Chefman 0.9 Cu. Ft. 900W Countertop Microwave Review: A Simple, Compact Microwave With the Usual Budget Trade-Offs

900W · 10 power levels · 6 presets · +30 seconds · child lock — what owners like, what they dislike, and what to check before you buy

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• 0.9 cu. ft.
• 900W cooking power
• 10 power levels
• 6 presets + express cook
• Black

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What this listing is

This listing (ASIN B0DY9CXFGG) is the Chefman 0.9 cu. ft. countertop microwave in black, rated at 900 watts with 10 power levels and six cooking presets. Chefman sells this microwave family in several versions, and it’s easy to mix them up:

Figures come from Amazon and Chefman’s product pages. The microwave is also sold in other colors, such as stainless steel.

One detail that trips people up: Chefman’s own page for the 0.9 cu. ft. model shows “1350W/120V,” which is the electrical power the microwave draws from the wall. The 900 watts in the title is the cooking power. Both can be true at once.

What you get

The controls are a digital keypad with six one-touch presets for popcorn, pizza, beverages, veggies, potatoes and leftovers. Chefman’s manual for this style of microwave also describes an express-cook feature, where pressing the numbers 1 through 6 starts cooking for that many minutes at full power, and a memory function that stores up to three favorite cooking programs. There’s also a +30 seconds button, an Eco Mode that saves power, a mute button for the beeps, and a child safety lock, with a lock built into the door handle plus a lock mode for the control panel. The glass turntable is 11.2 inches across, and Chefman says it’s dishwasher safe.

What owners say

We found no test of this microwave from a major independent testing lab, so this section relies on owner feedback. The Sam’s Club listing for Chefman’s 0.9 cu. ft., 900W microwave shows an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars, and many of those reviews are syndicated from Chefman’s own site and from Walmart. At least one was collected as part of a promotion, so treat the average as a rough guide, not a verified score. We couldn’t verify Amazon’s current rating for this listing.

What owners like:

• Simplicity. One owner called it the simplest microwave they’ve used, easy to set the time, and liked that the child lock is built into the door instead of requiring a code.
• Size and footprint. Many reviewers say it fits on a counter or shelf with room to spare, and one said it’s much smaller and lighter than the large microwave it replaced. Another found it bigger than expected, so measure your space.
• Price. Several describe it as a good price for the size, including people replacing a built-in or over-the-range unit.
• The button door and mute. A reviewer liked that you press a button to open the door instead of pulling a handle, which avoids smudges, and another liked that the sound button stops the beeping with every key press.

What owners dislike:

• Noise. The most common complaint. Reviewers say the motor runs on the loud side, and one said the finishing beep is loud enough to hear outside the house. The mute button is there to deal with the beeps, but the motor noise remains.
• Heating power. One owner said it works fine but the heating power isn’t as high as expected, so food needs extra time. That’s typical for a 900W microwave compared with 1000 to 1200W models, so you’ll need to adjust cooking times.
• Reliability reports. A reviewer gave it three stars for trouble with the buttons and an unreliable end-of-cooking alarm, and another wrote that the turntable ring arrived broken in two. These are isolated reports, but they’re the kind of issue to test for in the first weeks.

What to check before you buy

• Measure the space. Chefman’s site lists the 0.9 cu. ft. model’s dimensions as 12.93 × 17.52 × 9.53 inches and 23.8 lb, the same figures it shows for the smaller 0.7 cu. ft. model, so those numbers may not be right for this one. A reviewer reported it weighs about 26 lb and one said it was bigger than expected. Check the dimensions on the Amazon page against your counter and leave clearance for ventilation.
• Safety certification. Chefman says its 0.7 cu. ft. model is cETL approved with a one-year assurance. We couldn’t confirm the same for this one, so look for a UL or ETL mark on the label or listing.
• Make sure you’re getting the right size and color. The 700W and 1.1 cu. ft. versions look similar.
• Test it early. Check the buttons, the beep and the turntable during the return window, since those were the problems owners mentioned.

How it compares

There are plenty of rival 900W, 0.9 cu. ft. microwaves, such as the Toshiba ML-EM09PA and the BLACK+DECKER EM925AB9, and we haven’t tested or compared them against this one. The Chefman’s selling points are its simple controls, built-in child lock, mute button and low price, while its drawbacks are the reported motor noise and slower heating. If quiet operation matters to you, read the noise comments on any model you’re considering.

Price

We couldn’t verify Amazon’s current price for this listing. For context, Chefman lists its larger 1.1 cu. ft. model at $119.99 on its own site. Amazon’s page had this model ranked first among countertop microwaves when we saw it, though rankings change constantly. Check the live price and any promotion on the page.

Pros and cons

Verdict

For a basic, small, inexpensive microwave, the Chefman 0.9 cu. ft. does what most people need: it reheats food, has presets and a +30 seconds button, and includes safety and mute features that owners like. The honest trade-offs are noise, slower heating than a more powerful microwave, and a handful of early reliability complaints. We found no independent testing, so the evidence is owner feedback, some of it promotional. If you want an inexpensive microwave for a dorm, small kitchen or office and can live with some noise, it’s a sensible buy. If you cook larger dishes or want the fastest heating, look at a 1000W or stronger model, and measure your counter before ordering.

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