I don't quite agree with Swines' reasoning. "Cooktops are meant to be used when you when you want to put the oven under the cooktop" is true, but that's a small percentage of the people who choose cooktops, and isn't the main reason people choose cooktops over rangetops. Many if not most people with cooktops opt to have separate wall oven(s). As to griddles and grills, as Swines said, one can choose them to be a built-in feature of rangetops, but many people prefer the accessory type of grill/griddle anyway over the built-in grill/griddle, cause they're easier to clean, can be removed when you want the use of two more burners, and only cost about $40. So cooktop or rangetop can have a grill/griddle. I'll link below a recent thread on rangetops vs. cooktops that provides a list of differences. You don't say what size you are looking at--I think a 36" width is much better than a 30" width in a cooktop or rangetop. Also, I don't know that I'd call the differences "advantages/disadvantages". It's more a matter of people's personal cooking style, how different people like to operate in the kitchen, and their personal taste. As to the knobs on the cooktop, I wouldn't call them "dangerous". Millions of people have cooktops with the knobs on top! However, some cooktops do have those knobs closer to the burners than others; it depends on their layouts, and you should look at them in the store to see if you think the knobs are too close. But I think you'd be hearing about people burning themselves all the time if that really were the case. As I already said, you would do better with a 36" width where there will be less crowding. Here is a link that might be useful: Thread about Cooktop vs. Rangetop

BlueStar has both a cooktop and a rangetop. It appears the burners on the cooktop are the same as the rangetop but there is no drip tray on the cooktop, so there must be some difference. The cooktop is billed as 22000 BTU however! and is considerably less than the rangetop. Would love to hear from someone who has compared them. In my current kitchen I have a cooktop. I'm not a messy cook but inevitably there are spatters and having to clean around the knobs (or remove and wash) takes more time than doing the entire rest of the top. I want a rangetop in the new kitchen specifically so the knobs are in front and hopefully will not get any splatters. I have to say, cleanability is probably at least as or more important to me than performance.

I'm lazy, too, and if there are crumbs between my range top and the counter, I don't notice at all. And it's been 13 years now. If this issue will keep you awake at night or add another hour to your daily clean-up, then don't get a range top. But it's really not such a big issue. ;-)

If he likes to cook, and you already got your clean lines everywhere else...let the man have his range top! No way would I choose a cooktop over a range top so I would not have to see the knobs. Those knobs are sexy and mean business! Induction or a cooktop for me would be...meh, looks wise, not nearly as exiting.