Travel Mug That Keeps Coffee Hot for Hours and Easy to Clean
The research
- Why yous should trust us
- Who this is for
- Tumblers, thermoses, and insulated bottles
- How we picked
- How we tested
- Our pick: Zojirushi SM-SC
- What well-nigh cold drinks?
- Flaws but not dealbreakers
- Long-term test notes
- Also smashing: Contigo Autoseal Transit Mug
- Budget selection: Contigo SnapSeal Byron Mug
- Care and maintenance
- What to look forward to
- The contest
- Footnotes
- Sources
Why you lot should trust united states of america
Over the past 4 years, we've spent 60 hours researching travel mugs to go along this guide electric current. For this update, I (Anna Perling) spent 10 hours researching and comparing mugs from 12 unlike brands and iv major retailers, and eighteen hours testing 13 finalists against our top picks. I also took a trip to Target to see how the mugs felt in real life.
Who this is for
Travel mugs, as their name implies, are for people who desire to take beverages on the go. In improver to being portable, travel mugs also retain hot or common cold temperatures for several hours and then you can enjoy your coffee, tea, or cocoa over time. Compared to paper or styrofoam to-go cups or open ceramic mugs, a good travel mug volition offering amend insulation and also safeguard against leaks or spills. If you commute, work or travel exterior, or simply want to savor drinks for longer, a travel mug is for you lot.
You tin can also save money and reduce your environmental impact, by taking a potable in a travel mug versus ownership one on the go. Co-ordinate to a 2012 report, the average American spends $1,092 a year on java. And co-ordinate to a 2014 CNN report, over fifty billion paper cups are thrown away every year (many paper cups are lined with plastic, making them unrecyclable). A travel mug offers dark-green solutions to both issues.
Tumblers, thermoses, and insulated bottles
So what most tumblers, thermoses, and insulated water bottles, all close cousins to the travel mug? Tumblers have sipping ports that don't seal equally tightly or securely equally travel mugs and accept wider mouths so you lot can add ice cubes; many also have straws for sipping cold beverages. Y'all tin check out our guide to tumblers if these kinds of cups are what yous're looking for. As for thermoses, well-nigh lack the slim size and hat design features that make travel mugs portable and user-friendly. With a thermos, instead of popping open a hat to take a sip, you'll need to unscrew the cap and pour liquid into an open cup to drink. (Effort doing that while driving. Actually, please don't.) And insulated water bottles are geared towards keeping drinks common cold, and don't accept sipping ports like travel mugs (instead, they oft have screw-top lids that crave two hands, or sport caps that aren't slap-up for hot drinks).
How we picked
For our 2017 update, nosotros combed the internet to look for any new editorial pieces published since our terminal guide. Cook'south Illustrated (subscription required) has a review from 2014 that we considered, every bit does Outside Online. We also looked at reviews from Your Best Digs and Good Housekeeping, and read through hundreds of comments on our existing mug, water bottle, and tumbler reviews. Nosotros compared the pinnacle 40 bestsellers from Amazon, Target, Walmart, Costco, and REI, and reviewed the mugs we dismissed in 2016 to meet if any had been updated or discontinued. Then we ventured to Target to encounter how some of the mugs actually felt in our hands. Based on our practiced interviews and research, we looked for mugs that met the following criteria:
Vacuum-insulated: All of the mugs we considered are double-walled and vacuum-insulated. Dr. Michael Dickey, professor of chemical engineering science at North Carolina Country University, explained that vacuum insulated mugs provide the best heat retention: "Rut is transferred via conduction. Think almost heat transferring from your hand to surface. Merely if there'due south a gap in between, like a vacuum, rut doesn't transfer every bit fast." In that location are very few atoms at all to conduct estrus in a vacuum, which is why information technology works particularly well as insulation.
Heat retention: A mug should retain a drink'south hot or cold temperature for as long every bit its specs advertise, and we looked for mugs with the longest oestrus and cold retention times. Both engineers we spoke to noted that the majority of estrus loss occurs through the lid, and that mugs with wider lids are likelier to lose heat faster. Because of this, we gave preference to mugs without wide, open mouth drinking ports. But since some people prefer to beverage from a wider sipping port, which feels more like a ceramic mug, we did include a few broad-oral fissure mugs in our tests.
