At the end of the day, the primary task of an electric kettle is to … boil water. You shouldn't have to spend more than $100 for one. That's why, for most people, the Cosori Glass Electric Kettle will do the job just fine without costing a fortune. Made of borosilicate glass, the Cosori is durable even when exposed to high temperatures, and while it's heavier than the stainless steel kettles I've tested, the rounded handle offers a sturdy hold (even with my smaller hands).

The bottom of the kettle has a built-in blue LED, which turns on when the water is boiling and off when it's done—it automatically shuts off when it's done boiling. The LED is really convenient for when I'm moving around my apartment; I just glance over at it once in a while to see whether the light is still on or not. The Cosori is on the louder side, but it boils quickly. I boiled a little more than one liter of water in just four minutes. Best of all, it pours quite smoothly. 

Boils up to 1.7 liters

Fellow's Stagg EKG kettle has a gooseneck spout—it quite literally looks like a goose's neck. It's the perfect option for anyone who loves making pour-over coffee because it gives you precise control when pouring water over the coffee grounds. But WIRED reviewer Jaina Grey recommends it for anyone, whether you brew coffee or not. Thanks to the temperature control knob and LCD display, you have the luxury of heating up water at any temperature. It's great for tea lovers that prefer steeping at specific temps or bakers who need a narrow spout for certain recipes. 

There's a smart version, the EKG+, complete with Fellow's iOS companion app (there's no Fellow Android app, but you can use the Acaia Brewmaster app). The app functionality is minimal (and is generally clunky). You can use it to turn the kettle on and off, change the temperature, and keep an eye on it without needing to head to the kitchen. That's about it. I recommend skipping the “smart” version and sticking with the regular Fellow Stagg EKG to save some cash.

Boils up to 0.9 liters

If you've got kids that love to touch everything on the kitchen countertop, I recommend the Enfinigy Cool Touch Kettle Pro for peace of mind. It has a heat-insulated double-walled body—the water stays hot on the inside while the kettle remains cool on the outside. You won't have any worries about burning your prints off when touching the stainless steel kettle. The dock you place the kettle on features a touchscreen display with six presets you can cycle through, including specific temperatures for tea and coffee from 140 degrees up to 212 degrees Fahrenheit. There's also a dedicated button for baby formula, which heats up water to a specific temperature safe to pour into the formula, and another button keeps the water warm for up to 30 minutes. It's quick to boil and quiet—letting out a couple of short beeps when it's done. 

My only gripe? The touchscreen display can be finicky; occasionally I had to tap it a few times to wake it up. That's easy to forgive because this is arguably the sleekest-looking electric kettle I've tested so far. I tested it at my parent's house, where my mom has a tendency to stash away appliances she deems unattractive. The Zwilling remained on the countertop. In fact, she liked it so much that she bought a matching toaster that now sits next to the kettle in the kitchen. 

Boils up to 1.5 liters

Former Wired contributor Jeffrey Van Camp has been using Cuisinart's PerfecTemp for at least two years now and he's been happy with it. It's especially great for tea lovers because it comes with six preset buttons for green tea, white tea, oolong tea, and black tea, plus a “delicate” button for light and spring teas that boils the water to 160 degrees (the sixth preset is for French press coffee). There's a backlit water window that lets you see how much water you're filling it with (helpful if your kitchen doesn't have the best lighting), and a blue light indicates when it's boiling water and on what setting. There's a mesh filter near the pouring spout you can remove and clean as well. 

Unfortunately, there's no simple way to mute the alarm that goes off when it's done boiling water. It's a little too loud and runs a smidge too long. (You can mute it, but it requires taking the kettle apart, which isn't endorsed by the manufacturer.)

Boils up to 1.7 liters  

Looks matter, and if you want a stylish kettle in your kitchen, look no further than Smeg. It comes in a variety of different colors (I opted for pink). It adds a really fun, bright pop of color next to the more bland-looking appliances in my kitchen. At around 3.6 pounds, it is on the heavier side for an electric kettle. It makes up for this weight by boiling very quickly—so much so that I often just waited for it to finish boiling (it does come with an automatic shutoff feature, so you can safely leave it unsupervised too). On the back is a small window that lets you see exactly how much water you're pouring in. 

Despite the high price, it doesn't come with all the bells and whistles as other electric kettles on this list. There's no connected app or dial for precise temperature settings, and there's no LED or sound to let you know it's done boiling. As a casual tea drinker, I didn't miss those features. It's just a cute, spendy, and reliable electric kettle. (There is a pricier Smeg ($250) with some of those features, including preset temperature settings and a keep warm function, but we haven't tested it yet.)

Boils up to 1.7 liters

We've tested a number of kettles, but not every model deserves a top spot above. Here are a few others that work well, but don't stand out in any particular way. 

Art and Cook Electric Glass Kettle for $50: When I first unboxed Art and Cook's electric glass kettle, there was one red flag: typos on both the box and instruction manual. That made me a little hesitant to test it, but my experience over the past six months has been perfectly fine. There's no LED light like on the Cosori to indicate when it's boiling, but it does hold slightly more water (1.8 liters as opposed to 1.7). It has an automatic shutoff feature, but overall, I found it a little slower to boil. 

Elite Gourmet Cordless Electric Programmable Water Kettle for $55: There's a digital temperature display (with five preset temperatures you can cycle through), a “Keep Warm” button, and color-changing LED lights to delineate specific temperatures, making this quite the feature-filled kettle for the price. I find it hard to memorize which temperature corresponds to which color, but you might pick it up faster over time (and if you're a visual learner). Unfortunately, it's sold out everywhere. 

Our electric kettle recommendations are either made of stainless steel or glass. If you're wondering which to choose, there are pros and cons to both materials. 

Glass electric kettles are easier to maintain. You can spot buildup in and around the kettle more clearly, though that might mean you'll be cleaning it more often. Glass kettles are less likely to get rusty over time too. Since it's see-through, it's easier to fill with water and you can keep an eye on the boiling process. However, they are fragile—even if they're made of durable glass, you still have to be careful.

Stainless steel electric kettles tend to hide any kind of mucky buildup, but that doesn't mean they're a hassle to clean. They're more durable and often don't get as hot as glass kettles, so they're a little safer to hold. Generally, there are also more styles and colors to choose from.