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    Home Β» Tips and Manuals for Beginners

    Instant Pot Symbols | Display Panel Icons

    This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read the disclosure.    

    Published: Jan 31, 2021 | Updated: Jan 13, 2022 | Author: Paint the Kitchen Red | 6 Comments

    Instant pot symbols and icons Pinterest pin

    There are many Instant Pot symbols and icons that appear on the display panel. It can get confusing because they vary from model to model. In this guide, I tell you what the display panel fields, symbols, and icons mean on every Instant Pot model.

    Instant pot symbols and icons

    Table of Contents


    1. Instant Pot Duo Nova Symbols
    2. Instant Pot Duo Plus Symbols
    3. Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus Symbols
    4. Instant Pot Pro Crisp Symbols
    5. Instant Pot Max Symbols
    6. Instant Pot Ultra Symbols
    7. Instant Pot Smart WiFi Symbols
    8. Status Messages

    Note


    If you own a simpler model such as the Lux, Duo, Duo Crisp or Duo Gourmet you’ll notice that it’s missing from this article. That’s because those models have no icons on the display unit. They only show time in the display unit – cook time, keep warm time, and delay start time.

    If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, here are my guides on how to use some popular Instant Pot models:

    • Instant PotΒ DUO Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot PRO Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot PRO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
    • Instant Pot PRO CRISP vs DUO CRISP

    Instant Pot Duo Nova Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Nova model has a pretty simple display. [Find out more about how to use the Instant Pot Duo Nova]

    Instant Pot Duo Nova display panel with numbers 1 to 7 pointing to features
    1. Heating
      Icon with flame under a pot means the element is heating.
    2. Pressure Cooking
      Icon of a pot with the letter P means pressure cooking is in progress.
    3. Keep Warm
      Icon of a thermometer means Keep Warm mode is on.
    4. Sound
      Speaker symbol means the sound is on. A speaker with X next to it means the sound is off.
    5. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    6. Smart Program Mode
      Shows whether Less, Normal or More is selected, which indicates how long to cook (with some exceptions such as Yogurt mode)
    7. Pressure level
      Shows whether Low or High pressure has been selected

    Instant Pot Duo Plus Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Duo Plus model has a pretty simple display, similar to the Duo Nova.

    Instant Pot Duo Plus display panel with numbers 1 to 7 pointing to features
    1. Heating
      Icon of flame under a pot means the element is heating
    2. Pressure Cooking
      Icon of a pot with the letter P means pressure cooking is in progress.
    3. Keep Warm
      Icon of a thermometer means Keep Warm mode is on.
    4. Sound
      Icon of a speaker means the sound is on. A speaker with X next to it means the sound is off.
    5. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    6. Smart Program Mode
      Shows whether Less, Normal or More is selected, which indicates how long to cook (with some exceptions such as Yogurt mode).
    7. Pressure Level
      Shows whether Low or High pressure has been selected.

    Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus model has a fairly complex display, but once you understand how to use it, you’ll be able to easily program it. [Find out more about how to use the Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus and its advanced features]

    Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus display panel with numbers 1 to 9 pointing to features
    1. Sound
      The speaker icon is displayed when the sound is turned on. If the sound is off, the speaker icon will have a line through it.
    2. Delay timer
      This clock icon is displayed when the Delay Start button has been pressed.
    3. Keep warm
      The icon of a pot with steam coming out shows up when the Keep Warm button has been pressed.
    4. Unit of Temperature
      The thermometer icon with F and C shows whether the temperature is displayed in Fahrenheit or Celsius.
    5. Progress Bar
      Shows Pre-heating, Cooking, and Keep Warm progress.
    6. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    7. Pressure
      Shows whether the pressure level is set to None, Low or High pressure.
    8. Temperature
      Shows whether the temperature setting is Custom, Low or High.
    9. Presets
      Different presets are displayed depending on the smart program that was chosen.

    Instant Pot Pro Crisp Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Pro Crisp model has a fairly complex display, but once you understand how to use it, you’ll be able to easily program it. It’s very similar to the Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus.

