The Best Sheet Pans

Look closely and the surface is ridged in long waves. With the silicone-based Americoat finish (made without PTFE, PFOA or BPA), it had the cleanest release in the side-by-side tests: cookies didn't stick, and the pan washed up much faster than the bare ones. It's made in the US from aluminized steel, which makes it heavy, at 2.9 pounds, almost double the Nordic Ware.

The weight has a downside. A tester for Yahoo found cookies took longer to bake on it and spread more, and in Prudent Reviews' empty-pan test at 450°F, one corner buckled upward and never went fully flat again. I'd use it as the roasting pan and keep a bare aluminum one for cookies.

It's the pan you'd find stacked in a restaurant kitchen. Vollrath makes it in the US from 13-gauge aluminum, which is thicker than the 18-gauge Made In further down, and it has no steel rod in the rim at all; the thickness does that job. The bottom is very slightly concave on purpose. Vollrath says it flattens out as it heats.

America's Test Kitchen used to name it the best rimmed baking sheet and still rates it highly, though it noted the pan warps a little when roasting. One cook on a knife forum puts it plainly: around 450°F his deform a bit, and they always go back to shape once they cool. There's a matching aluminum lid (5303CV) if you want to carry a sheet pan dinner to a potluck.

Made In builds this one in the US from 3004 aluminum, 18 gauge, and rates it to 500°F, a little higher than most. The rim is fully rolled and closed, so there's no gap for grease or water to sit in. At about $29 for one pan, it costs about what the Nordic Ware costs for two, and you're paying mostly for that rating and a lifetime warranty.

Potatoes stuck more on it than on the Nordic Ware in Prudent Reviews' side-by-side, it picked up a light stain that didn't wash off, and one corner lifted with a soft pop and didn't go fully flat again. America's Test Kitchen saw a slight warp as it preheated, which went away. Parchment fixes the sticking.

These are the little siblings of the top pick, sold as a pair: the same pure aluminum, the same steel rod in the rim, at 12.9 by 9.6 inches outside. That's close to the 9-by-13 baking pan size, so a quarter sheet does brownie-pan duty for something flat, like a pan of granola or a few roasted sweet potatoes. Measure your toaster oven before you buy for it, though; the pan is 12.9 inches long outside.

I'd keep two of these next to the half sheets; a small pan earns its drawer space.

This is the same aluminum half sheet with a nonstick steel grid that nests inside it. The grid lifts food up so hot air gets underneath, and the fat drips down onto the pan instead of the bacon sitting in it. Once the bacon's done, I'd use the grid to cool cookies too. America's Test Kitchen tells anyone buying its winning pan to get a wire rack for it, and this saves you hunting for one that fits: at 16.9 by 11.5 inches, it's made for this pan.

For bacon, a sheet of foil on the pan underneath saves most of the scrubbing.

Ceramic, and what that changes

The coating is ceramic over an aluminized steel core, and Caraway says it's made without PTFE, PFOA or PFAS, rated to 550°F. Nothing stuck to it in a side-by-side with five other pans, and it didn't warp. It's big, too: 20 by 13 inches counting the handles, and heavy at 3.5 pounds.

The care is stricter than the others. Hand wash only (the dishwasher damages the coating), and Caraway asks you to skip cooking sprays and use a little oil or butter instead. The warranty is one year, and it doesn't cover wear on the coating or discoloration, so treat it gently.