Best Under-Cabinet Range Hood (CFM Sizing, Ducting and 7 Picks)

A recirculating range hood cannot remove heat or steam. It traps grease and smell in a filter, then pushes the same hot, damp air back into the room.

Sort that out before anything else, because it decides which hoods are even worth a look. Then work out your CFM.

Get the CFM number from your cooktop rather than from the box, and the rest of this decision takes about ten minutes.

How Much CFM Do You Need?

Two rules cover almost every kitchen. Run both, then buy the bigger number.

Rule one, by width: allow 100 CFM for every linear foot of cooktop. This is the long-standing industry guideline and it works fine for electric and induction.

Rule two, by BTU: for a gas range, divide the total burner output by 100. Broan puts it simply in its own guidance: aim for 1 CFM of ventilation per 100 BTU.

Cooktop width	Width rule (100 CFM per foot)	Gas example	Buy in this range
24 inches	200 CFM	40,000 BTU needs 400 CFM	250 to 400 CFM
30 inches	250 CFM	50,000 BTU needs 500 CFM	300 to 500 CFM
36 inches	300 CFM	60,000 BTU needs 600 CFM	400 to 600 CFM

Gas nearly always wins, because burning gas produces water vapor and combustion gases as well as cooking smoke. An induction cooktop produces none of that, so the width rule alone is enough. The same goes for a slide-in electric range, as long as you are not frying every night.

One warning before you chase a big number. Building codes based on the International Residential Code require a makeup air system once a hood moves more than 400 CFM. A powerful fan in a sealed home can pull air back down a flue, so check with your local inspector before buying a 900 CFM hood for a small kitchen.

Quick Picks

• Best overall: Broan-NuTone GLA2303SSJump to review ↓
• Best for heavy cooking: Hauslane Chef Series UC-PS18Jump to review ↓
• Best baffle-filter hood: Cosmo COS-QS75Jump to review ↓
• Best value at 500 CFM: Empava EMPV-30RH01Jump to review ↓
• Best slim profile: Cosmo COS-5MU30Jump to review ↓
• Best for a 24-inch cooktop: Broan-NuTone BCSD124SSJump to review ↓
• Best ductless pick for renters: Broan-NuTone 413004Jump to review ↓

Under-Cabinet Range Hoods Compared

Hood	Width	Max CFM	Noise	Depth	Venting
Broan GLA2303SS	30 in	350	1.5 sones	19.7 in	Top, rear or ductless
Hauslane UC-PS18	30 in	500 lab	1.5 to 7 sones	22 in	Top or rear
Cosmo COS-QS75	30 in	500	From about 40 dB	22 in	Top, ductless with kit
Empava EMPV-30RH01	29.5 in	500	Under 65 dB	22 in	Top, ductless with kit
Cosmo COS-5MU30	29.75 in	200	From about 50 dB	19.75 in	Top or rear, ductless with kit
Broan BCSD124SS	24 in	300	5 sones	17.5 in	Top, rear or ductless
Broan 413004	30 in	Not rated	3.5 sones	17.5 in	Ductless only

Brands report noise in sones or decibels, and the two do not convert cleanly. Compare sones with sones, and treat a decibel claim as a rough guide.

We have not installed or run these hoods. The picks come from manufacturer spec sheets, HVI certified ratings where they exist, filter and duct design, and the complaint patterns that repeat across verified owner reviews.

1. Broan-NuTone GLA2303SS: Best Overall

This is the hood most 30-inch kitchens should buy. 350 CFM covers the width rule for a 30-inch cooktop with room to spare, and it clears the BTU rule for a gas range up to about 35,000 BTU.

The number that makes it stand out is 1.5 sones at normal speed. Broan rates 1 sone as a running refrigerator and 3 sones as face-to-face conversation, so 1.5 sones is a hood you can talk over. That matters more than people expect, because a loud hood is a hood you switch off.

It is also ENERGY STAR certified and HVI certified, so the airflow figure was measured to a standard rather than guessed. At 5.9 inches tall it leaves a usable gap under the cabinet, and the EZ1 bracket means one person can hang it. If you are working through a wider appliance refresh, it sits well alongside our picks for compact ENERGY STAR appliances.

Who should buy it: Almost anyone with a 30-inch electric, induction or modest gas cooktop who wants the hood to be quiet enough to actually use.

