Yes, when it's weighed down by food. Loose parchment near the heating element is the actual hazard, not the paper itself.
Air fryers are basically small, powerful convection ovens, and that fan is exactly why parchment paper needs special handling here compared to a regular oven. A sheet that would just sit still on a baking tray can get pulled upward in an air fryer basket.
Used correctly, parchment makes cleanup easier and keeps delicate foods from sticking to the basket. Used carelessly, it can end up scorched against the heating coil.
Air fryers work by circulating hot air with a fan near the top of the basket, often moving air at a fairly forceful rate to crisp food quickly. An empty basket lined with parchment, especially during preheat, gives the fan nothing to hold the paper down, and it can get sucked up against the heating element — that's where scorching or a small fire risk comes from, not the parchment sitting flat under food.
Add parchment after food is already in the basket, or cut it slightly smaller than the basket so it doesn't have loose edges hanging up near the sides. Never preheat an empty basket with parchment inside, and don't run the air fryer with parchment but no food weighing it down, even for a quick reheat.
Standard parchment paper is typically rated for continuous use up to about 420-450°F (215-230°C), and most air fryer recipes run 350-400°F (175-200°C), so regular parchment usually has margin to spare. A handful of high-heat air fryer settings push past 400°F, which is worth checking against your specific parchment brand's rating. Wax paper is not a substitute — it isn't heat-rated for this and can melt or smoke well below air fryer temperatures.
Pre-cut, perforated parchment sheets made specifically for air fryers let hot air pass through the holes, which cooks food more evenly than a solid sheet can and reduces the soggy-bottom effect you sometimes get with a full sheet. Look for sheets pre-cut to match common basket sizes (roughly 7-9 inches across for most household models), which saves you from trimming a full sheet down by hand. They're not required, but they solve the airflow problem more elegantly than trimming a regular sheet by hand and guessing where to cut holes. Either option beats skipping liner paper entirely for sticky marinated foods that would otherwise bond to the mesh basket and take the nonstick coating with them when you try to pry food loose. A quick spray of oil on the parchment itself can also help release sticky glazes without needing to scrub the basket afterward.
Parchment and air fryers get along fine as long as the paper never runs the show unweighted. Put food in first, keep it away from the coil, and you're set.
It's unlikely if it's weighed down by food and kept away from the heating element, but loose parchment pulled upward by the fan during preheat is the scenario that can cause scorching.
No, regular parchment works fine for most uses. Perforated air-fryer-specific parchment just improves airflow and even cooking, which matters more for foods that need a really crisp result.
No — wax paper isn't rated for the temperatures air fryers reach and can melt, smoke, or transfer wax onto your food. Stick with parchment or a silicone liner instead.
No — leave gaps around the edges so hot air can still circulate underneath and around the food. A full solid cover blocks airflow the same way foil does.