Instant Pot Duo vs Duo Nova: 4 differences & How to choose It’s all well and good looking at all the cool features that these two Instant Pot models have to offer, but at the end of the day, it’s how they cook that’s the most important. Both devices are”7-in-1? cookers, meaning they can replace 7 of the appliances in your kitchen. If we told you there was a device out there that could replace your slow cooker, steamer, rice cooker, and more, you’d probably want to know about it! Luckily for you, Instant Pot has a range of products that do exactly this. Instant Pots include smart programs to help you cook your meals at the push of a button. Each smart program controls heat intensity, temperature, pressure, and cooking duration. For each category, we’ll let you know the strengths and weaknesses of both products and which one we think performed best during our testing. This Instant Pot Duo vs Duo Nova article pits two of the brand’s latest and greatest cookers against one another. By the end, you’ll hopefully have a good idea about which cooker is going to be the best for you and your lifestyle. When you click on links to buy products we may earn money to support our work. If you have some time, you can let the gadget release steam over the course of a few minutes. If you need to take a look at the food right way, you can opt for the quick release button which lets out the pressure and steam right away in a safe manner. Keep in mind that the Instant Pot Duo Nova 3-quart size doesn’t have the poultry or multigrain smart programs, while the other sizes do. If you only need a cooker for one or two or don't plan to meal prep, then the Instant Pot DUO Mini can save you some money with the same functions and performance, just a smaller quantity. If you want the best option with a good capacity, then the Instant Pot Duo Plus 6 Quart is a higher ranking option that offers the same cooking performance that is easier to use. She has been reviewing small appliances, including blenders, juicers, and multi-cookers, for more than 8 years, and also upholsters furniture when she's not testing the latest food tech gadgets. All Instant Pots are pretty easy to use, but the Duo really takes it to the next level. Despite its simple design and intuitive processes, the device is absolutely packed with cooking features. If you want to spice up your meal times without adding any extra stress, then the Instant Pot Duo is perfect for you. One of the Instant Pot Duo’s biggest advantages is just how easy it is to use. We found plenty of slow cook and pressure cook recipes but it can be tricky to find exact guidance for more simple tasks like steaming and cooking rice. The Nova has all the functionality of the best-selling Instant Pot Duo, but with an improved display and button configuration on the housing. So you can now enjoy the larger sized pressure cooker with the functionality and familiarity of Instant Pot. Many people, and some manufacturers, maintain that it's completely fine to put non-stick cookware in the dishwasher, while others find that blasphemous. The smart programs in the Duo Nova vs Duo side by side are pretty much the same. And as you’ll notice with the other mini 3 quart models, it has a few fewer smart programs compared to the larger models. The DUO Nova provides most of the basic pressure cooking functions and some more advanced options. Essentially, unless you're looking for some specific specialty functions like air fry or dehydrate, it will likely meet your needs. That said, the Instant Pot Duo is still completely safe to use – you just have to make sure that you follow the instructions carefully, especially when releasing the chamber after pressure cooking. Since the majority of people will be choosing between one of the three smaller sizes, we can’t really say that the Instant Pot Duo Nova is that much better in this category. If you do need the larger capacity though, then your decision between the two products becomes very easy. With both lids, a controlled manual pressure release takes some practice to get right without covering your ceiling in steam.