they tackle grease and baked-on gunk, we don’t blame you. Those buzzwords give us pause, too. But the Astonish Specialist Oven and Grill Cleaner and Sponge is the real deal.
Simply dampen the applicator (which has an abrasive scrubber on one side and a soft sponge on the other), rub it into the cleaning paste, then apply the paste to the oven in circular motions. Let it sit for five minutes, then wipe it off with the sponge side of the applicator. It dissolves greasy, sticky stains and leaves behind a squeaky-clean surface.
This product, which is made in the UK, is a little hard to find on this side of the pond, but it is available on Amazon. Unlike most chemical cleaners, which dissolve deposits and grease without scrubbing, this one requires some elbow grease—but it’s not arduous.
Product Details: Type: Paste and sponge-scrubber | Size: 8.8 oz. | Cleaning Time: 5 minutes | Scent: Orange
Best for Oven Racks and Grills
Carbona Oven Rack and Grill Cleaner
- The biodegradable cleaner can be safely poured down the sink and won’t damage septic systems.
The biodegradable cleaner can be safely poured down the sink and won’t damage septic systems.
- While most of the work is hands-off, it requires an overnight soak.
While most of the work is hands-off, it requires an overnight soak.
The Carbona 2-in-1 Oven Cleaner contains everything you need to clean oven racks, barbecue grills, and stovetop burner grates. It contains a bottle of cleaner, a giant plastic zipper bag, and disposable plastic gloves to protect your hands.
Slip the racks into the bag, pour in the entire bottle of cleaner, close the bag, turn it over to distribute the liquid, and let everything sit for eight hours. Afterward, use the gloves to pull the racks from the bag, rinse and dry them, then slide them back into the oven.
Because the cleaner is biodegradable, any leftover solution can be poured down the sink; it’s even safe for septic systems. You may understandably wonder if a specific cleaner is necessary for the task, but this really does make it easier to clean your grates, taking the struggle out of the process and keeping any mess contained.
Product Details: Type: Liquid gel with zipper bag and gloves | Size: 16.8 oz. | Cleaning Time: 8 hours | Scent: None