The Ninja Crispi FN101GY is a small, 4-quart air fryer that can serve about two people at a time. Its unique design uses swappable glass containers as the cooking chamber, so you can monitor your food as it cooks and store it afterward using the included lid. It has four cooking modes: Air Fry, Bake, Recrisp, and Max Crisp, and aside from the timer (and a start button), there are no other manual controls.
Our Verdict
The Ninja Crispi cooks fresh-cut fries somewhat evenly. There's not a ton of room in the cooking chamber to spread food out, but when you make a small batch of fries, wedges, or hash browns with fresh potatoes, most of them come out at least partially crisped. That said, they don't crisp uniformly, so some areas are well browned, while others are pale and undercooked. They also take a while to cook. Most air fryers have an easier time with precooked frozen fries, but in this case, they cook quickly and come out very uneven. Frozen fries or yam fries come out mostly mushy and undercooked, while less than half the batch crisps up properly. On the bright side, this air fryer doesn't take up much space, so you can make a small batch of homemade fries while leaving the rest of your counter clear.
Cooks small fried foods quickly.
Enough surface area to arrange a small amount of food in one layer.
Compact size fits in cramped kitchens.
Doesn't cook frozen fried foods evenly.
Leaves moist foods with some less crispy areas.
Takes a while to cook thicker, moist foods.
The Ninja Crispi makes a pretty evenly-cooked batch of fresh wings. There's only enough space in the cooking chamber to arrange a small batch of wings in a single layer, and they take a while to cook, but most of the batch comes out crispy on at least one side. They also stay tender and moist throughout cooking. That said, precooked frozen wings don't fare as well. They cook faster, but less than half the batch crisps up properly, while the rest comes out too pale and soft.
Cooks small fried foods quickly.
Proteins stay juicy throughout cooking.
Doesn't cook frozen fried foods evenly.
Leaves moist foods with some less crispy areas.
Takes a while to cook thicker, moist foods.
Larger batches will overlap, restricting airflow.
The Ninja Crispi works best for fresh vegetables and proteins. It crisps fatty cuts of meat and hearty veggies, like wings, steak, or Brussels sprouts, pretty evenly. Most of each batch comes out crispy on at least one side, though most pieces don't crisp uniformly. Proteins also stay moist and tender throughout cooking, which benefits leaner cuts of meat, like chicken breast. That said, it doesn't work well for fried foods, like frozen onion rings, chicken nuggets, or precooked, breaded wings. In these cases, less than half the batch comes out crispy, while the remainder is undercooked and mushy. It offers decent versatility, but you have to work within the preset cooking modes, since you can't adjust the temperature or fan settings manually. The minimum temperature is also very high, so you can't use it for dehydrating or proofing dough.
Proteins stay juicy throughout cooking.
Doesn't cook frozen fried foods evenly.
Leaves moist foods with some less crispy areas.
Settings can't be changed manually.
Minimum temperature is too high for proofing or dehydrating.
The Ninja Crispi has a capacity of 4 quarts, which is enough to cook approximately two servings at once. There's a reasonable amount of surface area in its baskets, so you can arrange a small portion of food in a single layer, but larger batches will overlap, which restricts airflow.
Enough surface area to arrange a small amount of food in one layer.
4-quart capacity can only make about two servings at once.
Larger batches will overlap, restricting airflow.
The Ninja Crispi preheats and cooks frozen fried foods quickly. However, it takes significantly longer to cook fresh vegetables and meat, which have a higher moisture content.
Preheats fast, so you can start cooking quickly.
Cooks small fried foods quickly.
Takes a while to cook thicker, moist foods.
The Ninja Crispi has an impressively compact design. It doesn't take up much counter space and stores easily in a cupboard. Just keep in mind that it comes with an extra container to store.
Compact size fits in cramped kitchens.
Performance Usages
Changelog
- Updated Oct 15, 2026: We've updated this review to Test Bench 1.1, which adds a new test for Meat and Poultry and renames the Frying Quality box to Fried Foods. We also separated the Cooking Chamber box into Cooking Chamber and Cooking Surface boxes, and changed the components of the Cooking Speed box to reflect cook times for both fried foods and meat and poultry. Finally, we updated the usages to account for the new tests. To read more about the updates, see the Changelog.
- Updated Feb 20, 2026: We converted this review to Test Bench 1.0.2. We've added a 'Glass Cooking Chamber' result in the Cooking Chamber section to indicate if the cooking chamber is made of glass or not.
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Updated Jan 12, 2026:
We mentioned the Ninja Crispi Pro AS101 in the Frying Quality box for users who want a glass air fryer that can cook more evenly.
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Updated Dec 11, 2025:
We made a comparison to the Ninja Air Fryer Pro XL AF181 in the Frying Quality box to help contextualize results.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This air fryer comes in a wide range of colors, though availability varies by retailer and whether you choose the standard set (4-quart and 6-cup containers) or the bundle with an extra 2.5-quart container.
The colors of the Ninja Crispi are Mint Pond, Mango Clouds, Plum Daydream, Pink, Cyberspace, Stone, Periwinkle, Mint, Sage Green, Navy, Cherry Crush, Frosted Lilac, and Ginger Snap. The colors of the Ninja Crispi with Extra Glass Container are Sage, Periwinkle, Pink, Cyberspace, Stone, Mint, and British Racing Green.
We tested the Cyberspace variant, and ours came with two glass containers. See the label for our unit.
If you encounter another variant, let us know in the comments, and we'll update this review.
