Air Fryer Chicken Wings (Crispy!)

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The BEST Air Fryer Chicken Wings recipe for the crispiest wings made without any oil! Serve them naked or slather them in your favorite sauce.

If you’re looking for more air fryer chicken wing recipes, make sure you try these Buffalo Wings, Old Bay Wings, and these Cosmic Jerry Wings!

air fryer wings on a white plate

Healthy eating isn’t the easiest. I mean, I love me some bacon! Especially bacon in the air fryer…YUM! Or a large bowl of pesto pasta.

Eating healthier doesn’t always look the same for everyone. For me, healthy is about feeling good about what I’m eating and making healthier choices. Like using less oil to make wings.

What makes these the Best Air Fryer Chicken Wings

Crispy chicken wings are delicious to eat, but some people avoid them because of the oil. Air frying means that you don’t need to use nearly as much oil as you would if you were deep frying something. And in my opinion, it produces the best results.

Air Fryer Chicken Wings are so easy to make and something you’ll be making on the reg, especially for football Sundays.

My favorite part about these chicken wings is that you can save on extra calories…and then use them to enjoy your favorite beer, with less guilt!

These wings are super juicy on the inside and insanely crispy on the outside. You’ll never want deep fried wings again.

air fryer chicken wings on a plate with a gray napkin

When you make chicken in the air fryer, you’ll notice the inside stays so juicy while the outside gets nice and crisp. This goes for chicken breast and chicken thighs too!

I don’t think I’ll be going back to regular deep fried wings anytime soon.

It’s amazing to me how making one small change can make a recipe a whole lot healthier. Whether you’re trying to eat healthier or just want to make one small change at a time, this recipe will do the trick.

These crispy wings are especially great if you follow the keto diet or Whole30, Chicken Wings can be super low carb if you add the right sauce. 

Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings ingredients

  • Chicken Wings: Two and a half pounds is a good amount for this air fryer recipe.
  • Seasonings: I use a simple combination go salt, pepper, and garlic powder, but feel free to season with additional herbs and spices if you like.

Can I use Frozen Chicken Wings?

When it comes to cooking in an air fryer, you don’t want to use anything frozen, especially meat. Frozen chicken can actually be undercooked in this appliance. You will want to make sure you take the time to thaw the chicken wings before you make them. 

You can thaw chicken in the fridge overnight. Simply place the chicken wings in the fridge the night before you plan on making them. This is the easiest way because you don’t have to do anything but remember to leave it in the fridge!

crispy air fryer chicken wings in a glass bowl

How to make Chicken Wings in the Air Fryer

1. Season the wings. Place the chicken wings on a cookie sheet and season to taste with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Chicken wing sections seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder on parchment paper.

2. Place the wings in the air fryer basket. You will want to place the chicken wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer to ensure they get really crispy. You may have to do several batches if you have a smaller air fryer. 

air fryer buffalo wings in the air fryer basket

3. Cook the wings. Heat the air fryer to around 400 F.

How long to cook chicken wings in air fryer

Air fry the chicken wings for about 15 minutes. Then turn the wings and continue cooking 10-15 minutes or until wings are golden brown.

Cooking time may depend on how big your wings are and the type of air fryer you’re using, but you will have a full batch of wings out to your guests in less than 45 minutes!

4. Toss with your favorite wing sauce. The last step is to remove from air fryer and serve with a sauce of your choice. I love tossing mine in BBQ Sauce.

Serve with fresh celery sticks, carrots, blue cheese, or ranch dressing.

Football season will be here before we know it, so keep this recipe in your back pocket for game day or your Super Bowl party!

If you love these wings, you’ll want to try these Lemon Pepper Wings next!

Tips for Air Frying Chicken Wings

  • Pat the wings dry with a paper towel to remove any excess liquid before seasoning.
  • Toss the wings in about 1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder before air frying to make the skin even crispier.

What dipping sauces go best with these Crispy Air Fryer Wings?

I love a good dipping sauce. Spicy Mayo and Cilantro Lime Sauce are two of my favorites, but I also can’t get enough of this Old Bay Sauce.

Air Fryer Chicken Wings Crispy FAQs

How Does an Air Fryer Work?

You may be wondering how this little kitchen gadget can make such delicious “fried” food. Well, I promise it’s way easier than it seems. Check out these air fryer tips if you’re just starting out!
An air fryer can be compared to a convection oven. Essentially, the hot air circulates around the food. The food is cooked to a delicious crisp, but it also cooks it evenly.ย 
The best part of using an air fryer is that you don’t have to use a lot of oil. It also heats up and cooks faster than an oven, so it saves you a lot of calories and time!

Are Chicken Wings Healthy?

I like sharing healthy recipes. However, with so many diets and healthy eating tips on the market, it can be hard to know what to make. Chicken wings, if prepared right, can be considered healthy.
Chicken in itself is a great way to get your protein in. Protein is an important part of any healthy diet. Of course, you don’t want to eat TOO much protein, but we’re all about balance here, right?
These Crispy Chicken Wings are not only delicious, but also low carb and fit into many diets like keto and Whole30.
Using the seasoning recommended in this recipe, you can easily stay on your low carb or Keto diet. If you aren’t on a special diet, you can add whatever wing sauce you want to this recipe.

Is it better to fry chicken wings or air fryer?

I personally prefer to make them in the air fryer as opposed to frying them the traditional way. It requires a lot less oil to air fry, but it still results in nice crispy wings with tender interiors.

Why are my wings not crispy in air fryer?

One main reason this happens is because of overcrowding. The wings need a little bit of space around them for the air to properly circulate.
If your wings overlap in the air fryer basket, you may need to cook them in separate batches.

