Best Inexpensive Sous Vide Cooker

Are you looking to get into sous vide cooking but don’t want to spend too much on a sous vide cooker?

You’re in the right place because I’ve done some extensive research and have found you the best inexpensive sous vide cooker that will meet all of your needs and also some great alternatives to consider.

You’ll see that my number one recommendation for sous vide cooking on a budget is the Instant Pot Accu Slim Sous Vide Immersion Circulator. To learn why I think it’s so great, keep reading!

Best Inexpensive Sous Vide Cooker Reviews

1. Instant Pot Accu Slim Sous Vide Immersion Circulator

In my opinion, the Instant Pot Accu Slim is the best inexpensive sous vide cooker there is. 

When comparing the features of the Instant Pot Accu Slim to the other products reviewed here, you’ll see that they compare similarly. However, the big difference that gives the Instant Pot Accu Slim a definite one-up over the other sous vide cookers is that it comes from a trusted brand, and is an excellent, quality product that you can rely on to last you years.

Let’s take a closer look at the features of the Instant Pot Accu Slim:

• Effectively circulates water at a precise temperature for perfectly cooked food every time you use it.
• It’s small in size and weight. It’s not bulky and is easy to store in your kitchen drawer.
• With a high wattage of 800 Watts, it quickly heats up your water bath and provides plenty of power (especially for long cooking times) that won’t overwork the device.
• The temperature range of 68°F to 203°F (20°C to 95°C) is wide enough to cook everything you need. You may notice that a couple of the other products here can be set to lower temperatures (in the 30-60°F range), but this doesn’t matter so much because the lowest temperature you’ll probably ever cook anything at will be around 100-110°F. You wouldn’t be missing out on anything (unless you also want to use the immersion circulator for defrosting or chilling), and you would be getting a much higher quality product. If reaching a larger temperature range does matter to you, I would highly consider spending a bit more and getting the Anova Nano.
• It’s extremely accurate with a temperature accuracy of +/- 1°F, so you can rest assured you’ll get the perfect results that sous vide cooking promises.
• This device has touch screen digital controls. The display conveniently shows both the temperature and timer at the same time, so if you’re busy moving around the kitchen, you don’t have to stop to toggle between the two to check them and make adjustments. There are also increase and decrease buttons, a mode button to switch between adjusting the temperature and timer, and a start/stop button.
• It has lines conveniently marked on the device to show you the minimum and maximum heights you should fill the water bath to.
• As a great safety feature, it automatically shuts off if the water level is too low or when the timer runs out.
• There is a compatible phone app that allows you to access hundreds of different sous vide recipes. However, you can’t control the device remotely with the phone app because the device doesn’t have Bluetooth or Wifi wireless capability. If this feature is important to you, I would consider one of the Anova models or the Joule instead.
• Unfortunately, the clamp cannot be adjusted to move up and down (like the top two Anova models), but it still fits securely on most pots. It also clamps to the 6 and 8 quart inner pot of the Instant Pot, either with or without the Instant Pot.

2. Redmond Sous Vide Machine SV004

If you’re looking for the best budget sous vide cooker, the Redmond Sous Vide Machine SV004 is also a great option to consider.

Here are the details on its features:

• Effectively circulates water at a precise temperature for perfectly cooked food every time you use it.
• It’s small in size and weight. It’s not bulky and is easy to store in your kitchen drawer.
• With a high wattage of 1000 Watts, it quickly heats up your water bath and provides plenty of power (especially for long cooking times) that won’t overwork the device.
• The temperature range of 32°F to 194°F (0°C to 90°C) is wide enough to cook everything you need and also goes low enough for defrosting or chilling food.
• It’s extremely accurate with a temperature accuracy of +/- 1°F, so you can rest assured you’ll get the perfect results that sous vide cooking promises.
• With touch screen digital controls, the display conveniently shows both the temperature and timer at the same time. It also has increase and decrease buttons, a setting button, a power button, and shortcut keys for automatically setting the temperature and timer for cooking steak, fish, chicken, or vegetables.
• It has lines conveniently marked on the device to show you the minimum and maximum heights you should fill the water bath to.
• As a great safety feature, it automatically shuts off if the water level is too low or when the timer runs out.
• It doesn’t have Bluetooth or WiFi connectivity to control the device remotely, nor does it have a compatible phone app for sous vide recipes, like the Instant Pot Accu Slim. If wireless connectivity is important to you, I would consider one of the Anova models or the Joule instead, as the budget sous vide cookers don’t tend to have this.
• Unfortunately, the clamp cannot be adjusted to move up and down (like the top two Anova models), but it still fits securely on most pots.
• Users report some issues with the quality of this sous vide cooker (cracks in the clamp and handle, finicky display controls, and a fragile heating element). There have also been reports of poor customer service for replacements or refunds. Overall, the device is liked by most who have purchased it.

