Best Electric Kitchen Composter: 7 Food Recyclers for Your Counter

Most electric composters do not make compost. They dry and grind your scraps into a crumbly, coffee-ground-like material, and that is still useful.

A few machines do make something close to real compost, using live microbes instead of heat alone. Which kind suits you depends on where the output is going.

This is a review of the machines themselves. For simpler swaps like a plain bin, see our guide to eco-friendly alternatives to common kitchen appliances.

The short version: The Lomi 3 is the best electric kitchen composter for most homes. It is small, fast and takes most food, including meat. If you want moist, living compost for a garden, get the Reencle Prime instead. The one rule that matters most: buy a dryer if you want less trash, and a microbial machine if you want compost.

Our Picks at a Glance

• Best overall: Lomi 3 Food RecyclerJump to review ↓
• Best for small kitchens: FoodCycler Eco 3Jump to review ↓
• Best for big households: FoodCycler Eco 5Jump to review ↓
• Best for real compost: Reencle Prime Electric ComposterJump to review ↓
• Best with no filters to buy: GEME Terra 2Jump to review ↓
• Best budget pick: Airthereal Revive R500Jump to review ↓
• Best no-power option: OXO Good Grips Easy-Clean Compost BinJump to review ↓

Electric Composters Compared

Model	How it works	Holds	Time	Size (W x D x H)	Odor control
Lomi 3	Heat, dry, grind	3 L	3 to 6 hrs (Express)	11 x 11 x 12 in	Charcoal filter, about 45 cycles
FoodCycler Eco 3	Heat, dry, grind	3.5 L	4 to 9 hrs	9 x 13 x 11 in	Refillable carbon, 3 to 4 months
FoodCycler Eco 5	Heat, dry, grind	5 L	4 to 9 hrs	13.8 x 10.3 x 13.8 in	Refillable carbon, 3 to 4 months
Reencle Prime	Live microbes	14 L chamber	Always on	13 x 12 x 18.4 in	Filter, 9 to 12 months
GEME Terra 2	Live microbes	14 L chamber	Always on	11.7 x 17.2 x 22.3 in	Permanent filter
Airthereal Revive R500	Heat, dry, grind	2.5 L	2 to 7 hrs	12.5 x 10 x 12.5 in	Carbon filter
OXO Easy-Clean Bin	No power	1.75 gal	None	10.8 x 8.1 x 8.5 in	Tight lid, no filter

“Holds” for the microbial machines is the size of the chamber. They take a set amount of food per day instead of one batch at a time.

1. Lomi 3 Food Recycler: Best Overall

The Lomi 3 earns the top spot because it balances size, speed and choice better than anything else here. Its footprint is about the size of a large bread machine. That is small enough to live on most counters without taking over.

It works like the other dryers. A heater warms the bucket, blades turn the scraps, and a fan pulls moist air out through a charcoal filter. A few hours later you have a dry, crumbly material at about one-fifth the original volume.

What sets it apart is the Grow mode. It runs longer, and you can add a LomiPod, a small packet of helpful microbes. The result is a better material for houseplants and garden beds than the quick Express run. Express is for days when you only want the scraps gone.

The food list is wide. Meat, fish skin, eggshells, coffee grounds, bread and leftovers all go in. Avoid fruit pits, hard bones, nut shells, cooking oil, candy and paper towels. Keep any one fruit or root vegetable to about a cup per cycle, or the output turns gummy.

Who should buy it: Couples and small families who want the scraps gone quickly and sometimes want plant food for pots or a garden bed.

2. FoodCycler Eco 3: Best for Small Kitchens

The Eco 3 is the narrowest machine on this list. At about 9 inches wide, it can tuck into the gap beside a toaster or at the end of a galley kitchen counter. It also has the lowest published power use per cycle of the dryers here.

FoodCycler is the company that designed the machines Vitamix used to sell. It now sells them under its own name, with a three-year warranty. You fill the bucket, close the lid and press one button. There are no modes to choose.

Its filter is the clever part. Instead of throwing away a cartridge, you pour fresh carbon pellets into the same housing every three to four months. That keeps the running cost low and the waste small.

The food list is detailed and practical. Poultry bones, fish bones, shellfish, eggshells and coffee grounds all go in. Dairy, bread, rice and sauces are fine in small amounts. Beef bones, cardboard, oil, candy and most “compostable” plastics stay out.

Who should buy it: Renters, singles and couples in studio apartment kitchens who want the smallest, cheapest-to-run dryer.

