Best Microwave Black Friday Deals 2026

The EM131A5C-BS is the microwave we would put in most kitchens. It turns up near the top of almost every roundup we read: Tom's Guide names it the best overall, TechGearLab gave it a Top Pick for large capacity, RTINGS lists it among its best cheap models, and Wirecutter has long recommended the stainless version as a budget choice. TechGearLab also rated its defrosting excellent.

It is not an inverter model, so dense leftovers can come out hot in the middle and cooler at the edges; TechGearLab saw the same hot spots. If you defrost a lot of meat, the Panasonic NN-SD975S below heats more gently, at a much higher price.

This is not a deal yet. At about $150 it costs roughly $7 more than its 90-day average, and it sold for about $110 on Black Friday last year. That is the price we would wait for.

The GE is the least expensive way we found to get a well-reviewed microwave that also air fries, bakes with convection and broils. TechGearLab made it its convection pick for most people, finding it quiet and excellent at thawing, and CNN Underscored has also recommended it. It suits a small kitchen with room for one appliance, not two.

Keep expectations modest for the air fryer: owners say it crisps slowly, and the outside of the cabinet gets hot. The beeps are loud, the controls are hard to read, and the full manual is a download. At 3.9 stars, its Amazon rating is among the lowest of our Picks.

At $209 from Amazon it sits right at its 90-day average, so the saving on the card is measured against a list price it has not been selling for. It dropped to about $169 at the end of December last year.

The HomeChef is the combo to buy if the microwave part matters most to you. It uses Panasonic's inverter, which holds a steady low power instead of switching full power on and off, so defrosting and reheating come out more even. Wirecutter has long recommended Panasonic's inverter microwaves, and TechGearLab named the HomeChef 4-in-1 its most versatile model.

The air fry and bake modes are slow, and the menus and accessories take a few sessions to learn. If you want a combo for occasional crisping and can live without inverter heating, the GE above costs less than half as much.

At about $458 it is roughly $12 under its 90-day average, a small cut. It fell to $368 on October 6, so Panasonic has shown it will go lower, and we would hold out for a price near that.

If price is not the constraint, the Smooth Wave is the best plain microwave here. RTINGS rates it the best microwave it has tested and found it quiet, and America's Test Kitchen gives it a Highly Recommended rating. The 1,250W inverter and sensor reheating take the guesswork out of leftovers and defrosting, the controls are clear, and the soft-close door shuts without a slam.

ATK noted that the extra modes are not a big step up from a good basic microwave, and it takes up a lot of counter. If you want Breville's controls in a smaller box, see the Compact Wave below.

It has sold for $399.95 on Amazon all year, so this is its regular price, not a deal.

The Combi Wave is the most refined of the three combos here and the one reviewers have tested most widely. Top Ten Reviews got crisp edges in its baking tests, convection roundups found it among the quietest combos they tried, and Best Buy owners rate it 4.5 stars. It suits a cook who wants to retire a toaster oven or air fryer and keep one appliance on the counter.

Its Amazon rating is lower, at 3.9 stars. The menus take learning, and air frying is slower than in a basket fryer. The cavity is also small for the space it takes. The Panasonic HomeChef gives you similar modes in a larger 1.2 cu ft box.

At about $500 it has not dropped lower on Amazon in the past year. Treat this as its regular price.

For a small kitchen, dorm or office, the Compact Wave is the one we would buy. America's Test Kitchen named it its winning microwave, praising the cooking results and how simple the controls are, and the finish resists fingerprints. The soft-close door is a nice touch at this size.

There is no sensor reheat, so you set times yourself, and it is light enough to slide on the counter. At 900W it is also slower than the 1,000W-plus models here. If you only reheat coffee and leftovers, the BLACK+DECKER does the basics for well under half the price.

At $250 it costs what it has cost on Amazon all year, so there is no saving yet.

The NN-SD975S is the big-family microwave: 2.2 cubic feet takes casseroles and platters that would crowd a 1.2 cu ft model. It also has Panasonic's inverter, which we would want for defrosting meat evenly, and Reviewed gave it its Editor's Choice for families, praising the even heating and the responsive buttons and dial.

It needs a lot of counter space, so measure first, and the design has not changed in years. A few owners report inverter failures. Panasonic's smaller NN-SN686S, which Wirecutter has long recommended, was only available from a third-party seller on Amazon when we checked, so it is not on this page.

At about $475 it sits right at its 90-day average. It dipped to about $432 in mid-December last year, a reasonable bar for a Black Friday price.

The EM925AB9 is the cheapest microwave here and the only one with a testing award at its price: Reviewed named it the best microwave under $100, citing its useful presets and modern look, and BestReviews called it the easiest to use. More than 12,000 Amazon owners rate it 4.4 stars. It suits a dorm, an office break room or anyone who mostly reheats.

At 900W and 0.9 cu ft it is slower and smaller than the Toshiba, and the end-of-cycle beep is easy to miss from the next room. Some owners report it failing inside a year, so keep the receipt.

This is the clearest saving on the page as we checked it: just under $90, about $7 under its 90-day average and its lowest Amazon price of the past year.