The Lodge Blacklock Triple Seasoned Cast-Iron Skillet is advertised as being 5 pounds 6 ounces, according to the specs listed on Lodge’s website, but it actually weighs about 6 pounds 2⅜ ounces by our measure. Since it’s only about 6 ounces lighter than the Chef’s Collection pan we recommend, we don’t think it’s worth paying significantly more. In our tests, the Blacklock dripped more oil when pouring it into a jar, while the Lodge Classic and Chef’s Collection pans poured in relatively steady streams. Cornbread also stuck badly to the bottom of the Blacklock unlike the other two pans. While we like the slightly longer handle on the Blacklock and its deeper sides for frying chicken, ultimately we don’t think these benefits outweigh its drawbacks.

The Victoria 12-inch cast-iron skillet was our previous runner-up, and in tests for this update performed on a par with the Lodge skillets. Its slightly sloped sides are good for whisking pan sauces and make the capacity a little more forgiving, so you can squeeze in an extra strip of bacon. Victoria’s large spouts allowed us to pour off hot oil without a single drip. On the downside, the longer stick handle throws off the weight distribution and makes the pan seem heavier, even though the Victoria weighs a pound less than the Lodge. Victoria cast-iron cookware comes with a lifetime warranty.

AmazonBasics Pre-Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet - 12-Inch has a very rough texture, so although theoretically it should take a while to develop a nonstick patina, it performed just as well as every other pan we tested. It’s deep, which would work well for frying chicken. However, at about 8 pounds, it’s one of the heaviest skillets we tested, and it heated very unevenly so it isn’t one of our picks. You only get a one-year warranty from Amazon.

The Camp Chef 12" Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet released foods cleanly in our tests, but it is particularly rough-textured, heated extremely unevenly, and has a slightly smaller interior surface than the others we tested. The warranty is also only 90 days.

Butter Pat Industries Joan 12" Polished Cast Iron Skillet is the most expensive skillet we tested, which the manufacturer attributes to the fact that it takes about 41 people 21 days to produce. It has a silky-smooth finish on the bottom and sides and is exceptionally light. With more than 10 inches of surface area, there’s plenty of room to lay out bacon strips. The Joan has very low sides, so it’s great for searing without steaming but too shallow for frying chicken. Of all the cast-iron skillets we tested, it came closest to exhibiting even heat distribution, and in testing it was a pleasure to use. However, we didn’t find that it was more nonstick than any of the skillets we tested, and it emerged with dark, blotchy stains from searing steak. We also noticed that the handle appeared to be unseasoned, leaving it vulnerable to rust. The company says the discoloration will even out over time as the pan develops more seasoning, but that will take more time and attention than maintaining the seasoning on a Lodge. So we find it hard to justify paying almost $300, even if you do get a 100-year warranty.

At under 6 pounds, the Field Company #10 Field Cast Iron Skillet weighs the least of all those we tested. It has a smoothly polished surface that heated up very evenly. There are no pour spouts, but we found it easy to pour hot grease over the edge without dripping. Like the Butter Pat, this pan is shallow and showed blotchy stains after searing a steak. Though we enjoyed using it, we find it hard to justify the $160 price.

At around $120, the Stargazer Cast Iron 12-inch Skillet was the least expensive of the new-gen pans we tested and was the least smooth. Although the large handle’s not particularly comfortable to hold, it stays cool enough to touch when you’re cooking on the stovetop. As the Stargazer is quite deep, it would be a good choice for frying chicken or poaching dumplings. It has a rolled lip instead of pour spouts, and we had no problem pouring off bacon grease without getting it all over the counter. But again, the Lodge pans performed just as well, didn’t stain when searing, and have more comfortable handles.

Not only was the Smithey Ironware No. 12 Cast Iron Skillet slow to heat up, it was particularly uneven at heating. After we cooked bacon, it looked like some of the manufacturer’s finish had been stripped off, which may account for the fact that this was only one of two skillets we tested that couldn’t turn out cornbread without sticking.

The overdesigned Finex 12-inch octagonal skillet is another offering from the indie movement of cast-iron producers trying to make pans the old way. Finex skillets have a polished cooking area, but the walls are left with the casting texture. While the spiraled polished stainless steel handle is designed to stay cool, it didn’t in our tests. The handle is too thick to grasp securely with a folded towel, and it slipped when we poured drippings. The helper handle is small and doesn’t offer much for support. The eight corners of the skillet are touted to offer versatility when pouring, but every corner dribbled on our counter.

The Utopia Kitchen skillet is an obvious Lodge knockoff, except that the seasoning on the Utopia is ineffective against sticking, and the pour spouts dribbled a lot of oil on our countertops.

The Calphalon cast-iron skillet didn’t make it past the first round of testing for having the worst pour spouts. The stick handle is small and uncomfortable, and the helper handle is hard to grasp.