3. FoodCycler Eco 5: Best for Big Households

The Eco 5 is the bigger sibling of the Eco 3. It holds about twice what the old FoodCycler FC-50 held. For a family that cooks most nights, that can mean one cycle a day instead of two.

Everything else matches the Eco 3: one button, the same food list and the same refillable carbon filter.

The trade-off is size. At nearly 14 inches tall and 30 pounds, it is a fixed appliance, not something you move around. Plan a permanent spot near an outlet before you order it. If counter space is short, our guide to making more counter space in a small kitchen has ideas.

Who should buy it: Families of three or more who fill a small bucket every day and want a dry, low-smell output for the green bin or garden.

4. Reencle Prime Electric Composter: Best for Real Compost

The Reencle is a different kind of machine. Instead of drying food, it keeps a colony of live microbes warm, fed and supplied with air. Those microbes eat the scraps, the same way they would in a garden pile, only much faster.

You never start a cycle. You drop scraps in whenever you like, and they shrink down over the next few hours to a day. The chamber fills slowly, and you scoop out a moist, dark material when it gets full. Reencle says finished compost takes about 30 days of this process.

It is also the quietest machine here, at about 28 decibels. A foot sensor opens the lid when your hands are full.

Height is the catch. The Prime is over 18 inches tall closed and about 29 inches with the big lid open. That will not fit under most upper cabinets, so plan for a spot on the floor, beside the fridge, or in an open corner.

Who should buy it: Gardeners and serious houseplant growers who want something close to finished compost from the kitchen.

5. GEME Terra 2: Best With No Filters to Buy

The GEME Terra 2 is the other microbial pick. Unlike the Reencle, its filter never needs replacing, and it takes about twice as much food per day.

Setup is simple. You add the starter microbe pack and about two cups of water, then wait six to eight hours. After that, you add scraps whenever you like. A kick-to-open lid keeps your hands free.

It takes a long food list: peels, coffee grounds, grains, meat, dairy, oily leftovers and small bones. Tear paper towels into small squares, though, or long strips can wrap around the mixing shaft. Cutting scraps smaller helps them break down faster. A good vegetable chopper makes that quick.

The output is moist and soil-like. GEME suggests mixing it with garden soil at about one part to eight or ten parts soil. It is the largest machine here, though, so it belongs on the floor.

Who should buy it: Bigger households and gardeners who make a lot of scraps and never want to think about filters.

6. Airthereal Revive R500: Best Budget Pick

The Revive R500 usually costs the least of the electric machines here. It still does the core job: dry, grind and shrink a day of scraps overnight.

Its main feature is a three-blade grinder that Airthereal calls SHARKSDEN. It chops soft shells, soft bones and meat scraps along with the usual peels and grains. The one-piece bucket has a nonstick coating and goes straight in the dishwasher. That saves the scrubbing that some dryers need.

The 2.5-liter bucket suits one or two people. A family would run it daily or more.

Who should buy it: Singles and couples who want to try a food recycler without paying for the bigger names.

7. OXO Good Grips Easy-Clean Compost Bin: Best No-Power Option

Not everyone needs a machine. If your city collects food scraps, a good pail does the job for no power.

The OXO bin gets the small things right. The lid flips up and stays open while you scrape a cutting board. It also lifts off completely, so emptying is easy. A collar holds a compostable bag in place, and the smooth body goes in the dishwasher.

At 1.75 gallons, it holds about five days of scraps for two people. There is no filter. A tight lid and regular emptying are what keep smells and fruit flies down.

Who should buy it: Anyone with curbside compost pickup, and anyone not yet sure a machine is worth the space.

Dryer or Microbial: Which Kind of Electric Composter Do You Need?

This is the single biggest choice, and it matters more than any brand name.

	Dryer (Lomi, FoodCycler, Airthereal)	Microbial (Reencle, GEME)
How it works	Heats, dries and grinds a batch	Live microbes eat scraps all day
What comes out	Dry, crumbly material	Moist, soil-like material
Is it compost?	No, it still needs to break down	Close to it
Time	A few hours per batch	Hours per addition, about a month to finish
Power	About 1 to 1.5 kWh per cycle	About 1 kWh per day
Size	Fits on most counters	Usually floor height

A dryer is a trash shrinker. It turns a smelly bag of scraps into a small, dry, stable material that does not rot in the bin. That alone ends most fruit fly and odor trouble, which ties into keeping pests out of a small kitchen.