2. Hauslane Chef Series UC-PS18: Best for Heavy Cooking

If you sear steaks in a saute pan, fry fish or cook in a wok, 350 CFM will not keep up. This Hauslane moves 500 CFM by lab measurement, which is where the BTU rule lands for a 50,000 BTU gas range.

The baffle filters are the reason to pick it over a cheaper 500 CFM hood. A baffle forces the airstream to change direction sharply, and grease droplets are too heavy to follow the turn, so they hit the metal and run down into a trap. Mesh filters strain grease out instead, which works well until the mesh loads up and airflow drops.

Six speeds is more useful than it sounds. The bottom speed sits at 1.5 sones for simmering, and you only pay the noise penalty when you push it. Hauslane ships adapters for both 6-inch round and rectangular duct, so it fits most existing runs. Cleaning is easy, and the filters go in with the dishes the same way you would clean a dishwasher load of pans.

Who should buy it: Anyone who cooks with real heat on a regular basis. Pair it with a smokeless indoor grill and you can cook indoors without setting off the alarm.

3. Cosmo COS-QS75: Best Baffle-Filter Hood

Three baffle filters instead of two is the detail here. More baffle area means more surface for grease to condense on, and it also means less resistance, so the fan does not have to fight the filters.

The body is 18-gauge stainless. Gauge numbers run backwards, so 18-gauge is thicker than the 20-gauge used on cheaper hoods. Thicker steel rings less and dents less, which is the same logic behind picking a heavier gauge kitchen sink. Cosmo uses 430-grade steel, which is magnetic and slightly less rust-resistant than 304, but perfectly fine above a stove.

Cosmo quotes noise as low as 40 dB on speed one with rigid duct, and that last part matters. Flexible duct has ridges that create turbulence, so it makes any hood louder and weaker. Controls are a backlit touch panel with a remote and an auto shut-off timer, which is handy when you want the fan to run on after you have finished cooking.

Who should buy it: Cooks who want baffle filters and a quiet low speed without going to a pro-style price. It suits a kitchen where the hood sits in your eyeline, since the panel looks tidier than rocker switches.

4. Empava EMPV-30RH01: Best Value at 500 CFM

Empava gets you to 500 CFM for less than most name brands, and it does it with two motors rather than one big one. Twin motors split the work, so each runs at lower speed for the same airflow, and that usually means less noise per CFM.

The 8-inch duct is the thing to check before you order. Eight inches gives you about 50 square inches of cross-section, against 28 for a 6-inch pipe. That is generous, and it is why the hood can move 500 CFM without screaming. It also means an existing 6-inch run will throttle it, so budget for new duct if you are replacing an old hood.

Empava ships it with a GFCI power cord already fitted, which saves hiring an electrician if you have an outlet in the cabinet above. The aluminum mesh filters are washable, and carbon filters turn it into a recirculating unit if a duct run is impossible. Two years of warranty is longer than Broan’s one.

Who should buy it: Someone fitting a hood into a new duct run who wants 500 CFM without paying a premium badge price. Empava also sells it direct, and the price moves between the two.

5. Cosmo COS-5MU30: Best Slim Profile for Shallow Cabinets

At 5.5 inches tall and 19.75 inches deep, this is the hood for a kitchen where the cabinet gap is small and the walkway is narrow. A 22-inch-deep hood juts 10 inches past a standard 12-inch wall cabinet, and in a galley that is the difference between comfortable and constantly ducking.

You pay for that in airflow. 200 CFM meets the width rule for a 24-inch cooktop and falls short for a 30-inch one, so treat it as a light-cooking hood. Boiling pasta and weeknight sauteing are fine. Searing on high or deep frying is not.

The 5-inch duct is smaller than the 6-inch standard, which limits what you can connect it to. Do not reduce an existing 6-inch run to fit it, because a 5-inch pipe has about 30 percent less cross-section. Instead, use a proper adapter at the hood and keep the larger pipe for the rest of the run. In a kitchen this tight, the same thinking applies to everything else you hang on the wall, which is why our vertical storage ideas lean on slim fittings too.

Who should buy it: Renters and small-kitchen cooks who need a hood that disappears. If your counters are already tight, read our countertop organization ideas next.

6. Broan-NuTone BCSD124SS: Best for a 24-Inch Cooktop

Apartment kitchens often come with a 24-inch range, and a 30-inch hood simply will not fit the cabinet. This Broan is built for that gap, and 300 CFM comfortably beats the 200 CFM the width rule asks of a 24-inch cooktop.

