We recommend ceramic cooktops with a CHOICE Expert Rating of at least 85%.

The CHOICE Expert Rating is made up of performance (60%) and ease of use (40%).

We assess each cooktop's performance by cooking white sauce and melting chocolate on the simmer element, rice on the medium element and a stir-fry on the large element. The performance score is 60% of the CHOICE Expert Rating.

We assess the position, handling and setting of the controls, and the marking and labelling of the controls and burner areas. We also assess how easy each cooktop is to clean. The ease of use score is 40% of the CHOICE Expert Rating.

We cook a beef and vegetable stir-fry to assess the high heat setting.

We cook white sauce on the simmer burner to rate the low heat setting.

We melt chocolate on the simmer burner to test the low heat setting.

We boil rice on the medium burner to assess the cooktop's turn down capacity.

Time taken to boil 1 litre of water.

The manufacturers stated warranty.

Scores are taken from our latest brand reliability survey. This score refers to the brand, not a particular model, and does not contribute to the overall score. NA or Not available means there weren't enough responses for that brand to get a score.

Scores are taken from our latest brand reliability survey. When rating satisfaction we ask owners to tell us what they think of the products they own. We use this information to give each brand an owner satisfaction rating so you can see what people who use the brand each day think of them. NA or Not available means there weren't enough responses for that brand to get a score.

Shop Ethical rates the environmental and social impact of the company (not the product) using independent sources. This rating is not included in our total score. N/A means there is no rating for that company.

'Tested model' refers to cooktops that are currently available in shops and online. 'Discontinued model' refers to cooktops that are no longer available in shops, but may be available second-hand.

This is the manufacturer's recommended retail price. Prices are generally flexible, so shop around.

The yearly energy cost is based off using the cooktop for 30 minutes, 3 times a week at 40 cents per kWh.

This is the diameter (in cm) of the largest element. This will give you an indication of the ideal pot size you can use on this cooktop.

This is the diameter (in cm) of the smallest element. This will give you an indication of the ideal pot size you can use on this cooktop.

To reduce the chance of a child operating the controls.

An indicator lets you know which elements are still hot after you switch the cooktop off.

For safety the cooktop will turn itself off if certain scenarios. For example if you don't make contact with your pot for a certain amount of time, or if the cooktop is on but there is no pot on the surface.

Initially uses high power to heat up the cooktop quickly before switching to a lower temperature. If you've forgotten to turn down the heat, this feature takes care of it for you.

A dual element with two heat rings. For smaller pots you activate the inner ring, and for larger pots you activate both. Some have triple elements for more versatility.

This allows you to expand the cooking zone area.