A microbial machine is a tiny compost pile. It is slower and larger, but the output is alive and ready for soil.

What Does an Electric Composter Actually Make?

A dryer makes a dry, crumbly material that looks a little like coffee grounds. Most of the water is gone, so it no longer rots.

That material is not finished compost. Once it gets wet again in the soil, soil microbes start breaking it down. Mix small amounts into potting soil or garden beds. Too much at once, close to young roots, can cause mold or tie up nutrients while it breaks down.

You can also put it in a city green bin or an outdoor pile. There it finishes breaking down like any other scrap, just faster.

A microbial machine makes a moist, dark material that is already partly broken down. Mix it into soil at the ratio its maker gives, usually about one part to eight or ten parts soil.

What Can You Put in an Electric Composter?

More than you can put in a backyard pile, but not everything.

Usually fine	Small amounts only	Keep out
Fruit and vegetable peels	Bread, rice and pasta	Hard bones, such as beef bones
Coffee grounds and loose tea	Dairy and cheese	Large fruit pits (avocado, mango, peach)
Eggs and eggshells	Sauces and dressings	Hard nut shells and coconut shells
Meat and fish scraps	Cooked potatoes and starchy roots	Cooking oil and butter
Leftovers, drained	Paper towels, torn small (GEME, FoodCycler)	Candy, gum, liquids and plastics

Each maker’s list differs a little. FoodCycler takes poultry and fish bones, while Lomi takes no paper towels at all. Tape your machine’s list inside a cabinet door.

If you are throwing away a lot of whole meals, the machine is fixing the wrong problem. Our guides to cooking for one without wasting food and how long leftovers last help cut scraps at the source.

How Much Electricity Does an Electric Composter Use?

Less than people fear, but not nothing.

A dryer uses about 1 to 1.5 kilowatt-hours per full cycle. One kilowatt-hour is about what a 1,000-watt microwave uses in an hour. For another everyday comparison, see how many watts an Instant Pot uses.

Run a dryer every other day and you use roughly 15 to 25 kilowatt-hours a month. On a typical US power bill, that adds a few dollars a month.

Microbial machines sip power all day instead. The Reencle Prime averages about 52 watts, or about 1.25 kilowatt-hours a day. That works out to a little under 40 kilowatt-hours a month, similar to a dryer used daily.

To keep the cost down, run full loads and choose shorter modes when you only want the scraps gone. More ideas are in our guide to cutting kitchen energy use in a small apartment.

Do Electric Composters Smell?

They should not, as long as the filter is fresh.

Dryers pull moist air out of the bucket and push it through activated carbon. Carbon is full of tiny pores that trap smell molecules. When those pores fill up, smell starts to escape, usually as a warm, cooked-food odor during a cycle.

That is your signal to change the filter or refill the pellets. Lomi filters last about 45 cycles. FoodCycler pellets last three to four months. Airthereal sells its filters in two-packs.

Microbial machines smell faintly earthy when you open the lid. A sour or rotten smell usually means too much wet food at once, or too much of one thing. A good range hood and ventilation setup also helps with any cooking smell in a small space.

How Loud Are They?

All of these are quieter than a typical dishwasher.

The Reencle Prime is the quietest at about 28 decibels. The GEME runs at 35 to 40. The Lomi 3 stays under 45, which is about the level of a quiet office. Dryers are loudest in short bursts while the blades grind.

How Much Counter Space Does an Electric Composter Need?

Measure before you buy. Most upper cabinets sit about 18 inches above the counter.

Machine	Height	Fits under most cabinets?
Lomi 3	12 in	Yes
FoodCycler Eco 3	11 in	Yes
FoodCycler Eco 5	13.8 in	Yes, but check the lid opening
Airthereal Revive R500	12.5 in	Yes
Reencle Prime	18.4 in (about 29 in open)	No, plan a floor spot
GEME Terra 2	22.3 in	No, floor only

Remember the lid needs room to open, and the machine needs an outlet. Our ideas for countertop organization in a small kitchen and storing small appliances help find that spot. The Eco 3 and Lomi 3 are the easiest to fit into a tight renter-friendly kitchen.

Filters and Other Running Costs

• Lomi 3: Charcoal filters every 45 or so cycles. The highest filter cost here, with an optional yearly membership.
• FoodCycler Eco 3 and Eco 5: Refill carbon pellets every three to four months. Low cost.
• Airthereal Revive R500: Replacement carbon filters sold in two-packs.
• Reencle Prime: One filter every 9 to 12 months. Low cost, plus occasional microbe top-ups.
• GEME Terra 2: Permanent filter. Microbe boost packs are optional.
• OXO bin: Compostable bags, if you use them.