Four-way convertible means you choose the venting at install time. Duct it up through the cabinet, out the back wall, or run it as a recirculating hood with charcoal filters. That flexibility is worth a lot when you do not know what is behind the drywall until you open it up.

Be clear-eyed about the noise. Five sones on high is loud, roughly what Broan compares to a busy restaurant. The low speed is much more civil, and for a small cooktop you will mostly use it. The hood is also ADA compliant, which matters if the switches need to sit within reach. A compact kitchen usually has the rest of its appliances scaled down too, and our small kitchen appliance picks for cooking for one cover the ones worth buying.

Who should buy it: Anyone with a 24-inch range in a rental or a compact kitchen who wants a real ducted hood rather than a recirculating box.

7. Broan-NuTone 413004: Best Ductless Pick for Renters

Sometimes there is no duct and no permission to cut one. This is the hood for that situation, and Broan has sold it for long enough that parts and filters are easy to find.

Set your expectations properly. A charcoal filter grabs odor molecules and the grille catches airborne grease, so the kitchen smells better and the cabinets stay cleaner. Heat and steam are unchanged, because the air never leaves the room. Broan says as much in its own literature: humidity, smoke and heat all get recirculated.

The trade is price and simplicity. At around $129 it is a fraction of a ducted hood, it screws under the cabinet in an afternoon, and it is ADA compliant. The charcoal filter needs replacing every three to six months, which is the running cost people forget. If you want more recirculating options, we compare them in our guide to the best ductless range hoods.

Who should buy it: Renters, condo owners with no exterior wall, and anyone on a tight budget who cooks lightly. It pairs sensibly with low-steam cooking gear such as an air fryer, though you still have to clean the basket to keep smoke down.

Ducted vs Ductless: What Recirculating Really Does

This is the decision that changes everything else, so it deserves plain language.

A ducted hood captures the plume above your pan and pushes it outside through a pipe. Everything in that plume leaves: grease, smoke, odor, steam, heat, and the water vapor and gases that gas burners produce.

A ductless hood pulls the same plume through a grease filter and a charcoal filter, then blows the cleaned air back into the kitchen. Grease and odor drop out. Heat and moisture do not, because there is nowhere for them to go. Anything that vents steam makes this obvious, and a pressure cooker makes it obvious fastest.

	Ducted	Ductless (recirculating)
Removes grease	Yes	Mostly, via the mesh
Removes odor	Yes	Yes, while the carbon lasts
Removes heat	Yes	No
Removes steam and moisture	Yes	No
Removes gas combustion byproducts	Yes	No
Ongoing cost	Wash the filters	Replace carbon every 3 to 6 months
Install	Needs a duct route	Screws under the cabinet

The practical upshot is simple. If you can duct, duct. A recirculating hood is a reasonable fallback in a rental, and a poor choice in a kitchen with a gas range, because moisture and combustion gases are exactly what you want gone. Extra humidity also feeds condensation, which is bad news in a small space where storage is already tight.

Duct Diameter: The Number That Quietly Ruins Airflow

A hood is only as good as the pipe behind it. Fitting a 500 CFM blower to a skinny duct gets you a loud fan and disappointing results.

The reason is cross-sectional area, and the math is unforgiving because area scales with the square of the radius.

Duct size	Cross-section	Typically good for
4-inch round	About 12.6 sq in	Nothing. This is dryer duct
5-inch round	About 19.6 sq in	Small hoods up to about 200 CFM
6-inch round	About 28.3 sq in	Up to roughly 400 CFM
3.25 by 10 rectangular	About 32.5 sq in	Broan treats it as equal to 6-inch round
7-inch round	About 38.5 sq in	Roughly 400 to 600 CFM
8-inch round	About 50.3 sq in	600 CFM and up

Step down from 6 inches to 4 inches and you lose more than half the opening. The blower still spins at the same speed, but it moves far less air and makes much more noise doing it.

Three more rules keep a duct run honest:

1. Use smooth rigid metal, not flexible. Broan is explicit that the ridges in flexible duct reduce airflow. Rigid pipe is cheap and makes a real difference.
2. Keep the run short and straight. Every elbow adds resistance, so two tight 90-degree bends can cost you as much as several extra feet of pipe.
3. Never vent into an attic or a crawlspace. Grease-laden damp air belongs outside, through a wall cap or a roof cap with a damper.

Sones: What the Noise Rating Means at the Stove

Sones measure perceived loudness, and unlike decibels they are linear. Two sones is twice as loud as one. Broan gives a plain comparison scale, and it is the most useful thing on any hood spec sheet.

