"You get what you pay for", says the old cliche, which is entirely true for rice cookers. Because rice seems to be such a simple food, and the cooker such a simple device, people usually don't want to spend more than the bare minimum when they purchase one. However before you decide to buy one, it is good to make some research.

For example, you can ask around your friends how they like their rice cookers. Then you should find out how much it was. It is very likely that the people who are happy with their rice cookers bought a high-end model; and those who complain about their appliance, bought a cheap one.

It is important to ask yourself how many times you will use your rice cooker before you buy. If you eat rice only once or twice a week, you don't need a special appliance. But if you love rice, and you want to have rice every day and you want to try different specialties, than a rice cooker seems to be a great kitchen tool to spend your money on.

Everybody knows that the secret of cooking delicious rice is to let it soak before you put it on heat. Expensive rice cookers have built-in timers which make possible to delay the start of the cooking process for a predefined time period. So you can let the rice soak as much as you need. A high-end appliance also can monitor the temperature of the rice and to make minor changes if necessary. A cheap model without this feature will leave burnt, crispy rice on the bottom of the cooking pan, which is difficult to clean.

Because more expensive rice cookers have a wide range of possible settings, you can adjust the cooking process based on the type of rice you want to prepare. This way you can differentiate the cooking process if you have white rice, brown rice, beans, wild rice or risotto. You can also choose the consistence of the rice: more wet, drier, or even as some kind of porridge. And you will get exactly the same results, no matter what your preferences are.

And you can buy extra add-ons such as a steamer basket: with this, you can prepare steamed vegetables as you cook your rice. Some people even cook fish or chicken using the steamer basket.