Instant Pot
Hacker ApprovedElectric pressure cooker in Home & kitchen
People recommend it for hands-off cooking of many dishes in large batches, with good energy efficiency and durability. Critics say it is slow to reach and release pressure.
People recommend it for hands-off cooking of many dishes in large batches, with good energy efficiency and durability. Critics say it is slow to reach and release pressure.
27 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 24
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 89%
Recommended in 11 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 24 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 8 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 11 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Hands-off cooking, set and forget
“stick them in an Instant Pot for an hour, and you can walk away while they cook”
Comment from 14 May 2026 in “USDA Projects Smallest US Wheat Harvest Since 1972 Due to Plains Drought” “The electric lets me set and forget and come back to a hot meal hours later.”
Comment from 2 Aug 2026 in “Kenji/Serious Eats – 30-Min Pressure Cooker Pho Ga” “it lets you set a temperature and hold it for hours”
Comment from 26 Apr 2026 in “Can you stop beans from making you gassy?” - Comment from 23 Nov 2025 in “McDonald's is losing its low-income customers”
Versatile for many dishes
“you can make absolutely gigantic batches of curry in the instant pot for low effort”
Comment from 26 Jun 2026 in “How much? The hidden costs of restaurant dishes” “I've really enjoyed using my newer instant pot as a sous vide lately”
Comment from 1 Jan 2026 in “Kitchen Optimizations” “Steal-cut oatmeal made in Insta Pot is the best thing in the world.”
Comment from 1 Mar 2026 in “Just two days of oatmeal cut bad cholesterol by 10%” - Comment from 2 Mar 2026 in “Just two days of oatmeal cut bad cholesterol by 10%”
Energy efficient cooking
“The instant pot is very energy efficient so you don't need a very big solar system depending on where you live.”
Comment from 8 Sep 2026 in “An overview of how our family is prepared” “The Instant Pot is power efficient and can cook a lot of food at once.”
Comment from 2 Nov 2025 on Hacker News Durable and safe to use
“believed in its safety strongly enough that I have continued to use it”
Comment from 20 Feb 2026 in “Tesla to pay $243M judgement over Autopilot crash” “they made a good durable product”
Comment from 21 Aug 2026 in “Consumer Rights Wiki”
What people said
26 of the 27 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“The instant pot is very energy efficient so you don't need a very big solar system depending on where you live.”
“they made a good durable product”
“The electric lets me set and forget and come back to a hot meal hours later.”
“It takes longer to reach pressure and then release pressure even with his tricks.”
“AFAICT, it's the same thing only smaller. Buttons seem the same, seals look to be the same spec.”
“purchased by private equity parasites when it first became popular”
“They made a product so good no one ever bought it again”
“you can make absolutely gigantic batches of curry in the instant pot for low effort”
“One of my InstantPots uses standard PC power cable with an IEC connector.”
“stick them in an Instant Pot for an hour, and you can walk away while they cook”
“it lets you set a temperature and hold it for hours”
“This worked fine (it was safe, if inefficient).”
“right up there with the microwave and instantpot for being worth the money and space in the kitchen”
“Just about anything I have ever cooked in an IP”
“Steal-cut oatmeal made in Insta Pot is the best thing in the world.”
“I've had good results with a standard insta-pot”
“believed in its safety strongly enough that I have continued to use it”
“since it's basically water just water in the base of the instant pot, there's not much cleaning required”
“A one time investment in an instant pot solves that issue”
“Well there's your problem.”
“I've really enjoyed using my newer instant pot as a sous vide lately”
“It cooks many items with zero loss in quality--often in less than 1/2 the time.”
“The Ninja Instant Pot is amazing at what it can do”
“you can chill while it cooks you a meal in an hour”
“It died that day (thermistor).”
“The Instant Pot is power efficient and can cook a lot of food at once.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.