These Air Fryer Chicken Wings have crisp, salty skin with plenty of garlic and lemon pepper flavor in every bite. These are seasoned to perfection and have a surprising ingredient that creates an irresistible crispiness. They also cook so fast with no marinating time required!

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Air Fryer Chicken Wings Recipe

Cooking Chicken wings in the air fryer is brilliant, and you will make wings way more often if you try this air fryer method. The combination of baking powder and circulating hot air of the air fryer makes the chicken skin super crisp, and the center is perfectly cooked, tender, and juicy. It’s also super FAST!

The cook time for air-fried chicken wings is just 16 minutes. It’s three times faster than my Baked Chicken Wings, Baked Buffalo Wings, or Lemon Pepper Wings when cooked in a traditional oven! P.S. Yes, you can totally make those variations in the air fryer and toss them with lemon pepper sauce or buffalo sauce!

Also, there’s no need to preheat an air fryer, which saves you prep time and makes this the fastest crispy chicken wings recipe. All you need is your favorite wing sauce for dipping (more on that below).

Air Fryer Chicken Wings Ingredients

• Chicken Wings – cut into flats and drummettes. I love the big packs of organic chicken wings from Costco.
• Spice Rub for these chicken wings is simple with our go-to spices for baked, sautéed or air-fried chicken. All you need is 4 ingredients: oil, garlic salt, lemon pepper, and baking powder (my secret ingredient to make the wings extra crispy).

How to Split Chicken Wings

If your chicken wings are sold whole (and they are less expensive this way), you will need to cut them for even crisping. To cut a chicken wing, locate the joint between the wing tip, the middle section (drumette), and the end section (the flat). Use a sharp knife to cut into the joint between these sections to create three pieces. Trim off any excess skin.

You’ll use the drumettes and flats. You can save the wing tips for chicken stock or discard them.

How to Air Fry Chicken Wings

• Prep Wings – Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and set into a large bowl. This is the key to extra crispy chicken wings.
• Season – Drizzle with oil, sprinkle on the seasonings, and then toss to combine.

2. Air Fry – Arrange the wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer, and you can bake right away – you can let them marinate if you prefer, but there’s no need to pre-marinate chicken wings. Air Fry at 400˚F for 8 minutes, then shake the basket to flip and air fry for another 8 minutes. They should be crispy and golden brown when ready.

Tips for the Best Air Fryer Wings

• Pat dry to remove excess moisture, so the skins get crisp instead of steaming.
• Let Air Circulate – leave some space between the wings and air fry in a single layer for optimal crispiness on all sides.
• Use a little baking powder – for extra crispy wings, about 1 tsp per pound of wings helps dry out and blister the skin for an extra golden and crispy skin. I also did this with my crispy Baked Chicken Wings.
• Sauce after cooking: wait until the wings are cooked to add any sauce. If you add sauce too early, the wings lose crispiness.

What to Serve with Air-Fried Chicken Wings

I love serving this restaurant style. My husband used to work at a Chilis restaurant and they served their wings with fresh celery and blue cheese dressing – classic! They also pair really well with these dips and sides:

We love crispy chicken like my Chicken Schnitzel, Popcorn Chicken or General Tso’s Chicken, but the air fryer is our new best friend for chicken wings because it’s so much faster, requires less oil, and is memorably crispy!