Stainless steel: Most travel mugs are made from either glass, ceramic, plastic, or stainless steel. We prefer stainless steel considering it'south more durable than glass or ceramic, and retains oestrus better than plastic. It'south too the best material for vacuum insulation (and therefore heat retention). When you look at various other guides that have been written on the subject, including an extensive oestrus-retention test performed by Tested, the mugs that rise to the top are ever double-walled, vacuum-insulated, and stainless steel.
Occasionally, travel mugs come with a stainless steel exterior and a ceramic or glass interior. That'south probable because some people recollect that stainless steel affects the taste of beverages, but there'south no scientific evidence to prove this miracle. The problem with glass or ceramic interiors is that they can break easily. Plus, a growing number of mugs lined with stainless steel now come with electro-polished interiors, which makes the steel less probable to retain strange odors and flavors. Our choice has a non-stick, Teflon inner blanket, so it's a breeze to rinse out.
Leakproof and spillproof: When you put a mug into a bag or cup holder, its lid shouldn't leak. The all-time mugs have two sealing mechanisms: the outset covers the sipping port and the second locks the lid into identify to prevent information technology from existence jostled open. With some mugs, you have to hold down a button to open the sipping port for drinking, so information technology seals automatically when you let go. This auto-sealing mechanism prevents spills if y'all knock over your mug.
Easy to utilize: A travel mug should be like shooting fish in a barrel to use. This may sound silly, but a few of the mugs we considered are harder to operate than others. If y'all're going to be using your mug while driving or biking (not that we recommend doing so), you'll definitely need at to the lowest degree one hand free, and probably both eyes. A good mug should be piece of cake to both open and shut, as well equally to lock and unlock, with one hand. The chapeau shouldn't completely block your vision while driving, or striking your nose when drinking, and it should be easy to disassemble for cleaning.
Handle-free: Nosotros decided not to exam mugs with handles for several reasons. Start, they're unnecessary: With a vacuum-insulated mug, you don't need to worry about burning your paw on the mug's body. Handles add additional heft and weight to a bag or haversack, and may besides prevent a mug from plumbing fixtures into a cup holder.
Size: Some people prefer wider mugs that won't rattle in cupholders, while others like slimmer mugs that take upward less space in backpacks or numberless. We prefer lighter mugs because they're easier to carry, and we looked for mugs that would fit in loving cup holders while still being like shooting fish in a barrel enough to concur in one manus. Nosotros also took into business relationship how versatile mugs were for preparing beverages and whether they accommodated cascade-over drippers, Aeropresses, our favorite tea steeper, or unmarried-cup brewing devices similar Keurig machines. We opted to test mugs with a sixteen-ounce capacity, which was the median size for most mugs we considered (ane exception that we tested only came in an eighteen-ounce size).
Durability: A mug shouldn't paring or break when dropped from a reasonable height or get-go leaking later on. Nor should its paint or coating vesture away subsequently cleaning per the manufacturer's instructions. We eliminated mugs with poor reviews that complained of leaking, paint chipping, or dents.
How we tested
When designing tests for this update, I considered the everyday wear and tear that a travel mug might go through in a multifariousness of real-world scenarios: on bike commutes, cars, trains, angling boats, and across. I tested mugs for leaks, dropped them, measured how long they could keep drinks warm in a cold environs. I besides hand done them, took apart their lids, and tested them in loving cup holders and with a various brewing devices.
First, I did an overnight leak exam. I filled each of the travel mugs with water and several drops of green food dye, laid them downwardly on a bed of paper towels and tarp on my kitchen floor (sorry, roommate), and left them overnight. I disqualified whatsoever mug with a green stain on the paper towel underneath in the morning.
To see if mugs would leak when jostled in a bag, I did a shake examination. I wrapped mugs, notwithstanding full of water and green food dye, in a paper towel so put them in a plastic bag. I put the plastic bag in a backpack, and so, channeling my loftier-school Jazzercise days, pumped some tunes and did 30 jumping jacks, ran around for xxx seconds, and then shook the bag by hand for 30 seconds (I would non recommend doing this after eating breakfast, should y'all carry your own mug testing).
