Air Fryer Hamburgers are a quick and easy way to get a juicy, flavorful dinner on the table fast. They cook up tender and delicious with minimal prep, making them perfect for hamburgers, cheeseburgers, or sliders any night of the week.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Juicy, beefy burgers with a well-seasoned center and nicely browned edges.
- Why Make It: The air fryer cooks burgers fast without heating the whole kitchen. Even frozen patties turn out tasty with just a little extra cook time!
- Skill Level: Beginner-friendly and easy to make with simple ingredients.
- Prep Note: Form patties with a slight indent in the center so they cook more evenly.
- Serving Suggestion: Pile onto toasted buns with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickles with your favorite burger sauce.
Simple All Beef Patty Ingredients
- Beef: Just like our favorite hamburger recipe, we like to use an 80/20 blend for the right amount of fat to keep the patties juicy without too much grease runoff. For a lighter option, try ground turkey for turkey burgers.
- Seasoning: Add in salt & pepper with a dash of onion and garlic powder. Fresh onion and garlic don’t have enough time to cook, so we opt for powders in this recipe. Or try our signature hamburger seasoning!
- BBQ sauce (optional): Helps with caramelization and tastes great. I love this homemade barbecue sauce, but any store brand works, too!
Toppings
Make a DIY burger bar by arranging lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and pickles on a serving platter so everyone can help themselves!
- Zesty: Jalapenos, green chilies, sauerkraut, Chipotle aioli, or a homemade garlic aioli
- Savory: Roasted red bell peppers, fried egg (so good!), bacon, sautéed or air-fried mushrooms
How To Air Fry Hamburgers
- Combine all of the ingredients and form into 4 equally sized patties.
- Place prepared hamburger patties in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Cook until they reach 160°F (full recipe below).
- Top with cheese if desired, cook 1 more minute before serving.
Best Air Fryer Recipes
Did you enjoy these Air Fryer Hamburgers? Leave a comment and a rating below.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef 80/20
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup barbecue sauce optional
For Serving
- 4 hamburger buns
- toppings as desired
Instructions
- Combine beef, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder in a medium bowl.
- Form into 4 patties, about ½" thick. Make a small indent in the middle of the patty with your thumb. Brush patties with barbecue sauce if using.
- Preheat the air fryer to 370°F. Add patties in a single layer to the basket.
- Cook 6 minutes. Flip burgers over and cook an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until beef reaches 160°F.
- Add cheese if using and cook 1 minute more. Serve on buns.
Notes
- Ensure you use meat with a little bit of fat (80/20) so the burgers stay moist.
- Air Fryers can vary, so check your burgers early to ensure they don’t overcook. If your burgers are thicker, add more time.
- These were tested in a Cosori 5.8QT Air Fryer.
- Frozen burger patties can be cooked in the air fryer. They’ll need to add about 5 to 7 minutes, depending on thickness. Use a meat thermometer to ensure doneness.
- If you prefer them more well done, cook longer. If you prefer them with a bit of pink, cook for a little bit less time.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
They went over and beyond to make my day great I love this company so much!
I’m not sure what’s up with this recipe. I made these burgers according to the directions twice (including the 1/4 bbq sauce) and they were good – everyone enjoyed.
Then I tried to make them from memory and instead of 1 tsp of seasoning each I used 1 tbsp.
That wasn’t a huge deal but by accident I used 1 cup of bbq sauce instead of 1/4 (or maybe I used 1/2 cup)? The burgers came out extremely crumbly, but I blamed that on too much liquid (and my fault).
But then I made them again following the recipe exactly and the burgers literally fell apart while I was trying to flip them. I mean completely. I had to abandon them and used the crumbled meat for a pasta sauce instead.
Still trying to recreate the first two times I made these again last night, once again following the recipe exactly (including the 80/20 beef). They didn’t fall apart, and were not quite as crumbly as the one time, but they were still pretty loose and began to come apart a little too much for my liking while eating.
I’d like to give this a higher review, but I feel some guidelines are missing from the instructions on how to prepare or cook these that wouldn’t result in such wildly different burgers even while the instructions are followed the same.
Hi BH, we have made these hamburgers many times and not had this issue. Did you use exactly the same beef every time? Are you adding the BBQ sauce into the mixture? The BBQ sauce is supposed to be a glaze on top. And be sure to not overcook them. I hope this helps!
While I haven’t made burgers this way in the past, I am sooo looking forward to following you recommendations tomorrow. Thank you for posting the recipe and suggestions.
My family loves it!! Very simple and easy, my 3rd time making burgers in the air fryer
I bought pre-made patties at Publix and was looking for air fryer instructions. This worked perfectly!! Thank you!!
Perfect option when it’s 2° outside. Grilling isn’t happening. Thank you!
We were craving hamburgers and I definitely want going to start the barbecue in the middle on winter! So we decided to give this recipe a try. Followed your advice for cool g from frozen and oh wow. These were so juicy and delicious! SWP Employee
Any modifications for sliders?
I would make the recipe the same, but the cook time will need to be reduced. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out Tanvi!
I live in a retirement community. I do not have a lot of ingredients because they cook our meals. Send simple recipes please.
Hi Lynne! To receive our newsletters to see more quick and easy recipes, you can sign up here or scroll down to the bottom of the post and you will see a signup box.
going to try
No temp for air fryer
The temperature is listed in step 3. Preheat the air fryer to 370°F. Add patties in a single layer to the basket.
Easy recipe, tasty, and quick. Thank you.
It’s 20 degrees and dark for hours but I want a burger off the grill. Enter the Air Fryer!
What happens to the grease
In my air fryer the grease can travel through the holes in the basket to the bottom of the air fryer. You can put a slice of bread in the bottom of the air fryer to soak up the grease to make clean up a cinch Mike!
the suggestion to use bread to soak up grease is such a great idea, thanks!
It would be nice to have the temp
The temperature is listed in step 3.
3. Preheat the air fryer to 370°F. Add patties in a single layer to the basket.
The beef burgers were fantastic!! We like our beef well done and were very pleased with how juicy the burgers turned out. Thank you for the recipr.
I swear by every recipe you make! You’re always my go to and will never go anywhere else. So much love.
Thank you so much for the kind words Xylie, you made my day!
I made these this afternoon on the air fryer. Followed the directions exactly and the burgers turned out delicious. Very juicy not dry, and the flavor was fantastic.
I use air fryer last night made the acorn squash. It was the best and the skin was so good. I just got the air recently so I am using every day with your recipes. I can’t have much dairy I try to work around it
Instead of cooking 4 hamburgers, I only want to cook 2. Do I have to modify the cook time?
Hi Debi, with two patties you will still want to follow the recipe’s cook times and temperature to ensure they are fully cooked! Enjoy :)