The Ninja Crispi FN101GY is a small, 4-quart air fryer that can serve one or 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. Ninja markets this system as a non-toxic alternative to traditional air fryers, specifying that it's free from PTFE & PFAs. Like many Ninja air fryers, the crisper plate uses a nonstick ceramic coating. This air fryer also stands out for its simple interface. 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 is an alright air fryer. It works quickly, preheating and cooking fast, so you don't have to wait long for meals and snacks. However, it makes fried food with disappointing quality; less than half of each batch comes out crispy and golden brown, while the rest remains undercooked or winds up burnt, depending on which included container you use to cook with. It offers decent versatility, but you can't change the temperature or fan settings manually, and the minimum temperature is very high, so you can't use it for alternate applications, like dehydrating or proofing dough.
Preheats and cooks quickly.
Makes disappointing-quality fried food.
Settings can't be changed manually.
High minimum temperature.
The Ninja Crispi is an okay choice for large-batch cooking. It has a small 4-quart capacity, which is only enough to cook for one or two people at once. However, it cooks very quickly, so it doesn't take too much time to cook multiple batches. Unfortunately, it makes disappointing-quality fried food, and less than half of each batch turns out well-cooked and crispy. Plus, while it does offer decent versatility overall, it has a very high minimum temperature, and it's not possible to adjust either the temperature or fan speed manually, so you're limited to the four preset functions: Air Fry, Bake, Recrisp, and Max Crisp.
Preheats and cooks quickly.
Makes disappointing-quality fried food.
Settings can't be changed manually.
Small 4-quart capacity.
High minimum temperature.
The Ninja Crispi delivers mediocre frying performance. Although this air fryer has a high maximum fan speed, a fairly high maximum power draw, and an adequate surface area to spread food out in, its frying quality is disappointing. When cooking air fryer favorites like fries, chicken nuggets, and veggies in the large container, less than half come out well-cooked and crispy, while the rest remain mushy and undercooked. Using the small batch container produces slightly better results, but still, more than half of each batch comes out either undercooked or burnt. That said, it cooks quickly, so you won't have to wait long for air-fried snacks and meals.
Preheats and cooks quickly.
Makes disappointing-quality fried food.
The Ninja Crispi offers a very good cooking speed. It preheats and cooks quickly when using the large container and cooks even faster when using the small batch container.
Preheats and cooks quickly.
The Ninja Crispi provides an okay cooking capacity, which is expected, given its size. Its 4-quart capacity is enough to cook for one or two people at a time, and there's adequate cooking surface area, so you can spread food out in a single layer for crunchier results.
Small 4-quart capacity.
The Ninja Crispi has an impressively compact design. It doesn't take up much counter space, stores easily in a cupboard, and even fits in small spaces like dorm rooms and offices. Just keep in mind that it comes with an extra container to store.
Compact design.
Performance Usages
Changelog
-
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.
- Updated Oct 31, 2025: Review published.
- Updated Oct 28, 2025: Early access published.
- Updated Sep 09, 2025: Our testers have started testing this product.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This air fryer comes in a wide range of colors, though availability varies depending on the 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 with a glass cooking chamber, so you can see your food as it cooks. The glass chamber doubles as a storage container, and there's an extra in the box for cooking in smaller batches. It's similar in design to the Fritaire, but it performs better overall, producing better-quality fried food and cooking faster. Compared to other Ninja air fryers, this one struggles to keep up. The Ninja AF101, which has a similar capacity, for example, leaves more of each batch crispy and golden-brown, cooks faster, and offers more versatility. Even the Ninja DoubleStack SL201, which doesn't perform well compared to most Ninja air fryers, provides a slightly better user experience than the Crispi. While the DoubleStack leaves more than half of each batch undercooked or burnt, it still outperforms the Crispi in this regard, though not by much. It's also a lot more versatile. It has a wider range of temperature settings and fan speeds and gives you the option to use manual settings, unlike the Crispi, which limits you to four preset options. That said, you may prefer the Crispi for its innovative design.
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. Both options feature glass cooking chambers, so you can keep an eye on your recipe as it cooks. The Fritaire includes attachable accessories, like a Tumbler Basket and Rotisserie, while the Ninja uses swappable glass containers you can cook and store food in. Unfortunately, neither option compares with most traditional air fryers, producing disappointing-quality fried food in both cases. Still, the Ninja preheats and cooks quickly, so you don't have to wait long for meals to finish cooking. It's also very compact, so it won't take up much space on your counter or in your cupboard.
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, and while each fryer features four cooking modes, the AF101 allows you to input manual settings as well, while you're limited to the preset modes with the Crispi. That said, although the AF101 actually has a slightly larger capacity, the Crispi takes up less space and has a bit more surface area in its cooking chamber, so it's easier to spread food out in a single layer.
The Ninja Pro AF141 is a better air fryer than the Ninja Crispi FN101GY. The Pro makes much better-quality fried food, leaving a larger portion of each batch well-cooked and crispy. It also cooks faster and maintains a more stable temperature throughout the process. The Pro is more versatile as well. While they both have four cooking modes, the Pro allows you to input manual settings, while you're limited to the preset modes with the Crispi. The Pro also has a much lower minimum temperature, so you can use it for alternate cooking methods, like dehydrating or proofing dough.
The MasterChef AF9003A performs a bit better than the Ninja Crispi FN101GY, though you may prefer either depending on your priorities. The MasterChef produces better-quality fried food, so more of each comes out crispy. The Ninja, on the other hand, preheats and cooks more quickly. It also maintains a more stable temperature while cooking and offers more versatility. While the MasterChef offers a wider temperature range, the Ninja has different fan speeds for different settings, though you can't change them or the temperature manually.
Test Results
This air fryer has a small, 4-quart capacity, which is enough to serve one or two people at a time. Unlike most air fryers, this one has a glass cooking chamber with a ceramic-coated crisper plate, which allows you to watch your food as it cooks. While there isn't a ton of surface area available to spread food out in a single layer, it has a little more space than slightly larger-capacity options, like the Ninja AF101 and thinkkitchen Luminate.
We also tested the small batch container, which has a little over half the surface area of the main container, with the following results:
Single Basket Surface Area: 28.84 in² (186.06 cm²)
Total Basket Surface Area: 28.84 in² (186.06 cm²)
Advertised Capacity: 1.6 quart (1.5 L)
Measured Capacity: 1.6 quart (1.5 L)
Chamber Height: 1.9" (4.9 cm)
Nonstick Coating Type: Ceramic
This air fryer offers decent versatility, but with a couple of big caveats: the minimum temperature is very high, and it's not possible to 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 makes disappointing-quality fried food. 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 performance when using the small batch container:
Crispy Fries: 43.3%
Overcooked Fries: 26.7%
Undercooked Fries: 30%
Score: 5.3
Unfortunately, the results are still disappointing, with more than half of each batch undercooked or burnt.
When it comes to frying quality, Ninja's conventional air fryers offer better performance. For example, even the Ninja Air Fryer Pro XL AF181, which delivers worse results than most of Ninja's other single-basket models, leaves a larger percentage of your food crispy and well-cooked.
This air fryer provides a good cooking speed, likely thanks to its high maximum fan speed and power draw.
We also tested its cooking speed when using the small batch container, and it worked even faster at 17 minutes.
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, which makes it easier to follow recipes accurately.