If you are wondering about building codes, then no you don't "have to have a vent hood". But if you are asking about indoor air quality, cooking smells, and grease on your cabinets, then yes, you probably should have a hood.

I clean the baffles on our hood every couple of weeks, and there is quite a bit of grease that I remove each time. The good news is, with a well-built hood, cleaning is as easy as putting the baffles into the dishwasher. The bad news for you is that all this grease would get spread all over your kitchen, if you don't have a hood.

So, I absolutely would recommend one. I don't think they look ugly at all. But as always, that really depends on how good your kitchen designer or architect is:

Noise on the outside of the house is negligible. I can stand three feet away from the vent opening, and I can't hear more than a bit of a whispering rush of air.

Noise on the inside when the hood is in use is a different thing. You'll never be able to completely eliminate that. If it does it's job, it needs to move air. And that makes noise. But if you have the space, you can install a remote blower and in in-line silencer, and that will cut down on a lot of the noise. Of course, that also costs more money.

Speaking of money, you are likely to also need a make-up-air system. That can get expensive, depending on your climate. In a moderate climate, it might be as simple as another motorized damper in your heating system. But in other parts of the country, you might need a heated make-up-air system, and those are pricey.

The good news is that with induction, you can often get away with slower flow rates for your hood. So, whereas we have a 1200 CFM hood, you quite likely wouldn't need anything quite that powerful. That'll make it cheaper and less noisy.

As a general rule though, do the math on the CFM that you need (see other postings on Houzz; look for anything by @kaseki), buy a hood with baffles rather than mesh filters, and have at least 3" extra overhang at both sides. If possible, have as much overhang in the front as you can do. Also, tell your contractor to put really big ducts in; that'll reduce noise and allow the hood to work much better. 8" or 10" diameter is really what you should have. 6" won't work well at all. All of those things will make the hood more efficient and easier to use.

Build a cardboard mock-up first, and use that to determine where you want to mount the hood. We mounted it above head height, and that's really nice, as it doesn't get into your sightlines. But some people prefer to mount their hoods lower.

Wow thank you! That is great info! I had no idea that it would help with anything besides cooking odors! I think my husband is worried about how it will look outside the house since it is on the front. Looks like I’ll start planning that we WILL need one! Thanks so much!

I renovated a kitchen in Denver about 4 years ago and put the induction stovetop on the island so I could visit with guests and cook at the same time. We didn’t use a hood and had no problem without one. I had no issues with dirt or smoke. Yes, when you cook oily food you will have some splatter, but instead of it getting splattered on the hood, gravity casts it back to the countertop. And those are very easily cleaned.

Hot greasy air rises before it starts moving around and eventually comes down again. Anything it touches in the process will slowly get a film of grease on it. Have you touched the tops of cabinets in older kitchens? They are filthy and yucky. That grime is so disgusting.

Yes, you can live without a vent hood. People have done this for a long time. But you also have to live with the consequences. And personally, I prefer breathing fresh air and having clean cabinets. But then again, some people rarely if ever even use their kitchens and it is mostly for decoration. If that's your life-style, then that's perfectly OK -- and in that case, a hood would obviously be wasted money.

I would like to see the layout of the kitchen maybe there is a better spot for the cooktop. Have you tried cooking on induction, do you have the right pots . I have clients that went induction and did not like it . I am a gas lover but I do have one induction burner for delicate sauces but I also have about 3K worth of very good stainless pots I bought in Italy and they don’t work with induction so might be part of my issue.