It’s quite a dilemma… a first world problem… choosing between two awesome pizza ovens that yes, are different, but are both going to turn out some of the best pizza you’ve ever eaten.
The Ooni Koda vs Fyra… Gas vs wood pellet…
Is one better? And, which one’s right for you?
In this guide, we’ll dive into everything you need to know about both of these popular backyard pizza ovens.
How do you use them both? Does the fuel change the flavor of the pizza? Is one easier to use? And, have you thought about when it comes time to clean up?
Before you invest in your new Ooni, let us walk you through our experience cooking on both so that you can buy the right one for your backyard.
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Table of Contents
Summary of the Ooni Koda vs Fyra Compared
Both the Ooni Koda and the Ooni Fyra are amazing pizza ovens!
Well built, high quality, super stylish, really easy to use, and most importantly, excellent at cooking pizza, they’re an amazing investment in Friday night pizza nights.
The Koda is ideal for anyone who wants:
- The easiest and fastest option of gas cooking
- Less mess because there’s no ashes or soot
- The larger 16 inch size
- A pizza oven that doesn’t take up so much space
Read our full review of the Ooni Koda.
The Fyra is perfect for the person who wants:
- Wood-fired pizza (although don’t expect a super smoky taste, it’s just not in there long enough)
- To use the same fuel as their pellet smoker
- A flame that won’t blow out when cooking in windy conditions
Using the Ooni Fyra isn’t as easy as the Koda. But, for wood-fired pizzas, it’s as easy as it gets.
There’s no needing to source the right sized logs, splitting wood or constant feeding of the fire. You simply fill the hopper with pellets and let gravity do it’s thing.
We usually refill the hopper once when cooking 6 12 inch pizzas.
Read our full review of the Ooni Fyra.
About the Ooni Koda
The Koda is the gas-powered version of the popular pizza ovens made by Ooni.
Connect it to a standard propane bottle and it’ll heat to 950°F in 15 minutes, ready to cook pizzas quickly and easily in your own backyard.
And, quickly is no exaggeration!
It literally takes 60 seconds to cook a pizza in the Ooni Koda.
Available in 2 sizes; the Koda 12 that fits 12 inch wide pizzas or the Koda 16 which fits 16 inch, it’s the most popular fuel type in Ooni’s line up simply because it’s so easy to get going.
You can connect both sizes of the Ooni Koda to a smaller, 1 pound propane bottle using the gas tank adapter (sold separately).
If you want to a pizza oven that’s powered by natural gas, the Ooni Koda 16 can do that with the natural gas conversion kit (sold separately).
About the Ooni Fyra
The Fyra is an updated version of Oonis original 3 design.
It runs off of 100% hardwood cooking pellets.
These are the same pellets you use in a pellet smoker (find our favorite brands here, you don’t need to use Ooni’s pellets).
It’s super conventient if you’ve already got pellets from your smoker. It’s also a great option if you’d like wood fired pizza but don’t want the hassle of logs.
Now, this pizza oven can still cook a pizza in 60 seconds and still takes just 15 minutes to get up to temperature at 950°F.
At the moment the Ooni Fyra is only available in the 12 inch model.
A Quick Comparison of the Ooni Koda vs Fyra
 |  |
Fuelled by propane gas or natural gas on the Koda 16 only and with the Natural Gas Conversion Kit | Fuelled by wood pellets |
12 or 16 inch pizza size (depending on model) | 12 inch pizza size |
Up to 950°F cooking temperature | Up to 950°F cooking temperature |
15 minutes to heat | 15 minutes to heat |
Cooks pizza in 60 seconds | Cooks pizza in 60 seconds |
Insulated, powder-coated carbon steel shell | Insulated, powder-coated carbon steel shell |
0.4" (10mm) cordierite stone baking board on 12" model, 0.6" (15mm) on 16" | 0.4" (10mm) cordierite stone baking board |
No door | Front door design |
15.5 W x 24.4 D 11.7 H | 15.4 W x x 29.1 D x 28.5 H |
20.2 pounds | 22 pounds |
An In-Depth Look at the Ooni Koda vs Fyra
Design and Quality
Both the Ooni Koda and Ooni Fyra are essentially made from the same materials. A powder-coated carbon steel shell that’s packed with an inch of mineral fibre insulation for optimal heat retention.
The 0.4″ (10mm) cordierite pizza stone sits just inside the opening and is the same on both 12 inch models.
