A sauté pan is easily one of the most versatile pans to have in the kitchen. They come in many shapes and sizes, some with two handles, with or without lids. Their shared characteristics are that they are sturdy, robust pans with thick, heat-retaining bottoms and sides making the sautéing of vegetables, meat and fish so easy.
Plus, as they are deeper than a regular frying pan, they can also be used for for steaming, deep-frying, searing and poaching. Many are also able to go from hob to oven, and cooking on all heat sources including induction.
Spoiler alert: the Le Creuset toughened non-stick sauté pan was our number-one star-buy pick, but read on to discover more of our tried-and-tested recommendations.
Best sauté pans at a glance
- Best investment sauté pan: Le Creuset toughened non-stick sauté pan, £209
- Best non-stick sauté pan: Circulon Infinite Total non-stick sauté pan, £90.99
- Best looking sauté pan: Samuel Groves classic tri-ply sauté pan and lid, £195
- Best spun iron sauté pan: Netherton Foundry sauté pan, £125.10
How we tested sauté pans
All the pans were tested by first sautéing a finely chopped onion in three tablespoons of vegetable oil.
We sautéd a soffritto (finely chopped onion, celery, carrot and garlic cooked in olive oil), then 500g minced beef and crisped up smoked bacon or pancetta for our ever-popular bolognese recipe.
We scored the pans against the following criteria on our test matrix:
- Overall material quality
- Handle comfort
- Weight of pan
- Non-stick credentials
- Heat retention and distribution
- Quality of sauté
- Sides – do they protect from splash-back?
- Ease of washing
- Quality and fit of the lid
- Added bonuses: dishwasher-friendly; oven-friendly
- Capacity
- Any special features such as measurement marks or pouring spout?
Best sauté pans to buy in 2026
Good Food in partnership with Tower TriPly 28cm multi-pan with lid
Available from Tower (£59.99)
The Good Food 28cm Tri-Ply multi-pan, created in partnership with Tower, is a versatile kitchen essential. Its three-layer bonded base ensures fast, even heating, while the superior ceramic non-stick coating offers effortless food release with minimal oil.
Designed for convenience, it features an extra helper handle, built-in pouring lips and a tempered glass lid with dual-sized straining holes. It’s suitable for all hob types, including induction, and is oven safe up to 220C, this Tried, Tested and Trusted pan provides top performance for everyday cooking.
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Good Food in partnership with Tower Hard Anodised 25cm Multi-Pan with Lid
Available from Amazon (£84.99), Tower (£84.99) – save 30% with code GOODFOOD30
This versatile 28cm multi-pan is built for everyday family cooking. Made from tough hard anodised aluminium with a ceramic non-stick coating, it heats evenly, releases food easily and needs little to no oil. The tempered glass lid, pouring lips and helper handle make serving simple, while it’s oven and induction hob safe too.
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Le Creuset toughened non-stick sauté pan
Available from Le Creuset (£209)
Best investment sauté pan
Pros:
- Lifetime guarantee
- Excellent non-stick performance
- Distributes heat evenly
Cons:
Star rating: 5/5
The deep, straight-sided Le Creuset sauté pan is hailed as one of their toughest non-stick pans ever, it’s dishwasher-safe and you can carefully use metal tools with it, too.
You won’t need the dishwasher though – the non-stick is so super-smooth that even after cooking a sauce for a few hours, it only needed a light hand-wash. The handle is super-comfy and tightly riveted on, and even with a sauce in, the pan didn’t feel too heavy.
The heat distribution was exemplary, with the onions soft and translucent in under 10 minutes on a medium heat. Lowering the heat and cooking even longer created lovely, slightly golden onions, likewise with a soffritto, and the mince browned evenly in just eight minutes.
With the silky surface, the food hardly needed any stirring during cooking – a shake was enough, and even then, the contents of the pan flew around.
The lid fits exceptionally well on the pan, with very little steam escaping and our bolognese gently cooked away for a couple of hours, resulting in a beautifully thick, slightly dark and rich tasting sauce with no drying out at all.
The Le Creuset may be an expensive pan, but given that it also comes with a lifetime guarantee, it’s a worthwhile investment.
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Circulon Infinite Total non-stick sauté pan
Available from Circulon (£90.99)
Best non-stick sauté pan
Pros:
- Professional looking
- Ultra non-stick
Cons:
Star rating: 5/5
The Circulon is a very good-looking pan, from its long, curved handle to its smooth satin-grey finish and ultra non-stick finish. There are clever, little grooves in the bottom of the pan to protect from scratching into the surface, which means, according to Circulon, you can use metal tools during cooking.
The non-stick finish worked very well; if you ever fancied flicking food in the air like a celebrity chef, this is the pan to practice with. Equally, as nothing sticks, washing-up was quick, easy and required just a little hot water and soap. If that’s too much, it’s dishwasher-proof, too.
The pan heats scarily fast, so we found it best to start low and work our way up. For its 24cm diameter, this is a slightly heavy pan when the stainless-steel lid is on, but there’s the sturdy grab handle makes carrying it easy.
With the lid on and the sauce simmering on a very low heat, our bolognese was one of the best on test; the meat meltingly soft and the sauce rich and thick.
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Samuel Groves classic tri-ply sauté pan and lid
Available from Samuel Groves (£195)
Best looking sauté pan
Pros:
- Handsome
- Not as heavy as it looks
Cons:
Star rating: 5/5
The Samuel Grove is a beautiful looking 26cm pan made by Samuel Groves in Birmingham, cookware makers since 1817.
It arrives without a scrap of plastic, wrapped in a thick jute sack inside a box. Unwrap and find a polished, gleaming and extremely handsome pan. It has classical clean lines and two handles, both of which are solidly-riveted onto the pan and the well-fitting lid.
Despite being made of durable three-ply stainless steel and aluminium, the pan was not overly heavy. Its solid construction and secure handles made it feel safe to move around the kitchen when full. The pan is also ovenproof to 260C, making it extremely versatile.
The speed of heating and the subsequent heat retention was remarkable, the sautéing only needed a low heat and even then, required a watchful eye to prevent burning.
There is no added non-stick coating, the highly polished high-quality stainless steel provides this all by itself – nothing stuck and hand-washing was a doddle.
While cooking a sauce, all that was needed was a quick eye from time to time to check the contents weren’t drying out – they didn’t. Our sauce came out beautifully cooked, rich and very tasty.
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Netherton Foundry sauté pan
Available from Netherton (£125.10)
Best spun iron sauté pan
Pros:
- Handmade design
- Good longevity
Cons:
- The oak must be removed before using in an oven
- Re-seasoning required from time to time
Star rating: 4.5/5
The shallow, 25cm Netherton sauté pan is handmade in Shropshire using spun iron, resulting in a deep, dark chocolate brown finish. The handle has a smooth British oak grip, with brass fittings which are lovely to hold but must be removed before the pan can go anywhere near the oven.
To create a non-stick surface, the pan comes pre-seasoned (heated to a high temperature with a light coating of Sussex flax oil), which means no chemicals or PTFE, and makes it very easy to wash. Netherton recommend re-doing this from time to time.
We found the pan a little shallow to make a full bolognese sauce, so we cut the recipe to two-thirds. The pan heated up exceptionally fast and evenly.
Chopped onions and vegetables cooked quickly, and browning bacon and mince heralded the best results in our test, thanks to the great heat retention and spread. Our finished sauce was thick and rich thanks, in part, to the vent hole in the lid.
Though the pan requires a little extra work, your reward is a beautiful utensil which, with care, will last you a lifetime.
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