I originally wanted a rangetop with our remodel because I like the way they look. We were looked at 36" models, and I realized that I really liked the idea of the drop in cooktops with a large center burner. Functionally, it works very well for the way I cook. I like having the high temperature burner in the middle and the extra space around the other burners :) I really did not need 6 burners or a cooktop with a griddle as there are only 2 of us.

Perhaps another consideration beyond the ventilation is ease of cleaning. Cooktops usually have far fewer nooks and crannies for food debris and spatters to collect.

If you don't think you need the high BTU's of a pro-style range top, stick with a cooktop. You'll save money on the cooking appliance and on the required ventilation, and you'll simplify your kitchen chores. Spend the money you save on some other feature in your kitchen that will provide visual appeal, or that you'll actually use.

Just my two cents.

I really debated this, too. I ended up going with a 36'' rangetop w/ center griddle to get more cooking surface real estate because I do some canning and am primarily a stovetop cook. I was so frustrated with being able to fit only two chicken fryer size pans and nothing else on my supposedly four burner range.

Thank you-- can you all tell me what Brand / model you choose- how long have you had it? Are you happy with it? How hard is it to clean? Thank you again

You most likely won't need more ventilation for a rangetop vs. a cooktop. The formula for summing the BTUs of the burners is just a guideline. Unless you have a grill or plan on using all your burners on maximum most of the time, a 600 CFM hood will meet your needs regardless of whether you have a cooktop or rangetop.

Wolf natural gas, open burner. Can't answer other questions because it's not installed yet. (Very slow DIY project) Second choice was DCS but I wanted open burners. Not available on DCS. But it came down to whichever one I could get the best deal on & that ended up being the Wolf.

My first choice in cooktops was Caldera and I came really, really close to buying one. On several different occasions. Just couldn't hit the 'Buy' button w/o being able to look one over first.

There are plenty of high btu cooktops (like Caldera) if that's your fancy. Cooktops are a wee bit safer in that little kids (or my butt) are less likely to adjust the flame for you.

I've had a 36" Gaggenau model KG-291 with 5 burners for 3 years. I've been very, very pleased with it. Well spaced burners, Inner and outer rings of flame on the burners, very even heat, extremely easy to clean, and among the very best looking cooktops out there. I recommend it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Gaggenau KG-291

I orig wanted a cooktop w/wall ovens - when I priced the separate appliances it was not too staggering fr. a budget perspective - however the custom cabs were prohibitive -
cab for under the cooktop, cab for wall ovens
Coupled with the fact that wall ovens would mean loss of
counter -
After much research we ended up with a Viking 36"AG open burner range - Quite pleased despite the bad rap Viking seems to conjure here.

I researched and am a big fan (pun intented) of proper ventilation - A pro range or cooktop will both need ample ventilation - minimum for most would start at 600 cfms and should be vented directly whenever possible to exterior - when it's not possible to directly vent - the rating of the hood will diminish for the extra length and for each bend in ductwork

GL

HTH

We have a 36" Thermador drop in cooktop (2007 model). We considered a number of other brands, but were happy with the 30" version we bought when we first moved into the house, so we went with the same brand again and upgraded to 36". The surface is very easy to wipe clean although the inside corners of the burners (star shaped) do take a little more effort to clean. We have a 600 cfm vent-a-hood which is good for the type of cooking I do - mostly saute, boiling, simmering, and a little bit of pan frying.

We opted for a rangetop 4 years ago... Dacor ESG36... it's called the "classic" now because it has 6 15K BTU burners. IMO, rangetops looks nicer than cooktops. Our Dacor was $2135 4 years ago.

Cooktops whisper to a cook "yeah, okay, cook on me."
Rangetops shout "you got what it takes to cook on me? Bring it!!"

Just my opinion.

-Gorilla

I've had a Wolf 36" five burner cooktop for a little over three years and I've been very happy with it. I got 36 inch not so much for the 5th burner but because I frequently couldn't fit multiple pots/pans on my previous 30 inch range when I needed to.

I chose a cooktop because I didn't need any more robust burners than it offers - more important to me to have good simmer on all burners. I also liked the appearance of a cooktop better - I like the three drawers underneath and I felt like rangetops might become kind of a dated look.

I had a Whirlpool natural gas 4-burner cooktop with downdraft ventilation for 20 years. I hated the cooktop, because after purchase and installation I found that the left two burners automatically turned on the downdraft, whether I wanted it or not. The noise was awful, so for all that time I cooked everything on only the two burners that didn't turn the fan on. The controls were on top, near the downdraft, and eventually I disliked how grease would spatter into the tiny spaces between the knobs and how difficult it was to get a cleaning cloth between them.