So I filled all mugs to capacity with water, went to my flat's parking lot, and dropped each mug 3 times from a height of iv feet. I eliminated any mugs that broke or leaked upon impact.
Next, I investigated how well each travel mug could maintain the estrus of the liquid inside. Co-ordinate to both 2012 U.s. Barista Champion Katie Carguilo and the Specialty Java Association of America, the ideal brewing temperature for coffee (and black tea) is most 200 °F, and the best temperature to drink is at roughly 145 °F to 155 °F. Using those temperatures as a benchmark, I put each mug's insulation to exam in a cold, harsh environment: my freezer.1 I filled each mug with water at 200 ºF, put them in the freezer, and checked the temperature of the water every hour for eight hours. With the summit performers, I repeated this test at room temperature.
I likewise manus washed all mugs, reading their manuals to learn how to take autonomously and reassemble their sometimes-catchy lids.
To see how versatile mug sizes were, I tried putting the mugs in a bike cup holder and in the cup holders of a 2010 Hyundai Elantra. I tried putting a pour-over dripper and an Aeropress on each mug, and measured each opening to run across whether our favorite tea steeper would fit. I also asked several Wirecutter staffers to measure the height of their Keurigs to get an idea whether mugs would fit nether a unmarried-serve coffee maker. Most reported 6-7.five inches of clearance after removing a bottom platform.
Our pick: Zojirushi SM-SC
Our pick
The Zojirushi SM-SC is the absolute best travel mug for keeping drinks hot for long periods of time. It features impressive thermal-retention abilities, and has a thoroughly leak-proof, locking hat. Compared to like Zojirushi mugs, the SM-SC is a fleck slimmer and lighter, and more than comfortable to drink out of. This mug comes in 12-, 16-, and twenty-ounce sizes (the SM-SC36, SM-SC48, and SM-SC60 respectively). Subsequently spending close to 78 hours on enquiry and testing and considering more than 98 travel mugs over four years, nosotros have no doubt that this is the best travel mug y'all can get.
The SM-SC has sturdy, leakproof seals and a simple locking mechanism that we trust to go on our belongings dry out. Just close the hat, switch the lock into position, and y'all're guaranteed that the top won't pop open when yous don't want it to. Although other mugs, such as the Contigo Autoseal Transit and the Avex ReCharge, seal automatically to prevent spills, we plant them more hard to use one-handed since you'll need to concur downward a button to potable.
Zojirushi's stainless steel mugs have continued to dominate the competition in our rut-retention tests. Later on 8 hours in the freezer, the h2o within the SM-SC was 142°F—a decrease of 58 degrees. At room temperature, the mug performed even better, with water measuring 188°F after 1 hr, and 165°F after eight hours. That means you're getting drinkable, hot, 140-degree-plus coffee 8 hours later brewing, even when information technology'south stored in a freezing-cold environs. (If you're opening the mug more frequently than once an hour, all the same, it might cool a bit faster.)
The other Zojirushi mugs nosotros tested, the SM-KHE (the older version of this mug) and the SM-LA (a wide-mouthed option with a spiral-off lid) kept liquids just as warm every bit the SM-SC over the class of 8 hours in the freezer. These mugs are also well constructed, but we adopt the SM-SC over the rest of the Zojirushi mugs for its lighter weight and simpler lid, which has fewer pieces to clean. The flip-tiptop hat on the SM-SC is also more compact than the the one on the SM-KHE, so it obscures your view a bit less. But if you prefer a unlike Zojirushi, we think they're all fine choices; nosotros also break down what's different about all of Zojirushi'due south mugs in our contest department.
