Have you thought about that you will need a 36” hood for the 36” range? Are you able to forego the upper cabinetry for the additional 6” of hood?

Yes, we do have the space for the 36 in hood.

Only you can decide if the cost is worth is to you, financially and emotionally.

Bluestar is freestanding, not slide-in.

M Miller is correct. You'll need at least a 36" range hood.

You can certainly use the higher heat for stir fries without meat. My 48" Bluestar does have a preheat indicator. I've never had a range with a timer, so I've never missed it.

We're a family of five and cook from scratch three times a day; we're not particularly keen on takeout. We also farm and raise/grow much of our food.

You might want to look at Bosch, Thermador, and Bertazzoni. They should be able to give you the look plus bells and whistles you want, without the firepower you don't need, and possibly at a lower pricepoint. The Bosch especially should give you everything you want at a lower pricepoint, and without the need for (and additional cost of) a range hood; plus it's a slide-in where most of the others are freestanding.

Can’t tell you if you should get one or not... but I have a huge 60” dual fuel range. I got myself a little timer that’s easier to use than any oven or microwave timer I’d ever used and I can have three timers going at one time on it! And I got little hanging thermometers for inside my ovens. All told, cost a few dollars and works better IMO. I like not having a bunch of electronics on my range, I find it more simple and straightforward to use. (Except it is a LOT of control knobs on a 60”... one for each of the six burners, two for each oven- oven setting and a temperature dial- one knob for the griddle and one knob for the grill... so people walk up to it and are like “OMG, how do I turn it on!?” But it’s really easy once you take a moment to figure it out. LOL!)

Performance almost seems like you would be better off with smaller burners. 6 burners is a lot to put on a 30" range though unless you are using exclusively small pans. The "edge to edge" burners could have your pans hanging over the countertop. "Open" burners is kind of a catch all phrase now days. What are the specific aspects of a BS star burners that appeal to you?

"Open" vs "sealed" refers to the burner tray. BS disassembles for cleaning and spills fall through the tray to a pull out tray below, which can be covered with foil. Sealed trays keep all of the spill on top.

Capped vs uncapped A cap makes the burner flare more on high heat. Uncapped allows the heat to go straight up. Good for stirfrying and may be better for your smaller pans as far as prostyle burners go, depending on their size. These are still big burners. All prostyle burners are big and that is why you often see a small pot burners too.. I use squat wide saucepans on mine.

Star shape vs ring burner- Star has burner ports distributed over a greater area. Helpful if you use bare or enameled cast iron or steel pans. If you have heavy aluminum or copper a single ring burner is OK because they are better conductors of heat. If you have clad cookware this ranks some of them as to how well they distribute heat.

https://www.centurylife.org/cookware-even-heating-rankings-butane-propane-natural-gas-etc/

Simmer is harder to evaluate. Look at the lower number on BTU range. Some manufacturers use a tempersture to rate but that depends on the pan and what you are cooking so pretty meaningless.

Would you consider a range top vs cooktop and possiby a wall oven? You could pick whatever type of oven you want, maybe a less expensive one if you don't use it much. You could get the 36" rangetop so the size you want with 6 vey usable burners. You would also not have a 36" oven which is a lot more to heat up.

Another option is a 30" range and add a couple of induction plates when you need 2 more burners.

What type of oven do you use i.e., gas or electric? Have you looked at combi ovens? They have steaming capabilities but also function as a regular convection oven. They are smaller.

A lot of this depends on what type of cooking you do.

As a vegetarian, I went with a Bluestar electric wall oven and an induction cooktop. I've found them to be much better than a range because there is no bending over and when the oven doors are open they take up less aisle space. The controls are simple, but enough so you can do the cooking without the oven telling you what to do. The broiler is first class. The induction saves 80% of the energy, doesn't heat the kitchen nearly as much, doesn't have gas fumes, requires much less ventilation, and is just as controllable as gas. The high heat of the induction is great for stir fry and boiling water.

Consumer Reports top-rated gas range is the 30" LG Signature LUTD4919SN which out-performed all the "pro-style" ranges CR tested.

CR tested the "pro-style" BlueStar RCS36SBSS which wound up near the bottom of its ratings. Many models have been recalled.

Have you considered induction? It doesn't have the look of pro range gas models, but the GE Café has the wonderful knobs like gas ranges, and will be much easier to clean. I've got one ordered, but haven't had a chance to cook on it yet, but most of the reviews I found said it was similar to, or better than cooking on gas.

My late parents were diehard Consumer Reports fans, but the Kitchen and Appliance forums at GardenWeb/Houzz haven't steered me wrong in almost 10 years. Your mileage may vary.

The Bluestar recall was instituted because people were using the ovens without reading the manual, which says not use the convection fan during preheating or broiling. The fix, which is quick and easy, involves an authorized appliance repair person installing a small override switch.

Investigate induction. A slide-in Bosch 800 or Benchmark at the upper end of the price range or a Frigidaire at a lower price point both have 17 levels of power control. They outperform gas in many procedures and are a quick wipe to clean.

Love my 36" BlueStar! The burners are amazing. Super hot when you need them and no issues simmering on the low side either. The open burners are great for cooking veggies in a wok. Ironically, I also own a combisteam oven that someone also commented on. This oven is hands down the best way to cook vegetables and makes incredible bread! Downside is that combi steam ovens are spendy.

I love my 36" BS RCS. I'm not sure if you were considering that model but it may be a great option for you. We eat mostly vegetarian, with some fish and chicken at times. The RCS simmers well, sears tofu, fish and chicken wonderfully, sautés and stir-frys perfectly. The oven works well for baking, roasting or broiling. Having 36" is great. Even if you never use more than 3 burners at a time, having the space for more pots/pans is great, and it's much easier for two people to use the stove at one time than it is on a 30".

Get the Bluestar and be done with it. You can't go wrong.

Thank you all so much! After visiting the appliance store for the 10th time, I actually went a different direction and ended up getting a Thermador. I know everyone says it's no biggie, but I was a little worried about cleaning aspect with two young kids after talking to a salesperson. In my next house though I think I'll definitely go for the Bluestar!