Air Fryer French Toast
by Sommer Collier — on Aug 26, 2026 
I love the warm cinnamon-maple flavor, fluffy centers, and crispy edges of classic French toast. What I don’t love is standing over the stove making batch after batch for guests, or trying to do that on a busy weekday! My Air Fryer French Toast gives me all that delicious flavor and texture with way less time and effort. I still dust them with powdered sugar and dunk them into warm maple syrup for the full French toast experience!
My thick, decadent, and delicious pain perdu recipe (AKA real French toast) is a favorite familiar yet elevated breakfast dish to make on weekends. Especially when I want to impress guests without being too fancy! But I don’t always have the time, or the will, to prepare something so elegant. That’s why l love my simple American-style recipe to make French toast in the air fryer! It’s so easy to make and is a huge hit with kids and adults. You can make whole pieces of French toast in the air fryer, or turn them into convenient French toast sticks that are ready to dunk in maple syrup in under 15 minutes!
Table of Contents
Sommer’s Recipe Highlights
Quick and Easy Breakfast – I’m not exactly talking “grab and go” but this recipe is pretty close! I simply whisk together a base with milk, eggs and spices, then slice some bread and soak the pieces in the custard, and pop them in the air fryer. A mere 10 minutes later and they’re ready to serve! Ok… And since there’s maple syrup in the recipe, no dunking is required, so then you can grab and go.
Fluffy and Delicious – Although this recipe is super fast and simple, it’s just as scrumptious as classic French toast made on the stovetop or my overnight French toast casserole recipe! That’s because I use pretty much all the same ingredients to make a base, so the flavor is on point. And using the air fryer to cook the bread guarantees the outside of the sticks will be crispy with a soft, tender inside.
Simple Tweaks – There’s nothing complicated about making French toast stick in an air fryer. And my recipe is easy to customize! Use it to make whole slices or sticks, with whatever you bread you like. Even gluten free bread! Try lightening things up a tad with half & half vs. heavy cream. It’s also easy to change up the number of servings by doubling the ingredients to make 4 servings… Or however many pieces you need.
Key Ingredients and Tips
- White bread – I like to use thicker pieces of Pepperidge Farm or Texas Toast to make French toast… They soak up the egg and milk mixture without getting as soggy, and the larger pieces are great for dipping.
- Eggs – I set my eggs on the counter about 15-20 minutes before I plan to make this recipe. This brings them to room temperature and helps the bread to cook more evenly.
- Cream – As I mentioned above, I personally love to make my French toast with rich heavy cream. However, half and half is a great alternative that offers much of the same decadent flavor, but with, well, closer to half the amount of calories and fat.
- Syrup – That’s right, I include syrup directly into the liquid custard. This one little addition infuses a beautiful maple flavor in literally every bite.
- Vanilla extract – I highly recommend you use a high-quality extract. Cheaper options use artificial vanilla for flavor, and include additives like alcohol and caramel coloring.
- Cinnamon and salt – A pinch of both is perfect to make the sweetness of the French toast base really shine!
- Cooking spray – Don’t ever use Pam or other nonstick sprays that contain soy lecithin in an air fryer. It bakes into the nonstick coating on the basket and is nearly impossible to clean out. Instead, use a canola oil, avocado, or vegetable oil spray.
How to Make
Find the full ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, storage tips, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Prep – I start by preheating the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. While it preheats, I use a sharp knife to slice the thick pieces of bread into 1-inch sticks. But obviously leave them whole if you are making whole pieces of toast.
Make the Base – Next, I get out a mixing bowl that’s large enough to dip the pieces of toast. Into the bowl go all of the base ingredients… Eggs, cream, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and spices. Use a whisk to combine everything into a smooth liquid.
Dunk and Place in Air Fryer Basket – Once the air fryer is ready to go, I lightly spray the basket with nonstick spray. Then I dip pieces of bread one by one into the custard, and immediately place them in the fryer basket. Give each piece enough space to allow the hot air to circulate all the way around. This makes the French toast sticks perfectly crispy and golden.
If I’m using whole slices of bread I’ll cook only 1-2 at a time, so as not to overcrowd the basket. But don’t worry, they fry up super fast!
Air Fry Until Golden – Now I close the basket and set a timer for 5 minutes. Then I carefully use my fingers or tongs to flip the bread, close the basket, and cook for another 3-4 minutes. This depends on how soft or crisp you prefer your French toast… I like to cook them on the higher end of 4 minutes, so they are soft on the inside, but crispy and hearty enough to dunk in lots of maple syrup without getting soggy.
Once they are golden and just the right level of crispiness, I quickly remove the pieces and place them on a holding plate. Then repeat as many times as needed.
Serving Suggestions
I like to dust my air fryer French toast sticks with powdered sugar when they are warm but not hot from the air fryer. If they’re too warm the powdered sugar will absorb into the bread.
Serve air fried toast sticks or whole pieces with the same French toast-worthy sweet goodies you know and love! You can’t go wrong with warm maple syrup (I’m talking the real maple syrup, not that questionable pancake syrup stuff) or honey. For a dip that’s extra fruity and decadent you have got to try my homemade blueberry sauce recipe.
Storage Notes
French toast will keep well for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. I let the pieces cool completely, then wrap individual slices in plastic wrap and store them together in a sealed plastic zipper bag.
You can also freeze the toast for up to 2 months! Wrap the pieces individually in plastic wrap, or place pieces of parchment paper between the slices, and transfer to a sealed plastic zipper bag. They’ll thaw on the countertop in about 15 minutes or reheat quickly in the air fryer for 4-5 minutes at 350 degrees. I just avoid microwaving leftover French toast so it doesn’t get soggy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can! This is a good way to cut down on mess since you can remove the paper and throw it away when you’re done air frying the French toast sticks. Add a square of parchment paper to the bottom of the basket only after the fryer has preheated. Otherwise, without any weight on it, the paper will blow around in there and could catch on fire!
Soggy food in an air fryer is typically due to the fryer not being preheated long enough, not being hot enough, or the food not cooking for long enough. Hopefully not all three! You can try air frying the pieces for a minute or two longer to see if that’ll help crisp them up a bit more.
It’s likely you didn’t soak the bread enough and/or over “baked” them. Serve those cooked French toast in extra syrup and they’ll be fine!
Help Me Spread the Word about this Fabulous Free Recipe! Sharing this recipe link on Pinterest and Facebook is super impactful, and I greatly appreciate it! Find the share buttons below the recipe form.
More Breakfast Recipes
Air Fryer French Toast
Video
Ingredients
- 4 slices white bread thick-cut
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup heavy cream or half & half
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat an air fryer to 350°F.
- Set out a medium mixing bowl. Combine the eggs, heavy cream, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt in the bowl. Whisk well.
- Cut the sandwich bread from top to bottom into 3 or 4 sticks per slice. (You can also leave the bread as-is for classic French toast.)
- Open the air fryer and spray the basket with a nonstick cooking spray. Dunk 6-8 bread sticks in the egg mixture. Flip them over, then lay in a single layer in the air fryer basket. (Or dunk two whole slices.)
- Close the air fryer and set the timer on 5 minutes. When the timer goes off carefully flip the French toast sticks over, and air fry another 3 to 4 minutes until golden. Repeat with the remaining bread. Serve warm.