As a broad guide, dryers cost about $250 to $600 up front. Microbial machines run about $500 to $700. A plain pail costs a fraction of either.

Are Electric Composters Good for the Environment?

They help, with one condition. Food scraps in a landfill rot without air and release methane, a strong greenhouse gas. Drying or composting them at home keeps them out of that process.

The condition is that the output gets used. If dried scraps go into the trash, you have mainly made the trash lighter and less smelly. That still has value, but the real win comes from putting the output in soil, a green bin or a compost pile.

The electricity matters too, so run full loads and skip half-empty cycles. You can balance it out with energy-efficient small kitchen appliances elsewhere, like the picks in our list of compact Energy Star appliances.

Tips for Living With a Countertop Food Recycler

• Keep a small bowl by the cutting board. Tip it into the machine once a day instead of opening the lid for every peel.
• Freeze scraps if you skip days. A bag in the freezer stops smells and fruit flies. Our guide to organizing a small fridge has room-saving ideas.
• Drain wet food. Soup, juice and sauce slow dryers down and can make microbial machines sour.
• Chop big pieces. Corn cobs, melon rinds and celery break down faster when cut small.
• Run the cleaning cycle or wash the bucket weekly. Dishwasher-safe buckets make this easy. Our dishwasher cleaning guide keeps the dishwasher itself fresh too.
• Feed it coffee grounds. They suit every machine here, and a coffee maker with a grinder makes plenty.

Which One Should You Buy?

Start with where the output is going.

• You only want less trash, smell and fruit flies: Get a dryer. The Lomi 3 for most homes, or the Airthereal Revive R500 on a budget.
• Your counter is tiny: The FoodCycler Eco 3 is the narrowest and cheapest to run.
• You cook for a family: The FoodCycler Eco 5 handles the most per batch.
• You garden and want real compost: The Reencle Prime, or the GEME Terra 2 if you hate buying filters.
• Your city already collects scraps: Save the money and the counter space. The OXO Easy-Clean Compost Bin does the job.

Still deciding what earns counter space? Read our list of small kitchen gadgets worth buying when you cook for one. Then see our guide to decluttering a small kitchen.

Related Guides

• Eco-Friendly Alternatives to Common Kitchen Appliances
• How to Reduce Kitchen Energy Use in a Small Apartment
• Most Energy-Efficient Small Kitchen Appliances
• How to Cook for One Without Wasting Food
• How to Grocery Shop for One Person
• How to Freeze Single Portions
• Coolest Kitchen Appliances to Buy
• Best Food Dehydrator

Frequently Asked Questions

Are electric kitchen composters worth it?

They are worth it if food scraps are a daily problem and you have a use for the output, such as a garden, houseplants or a city green bin. They cut smell, fruit flies and trash volume. They are not worth it if you already have curbside compost pickup and a pail works fine, since a pail does the same job for no power and very little money.

Do electric composters make real compost?

Most do not. Machines like Lomi, FoodCycler and Airthereal heat, dry and grind scraps into a dry, crumbly material. It is a soil amendment that still needs to break down in soil or a compost pile. Microbial machines like Reencle and GEME are different. They keep live microbes working on the scraps and produce a moist, soil-like material that is much closer to compost.

How much electricity does an electric composter use?

A dryer-style machine uses about 1 to 1.5 kilowatt-hours per cycle. That is roughly what a 1,000-watt microwave uses running for an hour or a bit more. A microbial machine runs all day at low power, so it uses about 1 kilowatt-hour per day. Either way, expect it to add a few dollars a month to a typical power bill.

Can you put meat and dairy in an electric composter?

Yes, in most of them, which is a big advantage over a backyard pile. Lomi, FoodCycler, Airthereal, Reencle and GEME all accept meat scraps, and most take small amounts of dairy. Hard items are the usual problem. Beef bones, large fruit pits, hard nut shells, cooking oil, candy and gum should stay out of almost every machine.

Do electric composters smell?

A working machine should not smell much in the room. Dryers vent air through a carbon filter, and the smell comes back when that filter is used up. Microbial machines have a mild earthy smell when you open the lid. If a dryer starts to smell, the first fix is a fresh filter or a refill of carbon pellets.