My homemade Air Fryer French Fries are crisp and crunchy and ready in half the time without the mess and grease of classic fried ones. Both the prep and cooking for this recipe are so simple – thinly sliced potatoes lightly tossed in oil and seasoning, then cooked until crispy and crunchy.
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Helpful Reader Review
“😋 I thought these tasted just like 5 guys fries! And they’re definitely healthier.” – Jorobertson ★★★★★
Easy Air Fryer French Fries
These Air Fryer French Fries are a favorite in my home, especially with my kids. Maybe it’s because I live in Idaho, known as potato land, and grew up eating potatoes, but in this case, I know it’s because these fries cook up so quickly and smell amazing. It’s the perfect after-school snack dunked in ketchup or Homemade Ranch. I’m always amazed at how fast they disappear off the tray.
The air fryer method for making homemade French fries is the easiest for cooking fries. Not only are they easy to make, but they are also much healthier than deep frying in oil. They also don’t contain any preservatives or additives like the frozen ones can.
The air fryer is the fastest way to satisfy a craving, and potatoes turn out great when air fried, like our Air Fryer Baked Potatoes. We love making all sorts of things like Air Fryer Chicken Wings, and crispy Air Fryer Bacon.
Ingredients for Air Fryer French Fries
Three simple ingredients make for a really tasty side dish! Don’t wait to treat yourself to these crispy, yummy French fries!
- Potatoes – For this recipe, we use russet potatoes (Idaho potatoes), but you can also use Yukon Gold potatoes which give a creamier center.
- Oil – This recipe calls for olive oil but you can use vegetable oil, canola oil, or any neutral-tasting oil with a high smoke point–that keeps the fries crispy.
- Seasoning – We season the fries with salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder, but you can use any of your go-to spices for variety. Try steak seasoning, all-purpose seasoning, taco seasoning, or even Old Bay for a twist.
Natasha’s Pro Tip:
Leaving the potato skins on for fries has several benefits, including more flavor, a great crispy texture, added fiber and nutrients, and, best of all, it SAVES TIME!
How to Make French Fries in Air Fryer
If you’re looking for a quick and easy side dish that pairs with so many meals, you’ll love this easy Air Fryer French Fries recipe. It’s as simple as cut, season, and fry. It’s beginner-friendly and takes a meal to all new levels!
- Scrub Potatoes: we like to keep the skins on so be sure to wash the outside with a scrub brush if necessary. You can also peel them if you prefer. Then, cut the potatoes into 1/4″ sticks.
- Rinse Potatoes: Rinse the cut potatoes under cold water to remove some of the starch (it helps the potato get crispy ) and then, pat dry with a paper towel.
- Season: Add the fries into a bowl and drizzle with oil. Toss, season, and toss again. Until the slices are covered in oil and spices
- Air Fry: Evenly spread the fries into the air fryer basket in a single layer, and then cook in a basket-style air fryer at 380°F or a toaster oven-style air fryer at 360°F for 10 minutes. Toss the fries and then cook for 6 minutes more. They are finished when the fries are crispy and golden.
Pro Tip:
Season the potatoes just before air frying them. If you add salt too early, it will draw moisture out of the potatoes and they won’t be as crispy when air-fried.
Tips for Using an Air Fryer
If you’re new to the Air Fryer life, here are a few things to know to make it easier than ever to make these french fries (and other recipes, too)
- Preheating – There’s no need to preheat the air fryer for this french fry recipe! It really is that easy. There are other recipes that require preheating, but it takes just 2-3 minutes.
- Basket-style Air Fryer vs Toaster-style Air Fryer – both styles work well to make these crispy and crunchy. We like the basket-style here because it’s easier to shake to toss the fries. Keep in mind that toaster oven-style air fryer run hotter than basket-style, so reduce the temperature 20-25°F when using a toaster-style
- Spacing – don’t overcrowd the slices of potato in the basket. This can cause the fries to cook unevenly.
- Timing – Check your french fries as they cook in the air fryer. Food cooks much faster so check early until you get to know your air fryer timings.
Helpful Reader Review
“These were fries were excellent! My husband raved about them. We used Old Bag seasoning on them to replicate fries that are popular in Philadelphia. Thank you for another great recipe!” – Patty ★★★★★
What to serve with Air Fryer French Fries
All you need is a Juicy Burger or classic BLT Sandwich to go with these. When serving fries, the sauce is half the fun! Here are my family-approved sauces:
- Ranch Dip (my son’s favorite)
- Avocado Ranch or Jalapeno Ranch
- Fry Sauce – equal parts Mayonnaise and ketchup (my daughter’s fave)
- Onion ring dipping sauce
Make-Ahead and Storage
- Make-Ahead Tip: It’s easy to make these french fries ahead and then cook in the air fryer when you’re ready to eat. Simply cut the fries and store them submerged in cold water in the fridge until ready. Pat completely dry before cooking.
- To Refrigerate: Store them in an airtight container or zip-top bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: Freeze for 2 months.
- To Reheat: Cook from frozen or straight out of the fridge. Add the french fries back into the air fryer and cook until heated and re-crisped.
The next time you’re craving fries or just need a crowd-favorite side dish, whip up a batch of these French Fries in the air fryer! This is the quickest way to make them and they turn out extra crispy.
Air Fryer French Fries
Ingredients
- 1 lb russet potatoes, (2 large or 3 medium potatoes)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
- ⅛ tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
- ⅛ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp paprika
Instructions
- Scrub and clean the potatoes. Cut the potatoes into even ¼-inch thick strips.