3. HadinEEon Sous Vide Immersion Circulator

I would consider the HadinEEon Sous Vide Immersion Circulator to be another solid option for a budget range sous vide cooker.

Let’s take a look at it’s features:

• Effectively circulates water at a precise temperature for perfectly cooked food every time you use it.
• It’s small in size and weight. It’s not bulky and is easy to store in your kitchen drawer.
• With a high wattage of 1000 Watts, it quickly heats up your water bath and provides plenty of power (especially for long cooking times) that won’t overwork the device.
• The temperature range of 32°F to 194°F (0°C to 90°C) is wide enough to cook everything you need and also goes low enough for defrosting or chilling food.
• It’s extremely accurate with a temperature accuracy of +/- 1°F, so you can rest assured you’ll get the perfect results that sous vide cooking promises.
• It has touch screen digital controls. There is one display which shows either the temperature or the timer, unlike the Instant Pot Accu Slim which conveniently shows both. It has increase and decrease buttons, a power button that also acts as a start button, and a setting button so you can switch between the temperature and timer to adjust them.
• It has lines conveniently marked on the device to show you the minimum and maximum heights you should fill the water bath to.
• As a great safety feature, it automatically shuts off if the water level is too low or when the timer runs out.
• It doesn’t have Bluetooth or WiFi connectivity to control the device remotely, nor does it have a compatible phone app for sous vide recipes, like the Instant Pot Accu Slim. If wireless connectivity is important to you, I would consider one of the Anova models or the Joule instead, as the budget sous vide cookers don’t tend to have this.
• Unfortunately, the clamp cannot be adjusted to move up and down (like the top two Anova models), but it still fits securely on most pots.
• Users report issues with device quality, temperature consistency/accuracy, and the clamp (stating it doesn’t fit securely). However, most users are happy with this sous vide cooker.

4. VPCOK Sous Vide Cooker

The VPCOK Sous Vide Cooker is also a pretty decent option if you’re looking for a sous vide cooker and are on a budget.

Here are its features:

• It has good water circulation.
• It’s small and compact, and doesn’t take up a lot of space in your kitchen.
• With a high wattage of 1000 Watts, it quickly heats up your water bath and provides plenty of power (especially for long cooking times) that won’t overwork the device.
• The temperature range of 77°F to 199°F (25°C to 93°C) is good enough to cook everything you need, but you won’t be able to do any defrosting or chilling.
• It’s extremely accurate with a temperature accuracy of +/- 1°F, so you can rest assured you’ll get the perfect results that sous vide cooking promises.
• It has touch screen digital controls. There is one display which shows either the temperature or the timer, unlike the Instant Pot Accu Slim which conveniently shows both. It has increase and decrease buttons, a power button that also acts as a start button, and temperature and timer buttons so you can switch between them to adjust them.
• It has lines conveniently marked on the device to show you the minimum and maximum heights you should fill the water bath to.
• As a great safety feature, it automatically shuts off if the water level is too low or when the timer runs out.
• It doesn’t have Bluetooth or WiFi connectivity to control the device remotely, nor does it have a compatible phone app for sous vide recipes, like the Instant Pot Accu Slim. If wireless connectivity is important to you, I would consider one of the Anova models or the Joule instead, as the budget sous vide cookers don’t tend to have this.
• Unfortunately, the clamp cannot be adjusted to move up and down (like the top two Anova models), but it still fits securely on most pots.
• The most commonly reported issues with this device are that there is too much variation in the temperature and that it doesn’t last long.

5. Bonsenkitchen Sous Vide Precision Cooker

The Bonsenkitchen Sous Vide Precision Cooker is the last sous vide cooker I recommend you consider if you’re looking to spend less.