Zojirushi recommends rinsing its mugs immediately later on use and manus-washing them. Information technology'due south easy enough to make clean the SM-SC using some soap and occasionally a bottle castor when necessary. You tin can completely disassemble the plastic lid to clean out any smells or gunk that might get lodged in hard-to-reach places, although the small plastic parts can be hard to become on and off the lid. The nonstick interior besides helps to foreclose odors and stains, but the mug's instructions warn against using milk or fruit juices in the mug. The nonstick blanket is fabricated from fluoropolymers of the sort used in Teflon—which are not harmful to people, even if ingested.2 If you lot prefer drinking from a vessel that doesn't have a nonstick coating, you might prefer the SM-KHE, which has an electro-polished stainless steel interior.
The SM-SC is durable. It did develop a few scuffs later our drop tests, but not whatsoever more than the other mugs we tried (some of which dented, chipped, and scuffed far worse). Zojirushi backs the vacuum insulation of its stainless steel mugs with a v-year limited warranty, and on the off-chance that the lid breaks or wears out, Zojirushi sells all the individual replacement parts online.
The SM-SC as well has an attractive pattern that's minimalist yet eye-communicable in its simplicity. It comes in slate gray, turquoise, and coral. The identical SM-SD comes in matte gold, cerise, stainless steel, and blue. Although the as well-identical SM-SA has been discontinued, you can still find some online; the SM-SA came in black, cinnamon gold, red, and pearl pink.
What most cold drinks?
Although nosotros didn't place much emphasis on keeping common cold liquids cold for this guide—cheque out our water bottle guide for what'southward best in that regard—we have historically found that the Zojirushi SM-SC retains cold better than all of the other mugs in our testing lineup.
Over a menstruation of viii hours in our previous tests, this mug immune our icy-common cold 33 °F water to warm up by only 4 degrees, while the other mugs in our test group allowed the temperature to rise considerably more than over that fourth dimension. So if you're looking for a dual-use container that tin can preserve both hot and common cold well, the SM-SC can hold its own—especially since information technology'southward available in a larger, 20-ounce chapters. But exist enlightened that its narrow opening is less than ideal when you're trying to quench your thirst later cresting a alpine hill.
Flaws only not dealbreakers
Our only major complaint almost the Zojirushi SM-SC is that sometimes it's too skilful at insulating. Nosotros've found that if we make a fresh pot of coffee and pour it directly into the travel mug, the liquid ends up staying scalding hot for hours, and we've heard feedback near this from readers as well. To preclude this from happening, you can let your beverage cool a picayune before endmost the lid.
We also reached out to some coffee experts to larn whether it's a good idea to really keep coffee in a mug for 8 hours. Coffee roaster and licensed coffee grader Michael Ryan told u.s.: "Coffee that is kept hot is notwithstanding subject area to a breakdown in flavor. When kept in a sealed, insulated carafe where evaporation and oestrus loss are minimal, java nonetheless tastes terrible after a while." He explained that this happens because coffee's acids break down over fourth dimension and cause bitterness. And so, know that your coffee might not taste as great afterwards a long menstruum of time even if it is however warm.
Another small complaint is that this mug is a flake skinnier than your typical travel mug, which ways it may non fit snugly in a car cup holder or bike water-bottle cage. The SM-SC's narrow width also means you can't use an Aeropress, pour-over dripper, or tea steeper with it, and it's as well alpine to fit under a unmarried-cup brewer like a Keurig. If you prefer a travel mug with a larger circumference, bank check out our besides great and budget picks.
While the SM-SC is leakproof, information technology isn't spill-proof like our runner-up; there's no automatic seal to prevent h2o from gushing out if yous knock the mug over while the lid'southward open up.
Finally, at effectually $25 for the sixteen-ounce size, the SM-SC is on the college finish of the cost range for a travel mug. Simply we retrieve it's worth the extra dollars over the contest because of its superior construction and performance.
Long-term test notes
The Zojirushi travel mug might be the single product that the near Wirecutter staffers own and use on a daily ground—it'southward been a selection through many iterations of this guide, and has proved itself repeatedly. Information technology's been praised for still working well subsequently years of use, as well as surviving drops onto cement (one time from a 3rd flooring balustrade) without more than than a dent. Multiple Wirecutter folks take also reported successfully using the Zojirushi to bring chilled wine or other alcoholic beverages to events in parks and other public places—though nosotros couldn't possibly condone such beliefs.