Sones	Broan’s comparison	What it means at the stove
1	A refrigerator running	You forget the hood is on
2	An office	Easy to hold a conversation
3	Face-to-face conversation	Noticeable but fine
4	Television at normal volume	You raise your voice a little
5	A busy restaurant	Talking over it is work
6	A sporting event	You switch it off early

Aim for roughly 1.5 sones at normal speed and accept a louder top speed you use for ten minutes. Manufacturers who quote decibels instead are not lying, but decibels are logarithmic and are usually measured on the lowest setting. When a brand gives you sones certified by HVI, you can compare it with another HVI number and trust the result.

A quiet hood gets used. That is not a small point, since the one that gets switched off leaves grease on your cabinets and film on your stainless pans.

Filters: Mesh, Baffle and Charcoal

Filters do two separate jobs, and mixing them up leads to disappointment.

Filter	How it works	Upkeep	Best for
Aluminum mesh	Layers of woven metal strain grease droplets out of the airstream	Dishwasher monthly	Everyday cooking
Stainless baffle	Forces the air to turn sharply, so heavy grease cannot follow and drips into a trap	Dishwasher, lasts for years	Frying, searing, wok cooking
Charcoal or carbon	Adsorbs odor molecules in recirculating mode	Replace every 3 to 6 months	Ductless hoods only

Mesh and baffle filters both handle grease. Charcoal only handles smell, and only in a ductless setup, so a ducted hood never needs one.

Broan recommends washing aluminum mesh filters roughly monthly, depending on how hard you cook. Skipping that is the most common reason a hood seems to lose power. A loaded filter blocks airflow long before it looks dirty, and the grease it holds is also a fire risk. Baffle filters clog more slowly because the grease runs off rather than sitting in the weave, which is why restaurant kitchens use them. Oil that gets past a filter ends up on your cabinets, and it behaves the same way it does on a worn nonstick pan.

Width, Depth and Height in a Small Kitchen

Specs on paper mean nothing if the hood does not fit the wall you have.

Width. Match your cooktop at a minimum. Smoke rises in a plume that widens as it travels, so a hood three inches wider on each side catches more. In a tight kitchen that is rarely possible, so match the width and mount the hood lower in the allowed range instead.

Depth. This is the one people forget. Standard wall cabinets are 12 inches deep. A 22-inch hood therefore projects 10 inches into the room, right where you lean over the front burner. A 17.5 or 19.7-inch hood is much easier to live with in a galley, and the picks above include both. Reclaiming that cabinet space is worth planning too, and our small kitchen cabinet organization ideas show how.

Height. Broan recommends 24 to 30 inches between the cooktop and the bottom of the hood. Mount it higher and the plume spreads before the hood can catch it. Mount it lower and you risk heat damage, plus knocked heads and scorched filters.

Measure the gap between your cooktop and the underside of the cabinet before you shop. Subtract the hood height from that gap and check the result still sits in the 24 to 30-inch window. A 10-inch-tall hood in a shallow gap can leave you below the minimum clearance, which is a safety issue rather than an inconvenience.

Installing an Under-Cabinet Range Hood

Most under-cabinet hoods are a two-person afternoon if the duct already exists. A new duct run is a different job.

1. Kill the power at the breaker. Then confirm it is dead at the outlet or junction box in the cabinet.
2. Check the duct route first. Open the cabinet above and find where the pipe can go before you unbox anything. Clear the shelf properly, the same way you would when reorganizing kitchen drawers.
3. Dry-fit the hood. Hold it in place and mark the mounting holes and the duct cutout. A second person earns their keep here.
4. Cut the cabinet bottom or back for the duct. Use the template Broan and most brands include, and cut a touch small rather than a touch large.
5. Mount the hood, then connect the duct. Seal joints with foil tape, not cloth duct tape, which dries out and falls off.
6. Wire it or plug it in. Hardwired models need a junction box; models with a fitted cord just need an outlet inside the cabinet.
7. Test every speed and both lights. Hold a tissue near the filter on high to confirm the air is actually moving.

If you are replacing an old hood with a microwave that has its own fan, weigh that up carefully. Those fans are usually weaker, and we go through the tradeoffs in our guide to over-the-range microwaves.

Getting the Best Out of Any Hood

Technique matters almost as much as the spec sheet.

