NESCO FD-75A Snackmaster Pro Food Dehydrator, For Snacks, Fruit, Beef Jerky, Gray

Why it's worth it

The NESCO FD-75A Snackmaster Pro is the sensible entry point. It starts at five trays and expands to 12 with add-a-tray accessories, so your batch size can grow without buying a new machine, and it ships with fruit roll sheets and jerky seasoning.

Expandability is the reason to choose this over other cheap dehydrators. You start with five trays and stack up to 12, adding trays a few at a time as your needs change. Most budget units lock you into a fixed capacity, so outgrowing them means starting over. If you're not sure yet whether you'll dry two pounds of jerky a year or twenty, this is the low-risk path.

The 600-watt Converga-Flow system handles the basics well. NESCO routes air down the outside and across each tray, which keeps drying reasonably even for a top-mounted design. It won't match the Excalibur's rear fan, but you're not stuck rotating trays every hour either. The 95°F–160°F range covers herbs at the low end and jerky at the high end.

From our review of 6 food dehydrators, by David Sinclair, Managing Editor

What we like

• +Expandability is the reason to choose this over other cheap dehydrators
• +The 600-watt Converga-Flow system handles the basics well
• +The top-mounted fan keeps drips out of the heating element
• +It's light enough to actually put away

What to know

• –The fan is top-mounted, so drying is less even than the horizontal models
• –The trays are plastic, not steel
• –There's no timer or auto shutoff