Although cleaning in the dishwasher is not advisable, and Zojirushi specifies hand-washing (see the Intendance and maintenance section beneath), this mug has survived several accidental trips through the dishwasher without any noticeable decrease in performance (though the external pigment has occasionally flaked every bit a result). It has as well traveled in many crowded bags, backpacks, and purses without any leaks.
Also swell: Contigo Autoseal Transit Mug
Also great
Contigo Autoseal Transit Mug
A wider, simpler mug
Contigo's Autoseal Transit is a wider mug that may fit meliorate in cup holders than our height pick. It doesn't retain heat as well as the Zojirushi, but some may find the flat hat easier to drinkable from and make clean.
Ownership Options
If y'all want a mug that will fit more snugly in a cup holder and is easier to make clean, get the Contigo Autoseal Transit Mug. The Transit will keep drinks warm for hours, but non as hot every bit the Zojirushi. To prevent spills, the Transit has a push button-button (the Autoseal) which you have to concord down to drink, plus a cap that rotates to comprehend the sipping port. While it passed our leak test, it doesn't accept an actual lock to secure the lid cover like the Zojirushi does. The Transit may fit more securely in auto cup holders since it's wider than the SM-SA. It can also suit Aeropresses, unmarried pour-over drippers, and the medium size of our favorite tea steeper, although it'south besides tall to fit under most single-cup brewing machines. Nosotros think the Autoseal is easier to employ than our previous runner-upward, the Contigo West Loop, and like that it has an added barrier over the sipping port to continue out dirt and aid forestall leaking.
The Transit won't keep your beverages hot for every bit long every bit our top pick, but that might exist a plus for some people who retrieve the Zojirushi keeps drinks too hot. In our room temperature tests, the Transit'due south contents measured 171 °F afterwards 1 hour, and 114 °F after 8. That's 51 degrees colder than the water in the Zojirushi after 8 hours. But while 115 °F isn't piping hot, it's still drinkable. In the freezer tests, withal, the Transit cooled faster. After an hour, the contents of the Transit dropped to 158 °F. That's 26 degrees lower than the temperature of our principal pick. In its 8th hour of freezer testing, the h2o inside the Transit measured a lukewarm 80 °F. But if you lot drink your beverages chop-chop or don't desire to expect for them to cool downward earlier sealing your mug, the Transit may exist a better option for you lot.
With the Transit, you'll need to hold downwardly a push button to keep the sipping port open and potable from the mugs. Other mugs like the Contigo W Loop (our former runner-upward), Avex ReCharge, OXO Good Grips, and Camelbak Forge had a similar button, just I institute the Transit's horizontal push-button easier to press and hold than other buttons, which required more force per unit area. The push-push interface is slightly harder to operate than just flicking the switch on the Zojirushi, and may be frustrating to some who don't want to have to push button before taking every sip. But information technology does hateful you can't accidentally spill annihilation, since the mug closes automatically.
The Transit also has a twisting lid that covers the sipping port, while the like West Loop just uses a pop tab to open the sipping port. The Transit's twist top is a footling more than difficult to open 1-handed but protects the sipping port from gunk or germs and also offers a showtime line of defence force confronting whatsoever leaks. In both our shake test and overnight leak examination, the Transit didn't leak a driblet.
The Transit held upwards fairly well during our drop tests, but scuffed on its plastic lid and rubberized lesser. Contigo does offer a limited lifetime warranty, and sells replacement lids, should something happen to your mug. Another reviewers mention that the lid has hard-to-reach nooks and crannies, but it has fewer pieces than the Zojirushi, and is overall easier to have apart. You lot can soak the hat in soapy h2o as well to thoroughly clean information technology.
If you intendance near colors, the Transit comes in a few fun combinations: white with either mint green or periwinkle accents, matte black, or a brushed stainless steel. It only comes in a xvi-ounce size.
