A proliferation of choices available to consumers as they select a major cooking appliance necessitated the development of a Buyer’s Guide which will provide consumers with generic information by which they can compare range cooktops and microwave ovens. The microwave oven is included because it is often used in the place of a cooktop. The Buyer’s Guide for Range Cooktops and Microwave Ovens as an information resource is designed to be used by consumers to assist in making an informed purchase decision. The study was conducted in three phases: 1) identification of items included in the Buyer’s Guide; 2) establishment of test procedures; and 3) focus panel evaluation of the Buyer’s Guide. Phase 1 - Eleven items considered to be important in making purchase decisions were identified by members of the Virginia Retail Merchants Association and by Virginia home economics Extension agents. Items rated as important for inclusion were: purchase price, maintenance, life expectancy, operating costs, energy use, speed of heating, evenness of heating, heat retention, heat recovery, ease of cleaning, and ease of use. Phase 2 - Using standardized test procedures, data were obtained for the radiant coil electric smoothtop to allow the comparison of items found on the Buyer’s Guide with other types of range cooktops (conventional electric coil, gas burner, induction cooktop, smoothtop resistance coil, solid element) and the microwave oven. Phase 3 - Four focus panels were conducted to evaluate the Buyer’s Guide for Range Cooktops and Microwave Ovens for clarity of content, practicality of format, and its usefulness to consumers. The 26 focus panel participants recommended changes which were incorporated into the Buyer’s Guide for Cooktops and Microwave Ovens. They indicated a belief that the Buyer’s Guide would be useful for consumers seeking generic information by which to compare major cooking appliances. Further research is needed to evaluate the Buyer’s Guide for Range Cooktops and Microwave Ovens for its usefulness to consumers in the selection of a cooking appliance in the marketplace. / Ph. D.