Ooni Koda 2 Review: Compact Gas Oven, Big Burner Upgrade
Our verdict on Ooni's compact second-gen gas oven: a genuine burner upgrade and easy storage, with a learning curve worth knowing before you buy.
The most storage-friendly current-generation Ooni gas oven, with real burner improvements over the Koda 12 - but budget for an infrared thermometer and a short learning curve.
- Cooking performance 4.2
- Ease of use 4.0
- Portability and footprint 4.8
- Build quality 4.5
- Value 4.1
Strengths
- Compact 16 kg body with a larger 14 inch stone than the Koda 12 it replaces
- G2 tapered-flame burner claims far more even stone temperatures and faster stone recovery between pizzas
- 50% thicker stone than the outgoing Koda 12 for better heat retention
Watch outs
- One prominent lab test found top heat outpacing the stone, giving dark tops and pale bases until technique is dialled in
- Control dial has no temperature markings, so an infrared thermometer is near-essential
- No built-in thermometer
- Best for 14 inch Neapolitan-style pizza on smaller UK patios
- Fuel Propane gas only
- Footprint 545 x 472 mm, 16 kg - genuinely one-person portable
- Generation 2nd gen successor to the Koda 12; sits alongside, not above, the Koda 16
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- Max pizza size
- 14 inch
- Cooking stone
- 15 mm cordierite
- Max stone temperature
- 500C (932F)
- Preheat time
- Approximately 15-20 minutes to full temperature
- Fuel type
- Propane gas (37 mBar regulator and hose included in UK)
- Burner
- Patent-pending tapered-flame G2 gas burner, adjustable dial (approx 100C to 500C range)
- Unboxed dimensions
- 545 x 472 x 333 mm
- Weight
- 16 kg
- Body materials
- Powder-coated carbon steel shell, stainless steel base and legs, aluminium back and front nose
- Warranty
- 1 year standard, extended to 5 years with registration
Synthesised from https://www.techgearlab.com/reviews/kitchen/pizza-oven/ooni-koda-2 · https://www.thegentlemanmagazine.co.uk/review/ooni-koda-2-review-the-luxury-pizza-oven-that-turns-your-garden-into-a-pizzeria · https://thehomepizzamaker.com/ooni-koda-2-vs-koda-16/
- Mixed feedback
Heat balance takes practice
70/100 overall, 5.0/10 control scoreLab testing reported the chamber top running much hotter than the stone, blackening toppings before bases finished unless the flame is managed after launch.
- https://www.techgearlab.com/reviews/kitchen/pizza-oven/ooni-koda-2
- Consistent complaint
Unmarked temperature dial
Reviewers flagged the absence of temperature markings or recommended settings, making an external infrared thermometer effectively mandatory.
- https://www.techgearlab.com/reviews/kitchen/pizza-oven/ooni-koda-2
- Consistently praised
Consistent results and quick recovery
Six 14 inch pizzas in rapid successionA UK review praised even colouring, reliable crust puff and fast stone recovery across a multi-pizza garden session, with dial changes producing immediate flame response.
- https://www.thegentlemanmagazine.co.uk/review/ooni-koda-2-review-the-luxury-pizza-oven-that-turns-your-garden-into-a-pizzeria
- Consistently praised
Gas efficiency
Roughly 0.73 lbs propane per 10 pizzas vs 1.3 lbs for the Koda 16Comparison testing found the G2 burner markedly more frugal with propane than the Koda 16's L-shaped burner.
- https://thehomepizzamaker.com/ooni-koda-2-vs-koda-16/
The Koda 2 is Ooni's current second-generation compact gas oven, replacing the old Koda 12 rather than the larger Koda 16 that still sits above it. The headline change is the G2 tapered-flame burner, which Ooni says holds the stone at a steadier temperature and reheats it faster between bakes, paired with a cordierite stone around 50% thicker than the one it replaces. At roughly 16 kg and 545mm wide, it is one of the few 14 inch ovens a single person can carry to the table and lift back into a shed, which is exactly what a small UK patio or a shared garden needs.
Expert opinion is genuinely split, and that split is worth understanding before you buy. UK lifestyle reviewers ran multi-pizza garden sessions and came away impressed by even colouring, reliable crust puff and quick stone recovery. An instrumented US lab test was far tougher, marking it down for a chamber top that ran hotter than the stone and blackened toppings before bases finished, made worse by a control dial with no temperature markings. Both readings can be true: the Koda 2 rewards a fully preheated stone and a flame you ease back after launching, and it punishes set-and-forget habits.
For a compact garden or balcony where the oven has to be lifted and stored between uses, the Koda 2 is the sensible current-generation gas pick, provided you budget for an infrared thermometer to read the unmarked stone and accept a short learning curve. If you want a bigger cooking floor for family-size pizzas the Koda 16 is the better call, and if you are after real wood-fired flavour the Karu 2 is the oven to look at instead.