Budget selection: Contigo SnapSeal Byron Mug
Budget choice
Although the Contigo SnapSeal Byron Mug isn't every bit hardy or leakproof every bit our top pick, information technology's a wide, easy-to-hold mug that will piece of work fine if you utilise it more than gently. The Byron just has 1 sealing mechanism—a tab that you push button to open the sipping port—which is easy to employ, merely doesn't lock closed similar the lids on our other picks. The Byron also didn't go on drinks nearly every bit hot as the Zojirushi SM-SC. Merely if you won't be throwing your mug in a messenger purse or slowly sipping your drink all day, we like the Byron as a budget option.
In our tests, the Byron performed on par with the balance of the Contigo mugs we tested. In the freezer, 200-caste water cooled to 153 °F after 1 hour, and 78 °F later on eight. At room temperature, water in the Byron was 172 °F after i hour and 115 °F after 8. That'south about the same heat memory equally the Contigo Transit, our as well cracking pick.
The Byron's SnapSeal lid is like shooting fish in a barrel to use: you simply press down on a tab at the top of the lid to open the sipping port. Although the Byron passed both of our leak tests and is supposed to be leakproof, we would be concerned about putting the mug in a bag with our valuables, because the tab doesn't lock closed, and a devious bump could nudge the SnapSeal lid open. Our top picks, on the other paw, have 2 lines of defense against water coming out and anything else getting in: the Zojirushi has a chapeau that closes over the sipping port and locks, and the Transit has a cover that slides over the sipping port and an automatic seal to preclude spills.
The Byron's lid is one of the easiest to clean from the mugs we tested, because it's just one slice. I constitute that the lid itself, however, is more hard to spiral on and off than the lid on the Transit, but this is a minor issue. The Byron did dent more than than the Transit in our drop tests, but again, the asphalt dented or scuffed all of the mugs. We likewise saw some Amazon reviewers noting that the mug dented, and the grippy rubber middle was slightly off-kilter, but the Byron still has high ratings overall. Contigo offers a limited lifetime warranty (which doesn't comprehend drops) and sells replacement lids if yours wears out.
Similar the Transit, the Byron is wider than the Zojirushi SM-SC, and has a rubbery middle for easy gripping. The Byron is compatible with pour-over drippers, the medium size of our tea steeper pick and Aeropresses. At 7.2 inches tall, it volition probable fit nether a single-serve coffee maker, but you should measure out to make certain this mug will work with your automobile. In the 16-ounce version, the Byron comes in a silvery and pink colour. It besides comes in a twenty-ounce size in jade, blue, and pinkish, and in a 24-ounce size in blueish and matte black.
Intendance and maintenance
Also great
You should check a mug'due south manual to run across if it is dishwasher-prophylactic. According to a Zojirushi representative, dishwashers can impairment a mug's vacuum seal, which can potentially degrade the mug's ability to retain heat over time. Dishwashers can also scratch or wear away a mug's finish.
When you're hand-washing your mug, most of the time dish lather and water will do the trick. Regardless of the mug design, you may demand a few sizes of bottle brushes to clean in and effectually the lid machinery, the spout, and deep into the vacuum bottle itself.
If your mug comes with silicone seals, like the ones on our Zojirushi pick, you'll likely discover that over time they'll accept on the smells of what you drink from your mug. To remove the stink from your seals, you can bury them in fresh baking soda for ii days. Zojirushi besides recommends checking the rings once a year to make sure they're still sealing your mug.
We found that the best bottle-cleaning gear up out there is the OXO Good Grips H2o Canteen Cleaning Set. It comes with a big bottle castor, a skinny straw brush, and a looped item-cleaning brush, all kept together by a handy ring so y'all won't lose any of the parts. The set is dishwasher safe, and it barely has any one-star reviews on Amazon, then it'southward a pretty skillful bet for anyone looking to get gunk out of their hard-to-make clean items.
What to look forward to
Zojirushi has released a new mug, the Zojirushi SM-TA. Compared with our Zojirushi choice, the SM-TA has similar temperature retention and the same corking locking lid but costs more and has a few different pattern features, such as a smaller chapeau with a rounder opening. Nosotros'll be testing this new model and will report back on how it compares to our picks.
