Can you put baking parchment in an air fryer?

Only if all of these are true

• Your manual must permit it. The default is not permitted. Electrical Safety First advises against using paper in an air fryer unless the manufacturer's instructions explicitly say you may.
• Must be weighed down by food. Food goes on top of the paper and holds it down. Parchment is lighter than foil and the fan will move it more readily.
• Never in an empty or preheating chamber. Never preheat with paper in the chamber. An empty machine with a sheet of parchment in it is the clearest version of this hazard.
• Must not block the airflow. Use a perforated liner smaller than the basket floor, so air can still pass through the base rather than being forced round the edges.
• A temperature limit applies. Check the temperature rating printed on the box. Parchment ratings vary by product and some sit below the top of an air fryer's range.

What the manufacturers actually say

The manufacturers do not always agree, and silence is not permission. Each row below is what one company’s own manual says — or, where it says nothing, the fact that it says nothing.

• Russell Hobbs: Prohibits it

  The manual's safety section states: "Do not place any of the following materials in the oven: paper, cardboard, plastic, or anything similar." It names no exception and no temperature at which it would become acceptable.

  Russell Hobbs Express Air Fry Mini Oven 26680-56 — instructions (manufacturer copy) — read for a countertop oven with air fry

• Bosch: Prohibits it

  In the operating rules for its Air Fry function: do not use greaseproof paper. The manual states the reason — the air must circulate in the cooking compartment.

  Bosch built-in oven HBG934B.1 — Instruction manual — read for a built-in oven with an air-fry mode

• Philips: Prohibits it

  In the warnings list: never use light ingredients or packing paper in the appliance. The prohibition covers paper and, separately, anything light enough to be lifted.

  Philips Airfryer XXL HD9650 series — User Manual — read for a basket air fryer

• Ninja: Says nothing about it

  No mention of paper or parchment anywhere in the manual. The manual does acknowledge that the fan lifts lightweight items and advises securing them with cocktail sticks.

  Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK — Instructions

• Instant: Says nothing about it

  The manual states that food can be placed directly on the cooking tray without foil or other coverings, which is guidance that no covering is NEEDED rather than an instruction about parchment specifically.

  Instant Vortex Plus VersaZone 8.5L Air Fryer — User Manual

What can go wrong

Perforated parchment liners are sold specifically for air fryers and are used in a great many kitchens. Sprint 2 could find no manufacturer that addressed them and rested a cautious verdict on Electrical Safety First's general position that paper should not be used unless the manual permits it. Sprint 3 found two manufacturers that do address it, and both prohibit it — Bosch for its oven's Air Fry function, on the stated grounds that the air must circulate, and Philips in its warnings list. Neither permits it anywhere. The verdict has moved accordingly.

• Can be lifted by the fan

  Put the food on before the paper goes in, so it is weighted from the moment the fan starts. Cut it smaller than the basket so it cannot ride up the sides.

• Can scorch or ignite when not covered by food

  Never run the appliance with paper in it and no food on it, including during a preheat cycle. Uncovered paper close to an element is the case that actually catches fire.

• Can block airflow

  Use perforated liners rather than a solid sheet, and leave the edges of the basket floor clear.

Temperature limit

Around 220°C.

A commonly printed rating for baking parchment, and it is a PRODUCT specification rather than a property of paper: ratings differ between brands and the figure on your own box governs. Several air fryers exceed it at their top setting, and one in this catalogue has a fixed 240°C mode.

It depends on your appliance

The answer is not the same in every machine. Where the element sits relative to the food, and how hard the fan blows, change what this material does.

• Basket air fryer — Safe only in specific conditions

  Short distance to the element and the highest air velocity of any architecture. Weighted under food this is manageable; the empty-chamber case is not.

• Oven-style air fryer — Safe only in specific conditions

  More clearance to the element and lower air velocity at the shelf, so a weighted sheet is less likely to move. The prohibition on running it uncovered still applies.

• Multicooker with air fry — Safe only in specific conditions

  Food sits deeper in the pot and further from the crisping lid, which reduces both the lift and the proximity risk relative to a drawer.

Your manual governs

Food contact

Baking parchment sold for food use is intended for direct food contact at oven temperatures. Greaseproof paper is a different product with a lower tolerance and should not be substituted for it.

Evidence and confidence

Things made of this, and whether they are worth owning

• Silicone basket insert — Works, but costs you results — 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.

Use this instead

• 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.
• Metal tins, trays and cookware — Explicitly permitted by one manufacturer for baking, and recommended by three others whenever a batter is involved.
• Aluminium foil — One manufacturer prohibits it and says why. Another puts it in its own recipe. Your manual decides, and this page explains what each of them means.