The humble microwave is often one of the most-used appliances in our kitchens.
From warming leftovers to melting butter for baking to reheating that cup of tea that's been forgotten several times over, we rely on them to make life easier for us.
Microwaves that just don't do what they're meant to take up a lot of space in your kitchen – and can leave a big hole in your wallet
But microwaves that just don't do what they're meant to (or are so confusing to operate that you avoid using them) take up a lot of space in your kitchen – and can leave a big hole in your wallet.
If you're not a fan of lukewarm food or complicated appliances, give these microwaves a miss.
We don't want you to end up with a dud buy, so here are the products that scored lowest in our lab tests. Consider becoming a CHOICE member to see the best performers.
Why did these microwaves score so poorly?
"There are a few factors that contribute to a microwave receiving a low score," says CHOICE kitchen expert Fiona Mair. She talks us through what makes for a mediocre microwave.
Complicated controls
Some microwaves are so tricky to figure out that you just about need an engineering degree to operate them. Or you need the patience of a saint to read through the entire instruction manual just so you can warm up your leftovers.
"We mark down microwaves that have controls which are difficult to comprehend, that don't have clear written labelling, and hidden functions within a function," Fiona says.
"With microwaves like these, you'll need to constantly refer back to the manual, which means you most likely won't end up using your microwave to its full potential."
CHOICE's kitchen expert Fiona Mair tests each microwave's reheating performance with the 'hedgehog' – an instrument with 12 needles that measure temperature throughout a quiche.
Lukewarm reheating skills
Hands up if you pretty much exclusively use your microwave to warm up leftovers? No need to be embarrassed: it's one of the most common ways people use their microwaves.
"Low-scoring microwaves struggle with heating solid foods evenly, which means you'll end up with cold spots in your food," says Fiona
"Nearly all of the low-scoring microwaves in our test performed poorly when reheating."
You can't get a look in
"Another factor that contributes to microwaves scoring poorly is visibility," Fiona says.
"Viewing the food cooking or heating in your microwave is essential for better control. The viewing window needs to be large enough and easy to see through with effective lighting.
"The low-scoring microwaves in our tests generally didn't have good visibility."
The worst performing microwaves from our tests
You might be surprised to learn that the lowest-scoring products aren't always the cheapest. In fact, in our microwave tests, some of the poorest performers were well-known brands.
That's why it's so important to do your research before buying an appliance.
You might be surprised to learn that some of the poorest performers were well-known brands
Buy a cheapie and it could either be a bargain wonder or a dismal failure that'll die after a few months. Conversely, if you cough up extra dollars for a better brand, you could strike it lucky or be left out of pocket twice over when you have to replace it.
Our experts really know their way around a kitchen: Fiona has been hard at work in CHOICE's kitchen lab since 1997, and our kitchen experts have more than 35 years' experience between them, so when they recommend a microwave you can be sure it's a winner.
A CHOICE membership will give you access to the full results of our microwave testing, plus more than 200 other expert reviews to help you buy better and avoid duds like the ones below.
Westinghouse WMB2522SC: An $800 machine just for cooking broccoli?
Westinghouse WMB2522SC
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 67%
- Price: $819
Yes, you read that right: $800 for a microwave. And an ordinary one at that.
In its defence, it's a fancy stainless steel built-in model that has a fairly large capacity, and it's excellent at cooking broccoli, but for that kind of money you'd expect near-perfect performance.
Seven of the microwaves recommended by our experts cost less than $300, so you clearly don't need to spend this kind of money for a good microwave.
So where did this Westinghouse crash and burn?
A big factor in its score was its ability (or lack thereof) to evenly reheat food. With a score of just 48%, it didn't even get a pass mark on this test. Considering that that's one of the main purposes of a microwave, it's hard to justify the price tag.
A big factor in this microwave's score was its ability (or lack thereof) to evenly reheat food
It's also not exactly a joy to use: our experts rated it as 'OK' for the ease of use assessment. Accessing some functions is a multi-step process that requires using a dial, plus constant checking of the instruction manual to get it right.
The controls aren't grouped together in a logical way, and the start/stop button isn't obvious, so even after you've figured out how to choose the right function to heat up your leftover laksa, you might be stuck waiting even longer for your lunch.
Seven of the microwaves our experts recommend cost less than $300, so you don't necessarily need to spend a fortune for a good microwave.
Instead of spending this kind of money on a microwave, you could take out a CHOICE membership, pick up a similarly-sized one that's recommended by our experts for under $300, and still come out ahead.
See the full Westinghouse WMB2522SC review.
Samsung ME6144ST: not the easiest to use.
Samsung ME6144ST
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 68%
- Price: $289
While this Samsung scored a respectable 75% for cooking performance, it was let down terribly by its ease of use score – at 52%, its ease of use was rated 'Borderline' by our kitchen experts.
To rate a microwave's ease of use, our experts assess how easy and intuitive it is to operate, what the visibility is like through the door and with the light, and how easy it is to clean the microwave inside and out.
This score makes up 30% of the overall score because no matter how well a microwave reheats your food or cooks vegetables, if it's hard to use and maintain, you're not going to have a good time owning it.
No matter how well a microwave reheats your food, if it's hard to use and maintain, you're not going to have a good time owning it
The ME6144ST is excellent at cooking broccoli, which is great if you're into eating leafy greens, but was terrible at reheating food – which is exactly what most of us use our microwaves for.
There are plenty of microwaves that we recommend around this same price point, so don't spend $259 on this one and end up saddled with a frustrating, poor-performing microwave. Check our expert microwave reviews to make sure you don't buy a dud.
Read the Samsung ME6144ST review.
Sharp R395EBS: not great for, erm… cooking.
Sharp R395EBS
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 70%
- Price: $349
For $100 more than the Samsung ME6144ST, you can buy the Sharp R395EBS which scores … even worse? That doesn't sound like good value to us.
The Sharp is rated lower than the Samsung for cooking performance, and our experts found that it performed very poorly when cooking broccoli. The salad dodgers among us will be pleased to know that it did well when melting chocolate, however.
This microwave's test scores read like a manual on mediocrity
This microwave's test scores read like a manual on mediocrity: our experts said it was "only OK" on a number of tests, like defrosting mince, manually reheating solid foods, and visibility through the door.
It's also not easy to keep clean, and its fan is pretty noisy even after you've finished cooking.
Read the Sharp R395EBS review.
The $430 Smeg SA34MX received the same score as the $119 Ikea Tillreda.
The tie breaker
These four microwaves tied for third-worst place, each scoring 71% overall.
They range in price from $119 all the way up to $430, which just shows that more expensive doesn't necessarily mean better – and that you can't always rely on well-known brands to deliver the goods.
Of these, the Samsung received the highest cooking performance score – but also the lowest ease of use score. And the exxy Smeg received the lowest score for reheating, at just 44%. (At least it'll look good on your bench, right?)
- Smeg SA34MX ($430)
- Sharp R350EW ($309)
- Samsung MS40J5133BT ($299)
- Ikea Tillreda MM720C2CZ-PM0F ($119)
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
