The stainless skillet that does the real cooking.

Tramontina's tri-ply clad pan is 18/10 stainless steel around an aluminum core, riveted stainless handle, made in Brazil. It works on induction, goes in the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, is NSF certified and carries a lifetime warranty. For the price, that is a remarkable list.

America's Test Kitchen has made Tramontina's 12 inch tri-ply clad pan its budget pick for years, praising how it resists warping and denting. Its reservation is the cooking surface, the narrowest in their lineup, which crowds food and browns a little less evenly.

Skip it if you regularly cook for six or more; the flat base is smaller than the rim suggests. Otherwise there is very little reason to spend more on your first stainless pan.

All-Clad invented bonded cookware and has made it in its Pennsylvania factory since 1971. D3 is the original line: stainless inside and out with an aluminum core, bonded all the way up the sides. The listing states it is made in the USA with global components, which is the honest version of the claim.

America's Test Kitchen has named the D3 12 inch fry pan its winner in this category for years, calling it a longtime favorite that still beats all newcomers. It is oven and broiler safe to 600 degrees Fahrenheit and works on induction. The handle is the one thing people argue about: it is shaped for an underhand grip with a groove down the middle, and some cooks find it uncomfortable.

Skip it if you want a pan for the dishwasher. All-Clad says to hand wash, and the polished exterior shows every mark.

Made In's Stainless Clad pan is five layers of metal, made in Italy, with a 430 stainless outer layer for induction. The 12 inch pan measures 12.5 inches across with a 9.5 inch cooking surface, 1.75 inches deep, and 20 inches long with the handle. The handle is hollow, which Made In says keeps it cooler and the pan lighter to lift.

It is heat safe to 500 degrees Fahrenheit and the maker says to hand wash. America's Test Kitchen liked its balance and handle design.

Skip it if flatness matters to you above all. America's Test Kitchen found its test pan did not sit perfectly flat even new and warped more during testing than the D3.

Copper Core adds a layer of copper at the center of the sandwich, bonded rim to rim, and shows it as a thin copper band around the pan's exterior. Copper conducts heat better than aluminum, so the pan reacts more quickly when you turn the flame up or down.

It is made in the same Pennsylvania factory as the D3, is oven and broiler safe to 600 degrees Fahrenheit, works on induction and must be hand washed. The handle has a cutout meant to keep it cooler.

Skip it unless you cook at the stove every day and notice the difference. For most kitchens the D3 does ninety percent of the work for half the money.