    Instant Pot Pro Crisp display panel with numbers 1 to 9 pointing to features
    1. Sound
      The speaker icon is displayed when the sound is turned on. If the sound is off, the speaker icon will have a line through it.
    2. Delay timer
      This clock icon is displayed when the Delay Start button has been pressed.
    3. Keep warm
      The icon of a pot with steam coming out shows up when the Keep Warm button has been pressed.
    4. Air fryer
      The fan symbol shows that the Air Fryer smart program is in use.
    5. Progress Bar
      Shows Pre-heating, Cooking, and Keep Warm progress.
    6. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    7. Sous Vide and Air Fryer Temperature
      Displays the temperature in Fahrenheit (F) or Celsius (C) during Sous Vide or Air Fry modes.
    8. Pressure
      Shows whether the pressure level is set to None, Low or High pressure.
    9. Temperature
      Shows whether the temperature setting is Low, High or Custom.

    Instant Pot Max Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Max model has one of the more complex displays, so here is a summary of all the different parts of the display to help you decode the symbols.

    Instant Pot Max display panel with numbers 1 to 13 pointing to features
    1. Pressure
      The pressure indicator symbol is on when the pressure cooker is still pressurized. The lid is locked and cannot be removed when the icon is on.
    2. Adjust Settings
      The gear with a lock symbol shows that settings cannot be adjusted. Touching the gear when the Instant Pot Max is in Standby mode will make the lock disappear and allow the settings to be changed.
    3. Unit of Temperature
      Touching the thermometer icon with F and C allows you to change the unit of temperature between Fahrenheit and Celsius.
    4. Altitude
      Touching the mountain icon lets you toggle between feet (ft) and meters (m) and set your altitude. The Instant Pot Max will adjust cook time based on the setting.
    5. Sound
      Touching the speaker icon allows you to toggle the sound on and off.
    6. Progress Bar
      Shows Pre-heat, Cook, and Keep Warm progress.
    7. Time/Status Message
      HH:MM (H=hour, M=minute).
      – Shows Clock when the Instant Pot Max is in Standby mode. Touch the Hour field to change the hour and touch the Minute field to change the minutes.
      – Shows Cook time, Delay Start time, or Keep Warm time when Instant Pot is in operation. – This section also displays Status Messages.
    8. AM/PM and ft/m
      – AM or PM is shown when the clock is displayed.
      – When altitude is being displayed, either feet (ft) or meters (m) will be shown, depending on what unit you’ve selected.
    9. Pressure
      Touching the pressure bar icons allows you to set the pressure to Low, High, or Max pressure.
    10. Temperature
      Touching the temperature field allows you to toggle between Low, High, and Custom. This field also displays the temperature for Sous Vide, Canning, and Custom temperature settings.
    11. Keep Warm
      Touching the icon of a pot with steam coming out allows you to turn the Keep Warm function on and off.
    12. Venting
      There are three Instant Pot Max venting symbols that allow you to select the venting method. The circle with a line through it is for Natural Release (NR). The dotted circle symbol is for pulse or intermittent release (PR). The solid circle is for quick release (QR).
      [Find out more about the different pressure release methods.]
    13. Delay Start
      To set a delayed start, touch the Delay field. When the Delay function is on, the clock icon on the right will show the second hand ticking.

    Instant Pot Ultra Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Ultra model doesn’t have any icons, but it does have a display panel with a lot of information. Here’s a summary of the display panel. [Find out more about how to use the Instant Pot Ultra]

    Instant Pot Ultra display panel with numbers 1 to 9 pointing to features
    1. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    2. Pressure
      Shows whether the pressure level is set to None, Low or High pressure.
    3. Temp.
      Shows whether the temperature setting is Low, Medium, High or Custom.
    4. Delay
      Shows whether Delay Start is On or Off.
    5. Keep Warm
      Shows whether Keep Warm function is On or Off.
    6. Sound
      Shows whether the Sound is On or Off.
    7. Temp. Unit
      Shows whether Temperature is being displayed in Celsius (C) or Fahrenheit (F).
    8. Alt
      Shows whether Altitude unit is feet (ft) or meters (m).

