Best direct-to-consumer cookware for 2022: Made In, Caraway, Field Company and more – CNET [CNET]

If you’ve ever painted a wall with a brush that’s too small or assembled furniture with the wrong screwdriver, you know how important it is to have the right tools, and nowhere is that more apparent than in the kitchen. If you’re looking to upgrade your pots and pans or buy new cookware altogether, you may naturally gravitate towards consumer big name brands such as All-Clad, Anolon, Le Creuset and Cuisinart. They’re all great, but you could be saving some money and possibly getting a better fit for your specific cookware needs by checking out an emerging segment of the retail cookware scene: high-quality, direct-to-consumer cookware.

Direct-to-consumer products, including cookware, have seen a boom in the past several years. Whereas big retail brands previously had a stranglehold on the kitchen category, these spunky new DTC cookware companies offer new styles, surface materials and tailored cookware bundles, giving you more options than ever. 

There’s a wide range of online-only cookware that can fit into any kitchen design, and most brands offer all of the cooking essentials — from a chef’s knife and other kitchen tools to a stock pot, saucepan and nonstick cookware such as a nonstick skillet or nonstick pan. You’ll also find a sprawling selection of stainless steel pots, copper cookware and handy kitchen utensils, perfect for a home cook like you. Best of all, many are able to keep cookware quality high but prices low, which are two reasons as good as any to give direct-to-consumer cookware a serious look.

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How is direct-to-consumer cookware different?

It’s natural to think that less expensive cookware is inherently lower quality, but that’s not necessarily the case with direct-to-consumer cookware.

Much of the cost of traditional cookware is added throughout the distribution process. Products pass through the hands of resellers, distributors and retailers, all of whom add a markup to the base price in order to make money. By the time any cookware lands in a store, the price has increased dramatically, and you end up paying a lot more than what the manufacturing costs were. That’s where direct-to-consumer companies come in.

These cookware brands skip the typical distribution chain, bypassing the middlemen and selling straight to customers instead. This typically means you have to buy their products online, but the upside is you’re getting the same high-quality goods for your cooking without the added costs, a difference which you can use to actually buy food to cook. What’s not to love about that?

So are you ready to shop? Take a look through your pantry for inspiration and get ready for some amazing kitchenware. Here are the eight best direct-to-consumer cookware brands you might want to welcome into your kitchen, which we update periodically.

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• The best direct-to-consumer kitchen knives in 2022: Made In, Material, Brigade, Aura and more
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• Best Dutch oven in 2022
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• Essential canning supplies to preserve all your produce

This article was originally written for Chowhound by Camryn Rabideau and updated by David Watsky.