Juicy Air Fryer Hamburgers

Juicy and delicious Air Fryer Hamburgers are a quick and easy way to enjoy a thick burger without heating up the grill. Just shape your patties, throw them in the air fryer while you gather your burger fixings. Dinner's ready in under 20 minutes!

Who doesn't love a good juicy burger?! It's classic American fare and so much more delicious and cheaper to make at home where you can top them with all your favorite burger toppings.

You might be asking why cook hamburgers in the air fryer instead of on the grill? While we love a good, grilled cheeseburger, the air fryer is a great alternative and the perfect solution when there is bad weather or we don't have the time for lighting charcoal and getting the grill going. The air fryer preheats in 5 minutes, which is about as long as it takes to shape and season the patties. Then I can throw them in and not worry about flare-ups or monitoring the heat while I prep all of our burger toppings. Plus, the burgers always taste AMAZING and the cleanup afterwards is a cinch.

Honestly, our air fryer hamburger recipe is so good and you even get a grilled texture and taste because of the air circulation that you might not even notice the difference!

Why Air Fryer Burgers Are Worth It

• Super juicy hamburgers. The circulating air and heat sear the outside of the burger, locking in the juices for super tender, delicious burgers that rivals any patty off the grill and is far superior to a pan fried burger.
• Easy prep and clean up. No need to mess around lighting charcoal and waiting for it to be ready or cleaning grill grates.
• Customizable. Add your favorite sauces, toppings, and cheese to make your perfect burger, your way!

Recipe Ingredients

• Lean ground beef: We like a slightly higher fat content like 80/20 or 85/15 for burgers for the best flavor. Leaner meats can also be used, but be careful not to overcook them. We also really love using ground bison for a healthier alternative.
• Salt & pepper: Use coarse kosher salt and freshly ground or coarse ground black pepper for the best flavor.
• Seasoning: Although salt & pepper is really all you need, we like to use a burger rub or seasoning blend like Montreal steak seasoning. Just be sure to check the label and if salt is the top ingredient you might want to cut back on the amount of salt used to season the burgers.
• Buns: Good quality fresh buns make such a difference! Brioche hamburger buns are our favorite.

How to Cook Hamburgers in an Air Fryer

This is a quick visual overview of how we prepare burgers in the air fryer. Be sure to see the recipe card for full ingredients and instructions.

• Shape and season hamburger patties. We like to make ours about ½-inch to ¾-inch thick, knowing that they will shrink up as they cook. Make them slightly larger than the buns you are planning to use and by the time the burgers are done they will be just the right size.

• Arrange the burgers in a single layer in the air fryer basket. It's okay if they are barely touching just on the sides since the burgers will shrink up fairly quickly, but you want to make sure there is still space for air circulation between the burgers. Work in batches if your air fryer isn't big enough to handle four burgers at a time.
• Air fryer burger temp and time. After some experimenting, we have found that we like setting the air fryer temperature to 370 degrees F and cooking the hamburgers for about 5 minutes on each side for a total of 10 minutes, flipping halfway through.

• Add cheese at the end. Once the burgers are done, open the air fryer and quickly top each patty with a slice of cheese, then close the air fryer again if you want air fryer cheeseburgers. Even without running the air fryer there should be enough residual heat to melt the cheese in just 30-60 seconds. You can always turn the air fryer back on for 1 minute to help the cheese melt if needed.
• Assemble the burgers. Placing the lettuce on the bottom bun under the patty will help it not become mushy from dripping meat juices. Other toppings get piled on top of the burger before placing the top bun on top.

Recipe FAQ's

Top Tips

• Use fresh ground beef. A frozen hamburger patty is fine, but for the best results we like using fresh ground beef.
• Don't overwork the meat. For tender burger patties, you want to handle the meat as little as possible. It's why I prefer to only season the outsides of the patties rather than mix ingredients into the ground beef.
• Use your fingers to press an indentation into the center of each burger before cooking. This tip works whether you're using the air fryer or the grill and keeps burgers from plumping up into meatballs. Don't use the back of the spatula to squash down the burgers in an attempt to flatten them out. It just presses out all those delicious burger juices and results in dry burgers.
• Use the air fryer to toast your buns! While the burgers rest for a few minutes, open up those buns and toast them for 2 minutes before serving.

Recipe Variations

• You can make turkey burgers, chicken burgers, bison burgers, salmon burgers, or veggie burgers in your air fryer. You just might need to adjust the cooking time for some of the leaner burger options, which tend to cook faster than ground beef.
• Brush your juicy air fryer hamburgers with bbq sauce during the last minute or two the cooking time so it has a chance to caramelize on the burger.
• Serve with your favorite aioli, crispy onions, cooked bacon, sliced avocado, or other favorite toppings to make gourmet burgers.

Storage & Reheating

Leftover burgers can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

To reheat: If you have burgers that you want to reheat, just cook for 3-5 minutes at 350 degrees F in the air fryer until heated through.

What to Serve with Air Fryer Hamburgers

• French Fries
• Potato Salad
• Sweet Potato Fries
• Baked Beans

More Air Fryer Recipes

• Air Fryer Meatloaf
• Air Fryer Salmon
• Air Fryer Asparagus