Best Pizza Oven Temperature and Thermometers for Perfect Homemade Pizza

You want to make homemade pizza that is as good as the restaurant with the big pizza ovens? Understanding the different types of pizza and the temperature each pizza needs to be cooked at can help. Cooking pizza at home can be fun and delicious! Once you learn the right temperature you will start producing the perfect pizza every time!

What temperature to cook pizza?

As the general rule for home cooking, the optimal temperature to bake your pizzas at 450-500°F (230-260°C) for around 10-15 minutes. There are many different ways to cook pizza and different styles, so this temperature may vary. This post will go over what your pizza oven temperature should be based on, the style of pizza you are making, and the type of pizza ovens you can use. Also, the best thermometer to check the pizza oven temperature.

Best Pizza Oven Thermometer

Before wanting to know the best temperature to cook your pizza at, you will need to know how you are going to check that temperature. If you are using a traditional home oven you will easily be able to set your pizza oven temperature. If you are using an outdoor oven such as the Ooni, you may want to buy a thermometer to be able to check.

One to the best purchases I've made with my Ooni was an infrared thermometer. This checks the temperature of the cooking surface just by pointing a laser at it. So there is no touching of the surface or even needing to get close to it.

Having an infrared thermometer for your home oven is great too because you can check the temperature of your pizza steel or stone before sliding in your pizza.

This is the infrared thermometer I use and recommend: Sovarcate infrared thermometer. This one is nice because it uses AA batteries instead of 9-volt batteries.

Ooni also has their own branded thermometer that you can find here: Ooni infrared thermometer

Best Pizza Oven Temperature Gauge

Another way to test the temperature of your pizza oven is to the use a pizza oven temperature gauge. This works best for a home oven that doesn’t heat properly. If your oven don’t always match the temperature settings, think about getting a temperature gauge to place inside the oven. This will give you a more accurate reading.

Styles of Pizza

Pizza first started in Italy, but is know known all around the world. As it has migrated to different regions, the style and flavors of the pizzas have changed. Each pizza has different crust and toppings which means the temperature to cook these are all slightly different. Here are the best ways to bake each type of pizza.

Neapolitan Pizza

This pizza originated in Naples, Italy, and is known for its soft and chewy crust. Its traditionally made with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, and basil leaves. The toppings are typically just a few high-quality ingredients to allow the crust to shine.

To get the chewy crust with crispy edges you need a really high temperature to cook the pizzas at. Neapolitan-style pizza are typically cooked at higher temperatures, around 800-900°F (427-482°C). Most of the time they are made in a wood-fired oven to keep the temperature nice and hot. They only need 1-2 minutes in the oven to be fully cooked.

Chicago-style Deep Dish Pizza

This pizza is known by its deep, thick crust. The toppings are placed on the pizza dough in reverse order, with the cheese on the bottom, followed by meat or vegetables, and then topped with tomato sauce. This is a heavy pizza that can be very filling.

Bake Chicago style pizza at a lower temperature, around 375-425°F (190-218°C), for at least 30-40 minutes. Since the crust is so thick, it needs to be cooked much longer than a Neapolitan or New York style pizza.

Sicilian Pizza

This pizza has a thick, rectangular crust and is often served with a generous helping of tomato sauce. The cheese is usually sprinkled on top of the sauce, followed by toppings like onions, peppers, and sausage.

You bake Sicilian pizza similarly to how you bake Chicago style pizza. Bake it at around 425°F (218°C) for 25-30 minutes. It is typically a little thinner than Chicago style pizza so it doesn’t need as long, but it still has a fairly thick crust.

To learn more about Sicilian style pizza check out this post: Best Italian Pizza: Sicilian vs Neapolitan Pizza

New York-style Pizza

This pizza has a thin, crispy crust and is often sold by the slice. The sauce is made with tomatoes and oregano and is typically spread thinly over the crust. The cheese is usually a blend of mozzarella and cheddar, and toppings like pepperoni and mushrooms are popular.

New York style pizza is baked in a temperature range of 500-550°F (260-290°C) for 10-15 minutes. To get the crispy crust, try to bake your pizza on a pizza steel to pizza stone. This helps the crust cook much faster.

California-style Pizza

California style pizza is a little newer to the scene. This pizza is characterized by its use of non-traditional ingredients like chicken, artichokes, and goat cheese. The crust is usually thin and crispy. They often use different types of sauces like pesto or olive oil.

Since these pizzas are very thin crust, they cook quickly. Similarly to New York style, they bake at 500-550°F (260-290°C), but they only need about 10 minutes in the oven.

Types of Pizza Ovens

You can make your pizzas in your home oven or you can buy a separate pizza oven. Here is a breakdown of the different types of pizza ovens you can use and the temperatures for each.

Conventional Oven

Most people, especially when starting out, will just use their home oven. This is just your typical domestic oven that you already have at home. These ovens work very well to start making delicious pizza. For the best results, you want to turn the oven up the highest setting to bake your pizzas. This will typically be around 500°F.

If you want to make Neapolitan style pizzas at home it is a good idea to invest in a pizza peel and a pizza steel.

Outdoor Pizza Oven (Ooni Pizza Oven)

Outdoor pizza ovens are a great way to get a wood-fired pizza oven at home. These pizza ovens can get a very high heat, getting up to 1000°F. Traditionally these are a large brick oven that can reach these high temperature.

The Ooni is a popular at home pizza oven that you can use in your backyard. It gives you the similar effect without needing a large brick oven. The maximum temperature of an Ooni oven is 950°F (500°C). There are different versions of the Ooni, you can get a wood burning one, a gas oven, or they even have an electric version now.

A few others outdoor ovens that are gaining popularity are the Gozney Pizza Oven and the Stoke Pizza Oven. I have not tried either of these, but they are suppose to work fairly similarly to the Ooni.

Indoor Pizza Oven (Breville Pizza Oven)

There are a few indoor electric pizza ovens that you can purchase as well. This gives you the ability to have a hot oven that is easy to make great pizza year round. They get much hotter that your traditional oven and they heat up much quicker since they are so small. The Breville Pizza Oven states that it can heat up to 750°F in 2 minutes.

No matter the type of oven you choose, you will be able to make delicious pizza at home.

Pizza Recipes to Try

If you are looking for pizza recipes to try, here are a few of my go-to’s:

• The Best Pizza Crust Recipe
• Mushroom Goat Cheese Pizza with Balsamic and Arugula
• Best Mediterranean Pizza

‍