    Instant Pot Smart WiFi Symbols and Icons

    The Instant Pot Smart WiFi model has a display that’s similar to the Duo Plus, but with a few WiFi-related extras.

    Instant Pot Smart Wifi display panel with numbers 1 to 11 pointing to features
    1. WiFi
      The WiFi icon will display when WiFi is enabled.
    2. Heating
      Icon of flame under a pot means the element is heating
    3. Pressure Cooking
      Icon of a pot with the letter P means pressure cooking is in progress.
    4. Keep Warm
      Icon of a thermometer means Keep Warm mode is on.
    5. Sound
      Icon of a speaker means the sound is on. A speaker with X next to it means the sound is off.
    6. Time/Status Message
      Shows the Cook time, Delay Start time, Keep Warm time, or Status Message.
    7. Timers
      Timer 1 shows when the first timer is being programmed and Timer 2 is displayed with the second timer is being programmed.
    8. AM/PM
      The Instant Pot Smart Wifi allows the current time to be set with a 12-hour clock that shows AM or PM.
    9. Pressure Level
      Shows whether High or Low pressure has been selected.
    10. Smart Program Mode
      Shows whether More, Normal or Less is selected, which indicates how long to cook (with some exceptions such as Yogurt mode).
    11. Script Running
      The symbol with arrows in a circle indicates that a script is running.

    Status Messages

    There are many different types of messages and information that appear on the display panel.

    Status MessageMeaning
    AutoThe Rice smart program is running.
    OFFThe Instant Pot is in Standby mode.
    LidThe Instant Pot lid is not secure or the lid is on during Saute mode.
    OnThe Instant Pot is preheating.
    BoilThe Yogurt smart program is in Pasteurize mode.
    HotThe inner pot is hot enough to add food during the Saute smart program.
    00:00 –
    99:99
    In Delay Start mode – a countdown timer that displays how long until the selected smart program starts. On some models with a clock, this number may be the actual start time.
    During cooking – a countdown timer that displays the cooking time left in the selected smart program.
    In Keep Warm mode – a count-up timer that displays the length of time that food has been warming.
    EndSmart program has completed.
    Burn or Food BurnThe pressure cooker cannot come to pressure because there isn’t enough liquid or food has burned and is stuck to the bottom of the inner pot. Find out more about the Instant Pot Food Burn Message.
    No PrThere is not enough pressure.
    PrSEThere is excess pressure.
    C #The letter C followed by a number indicates that an error has occurred. For more details see Instant Pot Common Problems.

    If you found this article to be helpful, please share it on social media using the social media share buttons at the top and bottom of this post. Thank you so much!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jennifer

      January 30, 2023 at 4:08 pm

      Thank you for breaking this down! I was freaking out the last few times I used my IP. I saw the fire on the pot icon and thought it was a burn notice. I would cancel my ip and think maybe I need to add water. But I would still get that fire icon. So, finally I Googled it and other sites said I needed to add water or clean my pot, etc. So again I canceled my ip and all seemed good. So goggled again and found your detailed information, with illustrations! Now I can laugh πŸ˜ƒ its not a burn notice, it’s heating πŸ˜‚ whew! Back to cooking. Thank you πŸ’œ

      Reply
      • Paint the Kitchen Red

        February 01, 2023 at 2:12 pm

        That’s pretty funny, Jennifer. But hey, the relief is a good feeling! Thanks for commenting.

        Reply
    2. Mia

      January 03, 2022 at 10:28 pm

      Thank you so much for this article!!! All I wanted was to know what each venting symbol means because I forget all the time, and this was the only place I could find it! Thank you so much for doing this!

      Reply
      • Paint the Kitchen Red

        January 04, 2022 at 3:32 pm

        Mia, happy to help!

        Reply
    3. Tina

      February 13, 2021 at 1:34 pm

      I have an 8 qt LUX IP but I’m not finding anything mentioned in your article.

      Reply
      • Paint the Kitchen Red

        February 16, 2021 at 1:32 pm

        Tina, the LUX screen does not have any symbols on its screen – just the time – and so I didn’t include it.

        Reply

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