The bella basics 2.2qt air fryer is a compact model with enough capacity to cook for just one person. It has a very simple design. You won't find buttons for various cooking modes or even temperature settings. Instead, there's just a dial to set the cook time (up to 60 minutes) and LEDs that indicate whether the air fryer is powered and heating. This inexpensive air fryer is available exclusively at Family Dollar, though pricing and availability may vary by store.
Our Verdict
The bella basics 2.2qt is an alright air fryer. With its simple controls, it doesn't offer much versatility, but it's a reasonable option for simple air fryer staples, like fries, wings, and mozzarella sticks. Its tiny capacity limits you to small portions, but it has more surface area than most 2-quart models, allowing you to spread food out for crisper results. The temperature and fan speed are fixed at one setting, but they work well for air frying, producing decently crispy food. French fries, for example, cook mostly evenly, but with a sizable portion also undercooked or burnt. You don't have to wait forever for results, though this budget option certainly isn't the fastest on the market, either.
Makes mostly crispy, evenly cooked food.
High maximum fan speed for crispier food.
Larger surface area than most 2-qt models, which improves airflow.
Leaves a portion under- and overcooked.
Cooking speed is just okay.
Lacks versatility.
The bella basics 2.2qt is a mediocre option for large-batch cooking. With its small capacity, this model can only make one portion at a time, and while it preheats quickly, it doesn't cook fast enough to make batch cooking worthwhile. It doesn't offer much versatility, either, so you can't use it for dehydrating, baking, or roasting. Air-fried food comes out decently well-cooked, though, so it's a passable option if you're not in a hurry and want to make a large batch of fries or wings.
Makes mostly crispy, evenly cooked food.
High maximum fan speed for crispier food.
Preheats quickly.
Leaves a portion under- and overcooked.
Cooking speed is just okay.
Lacks versatility.
Small, short cooking chamber limits the kind of food you can cook.
The bella basics 2.2qt provides alright frying performance. Although this compact air fryer doesn't offer much capacity, it has more surface area than other options in this range. This extra space allows you to spread food out a little more, and, combined with the high maximum fan speed, it helps produce more evenly cooked food. You get decent results with a batch of French fries: more than half of each batch comes out crispy and well-cooked, but a substantial portion also winds up overcooked or mushy. It cooks fairly quickly, so you don't have to wait too long for a plate of fries or wings, though it can't compete with more powerful options in this regard.
Makes mostly crispy, evenly cooked food.
High maximum fan speed for crispier food.
Larger surface area than most 2-qt models, which improves airflow.
Leaves a portion under- and overcooked.
Cooking speed is just okay.
The bella basics 2.2qt preheats very quickly and offers an alright cooking speed. You'll have to wait longer than with most pricier, higher-powered options, but it produces meals and snacks faster than many small, budget models.
Preheats quickly.
Cooking speed is just okay.
The bella basics 2.2qt has a small cooking capacity, with space to cook for one person at a time. The cooking chamber is very short, so it's not suitable for taller foods, like chicken thighs or stuffed peppers. However, it has more surface area than other 2-quart air fryers, making it easier to arrange food in a single layer for optimal results.
Larger surface area than most 2-qt models, which improves airflow.
Small, short cooking chamber limits the kind of food you can cook.
The bella basics 2.2qt is very compact. In fact, it's one of the smallest air fryers we've tested. It fits easily on crowded counters and in cramped cupboards when not in use, making it an excellent choice for cozy kitchens, studio apartments, and dorm rooms.
Compact design makes it ideal for small spaces.
Performance Usages
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This air fryer is only available in 'Black.' See the label for our unit.
If you come across another variant, tell us about it in the comments, and we'll update our review.