• Switch it on before you start cooking. A hood works on a rising plume, and it catches that plume far better once the airflow is already established.
• Use the back burners for smoky jobs. They sit deeper under the canopy, so more of the plume gets captured.
• Leave it running for five to ten minutes afterwards. Steam and smell linger after the pan comes off.
• Wash the grease filters monthly. A clogged filter is the number one cause of a hood that seems to have died.
• Wipe the canopy while it is warm. Grease comes off easily then and turns to varnish once it cools, exactly as it does on hard anodized cookware or an electric griddle.
• Keep the cooktop itself clean. Burnt residue smokes, which gives the hood more work to do, and it also marks the glass the way cast iron can.
• Crack a window on high speed. A powerful hood needs replacement air from somewhere, and an open window is the simplest source.

Running the fan on low for longer beats blasting it on high for two minutes. It is also kinder to your power bill, which fits with the rest of our advice on reducing kitchen energy use in a small apartment. The same logic runs through our picks for the most energy-efficient small kitchen appliances and our list of eco-friendly appliance alternatives.

Heat is the other half of the problem in a small kitchen. An oven running for an hour warms the whole room, so it helps to know how to bake without extra counter space and when to use a countertop appliance instead.

Which Under-Cabinet Range Hood Should You Buy?

• Standard 30-inch kitchen, want it quiet: Broan-NuTone GLA2303SS.
• Gas range and heavy frying: Hauslane Chef Series UC-PS18.
• You want baffle filters and a tidy touch panel: Cosmo COS-QS75.
• 500 CFM on a budget, new duct run: Empava EMPV-30RH01.
• Shallow cabinets or a narrow galley: Cosmo COS-5MU30.
• 24-inch cooktop: Broan-NuTone BCSD124SS.
• No duct and no permission to add one: Broan-NuTone 413004.

If you take one thing away, make it this: buy for the duct you can actually build, then pick the quietest hood that meets your CFM number. A 1.5-sone hood at 350 CFM that runs every night beats a 900 CFM monster you never switch on.

Related Guides

• 6 Best Ductless Range Hoods
• Best Over-the-Range Microwaves
• Best Compact ENERGY STAR Appliances for Small Kitchens
• Most Energy-Efficient Small Kitchen Appliances
• Best Induction Cooktop for the Money
• Best Slide-In Electric Ranges
• Small Kitchen Cabinet Organization Ideas
• How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans

Frequently Asked Questions

How many CFM do I need for an under-cabinet range hood?

Work it out two ways and take the bigger number. For width, allow 100 CFM for every foot of cooktop, so a 30-inch cooktop needs about 250 CFM. For a gas range, divide the total burner BTU by 100, so a 50,000 BTU range wants around 500 CFM. Electric and induction cooktops can use the width rule on its own.

Do ductless range hoods actually work?

They work for grease and smell, and not for much else. A charcoal filter traps odor molecules and a mesh filter catches grease, so the air coming out is cleaner. Heat, steam and combustion moisture all go straight back into the room. If you cannot run a duct outside, a recirculating hood is still better than nothing, but expect a warm, humid kitchen.

What size duct does a range hood need?

Match the duct to the size the manufacturer specifies and never reduce it. A 6-inch round duct or a 3.25 by 10-inch rectangular duct suits most hoods up to about 400 CFM. Above that you usually need 7 or 8 inches. Dropping from 6 inches to 4 inches removes more than half the cross-section, so the fan works harder and moves less air.

How high should an under-cabinet range hood be above the stove?

Broan recommends 24 to 30 inches between the cooktop and the bottom of the hood, and most manufacturers land in the same range. Check your own manual, since gas ranges often need a little more clearance than electric ones. Mount it too high and the plume spreads before the hood catches it. Too low and you risk heat damage and burnt knuckles.

What is a good sone rating for a range hood?

Anything around 1.5 sones at normal speed is quiet for an under-cabinet hood. Sones are linear, so 3 sones is twice as loud as 1.5. Broan puts 1 sone at the level of a running refrigerator, 3 sones at face-to-face conversation and 5 sones at a busy restaurant. Most budget hoods run 4 to 6 sones on their top speed.

Can a range hood be wider than the cooktop?

Yes, and it usually should be. Smoke and steam rise in a plume that spreads as it travels, so a hood that matches the cooktop exactly catches less than one that overhangs it. Three inches of extra width on each side is the common recommendation. In a small kitchen that is often impossible, so match the width and mount the hood at the lower end of the clearance range instead.