Tantalizingly crispy Air Fryer Bacon is hands-down the best and easiest bacon you can make! Evenly cooked and perfectly crisp, it cooks faster and makes less mess than the oven or stove top. You’ll want to add it to everything!
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No muss, no fuss bacon in the air fryer.
The air fryer is fabulous for making your favorite foods extra crispy, whether you are making Air Fryer Chicken Wings, Air Fryer Potato Chips, or today’s perfect, crisp bacon. It’s also the EASIEST way to cook bacon.
Like Oven Bacon (and unlike cooking bacon in a skillet on the stovetop), air fryer bacon cooks completely hands-free. You don’t even need to flip it! And because the air fryer is compact and uses powerful convection cooking, it’s faster too.
And one of the best parts of making bacon in the air fryer is the quick clean up. No greasy stove!
5 Star Review
Heaven on earth! We go through a lot of bacon. I usually hate making it, since it can take forever & grease gets everywhere, but not this way! It was perfect! Easy clean up & so much quicker!
— Kaila —
My Tips for Cooking Bacon in the Air Fryer
- Make Sure the Bacon Fits. Cut the bacon slices in half crosswise before adding them to the air fryer. This helps them cook more evenly and fit in the basket more comfortably.
- Avoid Smoking. The smoke point of bacon is 400°F (and grease leftover in your air fryer can start to smoke at 360°F), so this recipe air fries the bacon at 350°F to avoid the issue. If you do have problems with smoke when you air fry bacon, I read you can place a piece of bread in the air fryer basket to absorb extra bacon drippings. Also, make sure your air fryer is clean.
- Don’t Worry About Foil. While you can line the basket with it if you like, I found the air fryer was very easy to clean even without it. If you use foil, ensure it’s not touching any part of the heating element or fan.
- Know That Air Fryers Vary. Each air fryer model is a little different; this recipe has been tested in a Ninja air fryer and Philips air fryer. Check early to make sure your bacon doesn’t burn.
Ideas for Serving Air Fryer Bacon
- With Breakfast Faves. Bacon pairs perfectly with Banana Oatmeal Pancakes or an Oven Pancake.
- Salads. Add crunch to Broccoli Cauliflower Salad or make a BLT Chopped Salad.
- Sandwiches. It’s perfect for a classic BLT!
- Pasta. Take your pasta dishes (like this Cauliflower Pasta) up a notch.
- Pizza. You won’t regret topping your pizza with crispy bacon pieces (especially if it’s this delicious Brussels Sprouts Bacon Pizza).
- Eggs. Add some bacon to your Egg Muffins for an easy grab-and-go breakfast or serve it alongside a French Omelette.
- Baked Potatoes. You can’t go wrong topping a classic Baked Potato with bacon.
- Soups. Take a note from Crockpot Potato Soup, and top a bowl of your favorite soup with crumbled bacon.
Air Fryer Bacon
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Ingredients
- 4 strips bacon thick or thin, cut in half crosswise
- ground black pepper optional
Instructions
- Wipe out your air fryer to avoid bacon smoking. Preheat the air fryer to 350°F. If you’d like to keep the bacon warm between batches, preheat your oven to 250°F.
- Slide out your air fryer basket. With tongs, arrange the halved bacon slices in a single layer. Make sure they do not overlap (a little bit of touching at the edges is OK). If desired, sprinkle with black pepper. Depending upon the size of your basket and the number of strips you’d like to cook at once, you may need to cook the bacon in batches.
- Cook the bacon for 5 minutes (for thinner bacon) or up to 12 minutes (for thick-cut bacon), until it reaches your desired crispness. The bacon will curl as it crisps. Check the bacon’s progress frequently to make sure it doesn’t burn.
- Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate and lightly blot. If desired, transfer the bacon to a baking sheet and keep in the oven.
- For further batches: Repeat with remaining bacon (no need to wipe out the air fryer in between unless it begins to smoke, in which case carefully pour out the grease and wipe it with a paper towel). Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- If the bacon begins to smoke, this is likely old grease that was left in your air fryer (as long as your air fryer is set to less than 360°F, it should not smoke). Once your air fryer is cool, wipe it out with a damp cloth to prevent further smoking. I have also read you can place a slice of bread in the air fryer basket when making bacon to absorb excess grease and prevent smoke.
- TO STORE: Refrigerate bacon strips in an airtight storage container for up to 2 days.
- TO REHEAT: Recrisp bacon in the air fryer at 350°F.
- TO FREEZE: Freeze bacon strips in an airtight freezer-safe storage container or ziptop bag. Reheat from frozen as desired.
Nutrition
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Air fryers require multiple batches to feed a family. How about using a convection oven instead of an air fryer? How would that change things compared to (a) an air fryer or (b) a regular oven?
Also, I noticed that your Oven Bacon recipe calls for 400 degrees, but this one calls for 350 degrees (with part of your reasoning being that the smoking point of bacon grease is 400 degrees). Should these temperatures be different for the different kinds of ovens?
Thanks!
Hi Adam! While I’ve only tested the recipes as written, other readers have had success with using their convection ovens for the Oven Baked Bacon recipe. I found that cooking the bacon at the temperatures listed worked best for each appliance. I hope you enjoy the recipe if you try it!
When you cook the bacon in the Air Fryer, do you use the “Bake” setting or the “Air Fry” setting?
Hi Beth! You’ll use the air fry setting. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Absolutely perfect. This is the only way I am making bacon now!
So happy to hear it, thanks Jenna!
Will this work with Turkey bacon?
Hi Kia! While I haven’t tried turkey bacon myself, I think it would work fine. I’d recommend checking it frequently to make sure it doesn’t burn. If you decide to try it, I’d love to hear how it goes!