I now have a Wolf natural gas rangetop with 6 open burners, all of which have the same range of BTUs. I have a Zephyr 600 CFM hood above it. Going from, effectively, 2 burners to 6 has been an "embarassment of riches." I tend to use the three front ones for cooking and the back ones for the tea kettle and sliding hot pans backward after cooking is done. The burner grates on the rangetop are heavy cast iron and way beefier than the thin steel grates on my old cooktop. The control knobs are on the front vertical surface of the rangetop and never get spattered. The black porcelain burner pans are easily lifted and transferred to the sink for cleaning, but so far I haven't had to do that because a few swipes with a microfiber cloth and a homemade cleaning solution (recipe found on GW) keeps both the black and the stainless steel parts sparkly.

I love this rangetop.

I think cooktops are perhaps safer because the knobs are on top. But sometimes the knobs get in the way on the top. I guess if you want the best rangetop it would be Bluestar. It really has the best burners, the flame isn't a circle, but an eight pointed star. It has open burners but no black painted steel to clean, everything comes out and is porcelain solid cast iron- including the bowls.

I forgot to mention the other feature that tipped me to a rangetop and that is what I call The Goodies. Other people call 'em grills, griddles, etc. I really, really wanted a chargrill because Wisconsin winters are long & standing outside over the gas grill isn't fun when it's -20! In the end, I got the griddle, second choice, because that's what this one had. And I'm OK with it because, as much as I would have loved the grill, the griddle will be much more useful for the way I cook & how I plan to use it.

Another factor that weighted on the Wolf side is my location. Wolf/ SubZero HQ is just outside of Madison, WI. That is, I know where they live and it is not seven states away. I can be at their front door in less than two hours. That gives me a measure of comfort should I have any problems or need parts that can't be readily addressed by my local dealer.

Since no one has mentioned this yet...if I still lived in Oklahoma, where the challenge is staying cool, I would have given a long hard look at induction cooktops. (And resigned the canning activities to some kind of gas burner out on the patio.)

Maydl...does your hood vent outside or recirculate? We have a deposit on a Capital rangetop with six burners, no griddle. We've been told various things about hoods. I'm wondering if a vent that recirculates will do the trick, rather than venting outside. I currently have a downdraft on a cooktop and seldom use it. I just don't think of it. Wondering what the best approach is for the new range top.

pix1, sorry that I haven't returned to this thread in so long. My Zephyr hood vents to the outside straight through the wall where the range top is located. I don't think recirculating hoods are well thought of on this forum; they certainly can't do much about cooking odors. I use my hood every time I fry and often when I'm boiling something. I don't use it every single time I cook, but most times.

I went with the GE Monogram 36" with four burners and the griddle. We love having the griddle and use it all the time for lots of different things. The burner are amazing. The simmer is a true simmer without having to use a simmer plate and on the highest setting I am boiling water for pasta in a very short time. The oven works fine, but I am most impressed with the rangetop. I did not have room for a cooktop with separate wall ovens. That would seem ideal if you have the space for it... but not sure if the rangetop functions differently than the cooktop. I just LOVE the way my rangetop works.

I have a 36" DCS rangetop and love it! Burners are powerful and it's easy to clean. I probably won't ever have every burner covered at one time but I do love the available option and the space to have several pots/pans going at once.

I had a cooktop plus wall oven, switched to a range, and without making any other changes on the same wall gained a lot of space. Here's old setup:
--36" base cabinet (two doors) under cooktop, no pullouts, center stile, about 6 inches of unuseable space under cooktop for electric/gas lines
--27" cabinet above wall oven with honkin' big vent pipe in center, never visited once by short person (me)
--smallish 27" wide base door cabinet below wall oven, again never used by me
--2 21" wide sets of drawers/base cabs on either side of cooktop, 2 upper cabinets 27" wide all saw heavy use
New setup has no wasted space: no useless above/below wall oven space, no wasted below-cooktop space. I have a 36" range, 36" base cabs (drawers) on either side, 36" upper cabinets, and one of the upper cabinets is nearly empty!

Of course, my old cooktop and wall oven were builder grade circa 1988 POSs, with a lot of stupid layout choices, and my new rangetop is a beautiful Thermador.

I went for the 48" Monagram with the grill. I have one of those brandless range hoods - about $500 in the door - which does a great job - even when I grill - which I do almost every day. It's a great rangetop.
One thing you may want to consider is cookware - if you have 10" diamater or more cookware you will get more use out of the high btus. If not, then you are stuck using the lower settings, even when you don't really want to.

Chefnewbie, I got a cast-iron diffuser plate to let me use high BTUS under small-diameter cookware. The plate covers the 6" flame circle, but it has a 2" hole in the center to allow heat to be concentrated under the cookware. I've used it successfully under a tiny 2-cup stovetop espresso pot. The diffuser plate also prevents high flames from melting the handles of small cookware.

I never thought of a diffuser plate. Thanks!