Popular Air Fryer Comparisons
The Ninja Crispi is a 4-quart air fryer that can make about two portions of food at once. Like the Fritaire, it has a glass cooking chamber, so you can keep an eye on your food as it cooks. However, the Fritaire has a single glass chamber with attachable accessories, and the Crispi has two swappable cooking chambers that also double as storage. While the Crispi offers better performance than the Fritaire, cooking faster and leaving proteins more evenly cooked, it struggles to keep up with other Ninja air fryers. The Ninja Pro AF141, for example, leaves fried foods crispier, cooks faster, and offers more versatility.
If you like the Crispi's innovative design, but also want better performance, you might be interested in the Ninja Crispi Pro AS101, which shares the Crispi's basic design. It provides crispier, more evenly cooked results, regardless of the recipe, and it's much more versatile, so you can also use it to proof dough, dehydrate, or roast.
Curious what we recommend? Check out our picks for the best air fryers, the best small air fryers, and the best air fryer brands.
The Ninja Crispi FN101GY is a better air fryer than the Fritaire. While neither option can cook frozen fried foods very evenly, the Ninja does a better job with thicker, moist foods, like veggies and raw proteins. It leaves each batch of wings, pork belly, and steak crispier, juicier, and more tender. The Ninja also preheats and cooks faster, so you don't have to wait as long for meals to finish cooking. It's more compact, too, so it won't take up as much space on your counter or in your cupboard.
The Ninja Crispi Pro AS101 is a better air fryer than the Ninja Crispi FN101GY. The Pro version offers more capacity and cooks much more evenly, leaving less of your food undercooked, no matter what you're making. It's also more versatile, offering a wider range of temperature settings and fan speeds, as well as a few additional preset cooking modes. The Pro version is also more expensive, but you'll get much better performance for the additional cost.
The Ninja Pro AF141 is a better air fryer than the Ninja Crispi FN101GY for most people. The AF141 cooks frozen fried foods much more evenly, so it's a better choice if you want to use your air fryer for fries, chicken nuggets, or other precooked foods. It also cooks faster and offers greater versatility for other cooking methods, such as roasting or dehydrating. That said, the FN101GY provides better performance for vegetables and raw proteins, so you may prefer it if you mostly plan to make smaller mains and sides of veggies or if you prefer its design, which uses swappable glass cooking chambers that double as storage.
The Ninja AF101 is a better air fryer than the Ninja Crispi FN101GY for most people. The AF101 makes better-quality fried food, leaving a larger portion of each batch well-cooked and crispy. It also cooks faster. The AF101 provides more versatility, too; it has wider temperature and fan speed ranges. While each fryer features four cooking modes, the AF101 lets you input manual settings, whereas you're limited to preset modes with the Crispi. That said, although the AF101 has a slightly larger capacity, the Crispi takes up less space and has a bit more surface area in its cooking chamber, making it easier to spread food out in a single layer.
Test Results
While there isn't a ton of surface area to spread food out in a single layer, it has a little more space than slightly larger-capacity options like the Ninja AF101 and the thinkkitchen Luminate.
The small-batch container has 28.84 in² (186.06 cm²) of surface area, which leaves only enough space to spread a very small amount of food in a single layer.
The crisper plates have a ceramic coating, which you may prefer if you avoid PTFE nonstick coatings, though it's a bit tougher to clean.
This air fryer has a small, 4-quart capacity, which is enough to serve approximately two people at a time. Unlike most air fryers, this one has a glass cooking chamber that lets you watch your food as it cooks.
It also comes with a small-batch container, which you can swap out for the larger cooking chamber. It has a 1.6-quart (1.5 L) capacity and a 1.9" (4.9 cm) height.
This air fryer offers decent versatility, but with a couple of big caveats: the minimum temperature is very high, and you can't adjust the temperature or fan speed manually. Instead, there are four preset options to choose between, with a designated temperature range for each:
- Air Fry: 400–425 °F
- Bake: 375–400 °F, minimum fan speed (1,600 rpm)
- Recrisp: 380–400 °F
- Max Crisp: 425–450 °F, maximum fan speed (3,220 rpm)
It still offers some versatility thanks to its high maximum temperature and wide fan speed range, but it's not ideal for tasks that require lower heat, like dehydrating or proofing dough.
This air fryer can't cook frozen fried foods, like fries, onion rings, or chicken nuggets, evenly. By the time it finishes cooking, less than half of each batch is crispy, while the rest remains undercooked and mushy.
It offers slightly better, but still disappointing, performance when using the small batch container:
Crispy Fries: 43.3%
Overcooked Fries: 26.7%
Undercooked Fries: 30%
Score: 5.3
If you're looking for a glass air fryer that performs better with fried foods, check out the Pro version of this model, the Ninja Crispi Pro AS101. It cooks much more evenly, leaving less of each batch over- or undercooked.
This air fryer is a decent option for cooking meat and poultry. Each cooking mode has a set temperature range rather than a specific heat setting, so there are some temperature fluctuations as food cooks, but they're not extreme, which helps it cook more evenly. Using the Max Crisp setting, which ranges from 425 °F to 450 °F, this model crisps wings, lamb chops, and other fatty cuts of meat across most of the batch, though not uniformly, leaving some less-crispy, somewhat rubbery areas. Very little fat renders during cooking, so proteins stay moist and tender throughout, which helps keep leaner cuts of meat, like pork chops or chicken breast, from drying out before they cook through.
This air fryer cooks frozen fried meals and snacks, like onion rings, mozzarella sticks, and chicken nuggets, very quickly. However, it takes longer to cook moist foods, like fresh veggies or proteins.
It preheats very quickly. It's worth noting, however, that the manual states it doesn't need to be preheated.
It offers decent temperature stability. After you add food to the container, it heats back up fairly quickly and maintains a pretty stable temperature throughout the cooking process, making it easier to follow recipes accurately.