The Best Stainless-Steel Cookware Sets of 2023

• Performance: Good
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 1.5- and 3-quart saucepan with cover, 10-inch skillet, and an 8-quart stockpot with cover.

If this is your first set of cookware or if price is your priority, then this Cuisinart Chef’s Classic set of stainless- steel cookware is a solid pick. According to reviewers, the performance is good for the price—they also find that it's beginner friendly. This 7-piece set includes measurement markings for ease of use, a handle to keep your hand protected from hot spots, and a flavor lock lid. It’s also easy to clean by hand or in the dishwasher.

The one downside is that this set seems to stain easily. If you’re looking to keep your cookware set fresh for the long run, then investing in a more expensive set may be your best bet.

• Performance: Good
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 8- and 10-inch frying pan, 3-quart sauté pan with cover, 1.5- and 3-quart sauce pan with cover, and an 8-quart stock pot with cover.

The Tramontina Tri-Ply Clad is a 10-Piece stainless steel cookware set. It’s a solid, budget-friendly option that’s made to support all of your cooking needs. It works with all cooktop types, including induction. It also comes with a stainless-steel handle and glass lids to keep your pots and pans covered.

• Performance: Great
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 8- and 10-inch skillet, steamer insert with cover, 8-quart stockpot with cover, 1.5- and 3-quart saucepan with cover, and a 3.5-quart sauté pan with handle and cover.

The Cuisinart MCP-12N Multiclad Pro Stainless Steel 12-Piece Cookware Set offers incredible performance at a great value. We had no complaints with the medium-sized sauté pan (which not only comfortably fit four chicken thighs but also seared each one to perfection). The large stockpot is well-sized for making soup, cooking pasta, or blanching vegetables—and is dishwasher-safe for an added bonus.

In addition to their performance and high quality, these pans are easy to use. The triple-ply construction gives the pans the benefit of heat conductivity, but the anodized aluminum core ensures that they’re not too heavy to handle. The set includes everything you need to cook a meal: two saucepans (1.5- and 3-quart), an 8-quart stockpot, a medium-sized 3.5-quart sauté pan, two skillets (8- and 10-inch), and a steamer insert—all with comfortable handles and a design that creates a nice balance when holding the pan.

• Performance: Great
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 8.5- and 11-inch skillets, 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans, a 3.5-quart sauté pan, and an 8-quart stockpot.

While we know every shopper can’t justify the price, Hestan’s NanoBond is an exceptional line of cookware, and is worth the dough if you have it. It’s gorgeous to look at and feels good in the hand, and you get the kind of performance you’d expect at this price—even heating, steady simmering, and no burning at the bottom or in the corners. Thousands of titanium-based layers of stainless steel are bonded to the surfaces of NanoBond cookware, which the brand claims makes it 400% stronger than traditional stainless steel and therefore resistant to staining and scratching. These pieces can even take heat up to 1050°F!

While there are lots of good cookware sets out there, this line offers just about every performance plus and ease of use you could ever want.

• Performance: Good
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 8.5- and 11-inch skillets, 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans, 3.5-quart sauté pan, and an 8-quart stockpot.

Hestan ProBond is great-looking and high-performing cookware, competitively priced with stainless-steel sets from All-Clad. While not as exceptionally durable as Hestan’s NanoBond line, the ProBond pieces are similarly well constructed, with even heating, flush rivets, and a good weight.

The 10-piece set has a good assortment of basics that definitely make for a better buy than collecting individual pieces. You have the option of supplementing your set with ProBond nonstick skillets, but will have to look to another brand for a Dutch oven.

• Performance: Great
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans, 8-quart stockpot, 3-quart sauté pan, and an 8- and 10-inch skillets.

All-Clad is well known for making top-of-the-line (and expensive) cookware. This 10-piece All-Clad stainless-steel set is no exception. While there’s no denying these pots and pans’ heat distribution and superior performance, there were a few things that caused them to fall down in the ranks. First, the very hefty price tag is hard to swallow, especially considering that the heavy material makes it harder to flip vegetables or pour out the contents with ease. The straight, stainless-steel handle design doesn’t help in that regard, throwing off the balance and causing you to really feel the weight of each pan.

That being said, if you’re willing to dish out the coin (or have a wedding registry in your future), these pots and pans will last a lifetime.

• Performance: Great
• Cleaning: Dishwasher safe; easy
• What’s included: 1.5- and 3-quart saucepans, 8-quart stockpot, 3-quart sauté pan, and an 8- and 10-inch frying fan.

If you’re looking for a top-rated cookware set that’ll sustain years of use, then check out the All Clad D5 5-Ply Brushed Stainless Steel Set. It’s resistant to warps and heat up to 600 degrees in the oven. Plus, it's made for evening heating on any type of cooktop, such as induction. What’s more, this set comes with heat-resistant rims, flared rims for drip-free pouring, and 5-ply bonded layers of stainless steel.

• Performance: Good
• Cleaning: Difficult
• What’s included: 3- and 5-quart sauce pots, 5- and 12-quart stockpots, 5-quart sauté pan, and 10- and 12-inch skillets.

If you regularly make large amounts of soup or stock, you may want to consider the Tramontina 12-piece, tri-ply set. It comes with a 12-quart stockpot—that’s overkill for boiling pasta or blanching vegetables, but perfect for larger batch recipes. The wide handles are comfortable to hold, and the tri-ply construction provided even heating, from browning chicken breasts to cooking sauces without scorching.

You’ll get some larger pots and pans with this set for a great price (if you’re looking for small 1-quart saucepans, this isn’t the one for you). The roomier pans are nice, giving you more space to cook larger quantities while still fitting on a standard range top.