Popular Air Fryer Comparisons
The bella basics 2.2qt is a small, inexpensive air fryer with simple controls available at Family Dollar. This size is smaller than we usually recommend, even if you're only cooking for one person, since a slightly larger capacity allows more room for air to circulate, leading to better results. If you have a little more room to spare, you can get much better performance with something in the 4-quart range, like the Ninja AF101. The Ninja is still small enough for cramped kitchens, but it air fries faster and more evenly and offers much more versatility, so you can also use it to roast, reheat, or dehydrate.
Having said that, if space is at a premium and you need a very small air fryer, this one is a better choice than many other compact models. Compared to the Dash Compact 2Qt, for example, it offers more room to spread food out, which helps it cook faster and much more evenly. The Black+Decker 2qt ID1901-1BDC offers an even starker contrast. Although it has nearly the same capacity, it has a taller, narrower chamber, which contributes to its terrible frying quality and cooking speed. While you won't get the best results with the pint-size bella basics 2.2qt, it handily outperforms these similar-capacity models. As long as you plan to stick to air fryer classics like fries and nuggets, it's a reasonable pick.
Wondering what we recommend? See our picks for the best small air fryers and the best budget and cheap air fryers. Or, if you have space for a slightly larger model, check out the best 4-quart air fryers.
The bella basics 2.2qt is a better air fryer than the Dash Digital Tasti-Crisp 2.6QT. Although the Dash has a slightly larger overall capacity, these small air fryers have nearly the same basket surface area, so their usable capacity is about the same. The bella basics is more powerful and has a higher maximum fan speed, both of which help it produce crispier food. When cooking French fries, for example, it undercooks less of each batch, so you end up with more evenly cooked crispy fries. The bella basics also preheats faster and recovers much faster after you open the drawer to add food.
The bella basics 2.2qt is a better air fryer than the Dash Compact 2Qt. While these models have a similar capacity, the bella basics is more powerful and has more surface area in its basket, making it easier to arrange food in a single layer for better results. As a result, cooking French fries and other air fryer classics with the bella basics gives you better results. It cooks more of each batch to a crispy, golden-brown finish and produces results faster.
If you're looking for a compact air fryer, the bella basics 2.2qt is a better choice than the Black+Decker 2qt ID1901-1BDC. Although they have a similar overall capacity, the bella basics has more surface area in its basket, which allows you to spread food out for better results. It's also more powerful, and it has a higher maximum fan speed, both of which help produce crispier snacks. While the Black+Decker leaves less than a quarter of each batch evenly cooked, the bella basics cooks more than half of each batch to a crispy, golden brown, and it does so much faster.
If you're shopping for a 2-quart air fryer, the bella basics 2.2qt is a better bet than the Proctor Silex 2.2 quart 35055. Although they offer the same amount of capacity, the Proctor Silex's design is taller and narrower, while the bella basics has a shorter, wider basket. The bella basics' wider basket gives you more space to arrange food in a single layer, allowing for better airflow. Combined with its higher maximum fan speed, this helps produce crispier, more evenly cooked results. When cooking French fries, for example, the bella basics leaves less of each batch under- and overcooked. It also finishes cooking significantly faster, making it a better choice for quick snacks.
Test Results
This air fryer is among the smallest we've tested. Its basket has just enough space to cook for one person, and it's very short, so you may struggle to cook even moderately tall items, like a breakfast sandwich or chicken breast.
That said, it offers more surface area than most air fryers in this size range, which improves air flow, so food comes out crispier. With a PTFE coating, the basket and tray are very easy to clean.
With a single cooking mode, temperature, and fan speed, this isn't a versatile air fryer; however, it still produces crispy food.
Cooking French fries in this air fryer ensures that most of each batch is crispy and well-browned. While a significant amount also comes out undercooked and burnt, it still delivers decent results, especially compared to other small air fryers, which tend to produce very uneven results.
This air fryer cooks reasonably quickly, especially relative to other 2-quart models, which often cook quite slowly.
This air fryer reheats quickly after you open the drawer to add food. However, its temperature fluctuates throughout the remainder of the cooking cycle, resulting in somewhat uneven results.