Seed Oils for Frying, Ranked by Heat Stability

Which oil actually survives the fryer? Ranked by published smoke points, with each oil’s saturated fat and our grade alongside — because a high smoke point is not the same as healthy.

The ranking

#	Oil	Smoke point	Sat fat /100g	Grade	The take
1	Avocado Oil	271°C / 520°F	11.6g	B	Refined — the highest of the common cooking oils.
2	Safflower Oil	266°C / 511°F	7.5g	A	Refined, high-oleic. Built for the fryer.
3	Soybean Oil	234°C / 453°F	15.7g	A	The neutral workhorse of restaurant fryers.
4	Peanut Oil	232°C / 450°F	16.9g	C	Refined. The classic deep-fry oil for a reason.
5	Sunflower Oil	227°C / 441°F	10.3g	A	Refined linoleic. Fine for the pan, not for repeated deep frying.
6	Canola Oil	204°C / 399°F	7.4g	S	Refined. Adequate for most home frying.
7	Coconut Oil	204°C / 399°F	82.5g	D	Refined. High smoke point, 82g saturated fat per 100g — the trade nobody mentions.
8	Olive Oil (Extra Virgin)	190°C / 374°F	13.8g	S	Extra virgin. Lower smoke point than its reputation suggests — but stability is a different story (below).
9	Sesame Oil	177°C / 351°F	14.2g	B	Toasted. A finishing oil, not a frying oil — the flavor is the point.

Smoke points: published values for each oil at the refinement we grade (see prep on each food page). Sources: Wikipedia “Smoke point” table, citing the American Oil Chemists’ Society and Vegetable Oils in Food Technology. Nutrition: USDA FoodData Central.

What a smoke point actually tells you

Less than the internet thinks. The smoke point mostly reflects refinement — refined oils smoke later because the proteins and free fatty acids that burn off early have been stripped out. Food scientists consider oxidative stability (measured by the Rancimat method: hours before the oil breaks down under heat and air) the better predictor of how an oil behaves in the pan. The two don’t move together.

The famous paradox: extra-virgin olive oil has a modest smoke point (~190°C) but excellent oxidative stability — its monounsaturated fat and antioxidants protect it. Meanwhile some high-smoke-point seed oils oxidize faster because they’re rich in polyunsaturated fat. Smoke point answers “when does it start smoking,” not “is this the right oil.”

The honest take: for everyday sautéing, nearly every oil on this list is fine — home burners rarely hold oil at its smoke point once food goes in. For repeated deep frying, pick a refined high-oleic oil (avocado, safflower, high-oleic sunflower) and don’t reuse oil past the point it darkens or smells off. And no frying oil rescues a bad diet: the fats board grades these same oils on saturated fat and overall nutrition, which is the ranking that matters most.

Seed oils, briefly

Canola, soybean, sunflower, and safflower are the oils at the center of the seed-oil debate. Nutritionally they’re unremarkable in a good way: low in saturated fat, neutral in flavor, cheap. The argument against them is about omega-6 intake and processing, not heat — and on heat, as the table shows, the refined versions hold up fine. If you want the full argument, our methodology shows exactly how each oil scores.

A note before you eat your screen: grades are computed from published nutrition data with a transparent formula. They are a starting point for thinking about food, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian about your diet.