To convert an oven recipe to an air fryer, lower the temperature by about 25°F and cut the cook time by roughly 20%, then check for doneness a few minutes early. Air fryers circulate hot air much closer to the food than a full-size oven, so they cook faster at a lower set temperature for the same result.
The general conversion rule
- Subtract about 25°F from the oven temperature. A 400°F oven recipe becomes roughly 375°F in an air fryer.
- Cut the total time by about 20%. A 30-minute oven bake becomes roughly 24 minutes as a starting point.
- Check several minutes before the converted time is up. Air fryer models vary in strength, so treat the converted time as an estimate, not a guarantee.
- Shake or flip partway through for anything that isn’t a single flat item, since air fryers crisp from concentrated airflow rather than even ambient heat.
Oven-to-air-fryer temperature chart
| Oven temperature | Air fryer temperature |
|---|---|
| 325°F | 300°F |
| 350°F | 325°F |
| 375°F | 350°F |
| 400°F | 375°F |
| 425°F | 400°F |
| 450°F | 425°F |
These are starting points using the roughly-25°F rule. Very thin or very thick items may need a small further adjustment.
Oven-to-air-fryer time chart
| Oven time | Air fryer time (about 20% less) |
|---|---|
| 15 min | 12 min |
| 20 min | 16 min |
| 30 min | 24 min |
| 40 min | 32 min |
| 60 min | 48 min |
Check doneness a few minutes before the converted time, especially the first time you make a recipe in the air fryer.
What doesn’t convert well
Wet batters and liquid-heavy dishes. Anything that needs to set in a pan of liquid — casseroles, very wet cake batters — doesn’t translate directly, since an air fryer basket has no sides to hold liquid the way a baking dish does.
Very large or tall items. A whole turkey or a tall multi-layer cake generally won’t fit the basket or cook evenly at air fryer scale. Recipes sized for a standard oven pan often need to be split into batches.
Recipes that rely on ambient oven heat from all sides equally. A full-size oven heats more evenly across a large cavity; an air fryer’s strength is concentrated airflow around a smaller amount of food, which is why capacity and batch size matter more than they do in a regular oven.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to preheat when converting a recipe? A short preheat, a few minutes, helps the converted time and temperature behave closer to the chart above. See do you need to preheat an air fryer.
Why does the air fryer cook faster at a lower temperature? The fan moves hot air in a smaller, more concentrated space, so food is exposed to consistent heat faster than in a larger oven cavity. See air fryer vs convection oven for the full mechanism.
Is there an exact formula instead of a rough rule? Not a universal one — air fryer wattage and basket size vary by model, so the 25°F / 20% guide is a starting point. Always verify with a thermometer for meat and a toothpick or visual check for baked goods.
For specific foods rather than a general oven conversion, see our full air fryer cooking times chart, which lists temperatures and times we use directly rather than converting from an oven recipe.