The Best Over-the-Range Microwave

Liam McCabe covered appliances for Wirecutter and worked on the most recent version of our guide to the best countertop microwaves.

We’ve been evaluating over-the-range microwaves since 2020. For this guide, we did the following:

• We’ve interviewed a variety of industry experts.
• We’ve pored over customer reviews and read expert reviews from other publications.
• We’ve searched import records to find the original suppliers for these microwaves.
• We’ve compared more than a dozen models side by side, and tested six machines at our office in Long Island City, New York.

An over-the-range microwave is for those who want to save space (and a little bit of money) by combining a large microwave and range hood into a single appliance. The microwaves themselves work fine—they are usually not significantly better or worse than countertop or built-in microwaves in terms of heating performance, reliability, or features. (Except for more expensive models, which now come with additional cooking modes like convection baking, broiling, or air-fry.) The ventilation capability is similar to that of most budget-friendly range hoods, at around 300 cubic feet per minute (CFM) of air movement on affordable models, and rarely surpassing 400 CFM even on higher-end models.

If you’re replacing an existing OTR microwave, you should be able to install most new models into the old space without much trouble. Nearly all OTR models have the same 30-inch width. (A few OTR models are designed to fit over a compact 24-inch range. Some brands used to make 36-inch OTR microwaves, but none of them are currently available, as far as we’ve seen.)

The depth and height of OTR models can vary, but most of the budget-conscious models we’ve focused on for this guide are roughly the same size. Your installer might need to drill a few new holes to line up the new support bracket, vents, and power cord properly, but that’ll all be hidden behind the machine anyhow. All of the OTR models we know of can vent to both the rear and the top of the machine (depending on where your ducts are) or can work in recirculation mode.

If you have the option, we strongly recommend setting up your over-the-range microwave to vent to the outside. When scientists at the University of California’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory studied the use of range hoods to mitigate indoor air-quality problems in 2017, they found that those that vent to the outdoors can reduce pollutant concentrations in the air from cooking by 80% to 95%. The best air-circulating version was able to reduce pollutant concentrations by only 50%. (Recent studies about cooking and indoor air quality also show that you should turn on your microwave hood every time you cook or bake, not just when you’re deep-frying fish or charring the heck out of a steak.)

If you’re remodeling and trying to decide between an over-the-range microwave or a dedicated range hood, first consider what kind of stove you have. A microwave hood or range hood is really there for ventilation, not odors or smoke, notes Jessica Petrino Ball, who runs the education programs at the kitchen appliance retailer AJ Madison. Vents or exhaust hoods work by sucking up and removing steam and gases as you cook, she says. (That action also tends to move smells, heat, and tiny steam-borne grease particles out of the kitchen—which keeps it cleaner and less smelly, as well.)

The common rule of thumb is that you’ll want 100 CFM in your hood for every 10,000 BTU you use on a gas stovetop. Even on a basic range, the two strongest burners alone use at least 30,000 BTU combined when they’re on full power. That’ll stretch the capabilities of a basic 300 CFM over-the-range microwave. So will a higher-end range, which tends to have stronger burners. You’ll often create more smoke than the microwave can clear, and the microwave handle can get uncomfortably hot to the touch, so a range hood is probably a better option. (You can look into a countertop, wall-installed, or drawer microwave instead; read our tips on how to use your gas stove safely without a proper range hood.)

For the most part, this process was similar to how we selected countertop microwaves: We narrowed down the field by figuring out which models were made in the same factories from similar parts, then prioritized models with widely liked features, such as express buttons, door handles (instead of buttons), a mute option, and a sensor reheat mode. We also looked for meaningful differences in heating performance based on some food-heating tests, which included making marshmallow heat maps to gauge evenness and hot spots, and checking soup temps to measure power.

We added a few tests specific to over-the-range microwaves. Since so many people use their over-the-range microwaves as a kitchen night-light, we favored models with yellow undermount lights and two intensity settings: one bright enough to see what you’re cooking and one dim enough for ambient background lighting. Since most models move the same amount of air (300 to 400 CFM), we favored models with quieter fans. We thought about making ease of installation part of our decision, but we found that it doesn’t vary much from model to model, and most people will hire a professional to hang an OTR microwave anyway.

