Travel mugs that miss the top recommendations can still be useful, but they may compromise on heat retention, leak resistance, availability, or ease of cleaning. The following honorable mentions and products to avoid highlight those trade-offs, while the buying guide explains how materials, design, price, and safety considerations affect a travel mug’s performance.
Honorable mentions
These travel mugs are perfectly serviceable, but they do not perform as well overall as the leading options.
KeepCup 12-ounce coffee cup, $31
This double-walled, insulated mug is designed to replicate—and replace—a paper coffee-shop cup. It is a solid choice for anyone seeking a glass cup, although its rubber grip is plastic. The KeepCup does not keep drinks hot as effectively as the best options, and its lid feels somewhat wobbly.
OXO Good Grips Thermal Mug, $29
WIRED reviewed this mug in 2022 and gave it high marks for its sturdy construction and dishwasher-safe design. However, it is an older product and is often out of stock.
REI Co-op Camping Mug, $23 and up
REI’s stainless steel cups are decent, but they do not stand out in the broader travel-mug category. Testers found that the exterior coating was durable enough to withstand being knocked over several times outdoors.
Zojirushi Stainless Steel Mug, $40
The Zojirushi mug has an effective lid lock that helps prevent accidental spills, and it performs well at maintaining temperature. One reviewer unintentionally left tea inside for 18 hours and found that it was still hot when he opened the lid.
The drawback is the lid’s construction: It consists of three separate parts—a mouthpiece, gasket, and lid—with deep grooves that make cleaning difficult.
Mugs to avoid
Not every travel mug performed well enough to recommend. These two models fell short compared with the preferred options.
Greens Steel Beast 20-ounce Insulated Tumbler, $23
The Beast Tumbler has more than 81,000 positive reviews on Amazon, but the rubber seal around its lid comes off easily. As a result, the tumbler leaked extensively.
Toaks Titanium Double Wall 450-milliliter Cup, $40
WIRED frequently recommends Toaks gear for affordable titanium camping cookware. However, this mug costs $12 more than the Hydro Flask mentioned above and has a rougher finish.
Frequently asked questions
What you need to know about lead soldering
While testing reusable water bottles and travel mugs, WIRED editors found that some brands use lead soldering to seal insulated bottles. The potential for exposure is low because removing the lead pellets would require dropping or damaging the bottle or mug. Even so, the editors consider it an unnecessary risk, particularly because many leading options use safer sealing methods. WIRED removed mugs from brands that acknowledged using lead in their products.
What to look for in a travel mug
There is no shortage of travel mugs, and the best choice depends on how you plan to use one. Important considerations include the following:
- Leak-proof design: For a mug intended to be carried around, the ability to hold a drink without leaking or spilling is arguably the most important feature. Some travel mugs use patented locking technology designed to prevent drips, while others are not built to be completely leak-proof. A person drinking coffee during a morning walk or camping trip may not need the same level of leak protection as someone who puts a mug in a laptop bag.
- Material: Travel mugs are commonly made from stainless steel, ceramic, BPA-free plastic, or a combination of those materials. Glass mugs are also available, although they are less common.
- Stainless steel: Stainless steel is widely used in travel mugs and retains heat effectively, particularly in double-walled designs. It can keep a drink warm without making the exterior uncomfortably hot. Stainless steel mugs are often dishwasher-safe, but they are not microwave-safe and can sometimes give a drink a slightly metallic taste.
- Ceramic: Some mugs have a ceramic lining that helps preserve the drink’s flavor and prevents the lingering smell of yesterday’s coffee from affecting tea or another beverage. Ceramic also avoids the metallic taste associated with some stainless steel mugs.
- Plastic: Plastic is often used for travel-mug lids. Look for options free of known bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine disruptor.
- Glass: Like ceramic, glass has a neutral taste. It is heavier and generally less durable than other materials, however, so it is more likely to break.
- Shape: A mug used while driving should fit in a car’s cup holder. For walks, a handle may be more useful.
- Price: The recommended travel mugs range from under $20 to nearly $200. An expensive mug may be worthwhile for people who want precise temperature control, but most models cost about $30.
—Alexis Berger
How the mugs were tested
The tester has consumed caffeine since middle school and has informally used travel mugs for most of her life. For the formal testing process, she and other editors drank both hot and iced coffee and tea.
The tests considered heat retention and taste, including whether a mug gave beverages a metallic flavor. Editors also evaluated shape and design, including how comfortable each mug was to hold, whether it fit in a car’s cup holder, and whether it offered useful additional features.
To evaluate leak resistance, the testers vigorously waved the mugs and removed models that failed to meet their claims. To assess durability, they dropped the mugs onto both wood and concrete surfaces from a height of approximately 4 feet. They also considered ease of cleaning, since travel mugs can be difficult to scrub.
In short, a good travel mug must be able to handle everyday demands. If it could not keep coffee hot, protect a bag from leaks, and make daily use easier, it did not make the list.
Source: www.wired.com
