Turn a home oven into a hearth oven. Our picks for baking steels, pizza stones and peels for crisp pizza, flatbreads and loaves.
| Award | Product | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Baking Steel OriginalThe crispest pizza and flatbreads | See on Amazon for Baking Steel Original (opens Amazon) |
| Best value | Unicook Heavy Duty Cordierite Pizza StoneA lighter, cheaper hearth | See on Amazon for Unicook Heavy Duty Cordierite Pizza Stone (opens Amazon) |
| Must-have partner | Aluminum Pizza Peel with Folding HandleGetting dough on and off | See on Amazon for Aluminum Pizza Peel with Folding Handle (opens Amazon) |
| Best flour for pizza | Antimo Caputo Pizzeria FlourLight, blistered crust | See on Amazon for Antimo Caputo Pizzeria Flour (opens Amazon) |
Home ovens don't get as hot as a pizzeria or bakery oven. A baking steel or stone fixes that by storing heat and pouring it straight into the bottom of your dough, for a crisp crust and better rise.
Here's what to buy, and how steel and stone compare.
Best for: The crispest pizza and flatbreads
A thick slab of steel that holds an enormous amount of heat. It gives pizza a crisp, leopard-spotted base in a home oven and bakes great flatbreads and free-form loaves.
Best for: A lighter, cheaper hearth
A lighter, lower-cost way to bake on a hot surface. Cordierite handles high heat well and gives pizza and hearth loaves a crisp bottom.
Best for: Getting dough on and off
A thin metal peel slides pizza and loaves onto a hot steel or stone and back out again. A folding handle makes it easy to store.
Best for: Light, blistered crust
The Italian 00 flour used for Neapolitan-style pizza. It makes a soft, stretchy dough that bakes up light and blistered.
Our picks are based on research, not sponsorships. We compare manufacturer specifications, read long-term owner feedback, and weigh what experienced bakers and baking teachers consistently recommend. We favor gear that's simple to use, built to last and worth the space in your kitchen. No brand pays to be included, and we update this guide as products change.
Steel heats faster and gives a crispier base. Stone is lighter and cheaper but can crack. Both are a huge step up from a baking sheet.
Measure your oven first. Leave about an inch of space on each side so air can circulate.
Thicker steels and stones hold more heat and recover faster between pizzas, but are heavier.
Give a stone or steel 45 to 60 minutes at full heat before baking.
Yes. Bake free-form loaves directly on it, and add steam by pouring hot water into a tray on a lower rack, or covering the loaf with an upturned roasting pan.
If you make pizza often, yes. It gives the closest thing to a pizzeria crust in a home oven.
It makes moving dough onto a hot surface much easier and safer. An upturned baking sheet can work in a pinch.
Let it cool, then scrape off stuck bits. Don't use soap, and don't soak it. Stains are normal.
Answer three quick questions and we'll match you with the right setup for the bread you want to bake.