Note that the Koda 16 has a thicker 0.6″ (15mm) pizza stone to absorb more heat with the larger base size.
But, to look at, the Koda and Fyra are obviously very different designs.
Because gas is cleaner to run, the Koda doesn’t need a chimney. So, there’s nothing standing in the way of it’s sleek design.
It’s minimalistic, surprisingly lightweight and very high quality.
The legs fold down for transportation and storage.
Set up, it’s really sturdy, the legs fold easily and overall, it’s really top notch. Great quality, absolutely no complaints in the build quality department.
The same great quality carries over to the Fyra too but there’s a few major design differences.
Firstly, you’ll notice there’s two chimneys. The taller at the front is to carry the smoke and soot away from your cooking space. There’s also a damper on it so you can adjust the temperature.
The rear chimney is actually the pellet hopper.
There’s no power to the Fyra. So, you’ll light it manually with one firestarter and the pellet hopper will gravity-feed the pellets into the fire so that once it’s lit, you can focus on the important stuff, the pizza.
The Fyra pizza oven also has a door on the front to hold the heat in. It should be kept closed while it’s heating and during cooking.
There is a small hook so you can hang the door on the front of the oven. The long handle does a good job of staying cool while you’re cooking so you won’t need gloves.
Capacity
The Ooni Koda is available in 2 size options; the 12″ Koda 12 and the 16″ Koda 16.
The Ooni Fyra is currently only available in the 12″ model, the Fyra 12.
Initially I thought 12 inch pizzas would be a bit on the small size. But, they’re actually pretty ideal for cutting on a regular sized board and serving on a regular sized dinner plate.
You can do individual 12 inch pizzas. Or, serve them to share. Both work equally well.
If you’ve got ann extra large family or are entertaining for a crowd, the 16 inch size gives you that more food per pizza.
But, when asked is 12 inch large enough? For most people, 12 inch pizzas are large enough. They’re about equal to a medium take out pizza.
I will mention that the gas-powered Koda 16 is a little different from the Koda 12.
While the 12 has a straight flame at the back, the 16 has an L-shaped flame that cooks the pizza on two sides at once so you can make fewer turns.
The extra large size does take an extra 5 minutes to heat up for a total of 20 minutes.
Size and Weight
When it comes to the Ooni Koda 12 vs Ooni Fyra 12, as you can see from the photo below, there’s not that much difference in size.
Both being 12 inch models, they’re practically the same width. The Fyra is a little deeper though because the handle sticks out so much.
And, obviously, the Fyra is a lot taller because of the chimneys. For storing and transportation, you can just lift the chimneys out and place them inside on a cold stone or next to the oven with the legs folded.
The Fyra is 1.8 pounds heavier than the Koda. But, at 22 pounds, the Fyra is still pretty easy to move around, transfer to the car or set up at a tailgate.
The Koda 16 steps the size and weight up considerably. But, you do get that larger pizza for it.
If you’re tight on space, keep in mind that with either option you’re storing the fuel as well.
Got a propane tank for a gas barbecue? Great, you can just use that. And, if you already store pellets for your pellet smoker, you’re just double dipping.
Starting the Ooni Koda vs Fyra
Starting the Ooni Fyra does take a bit longer than the Koda does.
Remove the fuel tray and grate. Fill it with the same high-quality wood pellets that you’d use in a pellet smoker (about 2 small handfuls). Then, pop a firelighter on top.
Light it, insert the tray back into the Fyra and wait a few minutes for the fire to get going.
After it’s burning well, fill the fuel hopper with pellets and let it heat with the door on.
A full hopper should last about 20 minutes.
To cook a round of 6 pizzas, we generally burn thorugh 1.5 hoppers of pellets, giving the stone a couple of minutes to heat up between pizzas while we get the next one ready.
The cap on the pellet hopper also doubles as a scoop you can use to fill up.
Cooking on the Ooni Koda and Fyra
It takes about 15 minutes for both the Koda and Fyra to heat up.
You can use the Ooni infrared thermometer to check that it’s up to temp and adjust the dial on the Koda or the damper on the Fyra. It is best practice. But, we’ve never used a thermometer and haven’t had an issues with heat.
The actual cooking process is the same on both the Koda and Fyra.
Launch your first pizza in using a peel (you will need at least one, two or more lets you create a bit of a production line with your pizzas).
Watch it while it cooks and when the side closest to the flame looks lightly brown and bubbly, turn it either with a turning peel, or by taking the whole pizza out with the regular peel and rotating it with your hands then putting it back in.