Here are its features:

• It has good water circulation.
• It’s small and compact, and doesn’t take up a lot of space in your kitchen.
• With a high wattage of 1200 Watts, it quickly heats up your water bath and provides plenty of power (especially for long cooking times) that won’t overwork the device.
• The temperature range of 86°F to 203°F (30°C to 95°C) is good enough to cook everything you need, but you won’t be able to do any defrosting or chilling.
• It’s extremely accurate with a temperature accuracy of +/- 1°F, so you can rest assured you’ll get the perfect results that sous vide cooking promises.
• It has touch screen digital controls. It has a display each for the temperature and timer, along with increase and decrease buttons, a start/stop button, and a mode button to switch between the temperature and timer.
• It has lines conveniently marked on the device to show you the minimum and maximum heights you should fill the water bath to.
• As a great safety feature, it automatically shuts off if the water level is too low.
• It doesn’t have Bluetooth or WiFi connectivity to control the device remotely, nor does it have a compatible phone app for sous vide recipes, like the Instant Pot Accu Slim. If wireless connectivity is important to you, I would consider one of the Anova models or the Joule instead, as the budget sous vide cookers don’t tend to have this.
• Unfortunately, the clamp cannot be adjusted to move up and down (like the top two Anova models), but it still fits securely on most pots.
• The most commonly reported issues are with the quality of the device (issues with wiring, rusting, and the device last past a couple of months).

Inexpensive Sous Vide Cooker Comparison Chart

	Instant Pot Accu Slim Sous Vide Immersion Circulator	Redmond Sous Vide Machine SV004	HadinEEon Sous Vide Immersion Circulator	VPCOK Sous Vide Cooker	Bonsenkitchen Sous Vide Precision Cooker
Dimensions (length x width)	12.9 x 4.6 inches	14.5 x 3.1 inches	13.7 x 2.2 inches	14.8 x 3.8 inches	16.96 x 4.96 inches (package dimensions)
Weight	1.65 pounds	N/A	1.8 pounds	N/A	2.85 pounds
Wattage	800 Watts	1000 Watts	1000 Watts	1000 Watts	1200 Watts
Temperature Range	68°F to 203°F (20°C to 95°C)	32°F to 194°F (0°C to 90°C)	32°F to 194°F (0°C to 90°C)	77°F to 199°F (25°C to 93°C)	86°F to 203°F (30°C to 95°C)
Temperature Accuracy	+/- 1°F	+/- 1°F	+/- 1°F	+/- 1°F	+/- 1°F
Maximum Water Depth	Line indicated on unit; ~8 inches	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit
Minimum Water Depth	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit	Line indicated on unit
Bluetooth or WiFi	No	No	No	No	No
Phone App	Yes, but for access to recipes and not to remotely control device	No	No	No	No
Display Controls	Touch screen digital controls; display shows temperature and timer, increase and decrease buttons, mode button to toggle between adjusting temperature and timer, start/stop button	Touch screen digital controls; display shows temperature and timer, increase and decrease buttons, setting button, power button, shortcut keys for steak, fish, chicken, and vegetable	Touch screen digital controls; one display shows either temperature or timer, increase and decrease buttons, power button, setting button to toggle between temperature and timer	Touch screen digital controls; one display shows either temperature or timer, increase and decrease buttons, power button, temperature and timer buttons to toggle between them	Touch screen digital controls; display shows temperature and timer, increase and decrease buttons, start/stop button, mode button to toggle between temperature and timer
Automatic shutoff	For when timer runs out and when water level too low	For when timer runs out and when water level too low	For when timer runs out and when water level too low	For when timer runs out and when water level too low	For when water level too low
Water Circulator	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Clamp	Yes; cannot be moved up and down	Yes; cannot be moved up and down	Yes; cannot be moved up and down	Yes; cannot be moved up and down	Yes; cannot be moved up and down
Material	Stainless steel with rubber coating on handle	Stainless steel with plastic handle	Stainless steel heating element, plastic finish top to bottom	Stainless steel with plastic handle	Stainless steel with plastic handle
Warranty	1 year	2 years	2 years	1 year	N/A
Price	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price

Best Inexpensive Sous Vide Cooker Summary

As you can see, when considering sous vide immersion circulators within a budget price range, they all have similar features. What it really comes down to when distinguishing these products is quality.

I consider the Instant Pot Accu Slim Sous Vide Immersion Circulator to be the best inexpensive sous vide cooker because it comes from a trusted brand and is a superior quality product that’ll stand the test of time as you experiment in your kitchen with various sous vide recipes.