These Air Fryer Chicken Wings have crisp, salty skin with plenty of garlic and lemon pepper flavor in every bite. These are seasoned to perfection and cook so fast with no marinating required!

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
We love crispy chicken like my Chicken Schnitzel, Popcorn Chicken or General Tso’s Chicken, but the air fryer is our new best friend for chicken wings because it’s so much faster, requires less oil, and is memorably crispy!
Air Fryer Chicken Wings Recipe
Cooking Chicken wings in the air fryer is brilliant and you will make chicken way more often if you try them in the air fryer. The forced circulating hot air makes the skin super crisp, which is difficult to achieve in a conventional oven, and the center is perfectly cooked, tender, and juicy.
The cook time for air-fried chicken wings is just 16 minutes. It’s three times faster than our Baked Buffalo Wings or Lemon Pepper Wings when cooked in a traditional oven! P.S. Yes, you can totally make those variations in the air fryer and toss them with lemon pepper sauce or buffalo sauce!
Also, there’s no need to preheat an air fryer, which saves you prep time and makes this the fastest crispy chicken wings recipe. All you need is your favorite wing sauce for dipping (more on that below).

Ingredients for Air Fryer Chicken Wings
The rub for these chicken wings is simple with our go-to spices for baked, sautéed or air-fried chicken. All you need is 3 ingredients: oil, garlic salt and lemon pepper.

How to Cut Chicken Wings
If your chicken wings are sold whole (and they are less expensive this way), you will need to cut them for even crisping. To cut a chicken wing, locate the joint between the wing tip, the middle section (drumette), and the end section (the flat). Use a sharp knife to cut into the joint between these sections to create three pieces. Trim off any excess skin.
You’ll use the drumettes and flats. You can save the wing tips for stock or discard them.
How to Make Crispy Air Fryer Wings
- Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and set into a large bowl.
- Drizzle with oil, sprinkle on the seasonings, and then toss to combine.

- Air Fry – Arrange the wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer, and you can bake right away – you can let them marinate if you prefer, but there’s no need to pre-marinate chicken wings. Air Fry at 400˚F for 8 minutes, then shake the basket to flip and air fry for another 8 minutes. They should be crispy and golden brown when ready.

Can I Double the Recipe?
For all-around crispy chicken wings, it’s best to keep the wings in a single layer, so if you are using a smaller basket-style air fryer, you may need to air fry in 2 batches.
If you have a larger air toaster oven-style air fryer, you can double everything. When doubling, air fry for 18-22 minutes or until the skin is crisp, flipping the wings halfway. Bake time will vary based on the surface area of your air fryer basket.
Can I Bake These in a Traditional Oven?
It takes significantly longer to achieve crispy chicken wings in the oven. To bake these chicken wings in a conventional oven, preheat oven to 400˚F and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until crispy, flipping the wings after 30 minutes.

What to Serve with Air Fried Chicken Wings
I love serving this restaurant style. My husband used to work at a Chilis restaurant and they served their wings with fresh celery and blue cheese dressing – classic! They also pair really well with these dips and sides:
- Ranch Dressing or Avocado Ranch
- Veggie Dip
- Potato Wedges
- Air Fryer French Fries
- Coleslaw
- Corn on the Cob

These Air Fryer Chicken Wings have a crisp, salty skin with a tender, flavorful center. Let the snacking begin!
Storing and Reheating Chicken Wings
Once the chicken wings are cooled to room temperature, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for 3-4 days. You can re-crisp them in the air fryer at 400˚F for 4 to 5 minutes.
More Air Fryer Recipes
If you’re looking for quick and simple meal ideas, you’ll love these air fryer recipes:
- Air Fryer Salmon
- Crispy Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Easy Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Air Fried Pork Chops
- Crispy Air Fryer Bacon (my fave method!)
Air Fryer Chicken Wings

Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken wings, split into flats and drummettes
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic salt, or add to taste*
- 1 tsp lemon pepper
Instructions
- Thoroughly pat dry chicken wings with paper towels and place in a mixing bowl.
- Coat in 1 Tbsp oil then sprinkle on 2 tsp garlic salt and 1 tsp lemon pepper. Toss to evenly coat with seasoning.
- Place on air frying basket, spacing evenly and air fry at 400˚F for 8 minutes, then flip and air fry another 8 minutes for a total of 16 minutes, or until chicken wings are crisp and golden brown on the outside.
Hi Natasha!
I love your recipes—I’m a huge fan! This one is on my list to try, too. Quick question: what air fryer would you recommend?
Thanks you so much!
Tanya
Hi Tanya! I linked it in the blog (click on the red font words). But if you select “shop” from the menu at the top of the page, you can view my recommendations in the kitchen appliance category in my amazon shop.
I work at a fast food place I have made a lot of fried chicken but this is better taste and it is more heathy:)
Have used so many of your wonderful receipes. So easy to follow, and extremely delicious. I enjoy your receipe book as well.
Way too salty. Will use recipe again but cut the garlic salt in half.
I’m sorry to hear that, Patricia! You can definitely use less but we found that 2tsp was not too much. Did you use any dipping sauce with them that could have been too salty?
Question: The recipe calls for 1 tsp of garlic salt but then instructions say 2 tsps. Which amount should I be using?
Hello! The normal amount is 1tsp but you can add more if you love a salty skin.
Love this recipe. My go to for chicken wings night at home
So happy to hear that you enjoy this, Jessica! Thank you for the feedback.
Mine are anemic. Flavor is wonderful. Added a total of 10 minutes, but they are not golden or crispy.
Hi Irene. Are you using the convection setting on a large oven? If so, they will take longer and won’t crisp up quite as much. I used a small countertop convection oven. Some convection ovens may also need to preheat.
If I were to add cornstarch to this recipe how much should I add??
Hi Karin! I don’t use cornstarch in this recipe so I don’t have those instructions. You could toss the wings in cornstarch until completely coated.
A rub of baking powder produces great results!
Thanks Nat the wings are great as usual. Love your recipes for sure.
Great to hear, Seth!
Hi Natasha, can I use this recipe for a whole chicken?
Hi Lizette, I haven’t tried this specific recipe for a whole chicken to advise, but I do have a few recipes for whole chickens that you can either bake – Whole Roasted Chicken or cook in your instant pot – Instant Pot Whole Chicken.
Love this air fry recipe…added a few spices and even made a sweet and spicy sauce to coat them in
Made such a mess of the whole toaster/air fryer
You can try to apply a sheet of parchment paper on top to help catch splatter.
Any hints on changes to make if you are using an induction oven with a built in air fryer? I have a new oven, and no counter space for an air fryer, but my oven has an air fryer feature. I want to give this a try but just curious if you have any suggested adjustments to make if using an oven vs a countertop air fryer appliance. Thanks
Hi Polly! They won’t get as crisp in an oven with air fryer mode and may need to be baked for longer since the internal area of the oven is a lot larger than a counter top air fryer.
Good recipe and I loved the flavor. Unfortunately mine didn’t not get crispy without overcooks (they were at 180f). Next time I’ll add 2 tsp baking powder to get them crispy as one food scientist says “sodium bicarbonate reacts with moisture on the chicken—tiny carbon dioxide bubbles form, which dries and hardens. The result is crackly chicken skin.”
How do you keep the wings from getting grease all over air fryer when using wire basket?
Hi Pam, you can try to apply a sheet of parchment paper on top to help catch splatter.
Wouldn’t the paper be free to fly all around and catch on the heating element (mine is on top)?
Hi Coni! Yes, it could. If you have ceramic pie weights, these can help hold the edges down.
The best English muffin recipe I’ve tried yet!! So airy and fluffy! Could I use a sourdough leavening instead of the yeast?
Thanks, Ericka! I have not tested that version yet to advise. We’d love to know how it goes if you give that a try!
These are the best chicken wings ever. I followed your recipe exactly and perfect crispy wings.❤️
That’s wonderful to hear!
Can we cook the chicken wings on 2 shelves of the airfryer cooker?
If there is enough room for air to circulate without overcrowding the air fryer, if it’s overcrowded, they will not get as crisp and will need to stay in longer.
Can I use pepper and lemon grated rind. I don’t have lemon pepper.
Hi Mary, technically yes but it does take a little time to re-create that seasoning from scratch. Here’s a recipe for Homemade Lemon Pepper that you can reference to get an idea of how to make it.
My family love it! I don’t have lemon pepper seasoning so I used lemon juice and ground black pepper instead. It turned out delicious! Thanks Natasha for sharing this recipe.
Glad you all enjoyed this!