- Rinse the fries in cold water and thoroughly pat dry.
- Add the fries into a large bowl, drizzle with the oil, and toss. Sprinkle seasonings over the fries and toss again.
- Transfer the fries to the air fryer basket and cook at 380 for 10 minutes. Toss the French fries and cook for an additional 6-10 minutes until the fries are golden and crispy. Garnish with parsley if desired. Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Easy Potato Recipes
We love potatoes in our family! I think it comes with being Idahoeans, so if you’re potato-fans like we are, try some of our other favorite potato recipes after these Air Fryer French Fries:
- Roasted Potatoes
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Creamy Mashed Potatoes
- Smashed Potatoes Recipe
- Air Fryer Potatoes
- Oven-Baked Potato Wedges
- Baked French Fries (Valentina’s Corner)
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
I am very impressed how you answer everyones post,, good job, dont find that often, I am getting ready to make . got them cut and in cold right now..so I am hoping mine turned out as well as others..i will let you know.
I do my best, Carole. Every message, feedback and suggestion counts! I hope you’ll love the recipe.
Made these in my air fryer! Crispy and sooo good! I used a Cajun Spice blend ! Yummy!
These turned out so good!!! This will definitely be our go to fry recipe!
Great to hear that!
Made these for a snack for my husband and I. I only used the oil and salt. These were the best. We ate the whole batch. Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Debra, happy to hear that the recipe was a huge success! Thanks so much for sharing that with us.
Next time I will cook a little longer but they were really good-served them with Idaho Fry Sauce from allrecipes. Thank you!
Hi Laurie! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you.
We have an oven with an air fryer option. I’ve used it only for items that don’t require oil because I made that mistake before and my oven was a mess. Since I don’t know what it’s like with a counter top air fryer, do you think my oven would be a mess again?
Thank you!
Hi Carmen! I generally do not have any issues with oil splatter in my air fryer from this recipe.
My fries did not come out crispy
They were a little bit chewy
Do you think I needed to cook them a little longer? I know it’s not the recipe because I have tried others. Any ideas? Thank you. 😊
Hi Deann! It could be that they needed a little longer or were they cut too thick? Also-rinsing and patting them dry before cooking them helps remove the starch and helps them crisp up on the outside. You can toss them back in to re-crisp in the air fryer if they need some additional time.
Fries turned out great! My air fryer doesn’t have a temperature control, one setting only. Twenty minutes was definitely not enough time. It took an extra 10 minutes but SO worth the wait!
Thank you, no more frozen fries
Hi Sally! I’m glad they turned out. Thank you for sharing.
My husband and I LOVE your personality and recipes!
We don’t have an air fryer but do have a Turbo Wave oven that we like to use (faster cooking, less cleanup than an oven, uses less oil for recipes, no waiting to pre-heat). How can we use that to make your French Fries (and any other recipes) you recommend? How do we make any adjustments?
Keep up the great work!
Hi Kathryn, that sounds like a good way to make this recipe too, however, I have to personally test the device to make some recommendations. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
Hi Natasha!
Do you have a way to convert this recipe to use in the “Convection Toaster Air Fryer Oven” air fryer??
Thank you!!
P.S. I would love some healthy wrap recipes… also techiques on how to wrap wraps!! 😆
Hi Lena, I think that will work but I have to personally try it to give some recommendations. I have not tried it yet but if you do an experiment, kindly share with us how it goes.
Just two of us…can I air fry wings and potatoes together at same temperature?
Hi Arlene, I’m not sure if that would work as they have different cooking times.
My organic potatoes were small. Bought them to cook w/sauerkraut. So I sliced them instead. They were the bomb!
I’m so happy to hear these were a hit, Mary! Thank you for your lovely review!
Hi Natasha! I just bought Cosori air fryer , the one you have and recommended . How did you get rid of plastic smell? It’s really bothering me, the smell goes into the food. I clean it a few times, but I still smell the plastic.
Hi Lana, I haven’t had that experience with a plastic smell. You might run the air fryer for a little bit without food in it to burn off any new machine smells.
How do you get your fries to not stick to the air fryer basket?
Hi Hiedee, you can grease it by rubbing, or spraying, a little bit of oil on the bottom grates.
We’re looking for advise regarding air fryers, not just for fries, but whole or pieces of chicken, veggies etc.
Hi Lisa, Here are our air fryer recipes. You can see we use our air fryer for bacon, pork, chicken wings, etc. We link the air fryer we used within them, but you can also find our favorite kitchen tools in our Amazon Affiliate Shop HERE.
Hi Natasha, I pretty much use the same recipe only I add 1/2 tsp raw sugar. They are to die for!
That’s great! Thanks for sharing that with us.
Delish! These french fries are my new favorite air fryer recipe!
Glad to hear that, Courtney! Thanks for your review.
Would you know why my fries lose their crisp as they cool? When they’re really hot they’re crispy but as they cool they get soft and soggy
Just like any fries, they will be the most crispy when they are warm and freshly made. Here are some tips that may help: Make sure to let them rest uncovered. Also, rinsing and patting dry before cooking fries helps remove the starch and helps them crisp up on the outside. You can re-crisp fries in the air fryer as well.
These were super crispy and delicious! I will definitely make them again!
I’m so glad to hear that you loved the fries!
Great recipe – I love using the air fryer! Homemade french fries are my favorite!
Isn’t it the best! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!