We generally like to do 3 turns, leaving it to cook for about 20 seconds each time.
Then, grab your pizza out with the peel, cut and eat while you’re getting the next one in there.
The actual process of cooking a pizza is the same on the Ooni Koda 12 as it is on the Ooni Fyra 12. If you’re using the Koda 16, you’ll get away with only turning the pizza once because of the larger L-shaped burner.
A note about cooking on the Ooni Koda:
- It is fitted with a safety valve to shut the gas off if the flame goes out
- But, if it’s windy, the flame does blow out pretty easily. It’s held up my cooking on a few occasions when it blows out mid-cook or wasn’t heating up when I thought it was
A note about using the Fyra 12:
- You need to replace the door between each turn
- There is a little peep hole for you to watch how it’s cooking
- It will backfire when you open the door. This is completely normal and is because you’re suddenly giving more air to the fire. But, you will need a bit of clearance behind the Fyra to prevent the flames from scolding something
Performance
Honestly, I have never bought a pizza anywhere in my city that’s as good as I can make on my Ooni at home.
Haha… that might have sounded a bit full of it.
Don’t get me wrong! I’m no pizza expert. I had never stretched dough before I used the Ooni and I’m still perfecting my toppings.
But, the both the Ooni Koda AND the Ooni Fyra can make incredible pizza!
The first image below (or image on the left) is out of the Koda 12 and the second image below (or image on the right) is from the Fyra 12.
Some people say that it takes a while to master how to use an Ooni. I don’t agree!
The Ooni Koda and Ooni Fyra are both perfect options for beginner pizzaiolos.
My first pizza was over-cooked. The second was under-cooked and the third… let’s just say, it didn’t make it to the table it was that good.
Crispy bases, well-cooked but not over-done toppings and lots of melted cheesy goodness… People who don’t really like pizza are even impressed.
And, yes, it really does take about 60 seconds to cook a pizza. It’s so much faster than cooking them in your oven. And 1000% tastier.
To compare the cook time of the Ooni Koda vs Fyra, I’d say the Koda cooks a little faster than the Fyra. You’ve got to watch it a little closer so that it doesn’t burn. The Fyra also cooks a little more evenly than the Koda.
Flavor
Like us, you’re probably thinking that the wood-fired Ooni Fyra is going to have more of that real wood-fired taste than the gas-powered Koda.
I was really surprised to see that I couldn’t really taste that much in the way of smokiness from a pizza cooked on the Fyra.
The Fyra pizzas do have a slight wood-fired taste if I’m thinking about it. But, give me a pizza from the Koda next to one from the Fyra and I can’t tell you which is which… they’re both great.
In case it’s just me who lacks a definitive taste, I made my extended family taste test them both as well and no-one really noticed a taste difference between the Ooni Koda vs Fyra.
It is nice to have the woody smell in the air while you’re cooking on the Fyra.
But, if you’re edging towards the Fyra for that woodiness, don’t expect too much difference in terms of flavor. The pizza cooks so quickly, it doesn’t have a whole lot of time to absorb much wood-fired flavor.
What Else Can You Cook On the Ooni Koda vs Fyra?
You can grill steaks, burgers and vegetables on both the Ooni Koda and the Ooni Fyra.
You will need a cast iron pan if you’re cooking anything other than bread in your Ooni.
Any liquid from meat or veggies will soak into the porous cordierite stone, damaging it and increasing the likelihood of it cracking in time. You can use your own or one of Ooni’s with an extra long handle to make it easy to get in and out of your pizza oven.
Other types of flat breads like focaccia also turn out great. But, the thing we most often use our Ooni for, apart from pizza, is desserts!
We love Ooni’s skillet brownie recipe and like to a slice with ice-cream post-pizza fest.
Portability
When it comes to taking your pizza oven to a friends house, camping or tailgating, the Ooni Koda 12 is physically a little smaller than the Ooni Fyra 12.
There’s no chimneys to remove. You literally pick up your oven, fold the legs in and put it in your car, truck or RV.
But, you do have a propane gas bottle to take with you as well.
If you’re using the gas regulator included with your Koda, you’ll need a standard propane bottle which are usually 20 pounds of weight and bulk or larger.
You can grab yourself a cheap gas tank adapter so that you can use the Koda 12 or Koda 16 with a small 1 pound propane bottle. It’s not going to last you as long cook-wise. But, reduces what you’re hauling with you.