The competition
Zojirushi released an updated version of its classic travel mug, the Zojirushi SM-TA, that comes in 12-, 16-, and 20-ounce sizes and multiple colors. This mug offers the aforementioned heat retention and a locking lid like to that of the SM-SC simply has a smaller chapeau and drinking pigsty and a double-nonstick coating. We'll consider the SM-TA for a future update, but information technology seems to differ from the SM-SC but in exterior design.
Again, we should mention that the Zojirushi SM-SC is identical to the SM-SD and the SM-SA; the others just come in different colors. Zojirushi has discontinued the SM-SA, but you can yet find some online. The Amazon page for the mug lists the SM-SC, SM-SD, and SM-SA versions side by side.
If you can't find the Zojirushi SM-SC, or if you prefer to drink from a mug that has an electro-polished stainless steel interior instead of a nonstick coating, go the Zojirushi SM-KHE. The KHE was our original pick for this guide. It costs about the aforementioned as the SM-SC and will keep your drinks simply as hot. All the same, it weighs a little more than our principal option, has a bulkier hat that'south non as pleasant to drink from, and comes but in a 12- or 16-ounce size, whereas the SM-SC also comes in a xx-ounce size.
We also considered several other Zojirushi models for our 2018 testing, subsequently going through every offer on the company's site at the time of writing to compare them (a few new screw-summit models are now bachelor, which we volition as well expect at in our next update). Here'due south a breakup:
- Zojirushi SM-YAE Travel Mug: This 16-ounce mug costs a piffling more than our main option and runner-upwards. It comes with an electro-polished interior, similar the Zojirushi SM-KHE, with a shape that's stouter than other Zojirushi mugs and short enough to fit nether the spout of a single-cup brewing automobile. Its insulating performance is worse than that of our pick, however: After 8 hours, the h2o temperature had dropped to 100 °F, catastrophe upward 42 degrees cooler than our principal pick.
- Zojirushi SM-SHE: We were reluctant to test this mug due to persistent stock problems and the fact that information technology comes in only xvi- and 20-ounce sizes and 2 colors (orange and black). Zojirushi sent u.s.a. one to try out anyway, but it broke during our drop exam. After having many Zojirushi mugs survive multiple years of drops, nosotros retrieve this was an anomaly, but decided to dismiss the SM-SHE for all the aforementioned reasons.
- Zojirushi SM-KC: This mug has the same torso as the KHE, just comes with a nonstick interior instead of a stainless steel one. Since we previously dismissed the KHE, we opted non to test the KC.
- Zojirushi SM-PB: This mug simply comes in 10- and 11- ounce versions.
- Zojirushi SM-JHE: We opted non to test this mug with a wide-mouth, spiral-off hat in favor of the SM-LA, which comes in more size options.
- Zojirushi Stainless Mug with Tea Leaf Filter SM-JTE: The SM-JTE comes with a tea filter, but only in 11- and sixteen-ounce versions.
The Tiger MMJ-A048 mug looks and feels similar to the Zojirushi mugs, and nosotros wanted to come across how they compared in our tests. The MMJ has a similar pop-top chapeau and locking mechanism to our pick, but information technology'south more than difficult to take apart to clean. The Tiger mug also didn't exercise as well in our temperature tests, and its contents were ten degrees cooler than those of our top pick afterwards 8 hours. At the time of writing, the Tiger was likewise about $v more expensive than our pick.
The Contigo Autoseal West Loop Travel Mug was our previous runner-upward, and it has a tab like to the Contigo Byron that you lot printing to open the sipping port. Like the Contigo Transit, information technology likewise has a push button you need to push button before drinking. The West Loop didn't hold up likewise in our drib tests as the Transit, and we plant its vertical push-button harder to use than the one on the Transit.
After reading Your Best Digs's review on travel mugs, which named the now-discontinued Camelbak Forge as their winner, we retested this mug. Nosotros found it bad-mannered to utilize and beverage from; it uses a push-push button mechanism that's stiff, and has a very small sipping port. You can pop the lever to widen the sipping port, merely this is too challenging to figure out. The Forge isn't an easy mug to employ, especially before coffee.
