Non-Toxic Cookware From Amazon Reviewed

This is a complete list of the best pots and pans (and a pressure cooker) that are free of PFAS, nanometals, Lead, and Cadmium.

If they contain other metals of potential concern I will list those too.

It’s best to rotate your cookware, in my opinion, since the most common types can leach metals.

The only totally pure option is the glass cookware.

This article contains affiliate links, upon purchase I earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Non-Stick Ceramic Coated Pans

“Ceramic coatings” used in frying pans, pots, and bakeware are usually made of a sol-gel ceramic, which has a Si–O–Si (siloxane) polymeric structure (source, plus product descriptions).

Based on the testing that we have so far, it also seems that ceramic non-stick coatings contain various metals.

Green Pan

Green Pan, a brand of frying pan with a ceramic coating, did not test positive for lead on the food surface but it tested positive for Barium: 1,220 +/- 200 ppm, Chromium: 126 +/- 59 ppm, Antimony: 66 +/- 40 ppm, Iron: 2,361 +/- 177 ppm, and Titanium: 51,900 +/- 900 ppm. (Source)

They say they don’t use nanometals and it is free of PFAS.

I own this Green Pan and I consider this a fairly good option and a good item to have in rotation with stainless steel (which also leaches metals) and other choices (I can’t easily use the glass options below since I cook on gas, and my body doesn’t do well with extra iron from cast iron, so I don’t have that many choices).

Though once it got scratched (see pic) I tossed it. Once the coating is compromised I don’t feel good about using it. So be sure to be careful not to use metal utensils in the pan.

The large Green Pan (12 inches) is around $25-$30.

Green Pans Statements + A Lawsuit

Green Pan seems to have shown legitimate test results in 2021 (they no longer share their test results).

They now say they pass the Prop 65 leach tests (for Lead and Cadmium), more on those levels later in the post. They pass FDA leach tests (which test for Lead and Cadmium as well).

Since they tested negative by XRF for any Lead or Cadmium, there could not be any leaching of those metals.

According to I Read Labels For You, in these previous test results of their leach tests they declared the gray coating had 0.27 ppm Aluminum, was non-detect for Lead, and was non-detect for Cadmium.

A lawsuit initiated in 2019 alleged the pans contained potentially harmful silane, aluminum oxide, tetraethoxysilane, methyltrimethoxysilane, and potassium titanate. 

According to an attorney, the lawsuit was dismissed.

He explains “It is most likely that Green Pan settled with Ms. Saldivar by paying a certain sum of money. There is a chance the parties agreed that the plaintiff would dismiss the case with prejudice for other reasons, such as that the case lacked merit, but the odds of this are smaller“.

GreenLife

Tamara tested Green + Life (now called GreenLife) pan in 2019 – it was free of lead and it tested positive for Zinc (Zn): 74 +/- 16 ppm, Copper (Cu): 159 +/- 30 ppm, Iron (Fe): 3,198 +/- 197 ppm, Titanium (Ti): 63,800 +/- 1,600 ppm, Platinum (Pt): 230 +/- 38 ppm, and Manganese (Mn): 3,111 +/- 262 ppm.

It is free of nanometals according to the company and free of PFAS.

This is a brand I recently bought to replace my very damaged GreenPan pictured above. (Both are owned by the same parent company and have the same coating).

I bought the faux wooden handle one pictured below, and I would recommend it, especially if your other options leach metals.

I bought the two pans, 11 and 9.5 inches, for under $40.

GreenLife statements

GreenLife claims they are free from Lead and Cadmium which is confirmed by Tamara’s testing.

I did not find any leach test results from the company, though after seeing Tamara’s results I don’t think it would be necessary. (If they test free of Lead and Cadmium in XRF testing they won’t be positive for those metals in any leach test.)

The substrate is aluminum, which can leach potentially when the coating scratches.

Not all brands with a ceramic non-stick coating should be assumed to be free of Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances aka PFAS (which is why most people buy them). One brand, Great Jones for example, is not free of all PFAS (at least in 2024). And the air fryer brand Yedi also uses a ceramic coating and they could not say it is free of all PFAS.

Enameled Cast Iron & Ceramic Stoneware

Le Creuset

Le Creuset makes two types of cookware: cast iron and ceramic stoneware.  

According to Natural Baby Mama, the stoneware she had from them tested high for Lead and Cadmium on both the inside and the outside with a Niton XL3T XRF. Tamara Rubin also found high lead in a blue stoneware pot (source).

While the cast iron by Le Creuset might be preferable (to the stoneware), not all the cast iron items are the same in terms of metals in the glazes. 

Le Creuset has said in the past to more than one person that their Dune color and Palm colors are Lead and Cadmium-free (however, there is no current source of which colors are Lead and Cadmium-free, and the company would not respond to this question with any direct answer).

Shannon tested them with an XRF (both Dune and Palm colors, in 2017) and found trace levels of Cadmium on the outside only (Natural Baby Mama), which is good.

I would use these, and I am considering buying one of those in those colors or in white or off-white.

Newer greys and beige colors have tested fairly well according to Tamara Rubin, however, she does not link to any specific models.

Shannon found some of the same cast iron options (made in France) tested positive for metals in some colors on the exterior (like red) and was good for other colors.

