Electric stove burner not working: coil, glass and induction

Which kind of cooktop do you have?

Electric cooktops come in three designs, and each fails in its own way. Coil tops have plug-in spiral elements you can lift out. Smooth glass tops hide radiant elements under ceramic glass, each with its own temperature limiter. Induction tops use a magnetic coil under the glass and heat the pan directly. The first is often a do-it-yourself fix; the other two usually need a technician.

Coil burners: the swap test for an electric burner not heating

1. Turn every knob off and let the cooktop cool. Unplug the range or switch off its breaker if you will touch the receptacle.
2. Lift the dead element out by raising it slightly and pulling it away from the receptacle. Look at the two prongs: burned, pitted or blackened prongs mean the receptacle is likely damaged too.
3. Swap it with a same-size element from a burner that works, and test both spots.
4. Read the result. The dead element fails in the good spot: replace the element. The good element fails in the dead spot: the receptacle, its wiring or the burner switch is at fault.

A stove top not working on one coil but fine on the others usually leads to this test. Burner receptacles scorch when an element sits loose, so a replacement element should push in firmly. A burned receptacle should be replaced along with the element; a new element in an old, pitted receptacle tends to fail again.

Glass tops: element, limiter or switch

On a smooth top, a zone that stays cold can mean a broken radiant element, an open limiter (a safety switch that cuts the element when the glass gets too hot) or a failed burner switch. A zone that stays on high, or glows even when turned off, is almost always the switch or a relay on the control. These are checked with the range unplugged, by lifting the top and reading resistance across each part. Crack in the glass? Stop using the cooktop and shut off its power until it is repaired.

Glass-top ranges with touch controls add one more possibility: the touch control board itself. In 2019 Whirlpool recalled about 26,300 Whirlpool, KitchenAid and JennAir touch-control glass cooktops because elements could turn on by themselves; a zone that switches on unasked is a reason to stop using it and check for a recall.

Induction tops

Induction needs the right pan: a magnet should stick firmly to the bottom. Many induction zones also switch off when the pan is lifted, too small or boiled dry, and show a code. When a proper pan does nothing, the fault is usually on the power board that drives that zone, or in the coil. Both are technician work, and the part is model-specific.

What it costs

Fixr puts stove repairs in general at $100 to $400 nationally (general guide, updated January 30, 2025), and its oven guide lists heating element replacement at $150 to $400 and control boards at $200 to $600 (updated August 29, 2025). A coil element or receptacle sits at the bottom of those ranges. A glass top, an induction power board or a touch control sits at the top, and on an older range that is the point where replacement starts to make sense.

What the technician needs to know

Say which cooktop type you have, which zone fails, whether it stays cold or stays on, and what the swap test showed. Read the model number from the tag (under the cooktop edge, behind the storage drawer or on the oven door frame on most ranges) so the right element or switch is on the truck.

Reviewed October 1, 2026. Spotted an error? Write to admin@compareappliancerepair.com.