Do HexClad Pans Have PFAS? The Honest Breakdown

Do HexClad pans have PFAS? A lawsuit and a settlement say older pans used PTFE, a PFAS. Here is the full story and truly PFAS-free cookware to buy.

By ·

Do HexClad Pans Have PFAS? The Honest Breakdown

HexClad is everywhere: the celebrity-chef endorsements, the slick hybrid look, the promise of nonstick convenience with stainless steel toughness. So when shoppers started asking whether those pans contain PFAS, the answer turned out to be a genuine plot twist, complete with a lawsuit and a multimillion-dollar settlement. Let me lay it out plainly, because this one is a great lesson in reading cookware labels with a skeptical eye.

What’s Inside

The short answer

It depends on when your pan was made. Older HexClad cookware, especially pans sold between 2022 and early 2024, used a PTFE nonstick coating, and PTFE is a type of PFAS. HexClad marketed those pans as PFAS-free and non-toxic anyway, which led to a class-action lawsuit and a settlement. HexClad’s newer line uses a ceramic coating it says is free of PTFE and other forever chemicals. So a HexClad pan from the older era almost certainly had PFAS, while the brand’s latest cookware is a different formula.

What the lawsuit revealed

This is not speculation; it is in the court record. A class-action lawsuit, Cliburn v. One Source to Market, alleged that HexClad marketed its cookware as PFOA-free, non-toxic, and PFAS-free while its pans were coated with PTFE. The case ended in a 2.5 million dollar settlement covering purchases from February 1, 2022 through March 31, 2024. As part of the deal, HexClad agreed to stop advertising products as non-toxic, PFOA-free, or PFAS-free if they contain PTFE.

That last line is the kicker. A company does not agree to stop calling a product PFAS-free unless there is a real reason to. Consumer advocates at Mamavation flagged the PTFE-versus-PFAS-free contradiction well before the settlement, and the legal outcome backed up the concern.

Wait, PTFE is a PFAS?

Yes, and this is the heart of the whole mess, so let’s make it crystal clear. PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene, the slippery stuff originally known by the Teflon brand) is a fluoropolymer, and fluoropolymers belong to the PFAS family. A pan can be genuinely PFOA-free (PFOA is one specific older PFAS chemical) and still be coated in PTFE, which is itself a PFAS. That gap is exactly how “PFOA-free” gets used to imply “PFAS-free” when it is not. Think of it like advertising a snack as peanut-free while it is still loaded with tree nuts: technically one true claim, but not the reassurance you thought you were getting. I unpack this trap further in my post on whether your nonstick pan is hiding a forever-chemical problem.

What about HexClad’s newer pans

Credit where it is due. HexClad’s current cookware uses a TerraBond ceramic coating that the company states is free of PTFE, PFOA, PFOS, lead, and cadmium. If that holds up, the newest pans are a real improvement over the older PTFE versions. The catch for shoppers is that you cannot tell the old coating from the new one by glancing at a product photo, and plenty of older inventory and resold pans are still floating around. When the safety of a pan hinges on a manufacturing date you cannot see, I would rather buy cookware whose material is obviously safe from the start. You can compare options in the PFAS Free Life database and my guide to PFAS-free HexClad alternatives.

Truly PFAS-free cookware to buy

The cleanest way to dodge this entire debate is to choose cookware whose material has nothing to hide: ceramic-coated, pure stainless steel, or cast iron. Here are three PFAS-free picks:

  1. Titanium Ceramic Stainless Steel Nonstick Frying Pan Set - A non-toxic ceramic-and-stainless set free of PTFE and PFOA, giving you easy-release cooking without the fluoropolymer.

  2. Redchef Ceramic Nonstick Frying Pan - A single ceramic skillet that is PFOA-free and non-toxic, perfect for eggs and everyday sautes without a PFAS coating.

  3. Ranbomer Stainless Steel Frying Pan - Pure stainless steel with no nonstick coating at all, so there is simply nothing to leach, ever.

Search the Database For More PFAS Free Cookware 🔍

So, do HexClad pans have PFAS? The older ones did, through their PTFE coating, and the company paid to settle a lawsuit over how it was marketed. The newer ceramic line aims to fix that. If you would rather not gamble on a manufacturing date, pick ceramic, stainless steel, or cast iron and cook with total peace of mind.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do HexClad pans contain PFAS? Older HexClad pans, particularly those sold from 2022 through early 2024, used a PTFE nonstick coating, and PTFE is a type of PFAS. The company settled a class-action lawsuit over marketing those pans as PFAS-free. Newer HexClad cookware uses a ceramic coating it says is PTFE-free.

Is PTFE a PFAS? Yes. PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) is a fluoropolymer in the PFAS family. A pan can be PFOA-free and still be coated with PTFE, which is why “PFOA-free” does not mean “PFAS-free.”

Was there a HexClad lawsuit? Yes. The class action Cliburn v. One Source to Market resulted in a 2.5 million dollar settlement covering purchases from February 1, 2022 through March 31, 2024, and HexClad agreed to stop calling PTFE products PFAS-free or non-toxic.

What cookware is truly PFAS-free? Ceramic-coated cookware, pure stainless steel, and cast iron are reliable PFAS-free choices because they do not use a fluoropolymer nonstick coating.

Found this useful? Help others find safer products — share this article, or search our database of PFAS-free products.

Disclosure: PFAS Free Life may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this article. We only recommend products we have researched and believe in. See our about page for details.