Liners
Reusable liner sheets
A flat, flexible non-stick sheet that lies on the crisper plate. In the one comparison we have read it needed the most cleaning of any liner — which is the opposite of what it is bought for.
AirfryerHQ’s verdict
You probably do not need this
Widely sold, rarely needed. Something you already own usually does the same job.
The case for a liner is less washing up, and a flat sheet with no sides cannot deliver it: fat and juices run off the edge or through the holes onto the basket, and then there are two things to wash instead of one. That is what Which? reported when it compared the three kinds — the reusable sheets needed a lot of additional cleaning, and their perforations made no big difference to how the food cooked. What is left is a non-stick surface, which the basket already is. The one group of people it serves are owners of an oddly shaped pan, where nothing pre-formed fits and a sheet can be cut to size.
What it actually does
Covers the crisper plate with a second non-stick surface, so food rests on the sheet instead of on the plate.
A thin, floppy sheet, usually a coated glass-fibre fabric, sometimes perforated and sometimes sold to be cut to shape. Unlike a silicone insert it has no walls, so it does not hold liquid; unlike paper it is washed and used again. It sits between the two in price and, on the evidence available, behind both in usefulness.
When it helps and when it does not
When it helps
- A basket whose coating is already worn and sticking, as a stopgap until the part is replaced
- Unusually shaped pans — round paddles, off-square drawers — where a sheet can be trimmed to fit and nothing moulded will
- Dry, delicate food that sticks, where there is little fat to run off
When it gets in the way
- Anything fatty or sauced: with no walls, the mess goes over the edge and the basket is dirty anyway
- Chips and breaded food, where the sheet covers the perforations the crisper plate exists for
- Shaking the basket, which crumples a loose sheet over the food
- Small loads, which do not weigh a light sheet down
What it does to the airflow
Stops air reaching the underside of the food
A sheet lying on the crisper plate covers its holes. Perforated versions uncover some of them, and the comparison we have read found that made little difference to the result — while letting the mess through to the basket.
What to use instead
Nothing. The basket is already a non-stick surface with the right holes in it. If food is sticking, a little oil on the food does more than a sheet will, and if the coating has gone the part to buy is a new basket.
Using it safely
- It must be rated for the temperature you cook at. That rating belongs to the product, not to the material, and should be printed on the pack.
- It must be held down by food and must never be left in an empty appliance that is running.
- It must be cut so that it lies flat inside the basket, with no edge curling up towards the element or blocking the air outlet.
- Your manual governs. A manufacturer that says to use only its own accessories has answered the question for that appliance.
Which machines it suits
Makes sense in: Oven-style air fryer, Countertop oven with air fry.
- Basket air fryer: A light, loose sheet in a small chamber under a strong fan has the same lifting problem as paper, and covers the perforations that make the basket work.
Looking after it
Wash after every use — the fat it holds is the same fat that causes smoke. Replace it when the surface is scratched or flaking, exactly as you would the basket.
Evidence and confidence
- Applies to
- Applies generally
- Why this rating
- The verdict follows from the shape: a liner with no sides cannot keep a basket clean. The one comparison read reports exactly that outcome. No manufacturer we have read addresses these sheets by name, so the safety conditions are the general ones for anything light and loose in the chamber.
- Last reviewed
- 2026-10-09
What this does not cover
- One qualitative comparison on one food, with the appliance and settings not stated.
- No manufacturer we have read names this product, in either direction.
- AirfryerHQ has not bought, fitted or used any accessory. Every judgement here is reasoned from what the accessory does physically and from what manufacturers and the cited test report.
Sources (3)
Air fryer liners tested: silicone vs paper vs reusable sheets
Which? — Independent controlled testing (United Kingdom)
Relied on for: That reusable sheet liners needed a lot of additional cleaning, that messy food seeped through their perforations, that the perforations made no big difference to the cooking results, and that some can be cut to size for non-rectangular appliances.
States this directly
Passage read and verified
Retrieved 2026-10-09 from which.co.uk
Philips 5000 Series Dual Basket Airfryer with Steam NA55x — User Manual (PDF)
Versuni Netherlands B.V. (Philips Domestic Appliances) — Manufacturer manual (United Kingdom and European Union)
Relied on for: A manufacturer instructing that only its own accessories be used, and warning against light items in the appliance.
States this directly
Passage read and verified
Retrieved 2026-10-09 from dam.versuni.com
AirfryerHQ assessment of airflow, element proximity and material behaviour
AirfryerHQ — Calculated or inferred by AirfryerHQ (Not jurisdictional)
Relied on for: The mechanism this is read against: forced convection, boundary-layer disruption and a small chamber.
AirfryerHQ's interpretation of what it says
Citation checked — the document exists and is described correctly
AirfryerHQ sells nothing and earns nothing here. There are no affiliate links, no sponsored placements and no brand recommendations anywhere in this section. The verdict above is what we think, arrived at before anybody asked whether it would sell anything.
Can it go in? The material questions
- Silicone liners and moulds — Heavy enough not to be lifted, and rated above the temperatures these appliances reach. The airflow question is the one that remains.
- Baking parchment — Two manufacturers now prohibit it outright and one gives the mechanism. Earlier, every manufacturer we had read was silent; that is no longer true, and the verdict has hardened.
If this is why you are here
- Food is not crisping — Almost always moisture that cannot get out, and almost always because there is too much in the basket. One manufacturer says so directly.
- The basket coating is flaking or peeling — Usually mechanical damage from cleaning, and it does not repair. A basket shedding coating should be replaced rather than used.
Cooking pages this affects
Worth reading
Others in this category
Works, but costs you results
Silicone basket insert
The most-sold air fryer accessory and the commonest way to make an air fryer cook worse. It works; it costs you the thing you bought the machine for.
You probably do not need this
Disposable paper liners
Sold to save washing up, and the one comparison we have read found they do not: grease goes through. Several manufacturers forbid paper in the basket altogether.