I prefer black - but its really about the style of your cooktop then the colour as far as ease of cleaning.

If you're going electric theres smoothtop ceramic glass cooktops with electric elements sealed beneath the solid surface. These are probably the easiest to keep clean in my experience. Personally I prefer gas, and am fairly active about keeping my stove clean inside and out. However with my current one theres a lot of nooks and crannies to worry about.

I have a black electric range with a ceramic, smoothtop, cook surface. It looked beautiful in the showroom. Unfortunately, it looks horrible in my home! Even though I clean it after every use (and it's not hard to clean), it ALWAYS looks dirty. It shows every speck of dust and every water mark. It looks dirty 5 mintues after I've wiped it down.

I still like the look of black, though. I'm not sure what I'll do the next time around.

I have a black smoothtop and I love it. It's always clean. But I cook a lot - no dust can form when that sucker is in use so much!

I cook a lot, too (1-2 meals a day). Maybe I just have a very dusty house because I'm forever wiping it down even when I haven't used it! :)

Thanks for the feedback. I also like the look of black but noticed in the showroom that you can see fingerprints easily. I also have hard water so am concerned that there may always be water marks. I've noticed that there are some cooktops that are more speckled in color (gray/black) which may work the best for me.

As I'm new to smooth cooktops, any advice on features or specific brands? I've heard that it's better to have larger elements in front vs the back and that it helps to have more than one heat indicator. Any others?

blue: I have the GE Profile 30" smooth top, black. This is my 2nd smooth top stove. My first was a Kenmore, that had the oven attached to it. It was white with a black & grey speckled top. I *loved* it. Loved cooking on it, loved the ease of cleaning, it was great. So I didn't hesitate to get a smooth top for the new kitchen. I can't say I am in love with the new one. It doesn't clean up as easily - and as one other poster mentioned, it seems like a dust magnet. (and I cook often). I have the digital touch controls that are built in to the glass. Don't like that either. I wish I'd stuck with knobs. Fingerprints galore from pushing the built in buttons, and they are not as responsive when I am wearing latex gloves, which I do frequently when prepping/cooking. I also prefer my old layout. It had 1 small burner and 1 lg burner in front - and 1 small and 1 large in back. The reason is that I have no overhead exhaust hood now - I have the pop up type exhaust. I usually do most of my cooking on the large burners, which are now in front with the smaller ones on the back. Since the exhaust is in the back - it's not very effective when I am cooking in the front on the large burners. So.... the long & short of it is.. I hope that this will be helpful to you in making your selection. Wish I would've stuck with the speckles.. even tho the black LOOKS great.

In the 'old days' white cooktops eventually discolored over the heating elements, aquireing an amber color no amount of scrubbing could remove. Dunno if this still happens or not...

Boxiebabe expressed my thoughts exactly. I have a GE Profile, black and it's a lot of work to keep nice looking. It's a good thing DH seems to enjoy keeping it black and glossy . My aunt has a Kenmore, speckled top and although not as pretty, so much easier to keep clean. I do like my stove top better than the old coil one though.

Just invented a solution that cleans the blacktops and makes them sparkle.
RDM

I have a Whirlpool Gold Gas cook top in black & it is a nightmare! Wish I would have gotten the stainless cooktop. I've had white too & it was easy to keep clean. Avoid black!

I can't comment on a white cooktop as I've only had a black one. Mine is always a mess and hard to clean. I have a bad habit of letting things boil over. I thought I'd tried everything to clean it, until my last resort was Scotch-Brite cooktop cleaner. After 5 years my cooktop looks almost brand new (aside from the scratches from trying scrape the surface clean with a razor).

I got mine at Wal-mart.

There is also a similar product for stainless which I have not tried.

Here is a link that might be useful: Scotch-brite

I have a white with grey specks slick cooktop and I absolutely love, love it! I would never go back to the coil type. I picked the white with specks b/c I did not want to continuously clean up fingerprints. As a matter of fact, I am in the final process of completing my kitchen remodel and have decided to keep my white appliances. ONe thin is that they are only 6-7 yrs old and I love the ease of keeping them clean. Good luck

Based on the feedback, looks like I should avoid the black cooktop (even though it looks sharp!). Will I encounter the same issues with a solid gray cooktop? See link below for a Frigidaire stove I'm considering.

Are there any other brands that you would recommend? As I'm likely moving in 1-2 years, I'm looking for solid quality appliances and not very cheap nor high end. Thanks!

Here is a link that might be useful: Frigidaire cooktop

We had black with light speckles (GE Profile), and loved it. (Bar Keeper's Friend cleaned off anything without damaging the surface) Burned on food wasn't very noticeable on the black background, where I think it would have been on white, and I would have had to be more diligent about thorough cleaning...With the dark background we could get away with being a bit lazy and put it off if I wanted or needed to. I've seen the all black ones and figured if I could get it clean of food and smears from wiping it, the fingerprints would drive me nuts.

Here is a link that might be useful: GE Profile 'white on black' cooktop

SIGH. I am raising my hand here. I have the GE Profile with the black smooth top and digital controls. It's been murder. I try to follow directions and always wipe up, to no avail. Every time I have to pick up a razor to get the crud off, I grimace. This single act makes my teeth soft.

I did purchase the scotchbrite pads, like jenanla said and I am doing somewhat better with this product. Maybe I must exercise more diligence. Barkeeper's Friend began to reduce the finish on the black edges of the stove, so I discontinued its use.

When I am ready to buy a new stove, I am praying the manufacturers remedy the ability to clean these smooth tops.

Having said all of that, I wouldn't return to the electric coils and drip pans if you promised me good coffee and a tummy tuck.

I got my first smoothtop (GE) 13 years ago and LOVED it - gray speckled top - very easy to keep clean. Got a new Kenmore with a black speckled top in November. Much harder to keep looking clean, BUT the speckles do help. Almost went with a white top but I do think it will show spills even worse than the black. Fingerprints do not seem to be a problem on my new top. But by all means - get the speckles. It also seems that spills are harder to clean than the old one. Another complaint I have is the venting on the front of the oven door - drips do run down in between the layers of glass so you can't clean it. Sears is replacing my glass after the repairman unsuccessfully tried to clean it. It seems these vents are in most doors. rmonk - what's your secret?

I have a GE Profile White top with light speckles. Bar Keepers friend keeps it clean with no problem. I've had it for about 5 or 6 years, and it still looks like new. No fingerprints show ever.

Bonnie

Have you considered induction? I have the black 30" GE profile and its a snap to clean. Spill overs never "cook" onto the surface, and a wet rag followed by a microfiber cloth cleans any mess.

I have had a white electric ceramic cooktop ro 20 years. Cleaning it with ceramic cleaner works fine. It looks like new. I like the look of white in our kitchen. I do not like black in a kitchen for any reason. Who made that poor decision. Also, heat control knobs should be on the side. Bad functional design decision. Located in front, the knobs are in the way.

Wow, @HU-587251242…so glad you revived a 15 yo thread for that valuable info…🙄