Since this was our first time testing over-the-range microwaves, and we weren’t sure how smoothly it would go, we kept our group of finalists pretty small, and we limited testing to popular lower-end models that usually cost less than $300. We may test some higher-end models later.

Although we found that most countertop microwaves sold in the US are made by a single manufacturer (Midea), there’s more diversity among OTR microwaves. That could mean that there are real differences in reliability and longevity among brands—though we don’t have enough information to know what they are, unfortunately.

(If you’re interested in the details, we think that, based on shipping records and side-by-side comparisons we’ve done, Midea makes Frigidaire and certain GE models; LG makes its own machines and certain GE models; ditto for Samsung. And Whirlpool Corp. has its own microwave factory in the same sub-district of the same city as Midea, interestingly. That’s where Whirlpool makes OTR microwaves for all of its sub-brands, including Whirlpool, Maytag, Amana, and KitchenAid. These brands all declined to comment on specific partnerships.)

The GE JVM6175 has all of the convenient controls that most people seem to want in a microwave, and it heats more evenly than other over-the-range models we’ve tested. The JVM6175 is slightly easier to install than its closest competitors, and it also comes in more finishes, to better match the look of more kitchens. It’s not particularly expensive, either.

Controls are what really make or break a microwave for most people, and the JVM6175 has the most well-rounded set we’ve seen in an affordable over-the-range model. It has express keys (for 1-minute through 5-minute cook times) and an Add 30 Seconds button, all of which are standard on most microwaves. Less common is its Mute option, which lets you reheat your midnight snacks without waking up the rest of the house. Also less common is an option to switch the turntable off, which can help the microwave fit a larger dish (though the hot spots will be more extreme).

The undermount light on the JVM6175 is as versatile as the best of them, with a warm color temperature and half-power setting that are well-suited to work as a night-light, and enough brightness on its full-power setting to clearly light up your stovetop.

In our tests, the JVM6175 did the best job of evenly heating the entire turntable, with minimal hot and cold spots. That’s good news if you heat up big trays or dinner plates of leftovers. The JVM6175 also has some sensor-based reheat, defrost, and cook modes that some people find useful and that aren’t always included in affordable over-the-range microwaves.

Most people will leave installation up to a professional, but if you’re going to attempt to install the microwave yourself, we found that the JVM6175 is a little bit more forgiving than the other OTR models we tested. The mounting template is easy to follow, and it needs one less screw to stay secure.

Like many GE appliances, the JVM6175 comes in a half-dozen finishes, so you should be able to find something that blends in pretty well with your kitchen design:

Stainless steel: JVM6175SKSS
Fingerprint-resistant stainless: JVM6175YKFS
White: JVM6175DKWW
Black: JVM6175DKBB
Fingerprint-resistant black stainless: JVM6175BLTS
Fingerprint-resistant slate: JVM6175EKES

The fan on this GE is a little louder and whoosh-ier than those on some of the other models we tested, despite its having the same advertised air movement (300 CFM).

In our tests, the JVM6175 was a little weak—it didn’t heat soup or potatoes to temperatures as high as with most of the other OTR models we tested. This could just be the individual unit we tried out (there can be major power differences from unit to unit among the same model), or this model could actually just be 10 to 15 percent slower than most of its competitors. The difference in performance is not significant enough to change our recommendation, and most people will just learn to adjust the cook times.

As with most other OTR microwaves, the JVM6175 was reported by some owners to have an unexpectedly short lifespan. Some of these instances are certainly due to defective units, but others are also probably due to mis-installation. Whoever hooked up the microwave may not have aligned the vents correctly, or forgot to set it to the recirculation mode, so that the microwave overheated and burned itself out. Even with these negative reviews, the overall user rating for the JVM6175 is among the best we’ve seen for over-the-range microwaves, with 4.4 out of 5 stars at Home Depot, based on more than 10,000 reviews dating as far back as 2016.

