What’s that appliance that hangs above the stove, providing extra light while you cook and a fan to prevent steam from blowing in your face? It’s a range hood! Believe it or not, the range hood is one of the most important appliances in your kitchen, protecting you, your family, and your guests from carbon monoxide, grease, dangerous fumes, bad odors, and more. If you’ve just realized your kitchen doesn’t have one, here are ten reasons why you should get a range hood.
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Reason #1: Air Quality
The primary job of the range hood is to filter out and remove hazardous air pollutants that result from cooking. Smoke, grease, and steam from cooking can linger in the kitchen, coating walls and being inhaled by the cook. The range hood’s blower (fan and motor) sucks up these pollutants, either venting them outside (ducted installation) or filtering the air (ductless/recirculating installation).
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Reason #2: Carbon Monoxide
There’s a reason most carbon monoxide detectors are placed in or near the kitchen—cooking and heating appliances are the leading source of carbon monoxide poisoning. Without proper ventilation, carbon monoxide can cause flu-like symptoms with short-term exposure and can lead to difficulty breathing or even death with long-term exposure. While carbon monoxide detectors warn of a problem, a range hood helps prevent it in the first place!
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Reason #3: Excess Heat
There’s a reason for the old saying, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.” Cooking produces a lot of heat, smoke, and steam. A range hood helps provide relief by cooling the cooking area and protecting your kitchen.
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Reason #4: Health Protection
Range hoods act as filters, removing irritating, hazardous, and even deadly pollutants from the air. Without one, everyone in the kitchen—and sometimes the surrounding rooms—would be exposed to eye, nose, and throat irritation, lung damage, and potential carbon monoxide poisoning. The safety benefits of a range hood are hard to beat.
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Reason #5: Cooking in Comfort
Cooking can be uncomfortable due to steam, smells, and stuffiness. Range hoods significantly reduce these issues, making cooking a much more enjoyable task. When you’re comfortable, you’ll find that cooking becomes less of a chore.
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Reason #6: Freedom to Experiment
There are endless possibilities in the kitchen, but how often do recipes lose their appeal when you realize how messy or smelly the cooking process will be? A range hood lets you experiment with bold recipes—whether it’s curries, kimchi, or saffron—without worrying about lingering odors or air pollutants. A powerful, properly installed, and ducted range hood eliminates these issues, leaving your creativity as the only limit.
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Reason #7: Additional Lighting
An overhead range hood provides optimal lighting for cooking, ensuring you can see exactly what you’re doing. The lighting features vary by model, so you can choose one that best suits your needs. High-end models offer creative lighting effects, enhancing both aesthetics and functionality. For those looking to impress, luxury range hoods often come with built-in LCD displays, touch-sensitive controls, and other cutting-edge features.
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Reason #8: Cleanliness
Behind the stove and above the cabinets, grease and moisture from cooking can create a sticky film of dust. Without a range hood, this can be harder to clean. By removing grease and moisture, range hoods reduce the time spent cleaning and even help prevent the growth of bacteria and mold, which is especially important for allergy sufferers or anyone with respiratory issues. Some models even feature timers that provide additional ventilation after cooking, further preventing greasy residue from settling on surfaces.
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Reason #9: Style
Range hoods aren’t just functional; they also contribute to the overall design of your kitchen. Available in a wide variety of styles and custom designs, range hoods can either blend seamlessly into the kitchen or stand out as a focal point. Gone are the days of bulky, noisy metal boxes. Today’s range hoods offer quiet operation and a sleek, stylish appearance that can even resemble works of art.
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Reason #10: Home Resale Value
In addition to improving health and safety, enhancing cooking comfort, and reducing odors and grime, range hoods can also increase the value of your home. According to many real estate agents, the kitchen plays a critical role in selling a home. An updated kitchen can add up to 80% of the cost to the home’s resale value. A quality range hood improves both the aesthetics and functionality of the kitchen, boosting the overall appeal of the house. Moreover, by removing airborne pollutants, it helps preserve your cabinets and prevents cooking odors from settling into furniture, contributing to a fresher, more inviting environment for potential buyers.

For safety, comfort, and style, a range hood is essential in any kitchen. But not all range hoods are created equal. While basic models may cover essential functions, choosing one with optimal performance will give you the most benefits, as outlined above. Range hoods vary in price, from around $200 for basic models to $1,500–$5,000 for high-end luxury units. Custom designs can even cost tens of thousands of dollars—but most kitchens don’t require such extravagance. Like other major appliances, range hoods need professional installation. The cost of installation should be factored into your budget, but any contractor can handle the job.
When purchasing a range hood, be sure to check the manufacturer’s warranty and ensure your contractor follows installation requirements for maximum performance and years of trouble-free operation.