You will need to take pellets with you as well. But, a small container isn’t as bulky as needing a huge propane tank, especially if you’re only doing one cook.
Cleaning
So, the Koda is lower maintenance than the Fyra.
With both pizza ovens, it’s recommended to wipe the stone clean and flip it after each cook so that it wears evenly.
You might also need to run your oven at max temperature occasionally if there’s any food stuck to the inside of the Ooni. Doing so will burn it off and you can wipe away once cool.
Price
The Fyra 12 is the cheapest pizza oven in Ooni’s range. The Koda 12 is just a little more expensive.
But, the Koda 16 is quite a step up from both of the smaller models. The L-shaped element and overall greater material volume warrants the higher cost.
But, if you’re after a high quality pizza oven on a lower budget, you can get that and great pizza with the 12 inch version of either Ooni.
Should I Buy the Ooni Koda or the Ooni Fyra?
Read our full review of the Ooni Koda.
But, if you’re not fussed about it taking a little longer to light (it’s still really pretty quick). And, don’t mind that it means a little more maintenance, there is something about a naturally wood-fired pizza on the Fyra that is that little bit extra.
Read our full review of the Ooni Fyra.
Another major point to consider when choosing between the Ooni Koda and Fyra is, what other barbecues do you have at home?
If you’ve already got a propane gas bottle or a pellet smoker, sticking to the same fuel means less stuff sitting around (as long as you don’t want to cook with both at the same time).
Which would I choose?
I was initially thinking the Koda because I have lots of young kids so easy is always preferrable.
But, it gets really windy where I live. The gas tends to blow out. So, the Fyra 12 now sits beside my pellet smoker as my go-to pizza oven and it’s really not that time-consuming to get going either.
Specs for the Ooni Koda 12 vs Fyra 12
Ooni Koda 12
Barbecue type: Gas-powered pizza oven
Barbecue material: Cold-rolled, insulated, powder-coated carbon shell with stainless interior
Stone material: 0.4″ (10mm) cordierite on Koda 12, 0.6″ (15mm) cordierite on Koda 16
Cooking capacity: 1 x 12″ pizza
Heat Range: Up to 950°F
Fuel type: Liquid propane gas
Price guide: $$
Model: Koda 12
Assembled size (in): 24.4 D x 15.5 W x 11.7 H
Weight: 20.2 lbs
Warranty: 1 year that can be extended to 5 with registration
Ooni Fyra 12
Barbecue type: Wood pellet pizza oven
Barbecue material: Cold-rolled, insulated, powder-coated carbon shell with stainless interior
Stone material: 10mm cordierite
Cooking capacity: 1 x 12″ pizza
Heat Range: Up to 950°F
Fuel type: Wood pellets
Price guide: $$
Model: Fyra 12
Assembled size (in): 29.1 D x 15.4 W x 28.5 H
Weight: 22 lbs
Warranty: 1 year that can be extended to 5 with registration
FAQs About the Ooni Koda vs Fyra
Which is better the Ooni Koda or the Ooni Fyra?
Which is the most popular Ooni pizza oven?
Which Ooni pizza oven makes the best pizza?
If you’re using the same dough recipe, the taste of a pizza cooked on the Ooni Koda vs Fyra will be very, very similar.
The Fyra pizza does have a slight woody flavor. But, most people won’t notice any smokiness and will just be wowed at how delicious the pizza is.
Is the pellet or gas Ooni better?
Can I use the Ooni Koda or Fyra indoors?
Which Ooni do we use?
After having used the whole Ooni line-up of pizza ovens, we currently use the Fyra 12 and the Karu 16.
With the Fyra 12, we love that it’s actually wood-fired pizza. Because there’s a real fire, so there’s no issues with the fire blowing out in the wind. The Fyra is still really easy to use, and, we like being able to use pellets from our pellet smoker.
But, we do also have the larger Ooni Karu 16 for a few reasons. Firstly, we have free hardwood and what’s better than free fuel?!? Well, except for great pizza.
We tend to use the larger Karu 16 for when we’ve got a lot of guests over to do bigger pizzas and get more food out faster. And, the extra size plus built-in temperature gauge of the Karu 16 means that it’s a bit easier to use when we’re cooking anything other than pizza.
We haven’t talked about the Ooni Karu in this article.
If you want to learn more, read our full review of the Ooni Karu 12, the larger Ooni Karu 16 with added features like the full glass door, or, check out our Ooni Fyra vs Karu comparison.