If our pick is sold out or you just want to save some money, the Whirlpool WMH31017 is another solid over-the-range microwave. Like the GE JVM6175, it evenly heats its entire turntable, with minimal hot and cold spots, and has a great cooktop light, with a bright high setting and a night-light-appropriate half-power setting.

The Whirlpool’s main downside is that it’s missing most of the express controls, though it does have an Add 30 Seconds button. There’s also no mute option, no turntable-off function, no sensor-based modes—the control panel isn’t as busy, in general. Most people will get along just fine without any of those settings, and most won’t even miss any of them, aside from the express-cook options.

The big upside is that the Whirlpool usually costs less than the JVM6175, yet you can expect similar warming performance. The ventilation fan moves the same amount of air as the JVM6175’s fan but is noticeably quieter. It comes in four different finishes:

Stainless steel: WMH31017HS
Fingerprint-resistant stainless: WMH31017HZ
White: WMH31017HW
Black: WMH31017HB

Whirlpool Corp. makes microwaves under the Whirlpool, Maytag, Amana, and KitchenAid labels. Most of them are similar to the Whirlpool WMH31017, based on what we’ve seen of them in stores. We think you can expect similar performance across the board, so if you find one of the other models on sale, or you prefer the look or certain options, you’ll still be getting a good microwave.

One notable higher-end model is the Whirlpool WML55011 (or any of the similar models made by Whirlpool Corp.), a low-profile OTR microwave. It’s a few inches shorter than anything else, fitting into spaces with lower-mounted cabinets. It’s tall enough to fit a cup roughly the size of a pint glass. It’s an expensive microwave, but it solves a unique problem. (Whirlpool also makes the WMMF5930PZ, which sits flush with your counters.)

We tested the GE JVM3160, which is the bottom-end microwave in that company’s OTR lineup. It’s a solid alternative to the Whirlpool WMH31017, with more express controls but less-even heating, and roughly equal lighting and fan-noise characteristics. It’s also one of the few models that’s still available in the classic Bisque finish. GE also makes a slightly larger and more expensive model, the JVM7195, which is otherwise similar to the JVM6175.

Insignia (Best Buy’s store brand) has a few OTR models made by other manufacturers. We didn’t test any, but based on our research, we think some of their less expensive models, like the stainless-steel NS-OTR16SS9, could be essentially the same low-end microwave made by the brand Magic Chef, while others are of higher quality.

Most of the brands we’ve covered have higher-end models that we didn’t test. GE Profile models are another notable example—some of them offer additional cooking functionality, such as baking and broiling.

Many other premium appliance brands have microwaves, too, often included as a toss-in with a larger kitchen-appliance package deal. Based on what we know about how microwaves are built, these are all built in the same few factories as the cheaper models, most likely around the same core components. So the main differences are in the aesthetics and control panels. Higher-end models might blend in better with a higher-end kitchen design, but don’t expect them to reheat your lasagna more evenly, and they may or may not last longer.

Most of the advice from our guide to countertop microwaves and our article on microwave fires applies here as well. In a nutshell: Rest easy about microwave radiation, clean your microwave regularly, don’t slam the door, don’t run it empty, don’t run it with any metal utensils or foil inside, and don’t try to repair it at home.

Over-the-range microwave installation is a little tricky, so most people hire a pro to set their microwaves up, and that’s a perfectly reasonable choice. But it’s not impossible to do it on your own. (I had never installed one before I wrote this guide, and my handyman skills are well below average, but I managed to hang one in about 45 minutes on my first try.) All of the OTR microwaves we tested come with a paper template to help you properly line everything up and make the right holes. The support hardware is also always included. You’ll need your own power drill, stud finder, and a variety of drill bits, plus a pencil and some tape. And you’ll need a buddy to help you lift the microwave into place.

For over-the-range models in particular, the most crucial step to longevity is to make sure the installer sets up the ventilation properly. All of the models we tested could vent three different ways, and if it’s not set to the correct mode, the microwave can easily overheat and burn itself out. Manufacturers recommend that you remove and clean the grease filters under the microwave monthly, and if it has a charcoal filter, every six months.

Rachel Wharton contributed reporting.