- Gas is the oldest, most preferred type of stove top based on its instant and easily controllable flame heat source. Cleaning gas stove tops requires washing the burner trivets and the space below. Any type of cookware is suitable on gas burners.
- Coil burners heat more slowly and retain heat longer than gas ones. The coils have to be unplugged to clean beneath them and may accumulate grease and spills that must be carefully removed to avoid coil damage. All types of pots and pans are usable on electric stove tops.
- These smooth surface tops are easy to maintain. To make sufficient contact with the heat sources and avoid scratching the stove top, only cookware with perfectly flat and smooth surfaces is acceptable. Some glass/ceramic burners automatically shut down if pans are not flush with the surface.
- This style closely resembles glass cook tops, but the heat is generated by a magnetic field under the ceramic veneer and transferred to pots and pans for cooking. Only magnetic metal pans can be used. Cleaning smooth induction cook tops is easy.