This worked out perfectly. No smoke or anything. I had to cook it about twice as long due to my bacon was thick cut, but it was so easy. Thanks for posting.
Hi Tracey! So glad you enjoyed the bacon! Thank you for this kind review!
Awsome. I won’t pan fry it ever again
Hi Margaret! So glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for this kind review!
My Bacon turned out perfect! Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Marge! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Do you have to cook in the air fryer one layer at a time or can you stack it all in there and do it at once?
Hi Pam! Make sure they do not overlap (a little bit of touching at the edges is OK) and definitely do not stack. You can see examples of what this looks like in the step by step photos located in the post and recipe card. Also in the video. Hope this helps!
I lightly coat my bacon in flour and it comes out very crispy and doesn’t curl.
Thanks for the feedback Diane!
I don’t see any directions for dealing with the bacon grease. Do you just let it drip to the “floor” of the air fryer and soak it up with paper towels when done?
Hi Diane! I didn’t add any directions for dealing with bacon grease due to it will all depend on the type of bacon you use. If using a leaner type bacon you won’t have much grease to deal with. Also consult your manual for cleaning instructions. Hope this helps!
Hey I’m my air fryer (pampered chef) there’s a little tray to catch crumbs and stuff at the bottom, I just line that tray with foil and then clean the shelves and throw away the foil
Great tip! Thanks!
Hey there Erin! I just got my air fryer lid, and used it yesterday evening for your Brussels sprouts (so darned amazing)! So bacon – would it be possible to use those little perforated parchment paper liners to keep bacon spatter off the lid’s heating element? Or is that ‘not done’? Oh, SO much to learn!
Hi Barbara! While I haven’t personally use the parchment paper, I know others have with success. Hope this helps!
My family has voted this bacon the best by far. It is crispy yet tender. Simply delish. Thank you!
Hi Gail! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank for this kind review!
I just used this recipe to make some thick cut hickory smoked bacon, I cooked it for about 4inutes, and it came out perfect, tysm for sharing this recipe, God bless you all!!
Hi StephG2017! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Air far bacon is awesome. But if you want to make it really really good, sprinkle it with Trader Joe’s Chili Lime Seasoning. You will never go back to plain bacon again.
Thanks for sharing this tip, Debra! I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe!
I have the large air fryer, and you don’t have any recipes for it, love your recipes,but not sure how to use it for them
Hi Malinda, when you say the large air fryer, could you elaborate? Also you should be able to cook any of my air fryer recipes in any type of air fryer.
Never thought of cooking bacon in the air fryer. I won’t cook it any other way now.
Hi Gail! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
For years I’m looking for the Ultimate setting for AF bacon, and I found it! Right it! I preheated it, No flipping 1/2 way, it was perfect, love it!
Hi Eric! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Nope. Cookin mine thin slices of bacon at 350 for 5 minutes, thin pieces, wasnt even close to cripsy! gooey, soft, not an ounce close to crisp. You must be referring to thin as paper slices of bacon, cuz my thin slices werent even close to being done.
I’m sorry to hear you had trouble with the recipe, D. I know it can be so disappointing to try a new recipe and it does not turn out for you. It has worked well for myself (and others) and I wished it would have been a hit for you too.
I’m thrilled to have discovered that making bacon in the air fryer is a quick and easy way to cook bacon without heating up the whole house. I did have to cook my bacon for about a little longer as the recommended time to get it crispy enough, but could be my air fryer
I’m so happy I found this. Making bacon in the air fryer frees up time. And doesn’t make the whole house hot like the oven would. I did have to cool my bacon about twice as long as recommended to get it crispy.
Work really well. I cooked thick cut back bacon and only took10 minutes or less to cook but we like it crispy so we left it for about 12-14 minutes and it was lovely and crisp and not dry!
Yay! Thanks Julianna!
I put 2 pieces of bread in the very bottom of the air fryer, underneath the tray, to soak up the grease and prevent smoking.
Great tip! Thanks Camille!
I tried bacon for the first time in my Gowise air fryer. It was awesome!! I tried with two layers ( with a rack). Top got done in 10 minutes but had to bottom layer in for another 3 minutes.
Thanks for the feedback Eleonor, that’s great to hear!
For my airfryer I had to turn up the temperature. If I did it at 350 it would have to cook for 13 minutes. At 375 it cooked for 8. So I guess it just depends. But it was DELICIOUS!
Glad you enjoyed it Avery!
Heaven on earth!! We go through a lot of bacon. I usually hate making it, since it can take forever & grease gets everywhere, but not this way! It was perfect! Easy clean up & so much quicker!
Oh my goodness! Thank you Erin. Crisp and no greasy splatters all over the kitchen. Fantastic!
Love cooking bacon this fast and easy way. I do have to wipe down the inside of the oven air fryer but still so much quicker than the stove top.
Agreed! Thank you Mariel!
Thanks so much. I cooked at 176 deg C for 6 minutes, turned the bacon and did another 4 minutes and it was lovely. I did only 4 slices of streaky bacon and obviously mine was cut thick. Bacon was cooked perfectly. I’ll be cooking Bacon this way from now on.
Great to hear, thank you!
Should use White Pepper though ;)
You definitely can!
The only issue that I have is that the Phillips XXL is a mini-tornado inside and the bacon, thick cut even gets blown around inside. The Instant Air Fryer does not have this problem.
Thanks for letting me know!
An update, if one cuts an end off the thick bacon, so that they just fit inside the Philips XXL, (the cut off ends can be used for lardons later on) the bacon does not tend to “fly” about and cooks up nicely as per the recipe.
Thanks so much!
Holy bacon this was amazing! I love that the smell didn’t linger for hours. Perfect for cooking a few strips for burgers
Glad you enjoyed it, Danielle! Thank you!