5 Best Turkey Roasting Pans of 2024

In the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab, we’ve been testing cookware and bakeware for decades, including more than 150 sets of cookware over the years. We’re also trained cooks who are familiar with the market and know what to look for in a turkey roasting pan.

When researching the category, we selected pans in a range of price points, materials and sizes to find the right pan for a variety of home cooks. We’ve owned and used cookware from all of the brands in this roundup.

✔️ Material: Turkey roasting pans are made from materials ranging from aluminum and copper to enamel-coated steel, stainless steel, carbon steel and a tri-ply construction of stainless steel sandwiching a core of aluminum. In this roundup, we focused on the three most common types on the market, but our top recommendation is tri-ply for its performance, ease of use and durability.

• Tri-ply: This heavy-weight construction is basically aluminum sandwiched between stainless steel. The aluminum core makes the pan an excellent heat conductor, and the stainless steel makes it durable, nonreactive to acidic foods and easy to clean. A tri-ply roasting pan, like our top pick from Hestan, is effective on the stovetop, too, for gravy-making and searing, because the material disperses heat evenly and prevents buckling.
• Stainless steel: Unlike tri-ply pans, which disperse heat evenly across the surface, standard stainless steel pans tend to brown in some spots more than others. The bright, shiny material, such as the one showcased in our Cuisinart pick, allows you to see your food well to monitor browning. Over time, some stainless steel pans can discolor.
• Aluminum: This lightweight metal browns food evenly and very quickly but is reactive to acids, meaning it could give acidic foods a metallic taste. Plus, it’s generally not dishwasher-safe.
• Carbon steel: This material can develop a nonstick patina with regular use, but it must be seasoned and dried thoroughly, like cast iron, or it will rust. A carbon steel pan can last a lifetime when well-maintained. It can handle very high heat and is light enough to be easily maneuvered. Like aluminum, acidic foods can add a metallic flavor to your food, and carbon steel isn't dishwasher safe.

✔️ Price: A good turkey roaster that performs well in the oven can be surprisingly affordable at $25 to $30 and is more substantial than a supermarket foil pan for your holiday bird. But if you cook a lot of roasts, or want to make weeknight one-pan dinners, we've found that a pan in the $50 to $60 range will offer better roasting performance. If you want something that can handle stovetop searing and is pretty enough to pass on to your children and grandchildren, you can buy an heirloom-quality roaster for $150 to $160.

✔️ Accessories: Most turkey roasters come with a rack to raise the roast above the pan for better heat circulation. Fewer and fewer come with lids, but some people won't roast a turkey without one.

• Racks: A rack that sits inside the pan allows radiant heat to flow underneath the bird. The most common is a V-shaped rack that elevates the roast 1 to 2 inches off the bottom of the pan. A V-rack's size and shape can be limiting, though, because it’s made to hold the roast and nothing else. Some roasters, like the one by Made In, have a flat rack, which offers more surface area to accommodate larger roasts and even whole fish. Whichever rack you choose, make sure it fits snugly in the pan. If the rack is too small, it will slide around, which can be dangerous. And if you find a great pan sans rack, know that racks aren’t necessary for a well-cooked turkey: You can simply plop your turkey atop carrots, celery and onions.
• Lids: Some home cooks like to steam the turkey by using a roasting pan with a lid and then uncovering it at the end to brown the skin. Our pros tend to steer away from lidded roasters. “It limits the size of the turkey you can fit,” says Papantoniou. “And it doesn't let the skin get nice and crispy.” A proper turkey roasting pan with straight sides can give you the best of both worlds by retaining moisture on the bottom while exposing the top to that critical heat circulation.

✔️ Shape: Rectangular roasting pans are more practical than oval roasters because they give you more cooking area. “I like it when you can fit aromatics and vegetables, like potatoes, in with the turkey,” says Papantoniou. Rectangular pans are also more versatile if you want to cook two whole chickens side by side. A large one is also great for lasagna or casserole for a crowd and moonlights as a bain marie (a hot water bath for baking custardy desserts such as crème brûleé and cheesecake).

• Sides: Straight sides encourage steam to stay inside the cooking vessel, whereas flared sides result in evaporation and browning all the way down. “Shorter walls will mean better browning,” says Papantoniou. “Higher ones encourage more steaming, which is a safe bet for the normal consumer because the turkey’s less likely to get dry.”
• Bottom: If you plan to use your roasting pan on the stovetop for making gravy other pan sauces, or to sear meat, make sure the bottom is flat. Some pans have a hump in the middle to guide liquids to the edges of the pan, making it difficult to reduce on the stove. This also leaves the middle of the pan dry and susceptible to scorching.
  

✔️ Additional features: A couple of design elements can mean the difference between a gloriously smooth oven-to-tabletop transition and one with spilled gravy or (worst-case scenario) a dropped bird.

• Handles: Large, easy-to-grip handles that angle upwards make a big difference in maneuverability, especially when the pan is hot and/or filled with a heavy load.
• Bent lip: A slightly bent or rolled lip at the top edge of a roasting pan lets you cleanly pour off pan juices. A straight-cut edge can cause dribbles.

✔️ Ease of cleaning: After a marathon cooking day, you want a roasting pan that’s easy to clean. Some stainless steel turkey roasters are dishwasher safe, but most manufacturers recommend hand washing. Tri-ply pans tend to avoid scorching, making them easy to scrub clean. Nonstick pans will be the easiest to clean since browned bits are less likely to stick, but they aren't dishwasher safe and you'll need to use care with abrasive cleaning tools. Likewise, carbon steel should not be washed in the dishwasher, and it must be dried thoroughly and reseasoned as needed.

Your turkey should fit comfortably inside the pan with 1 to 3 inches left on all sides for air circulation. Most roasters are about 16 inches long and can accommodate medium-size birds, around 15 to 20 pounds. If you are roasting a large bird — over 20 pounds — you’ll want something at least 18 inches, like our Goodcook pick, or longer. Small birds 12 pounds or less will nestle comfortably in 14-inch pans, which also fit in small ovens.

Perry Santanachote is a contributing writer for Good Housekeeping. She has been testing and writing about the best kitchen appliances and cookware — from toaster ovens and air fryers to handheld mixers and nonstick pans — for over 10 years. She has even more experience in the food industry, working as a recipe developer, food stylist and cook. Thanksgiving is her annual Super Bowl moment.

Nicole Papantoniou is the director of the Good Housekeeping Institute's Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab, where she has overseen content and testing related to kitchen and cooking appliances, tools and gear since 2019. She’s an experienced product tester and recipe creator, trained in classic culinary arts and culinary nutrition.