Ninja Foodi 11-in-1 SmartLid OL550UK Review: One Lid, Big Footprint
A pressure cooker, air fryer and steamer under a single lid that you flip a slider to switch between. Two UK testers ended up recommending it, and Currys buyers rate it 4.8 out of 5. The catch is size: it is a 10.7 kg block that needs 15 cm clear on every side. And the 6-litre pot holds less food than the number suggests once you are air frying.
Where the reviews line up
The evidence comes from two hands-on UK tests and one large pool of owners: T3, whose tester started out sceptical of multi-cookers and gave it a Platinum Award; Expert Reviews, which made it a Best Buy; and Currys’ verified buyers, who rate it 4.8/5 from 531 reviews. They agree on more than they disagree.
Three things come up everywhere. The single SmartLid is the point. You no longer swap a pressure lid for a crisping lid, and both testers found it easy to use. Steam-air-fry works. T3’s drumsticks came out browned with crisp skin after about 25 minutes, and Expert Reviews cooked a 1 kg chicken in around 45. Pressure cooking is strong. Expert Reviews called it “highly impressive” for meat, pulses and rice.
The honest limits are just as consistent. It is very large. That is T3’s only listed con, and Expert Reviews says it “takes up a large amount of worktop area”. Plain air frying is good, not outstanding. Expert Reviews found results no better than its oven and points dedicated air-frying buyers to Ninja’s dual-basket machine. And it costs a lot. Both testers paid around £230, and today’s price is about £192–£215 against a £294.99 RRP.
The buying decision is about your kitchen, not the food. If you will use pressure and steam-air-fry every week and have the worktop for it, this replaces two or three appliances well. If you mainly want chips, a dedicated air fryer is smaller, cheaper and at least as good.
The three reviews this summary is built from
- T3Hands-on test of the OL550UK by a long-serving appliance reviewer. Platinum Award; “very large” the only con.
- Expert ReviewsHands-on test by a home-appliance specialist. Best Buy; pressure cooking “highly impressive”, air frying merely oven-level.
- Currys buyers4.8/5 from 531 reviews, 12 Oct 2026. Purchase-invited, moderated by Feefo.
Before the review: which SmartLid is this?
Ninja sells two SmartLid multi-cookers in the UK. This page covers the Foodi 11-in-1 SmartLid OL550UK, with a 6-litre pot. The larger Foodi MAX 15-in-1 SmartLid OL750UK has a 7.5-litre pot and the Smart Cook System. It is a different machine and is not reviewed here. We chose the OL550UK because it is the model with two UK editorial tests and the largest buyer-rating counts we could verify. If a listing says “MAX” or “7.5L”, it is the OL750UK.
Specification at a glance
| Spec | Figure | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| Functions | 11: pressure cook, steam air fry, steam bake, air fry, grill, bake, dehydrate, sear/sauté, steam, slow cook, yoghurt | Ninja UK product page. AO’s listing says “13 programmes”; we have used Ninja’s count |
| Power | 1,460 W, 230 V | Ninja UK page and the instruction manual agree |
| Pot capacity | 6 litres; Cook & Crisp basket 3.7 litres | Ninja (pot); Currys (basket). Ninja says “feeds up to 6 people” |
| Usable capacity | Pressure cooking: no higher than the PRESSURE MAX line; foods that expand, no more than half the pot (so roughly 3 litres, our arithmetic) | Instruction manual. Ninja does not print a litre figure for the MAX line |
| Air-fry capacity in practice | Five drumsticks without touching, or a whole 2 kg chicken | T3’s test. T3 thinks crisping “for more than two or three people” is a stretch |
| Temperatures | Air fry 150–210°C; steam air fry 150–240°C, in 5°C steps | Instruction manual |
| Slow cook | Adjustable in 15-minute steps up to 12 hours | Instruction manual |
| Dimensions | 33 × 35 × 36 cm (H × W × D), and 41.0 × 39.1 × 39.8 cm from another retailer | Sources disagree: Ninja support and Currys give the first; Marks Electrical the second. Ninja’s shop page lists 50.19 × 41.61 × 42.49 cm, which we suspect is the box |
| Clearance in use | At least 15 cm above and on all sides, away from walls and cabinets | Instruction manual. On Ninja’s own size figure that needs about 65 × 66 cm of worktop (our arithmetic) |
| Weight | 10.7 kg or 10.9 kg | Sources disagree: 10.7 kg from Currys and Marks Electrical; 10.9 kg from Ninja support. Ninja’s shop page says 14.06 kg, probably boxed |
| Dishwasher-safe | Cooking pot, silicone ring, reversible rack, Cook & Crisp basket, detachable diffuser | Manual. Base and lid are wiped by hand; condensation collector and pressure valve washed by hand |
| Noise | Not published | No source measured or mentioned it |
| Warranty | 2 years; register within 28 days | Ninja says “2-Year Guarantee” and “Up to 2-Year Guarantee*”; Currys says the 2nd year comes by registration; manual says register within 28 days |
| Running cost (ours) | Up to 38.4p an hour at full power; a 45-minute steam-air-fried chicken costs no more than about 29p | Our sum: 1.46 kW × 26.32p/kWh, the Ofgem cap from October 2026. A ceiling, because the element cycles |
| Price | RRP £294.99; £192 to £214.99 today | Ninja, Currys and Marks Electrical, checked 12 October 2026. See below |
What it costs to buy and to run
Ninja’s own UK shop lists it at £214.99, reduced from £294.99. Currys has the same £214.99, sold by Currys itself, and shows the £294.99 “was” price as applying from 19 August to 15 September 2026. Marks Electrical lists it at £192 (£198 delivered) and says it is in stock at its warehouse. Tesco’s website shows £214.99, but that listing is sold by a marketplace seller, Electrical Shop, not by Tesco. Latest Deals has logged £175 at Sonic Direct, but without a date, so treat it as a sign of how low it can go rather than a live price. All prices were checked on 12 October 2026. Both testers paid around £230 at the time they reviewed it.