Other recipes you might love

If you’re serving a group, you might want to check out these other easy dinner ideas!

Want to try this recipe?

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air fryer chicken wings long pin

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4.90 from 69 votes

Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings

The BEST Air Fryer Chicken Wings recipe for the crispiest wings made without any oil! Serve them naked or slather them in your favorite sauce.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8
Calories: 227
Author: Jordan

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat the air fryer to 400ยฐ F. Place wings on baking sheets and season to taste with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
    Chicken wing sections seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder on parchment paper.
  • Place seasoned wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer. Cook the wings for 10-15 minutes, then turn them and continue cooking 10-15 minutes or until wings are golden brown.
    air fryer buffalo wings in the air fryer basket
  • Remove from air fryer and serve with sauce of your choice.
    crispy air fryer chicken wings in a glass bowl
If you tried this recipe, please leave a review letting me know how it was!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 75mg | Potassium: 159mg | Vitamin A: 150IU | Vitamin C: 0.7mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.
Tried this recipe?I’d love to see your dish, mention @jzeats or tag #jzeats!
4.90 from 69 votes (38 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




76 Comments

  1. Brian Ramstead says:

    5 stars
    I followed your instructions, for the most part, and the wings came out amazing. The big changes I did was to use frozen wings instead of fresh and also cooked for 25 minutes at 380ยฐ, turning them over at the halfway point. If I can plan far enough ahead, Iโ€™ll try fresh wings as you suggest and see how they do. I have to say, using frozen wings is very convenient.

    1. Thanks for the feedback, Brian! Love to hear how you made this recipe work for you.

  2. 5 stars
    This recipe is so easy and delicious! I just put them in a bowl and seasoned. Added a drizzle of olive oil. The seasoning combination is on point. I did set them at 400 to 10 minutes and watched at that point. My first batch had bigger wings so I did 15 minutes each side. Second batch were smaller and then I did 10 minutes each side. So good and crispy. Thank you for sharing. ***** Five stars !!

  3. I donโ€™t know what I did wrong but I put my air fryer at 400 degrees, prepped the wings as instructed, put them in for the first of two 15-min sessions and they all burned. Bummed out.

    1. Yikes! What kind of air fryer do you have, and did you change anything in the recipe (additional seasonings, etc) or did you make it exactly as it’s written?

    2. 3 stars
      Don’t preheat your air fryer and if you are using thawed wings, 30 minutes is way too long at 400 F. Put them in at 400 F and flip every 5 minutes so you can keep an eye on them and use a meat thermometer so you know when they are at 165 F internal temp. By the way, there is nothing wrong with using frozen wings. I use them all the time. i throw them in and flip every 5 minutes. It usually takes about 25 minutes to cook from frozen. I always use a meat thermometer though to make sure they are completely cooked.

      1. Thanks for your feedback, Janice! Cook time can vary depending on the size of wings you are using, type of air fryer you have, and how crispy you like your wings.

  4. 5 stars
    Not into wings at all but these come out perfect every single time! Great recipe!

  5. 5 stars
    Great recipe, super easy and my boyfriendโ€™s favorite ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. Patricia McIlwain says:

    5 stars
    My wings never turn this brown and crispy, and the stick.

    1. What kind of air fryer are you using? Do you preheat it first?

  7. 5 stars
    These are hands down the best wings I have ever made in the air fryer. Delicious!

  8. Whenever I make wings, either baked, fried, or now air fryer, they come out nice and crispy and then the skin gets soggy as soon as I put on the sauce. What am
    I doing wrong? I Have tried double trying after the sauce coating, less sauce, etc. nothing seems to work. I feel like I am doing something wrong.

    1. I like to toss them in sauce or brush the sauce over them towards the end of their cook time (2-5 minutes) I also find that if you place them in the oven at about 250 F while you are cooking the other batches, it helps them to stay crispy. Check out the instructions on this post: https://jz-eats.com/air-fryer-buffalo-wings/

    2. You need to let the wings rest before adding sauce.

  9. 5 stars
    This recipe was my first recipe as I tried my air fryer for the first time. They came out so crispy and juicy inside. I used a cilantro, lime seasoning salt. My husband loved them too. Easy and quick. Its a keeper!! Thank you. Pinned!

    1. Thank you! That sounds delicious!

  10. 5 stars
    These came out delicious! Love no fuss crispy wings. Will make these again!

  11. 5 stars
    I love this recipe! It’s so quick and easy to make – perfect for lunch!

  12. Matt Ivan says:

    5 stars
    These are so simple but awesome in the air fryer!

  13. 5 stars
    Love how crispy and delicious these wings are! Just as good as a restaurant and obviously way healthier!

    1. 5 stars
      Iโ€™m using my momโ€™s old GoWise air fryer. (She never read the instructions so didnโ€™t use it much) and this recipe for wings was perfect! I ended up cooking the batches about 25 mins, 15 mins first before flipping them for the last 10. They came out perfectly crispy and cooked the whole way through. Iโ€™ll need to put a bit more salt for my own taste. Thank you!

      1. Thank you for sharing that!

  14. Alexandra says:

    5 stars
    SO delicious – they worked so well in the air fryer! Really easy recipe too – thanks!

  15. 5 stars
    I love the recipe but how many wings are a serving? Maybe I overlooked it but itโ€™s really important for my diet.

    1. Hi! There are 8 servings in this recipe, and the recipe calls for 2.5 pounds. There are roughly 4-5 wings in a pound so a serving would be about 2 wings. If you are following a strict diet, I recommend double checking with the nutrition calculator you use on a daily basis because these nutrition facts are approximate. Hope this helps!