We retested the Thermos Driver Bottle based on skilful user reviews, merely nevertheless plant its secondary locking machinery, a metal loop fitting over the front of the chapeau, to exist finicky to use. The Commuter Bottle leaked during our shake tests, and the latching device that secures the lid broke during our drop tests.
Nosotros wanted to examination the Thermos Stainless King mug based on its positive reviews, but the Stainless Male monarch leaked in our overnight tests, our bag tests, and upon impact during our drop tests.
Based on a reader comment, nosotros called in the now-discontinued Avex ReCharge AutoSeal Tumbler but found it difficult to use due to a tiny metal bar that locks and unlocks the mug for drinking. This mug likewise fared the worst in our temperature tests, coming in at 44 °F subsequently viii hours.
We considered testing the Joeveo Temperfect mug, which purportedly uses a special insulating material to capture excess heat free energy and then release it over time, keeping your potable at an optimal drinking temperature. Just information technology'south expensive: $40 at the time of writing, with a newer version that costs $280 (wow).
We opted to test the Byron over other budget mugs from Ozark Trail and Mossy Oak considering these mugs were explicitly non leak proof, or had more complaints of leaking.
The Klean Kanteen Insulated Wide was our pinnacle insulated water bottle pick for most of 2016 and early 2017, and was a runner-up in this guide. Originally this bottle had a café-mode lid that tended to leak, disqualifying it every bit a travel thermos. Klean Kanteen updated the lid in 2016, but in testing for our guide to water bottles, nosotros institute that the lid occasionally leaks if left overnight and can also limit the flow of your drinkable.
We tested the Timolino Icon Vacuum Travel Tumbler (PCT-46KM) in 2015. It'south a 16-ounce tumbler-style travel mug with a flip-up lid and an electro-polished interior. We liked the look and feel of the Icon, but every time we flipped the lid open to drink from it, a small amount of liquid splashed out of the opening and off the spout's rubber stopper. Plus, it failed to go on beverages as hot equally any of our picks in previous tests.
Nosotros love the look of the sixteen-ounce Stanley Classic One-Hand Vacuum Mug, which we tested in 2015. It resembles an former-school vacuum bottle merely has a mod button-activated hat that makes it easy to drink from one-handed. But information technology was unable to go along beverages as hot as our main option did, and we saw multiple complaints about the push button failing.
Nosotros previously tested the Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug (with tea hook). While we liked the look of information technology, the estrus retention was only then-then and we found the tea hook to be unnecessary. This Thermos mug also has a button-button interface: You printing the push button on summit when yous want to drink and press once again to seal information technology when y'all're washed. But it can exist disruptive to make up one's mind whether the button is in the up or downward position only by looking at information technology, so you may find yourself pressing information technology multiple times to figure out whether it's open up or airtight.
Bodum makes a combination French printing and travel mug that sounds appealing: Yous can literally mash your coffee within the mug as you accept it with you. In reality, though, the procedure is not much different from brewing the coffee outset and pouring it into the mug—in fact, information technology might be worse, because the Bodum will go on your coffee grounds in contact with the hot water for much longer, making the drink more bitter and acidic.
Nosotros got some requests to look at the Hydro Flask, so nosotros did. This model is not as expert as the other mugs we saw, let lonely our acme choice. It maintains estrus at a beverage level for merely a handful of hours (iv or less), and the drinking lid can't lock, so it'southward at adventure of flipping open, potentially spilling everywhere—a fact that the company's own website points out.
Footnotes
Sources
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Dr. Hongbin Pecker Ma, director,, Center of Thermal Management at the University of Missouri, phone interview , September 22, 2017
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Dr. Michael Dickey,, professor of chemic engineering at Due north Carolina State Academy, phone interview , September 26, 2017
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Rachel Sandstrom Morrison, digital editor of Fresh Cup Mag, electronic mail interview , September 28, 2017
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Michael Ryan, Director of Java and Licensed Q Grader, Dapper & Wise Roasters, electronic mail interview , September 28, 2017
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Amy Barnum, Zojirushi , telephone interview , September 25, 2017
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