Running costs are modest whichever way you cook. At full power the 1,460 W element costs at most 38.4p an hour at 26.32p/kWh. That makes T3’s 35-minute drumstick cook (ten minutes of steam, then 25 of crisping) no more than about 22p. Expert Reviews’ 45-minute 1 kg chicken comes to no more than about 29p, or about 7p a portion across four. These are our sums and they are ceilings, because nobody has published a measured kWh figure for this model. The real figure is lower once the element starts cycling. For a long slow cook, the meter is the only honest answer.
T3
Who they are: Derek Adams has worked in consumer tech journalism since joining Time Out in the early ’80s. His author profile at T3’s sister site TechRadar says he reviews “anything that runs on batteries or has a plug attached” and writes extensively for T3. Four decades of judging appliances against each other is why his change of mind counts for something. T3 itself tests in real-world use rather than a lab, says it never takes money for reviews, and earns affiliate commission.
This is the most useful review for anyone who doubts multi-cookers, because Adams did too. He tested the exact UK model. His standout result was the combined mode: chicken drumsticks on Steam Air Fry, about ten minutes of steam to come up to temperature, then the heating element in the lid roasting them. After 25 minutes he called the result “perfection in every way”, with well-browned, crisp skin, though the rub caught slightly. A bœuf bourguignon, made with the same recipe he had used on a Sage rival, left him with “no complaints whatsoever”, and steamed dumplings came out as expected. Lifting the lid mid-programme pauses cooking, and it resumes when you close it.
His one listed con is that it is very large: 36 cm across and 33 cm tall by his measure. Size is not the same as room inside, though. The crisping basket fitted only five drumsticks without them touching, and he thinks the interior limits crisping to two or three people, even though a whole 2 kg chicken goes in. He did not run a separate pressure-cooking test and steered clear of rice. Noise and dishwasher use are not covered.
Watch: Ninja Foodi 11in1 smartlid Multi Cooker Whole Roast Chicken
A whole chicken cooked in the SmartLid, which is the same kind of steam-then-crisp cook T3 rated so highly. The title names the 11-in-1 SmartLid but not the model code, so we could not confirm it is the UK OL550UK. Confirmed by search listing only.
Watch on YouTube ↗ Independent YouTube video — not made by or for Shopbam.Expert Reviews
Who they are: Danielle Amato is an NCTJ-accredited consumer reviews journalist with a decade in the industry. Her Expert Reviews profile says she specialises in home and garden, reviewing air fryers, coffee machines, BBQs and vacuums, so she can judge the air-fry mode against the dedicated machines she tests. Expert Reviews, founded in 2010 and run by MVF, tests hands-on and earns affiliate commission.
Amato rates it a Best Buy and is clear about where it earns that. Pressure cooking was “highly impressive”, giving tender meats, pulses and rice, especially when she followed Ninja’s timing guide. The steam setting gave “perfectly tender veggies with no sogginess in sight”. Steam air fry cooked a 1 kg chicken in around 45 minutes, though she could not say for sure that it was juicier than plain air frying. Cleaning was “hassle-free” thanks to the non-stick pot and basket.
She is just as clear about where it falls short. Air frying was pretty good, but “the results weren’t any better than when using our oven”, and she recommends Ninja’s dual-basket air fryer for anyone who mainly wants to air fry. Baking and roasting were adequate rather than oven-replacing. The grill rack is awkward and fitted only two large salmon fillets comfortably. The pot has no handles, which makes lifting it out hot with oven gloves fiddly. Her cons are price and that it “doesn’t excel in every area”. Her summary is fair: it “isn’t great at everything, it’s good at a lot of things”. For pressure cooking alone she points to the cheaper Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus.
Watch: Ninja Foodi 11in1 smartlid Multi Cooker Chicken stew
A stew in the pot, which is the pressure-and-sauté side of the machine that Expert Reviews rated best. The title names the 11-in-1 SmartLid but not the model code. Confirmed by search listing only.
