GE JBS60DKWW Free-Standing Electric Range Review

A recent purchaser astutely and succinctly reviewed this range: “No extra bells and whistles, just a simple pleasure to use.” It turns out he’s right: We know because we put it through our own battery of tests in any case, just to make sure.

The lowdown

The GE JBS60DKWW is an electric range that features a ceramic glass smoothtop and an average sized 5.3 cubic-foot oven, complete with two moveable racks. Below, it has a full-width storage drawer, but it lacks convection and virtually any extra features—not even a self clean mode.

The range

This ceramic glass cooktop has four burners that are spread out nicely, giving you tons of cooking space. The front left burner has a “melt” setting, perfect for bakers who don’t want to burn chocolate or sizzle butter. The front right burner is dual-sized to fit any pot or pan: Simply turn the knob to one direction to heat up the small ring, and the opposite direction to activate the large one.

Speaking of the knobs, this GE's are plastic and unfortunately don't click or turn smoothly. Plus, as is the case for most budget models, they are mounted on the back of the range. That means you may have to reach over a hot burner or simmering pots to adjust cooking temperature.

But this GE's low cost occasionally shines through. On average, it took about twelve minutes to boil six cups of water, so keep in mind that your mac and cheese won’t hit the table for about 20 minutes with this range.

The oven

Be sure to keep a good hold on the oven door when opening and closing, since it’s wont to slam. To set the temperature, you’ll have to use the plus and minus buttons on the touchpad in increments of five degrees: Be warned that these buttons can be a bit difficult to press, and each beep can be annoying. Once you set the temp, the oven takes about eight and a half minutes to preheat to 350°F, which isn’t bad at all.

After our preheat tests, we roasted pork, broiled toast, and baked both cake and cookies to see how the JBS60DKWW performed in action. We use a sheet of toast as a kind of heat map, and this oven gave us some of the most evenly broiled toast we’ve seen in recent testing, and also produced a very evenly roasted pork.

It didn’t perform as well in the baking department, though: Our cakes and cookies were moderately uneven, especially between the center and edges of the pan, but nothing was too terrible—definitely not enough to be a deal-breaker.

Should you buy it?

If you're looking for a basic range at a low price, this GE is a sound choice. At just $500, it's a good deal, and consumers rate it well despite its lack of extra features: They love how it looks, and how simple it is to use and clean. You're probably comparing it to other electric ranges out there: We'd recommend the Whirlpool WFE515S0ES Electric Range that scored well where it counts at a reasonable price—but that doesn't mean this GE is a bad pick either