Most kitchens cook almost everything in three pans: a frypan, a medium saucepan and something big enough for pasta. A set is worth buying because those three come cheaper together than apart, and because lids that fit are worth more than they sound. The rest of the box is padding, and a nine-piece set usually counts each lid as a piece.
The real decision is stainless against non-stick. Clad stainless is oven safe, dishwasher safe and cannot be ruined by a scratch, and there is nothing on it to wear out, but it wants preheating and a bit of oil or food sticks. Non-stick is easier every single night and has a life measured in a few years, after which the coating goes and the pan is done. Plenty of kitchens end up with both, which is why the mixed sets sell.
1. Best overall: Scanpan Impact 6-Piece Stainless Steel Cookware Set
18/10 stainless on an aluminium core base, riveted handles, tempered glass lids, every cooktop including induction, and safe in both the dishwasher and the oven. Around $280 at Harris Scarfe.
Nothing on it wears out the way a non-stick coating does. The aluminium core stops the hot spots that make cheap stainless burn in a ring, and the glass lids mean you can see a simmer without lifting anything. It cooks like stainless, which is to say it needs the pan hot and a slick of oil before the food goes in.
What We Like:
- 18/10 stainless on an aluminium core
- Oven and dishwasher safe
- Induction compatible
What We Don't Like:
- Eggs stick unless the pan is preheated properly
2. Best non-stick for the money: Tefal Enhance 6-Piece Non Stick Induction Cookware Set
Around $150 for six induction-rated non-stick pieces. Tefal's Thermo-Spot marker in the base of the pan turns solid when it is up to temperature. Overheating is what kills a non-stick coating, so a pan that tells you when to put the food in lasts longer than one that does not.
It suits a first kitchen, a rental, or anyone who wants the eggs to slide without spending $280. Treat the coating gently and it will last a few years; it will not last a decade, and no non-stick pan does.
What We Like:
- Around $150 for six pieces
- Heat indicator in the pan base
- Induction rated, and the cheapest set here
What We Don't Like:
- The coating has a finite life
3. Best mixed set: Raco Kitchen Essentials 9-Piece Cookware Set
Stainless saucepans and a stockpot with tempered glass lids, plus non-stick frypans, at around $340. That split is how most people actually cook: stainless for anything with liquid in it, non-stick for the things that stick.
It means one purchase furnishes a kitchen properly rather than compromising in one direction. The catch is that the frypans will wear out while the saucepans are still perfect, so at some point you replace half a set.
What We Like:
- Stainless pots and non-stick pans in one buy
- Glass lids on the pots
- Nine pieces
What We Don't Like:
- The frypans will need replacing long before the pots
4. Best for a small kitchen: Cuisinart 13 Piece ClickSmart Detachable Handle Cookware Set
The handles click off, so the pans nest inside each other and the whole set takes about the space of the biggest pan. Around $179 at Robins Kitchen for frypans, saucepans, a sauté pan, glass lids, storage lids and felt protectors.
That makes it the answer for a galley kitchen, a caravan or a holiday place where cupboard space is the constraint rather than money. The clip is the part to watch. It is one more mechanism than a riveted handle has, and owners of detachable-handle sets generally report the lock as the thing that loosens first.
What We Like:
- Nests into one pan's worth of space
- Storage lids, so pans double as containers
- Around $179 for 13 pieces
What We Don't Like:
- A clip mechanism is one more thing to wear
5. Best big non-stick set: Baccarat STONE 10 Piece Cookware Set with Wok
Ten pieces including a 28cm wok and a 32cm roaster, plus 28cm and 20cm frypans and a 32cm sauté with a lid, at around $400. Induction compatible, dishwasher safe and oven safe to 180 degrees. Robins Kitchen owners rate it 4.3, from 40 reviews.
It is the set for a household that cooks big and wants the wok and the roaster in the same box rather than bought separately. Baccarat lists these against a recommended price far above what they sell for, so the discount on the tag says less about the value than the shelf price does.
What We Like:
- Includes a 28cm wok and a 32cm roaster
- Induction compatible, oven safe to 180°C
- Rated 4.3 by owners
What We Don't Like:
- Non-stick across all ten pieces, so all of it ages together
How to choose a cookware set
| Pieces | Material | Induction | Oven safe | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tefal Enhance | 6 | Non-stick | Yes | — | $140–170 |
| Cuisinart ClickSmart | 13 | Non-stick | — | — | $170–200 |
| Scanpan Impact | 6 | 18/10 stainless | Yes | Yes | $260–300 |
| Raco Kitchen Essentials | 9 | Stainless + non-stick | — | — | $320–360 |
| Baccarat STONE | 10 | Non-stick | Yes | To 180°C | $380–420 |
Materials, compatibility, review counts and prices come from the Harris Scarfe and Robins Kitchen listings.
Count the pans, not the pieces. A ten-piece set is often five pans and five lids. Work out how many things you can have on the stove at once, because that is what the number means.
Induction rules out a lot of cookware. An induction hob needs a magnetic base, and plenty of aluminium and hard-anodised sets do not have one. A fridge magnet on the base of a pan settles it in the shop.
Oven safe is about the handles. Stainless and riveted metal handles go in the oven; silicone grips and plastic usually do not, or only to a low temperature. If you finish steaks or start a braise on the hob, this decides which pans you can use.
Buy the pieces you use, not the biggest box. A stockpot you use twice a year is dead cupboard space. Six good pieces beat thirteen mediocre ones unless space and price both point the other way.