Watch on YouTube ↗ Independent YouTube video — not made by or for Shopbam.Currys buyers
Who they are: Currys’ ratings come from customers emailed an invitation after buying, collected and moderated by Feefo. Currys offers no incentives and labels reviews from third-party samples as incentivised, so this is good evidence of how owners get on, though not a performance test.
531 reviews averaging 4.8 out of 5 is a strong, large score, and it fits what the two testers found. Two other counts point the same way, with caveats. Marks Electrical shows 4.8 next to the figure 535, but the page does not label that as a review count. Tesco’s website shows 4.5 stars from 973 reviews on a listing sold by a marketplace seller, and we could not see where those reviews come from. Ninja’s own page shows “5 out of 5” with no count, which is not evidence of anything.
We could not read the individual review text on any of these pages, because they load it in the browser, so this score tells you owners are satisfied but not why. Currys’ listing does add the practical details: the 6-litre pot and 3.7-litre basket, a dishwasher-safe pot and basket, a 10.7 kg weight, and a two-year warranty whose second year depends on registering.
Watch: Ninja Foodi SmartLid 11-in-1 6L [OL 550UK] quick overview
The only one of the three videos that names the UK model code. A short tour of the lid, slider and accessories, useful for judging the size before you buy. Confirmed by search listing only.
Watch on YouTube ↗ Independent YouTube video — not made by or for Shopbam.Strengths and weak points
What holds up
- One lid for everything: no swapping between a pressure lid and a crisping lid.
- Steam-air-fry gives crisp-skinned chicken, praised by both testers.
- Pressure cooking that Expert Reviews called “highly impressive” for meat, pulses and rice.
- Lifting the lid pauses the cook and closing it resumes, so checking food is painless.
- Pot, basket, rack, ring and diffuser go in the dishwasher.
- 4.8/5 from 531 Currys buyers.
- Cheap to run: no more than about 29p for a 45-minute chicken at the October 2026 cap (our sum).
What people complain about
- Very large and heavy: 10.7–10.9 kg, plus 15 cm clearance on every side.
- Crisping capacity is smaller than “6 litres” suggests: five drumsticks without touching.
- Plain air frying is oven-level, not better. A dedicated air fryer does that job in less space.
- The pot has no handles, and the grill rack is awkward.
- Expensive at RRP, although £192–£215 is the going rate now.
- Lid, base, valve and condensation collector are still hand-cleaned.
Who it actually suits
Buy it if you cook for two to four, want pressure-cooked stews and pulses plus a properly crisped chicken, and have a clear stretch of worktop where it can live. Used weekly in more than one mode, it can replace a pressure cooker, a slow cooker and a steamer, and the reviews say it does those jobs well.
Look elsewhere if you mostly want chips and reheats: Ninja’s Foodi Dual Zone AF400UK is the machine Expert Reviews points air-fry buyers to, and the Salter Dual Air Pro is cheaper again. If pressure cooking is the main draw, the Instant Pot Duo does it for a good deal less. If you only want a stew ready when you get home, a basic Russell Hobbs slow cooker costs a fraction of the price and takes a fraction of the space. And if you need to feed six or more, look at the 7.5-litre Foodi MAX OL750UK, which we have not reviewed.
What we could not check
- Noise. No tester, retailer or Ninja page measures or mentions it, including the steam release at the end of a pressure cook.
- Measured energy use. Nobody publishes a kWh figure. Our running costs are ceilings worked out from the 1,460 W rating at 26.32p/kWh, not measurements.
- A litre figure for the PRESSURE MAX line. The manual marks a line and says half full for foods that expand, but gives no volume. Our “roughly 3 litres” is half of 6.
- Exact dimensions and weight. Ninja’s support page, Currys and Marks Electrical give different sizes, and Ninja’s shop page gives a larger set that is probably the box. Height with the lid open is not published anywhere we found.
- Individual buyer comments. Currys, AO and Marks Electrical load review text in the browser, so we have the score and count, not the reasons. We could not confirm that Marks Electrical’s “535” is a review count, or where Tesco’s 973 reviews come from.
- Sellers. The Tesco listing is sold by a marketplace seller (Electrical Shop). We could not see who sells the Sonic Direct price recorded by Latest Deals, or when it applied.
- Stock at Ninja. Ninja’s own page lists a price but also shows a “back in stock” sign-up, so we could not confirm Ninja has it in stock. Currys offers next-day delivery and Marks Electrical says it is in stock.
- Review counts for the OL750UK. We did not check how many UK reviews the larger 7.5-litre Foodi MAX has.
- The guarantee terms behind Ninja’s asterisk. Ninja says “Up to 2-Year Guarantee*” without showing the terms. Currys says the second year depends on registering, and the manual says to register within 28 days.
- Age of the tests. T3’s review is from December 2021 and Expert Reviews’ was last updated in November 2023. Ninja has not changed the model code since, but we cannot rule out small revisions.
- The videos. All three were confirmed by search listings, not by opening them, because YouTube does not load from here. Two do not name the model code in their titles.
Sources and prices last checked 12 October 2026. Prices on this model move often — check the listing in front of you before ordering.