The first countertop microwave ovens were introduced in which decade?

Microwave ovens heat food by exposing it to high-frequency microwave radiation. The ovens’ dielectric heating process induces polar molecules in the food, particularly those in water, to rotate and produce thermal energy. Early models of microwave ovens were too large and expensive for general home use.

In 1965, the company Raytheon (an early pioneer in microwave development and distribution) acquired Amana Corporation, an appliance company in Newton, Iowa. In 1967, the first home microwave oven, a 110-volt countertop model, sold for US$495 (about $3,515 today). It was some 40 centimetres tall, 50 cm wide, and 30 cm deep. This popular version paved the way for the smaller, cheaper microwave ovens in use today.

In the United States, the number of countertop microwave units sold each year climbed from 40,000 to 1 million by 1975. The ovens were even hotter sellers in Japan. By 1976, 17% of Japanese families reported they owned one, compared with 4% in the United States. By 1986, roughly 25% of U.S. households owned a microwave oven, and that number increased to 90% by 1997, when the average price was about US$200.