Her blue Le Creuset tested fairly good – Lead and Cadmium free on the inside and Lead-free on the outside with only low levels of Cadmium on the outside. (Source: Natural Baby Mama).

A yellow cast iron pot from 2013 tested high in Cadmium and relatively high in Antimony (with the yellow exterior being much higher in Cadmium, but the white interior also has Antimony), and another yellow cast iron pan tested similarly but with some Lead as well (including on the inside) (source).

Le Creuset Statements

Le Creuset does not mention or publically display metal leach testing results.

They did not reply to my requests for information on which colors are Lead and Cadmium free in 2024, nor with any other information about metal leaching.

Discrepancy Between XRF Testing and Leach Testing

Why is there a discrepancy between the XRF testing which can show some metals of concern and the leach testing results that the companies say have no detectable metals?

Dr. Mudgal, toxicologist, says “The discrepancy arises because XRF testing measures total metal content, whereas leach
tests measure only the metals that are released under specific conditions. Thus, a product can contain high levels of metals but still pass leach tests if those metals do not migrate out significantly during leach testing”.

Can Ceramic Cookware Leach Metals?

Based on the testing that the companies have provided, they have passed EU, FDA, and/or Prop 65 leach testing. These tests do allow for some Lead and Cadmium – you can see the levels here.

However, I am listing brands that do not contain any Lead and Cadmium at all (based on XRF testing).

It’s possible that other metals I have listed in bold could leach, though if the coating stays intact I am not too worried about it.

Dr. Mudgal explains that “there is evidence suggesting that these ceramics and ceramic coatings can leach metals into food, particularly when the coating is damaged through thermal degradation, chemical interactions (in acidic or alkaline food making conditions), or physical abrasion (mostly induced during cooking cleaning) to the surface of the cookware.”

She also explains that if the scratching reveals a substrate that contains metals of concern (like Aluminum or Lead) those could begin to leach when exposed.

Glass Cookware

Visions Glass Cookware

Shannon from Natural Baby Mama tested a brand new Visions Glass Cookware set in 2017 for Lead, Cadmium, and other metals with a Niton XL3T XRF.

The old Visions brand glass cookware may contain heavy metals, but the new Visions cookware is free of Lead, Cadmium, and any other metals, she says (source).

This is certainly the purest, completely non-toxic option on this list that we wouldn’t expect to leach any metals at all.

The downside is it can be tricky to use, it’s easier to burn food, and difficult to impossible to use on gas stoves, and even on electric stoves it’s possible for the glass to break if you are not really careful.

You can get a four-piece set for under $170.

Leaves and Trees

This glass cooking pot by Leaves and Trees tested free of Lead and other metals of concern by Tamara Rubin.

Another totally pure option.

This small pot is under $25.

Cast Iron

Tamara Rubin has tested the Lodge cast iron pan which came out Lead-free.

Cast Iron does leach iron but it doesn’t leach other metals of concern so this is a good cookware to have in rotation if you do well with some more iron in your diet.

The Lodge 10.25-inch pan is under $20.

Stainless Steel

While stainless steel used in pots and pans (generally) does not contain Lead, stainless steel items can contain Lead parts (like brass parts or printed logos made from leaded paint).

Stainless steel cookware does leach Nickel and Chromium. For this reason, I like to rotate the types of cookware that I use.

Stainless Steel Pots and Pans

It’s very likely that all stainless steel items from Cuisinart are Lead-free since Tamara Rubin has tested a lot of Cuisinart items. Plus, modern stainless steel in high-quality grades and brands generally no longer contains Lead.

I own a number of stainless steel pots.

This four-piece set by Cuisinart tested free of Lead and it goes for around or a bit over $100.

Instant Pot

I also own the Instant Pot.

The interior food contact surface is stainless steel and tested free of Lead by Tamara Rubin.

The writing and rubber handles are also free of Lead according to her testing.

There is a part of the heating element which is below the inner pot that contains Lead, though it’s protected by an enamel coating, according to XRF testing by Tamara.

Tamara says “All currently manufactured heating elements for this type of appliance appear to have at least some Lead in them.”

This part is not in contact with food or even generally touched at all.

Titanium

I started looking into titanium because it is safer than stainless steel (which leaches Nickel and Chromium), cast iron (at least for me, as I don’t do well with that type of iron), and the ceramic non-stick pans that I am using (because I keep managing to damage them, though that is my fault).

Titanium essentially doesn’t leach after the first use at all.

However, it’s one of those products where very few brands actually legitimately use a substantial layer of titanium as the cooking surface.

(Some use 316Ti which is not different enough from stainless steel, some use a nano-layer which might be PVD, some use some titanium in their ceramic layer, etc).

Taima is one brand that shows test results to show that their products are titanium.

Real titanium will never be one of the most affordable options, because it is a more expensive metal, but if you want something that doesn’t leach at all this is one of your best options.

Though the version on their website has a brass handle which is not something I would use due to the fact that brass normally contains lead.

Taima makes titanium frying pans (handle is brass) and pots on their website do not have brass.

Corinne Segura is an InterNACHI-certified Healthy Homes Inspector with certifications in Building Biology, Healthier Materials and Sustainable Buildings, and more. She has 10 years of experience helping others create healthy homes. You can book a consult here.