As a restaurant chef with over 10 years of hands-on experience at Dequte Restaurant LironBoylston, I’ve tested countless pizza ovens in a professional kitchen setting. In this article, I’ll be comparing the Ooni Koda 2 and the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven, both of which I’ve used extensively. I evaluated them side by side in terms of quality and materials, temperature control, shape, first-time usage impressions, power source, size, ease of cleaning, and also conducted a real pizza cooking test to see how long it takes to make a proper Margherita. For a deeper dive into my full testing methodology, feel free to check out my separate article: How We Test Pizza Ovens.
The Ooni Koda 2 is Ooni’s latest gas-powered model, designed for speed, smart heat distribution, and pro-level results at home.
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven, known for its affordability and rotating stone feature, is gaining popularity as a Costco and Sam’s Club alternative in the backyard pizza scene.
In this write-up, I’ve compared the Ooni Koda 2 and the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven in detail, using my testing data.
Disclaimer: This article includes referral links. If you decide to buy either oven through one of these links, I’ll earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. It’s a simple way to support my blog and help me continue sharing real-world, chef-tested insights. Thank you!
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Quality and Materials
| The Ooni Koda 2 features a die-cast aluminum shell and a thicker cordierite stone, offering excellent durability, weather resistance, and long-term performance in a professional or home setting. |
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven includes aluminum and thinner stainless steel components. The stone is less than 3/8” thick, which may lead to warping or inconsistent performance with extended use.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Temperature Control
| With its G2 Gas Technology™, the Ooni Koda 2 provides highly responsive and even heat distribution. It reaches 950°F in just 15 minutes and supports the Ooni Connect™ hub for precise monitoring. |
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven claims 900°F but rarely reaches that in practice. Even after 35–40 minutes, it maxed out around 755–775°F, with a small flame and limited heat control.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Shape
| The Ooni Koda 2 has a smart rectangular design with a sealed chamber, supporting better airflow and heat retention. It’s optimized for a 14-inch pizza size. |
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven has a rounded dome meant to distribute heat, but the thinner build affects thermal consistency, and it fits smaller pizzas only.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: First-Time Usage Impressions
| Out of the box, the Ooni Koda 2 is intuitive to set up and operate. The controls feel professional-grade, and heating begins quickly with impressive results on the first try. |
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven is easy to assemble and start but gave mixed first impressions with a weak flame and low rise on its first Margherita pizza.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Power Source
| The Ooni Koda 2 runs exclusively on propane, delivering consistent, clean-burning heat ideal for those who want hassle-free cooking without wood or charcoal. |
The Member’s Mark Pizza Oven also uses propane but with a weaker burner system. It depends on battery-powered rotation for the stone, which may affect long-term usability.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Size
| The Ooni Koda 2 weighs 35 lbs and fits a 14-inch pizza, making it slightly bulkier but still highly portable with foldable legs and a compact body. |
At just under 29 lbs, the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven is lighter and smaller at 24.2″ x 15.5″, but sacrifices some capacity and performance due to its compact form.
|
Ooni Koda 2 VS Member’s Mark: Ease of Cleaning
| The Ooni Koda 2 benefits from its gas-only design—just wipe the pizza stone after a session, and no ash cleanup is required. It also supports pyrolytic cleaning at high heat. |
Cleaning the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven is manageable with soap and water, but the stone requires more manual scrubbing and lacks any self-cleaning heat advantage.
|
Pizza Cooking Test
To truly compare the Ooni Koda 2 and the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven, I ran the same test on both: a classic 14-inch Margherita pizza using identical dough and toppings, cooked in my restaurant kitchen under the same conditions.
Ooni Koda 2 heated up impressively fast. In just 15 minutes, the pizza stone reached around 950°F. Once I launched the pizza, it took only 60 seconds to cook. The result? A beautifully puffed Neapolitan-style crust with perfect leopard spotting, evenly melted mozzarella, and slightly charred basil edges. The heat distribution was spot-on—crispy base, airy cornicione, and no burnt patches.
Member’s Mark Pizza Oven, on the other hand, claimed to reach 900°F but in reality, after 35–40 minutes of preheating, the stone barely passed 750°F. The Margherita pizza took about 6–7 minutes to cook, and I had to rotate it manually for evenness. The crust was noticeably flatter and denser, with light browning rather than blistering. The flavor was fine, but the texture didn’t compare to what I got from the Ooni Koda 2.
In short, Ooni Koda 2 delivered a faster, more professional-grade pizza with minimal effort, while Member’s Mark did its job but couldn’t reach the same standard of heat or texture.
How We Tested
As a chef with over a decade of experience at my restaurant, Dequte Restaurant LironBoylston, I approached this comparison with a structured, hands-on method. Both the Ooni Koda 2 and the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven were tested side by side in a professional kitchen environment to ensure consistency.
I evaluated each oven across eight categories: build quality and materials, temperature control, shape and design, ease of first-time setup, power source, size and portability, ease of cleaning, and—most importantly—how each performed during an actual pizza cooking session.
To maintain fairness, I used the same dough recipe, ingredients, and pizza size for both ovens. I preheated each to its maximum temperature, cooked a classic Margherita pizza in each, and carefully timed the process from ignition to finished pie. I also tasted the final product immediately to assess crust texture, cheese melt, and overall flavor.
These tests allowed me to see not just which oven gets hotter or cooks faster, but which one delivers a better pizza experience overall—from prep to plate.
Final Thoughts
Whether you prefer the advanced features and consistent performance of the Ooni Koda 2 or the budget-friendly accessibility of the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven, the choice ultimately depends on your cooking style and what you value most in an outdoor pizza oven.
If you decide to buy one of these models, I’d really appreciate it if you used my referral links—there’s no extra cost to you, but I’ll earn a small commission that helps keep this blog alive and my reviews coming.
- Here’s the link for the Ooni Koda 2
- And here’s the link for the Member’s Mark Pizza Oven
Thank you for supporting my work!