Bacon in an air fryer crisps evenly because the fat renders and drips away through the basket as it cooks, rather than pooling around the rasher the way it does in a pan — which is also why it produces far less spitting and mess than pan-frying.
Timing
Streaky bacon: 180°C for 8–10 minutes. Back bacon: 180°C for 10–12 minutes, since it's typically thicker and has less fat to help it crisp quickly. Check at the lower end of the range first — thickness varies a lot between brands and even between packs of the same brand.
Layout in the Basket
Lay rashers flat in a single layer rather than overlapping — overlapped bacon steams where it touches rather than crisping, leaving pale, floppy patches. If you're cooking a full pack, do it in two batches rather than crowding the basket.
Keeping the Basket Clean
A splash of water in the drawer beneath the basket (on models with a separate drawer) stops rendered fat from smoking as it hits the hot surface, and lining the basket with a perforated liner makes cleanup almost instant — bacon fat can otherwise build up in the basket's mesh over repeated cooks if it isn't washed promptly.
Streaky vs Back vs Smoked
Streaky bacon has the most fat and crisps fastest and most reliably. Back bacon has a leaner meat section that can dry out slightly if cooked to the same crispness as the fattier edge — pull it a minute earlier if you prefer the meat softer. Smoked varieties of either cut behave the same way as unsmoked in terms of timing; the smoking process doesn't meaningfully change cook time.