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Mar 26, 2024

The 8 Best Plastic Storage Containers of 2023

Keppy unsavory smells at bay while ensuring safe and fresh meal prep. Jump to a Section We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may

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Food & Wine / Kevin Liang

We’ve all been there. You’re rummaging around for the only lid (which happens to look like every other lid) that fits a storage container in a sea of lids that have accumulated in a kitchen drawer. Or, perhaps you’re trying to lid and seal a storage container full of liquid only to find out too late that it’s not exactly leak-proof. Maybe you’re wading through endless opaque containers in your fridge. Maybe you find yourself, once again, reluctantly throwing out a container that’s missing a lid or stained beyond repair.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Storage containers should serve you, not the other way around. Buying a large set can be a commitment, so knowing what you’re looking for before you make a purchase is helpful. Whether you’re prepping a week of dinners for a family of six, storing snacks for easy eating on the go, or keeping your fresh produce in optimal condition, your plastic containers should suit your needs and deliver on their promise.

We vetted 20 of the highest-rated and most popular plastic storage container sets to get you there. We also talked to chef and author Jacob Brach, a member of the Culinary Institute of America’s Society of Fellows and a certified ServSafe Instructor, among other things. We aim to ensure our recommended storage containers are as safe, airtight, stackable, durable, and dishwasher-friendly (or microwaveable) as they claim. Below, we list our favorite containers.

Amazon

Undoubtedly the best plastic storage containers we tested.

We wish there were a few bigger containers sold in this set.

Our best-in-show container set needs to check every box. The Rubbermaid Premier Easy Find Lids Food Storage Containers, Set of 10 does precisely that — it passed the trials and tribulations of our testing with flying colors. We noticed no leakage and found no evidence of air exposure, and while our avocado experienced some browning, we still happily indulged. When up against a brilliantly red tomato sauce, the stain left behind came out immediately with a quick hand washing.

With twenty separate pieces, this set offers containers in various sizes made of ultra-durable BPA-free plastic (both the lids and bases). Dishwasher-safe, shatterproof, and stain-resistant, these containers are built to last. Their ability to stack with ease also saves room in your cupboard, fridge, and freezer. While these are some of the simplest-looking containers we tested, they make up for their appearance with convenience and durability. No other containers tested were as easy to clean, which we consider a significant win.

Price at the time of publish: $70

Food & Wine / Dana Fouchia

Food & Wine / Dana Fouchia

Food & Wine / Dana Fouchia

Courtesy of Amazon

As leak-proof as promised, the number of pieces in this set makes it a great value.

We think the lids could break in the future.

Getting your money’s worth is a big deal when it comes to items you’ll use regularly. The Rubbermaid Brilliance Leak-Proof Food Storage Containers, 14-Piece Set, is the best value of every storage container set put through our tests. The reasoning is simple: this set has fourteen pieces at a reasonable price of $35. It’s also durable enough to withstand constant use, and we didn’t see any sign of leakage. They never absorbed a single smell or stain, either, so your future leftovers will be none the wiser. We suspect that the lids’ clips may eventually snap off over time, but so far, so good.

Price at the time of publish: $40

Food & Wine / Phoebe Hausser

Food & Wine / Phoebe Hausser

Food & Wine / Phoebe Hausser

Amazon

Stunning in both appearance and test scores.

On the pricey side, though we hardly care when you have 36 options.

If you’re going to splurge on something with everyday usability, like plastic storage containers, it might as well be the cutest of its kind on the market. This array of Tupperware pieces fits the bill. Perfectly pastel with classic Tupperware style, this set is retro and stylish. Besides looking nice, it received some of the highest marks out of everything we tested, and it really impressed us with how well it preserved the avocado. The Tupperware reputation certainly holds up. We recommend this set for anyone (or any family) who meal preps or needs containers for meals on the go. The variety of shapes and sizes offers convenience for preparing and storing food. We also love how easy these containers were to clean. Zero stains left behind means your containers will look this good long after you purchase them.

Price at the time of publish: $100

Food & Wine / Cara Milhaven

Food & Wine / Cara Milhaven

Food & Wine / Cara Milhaven

Amazon

A fantastic deal for a large and functional container set.

For smaller kitchens or families, this may not be the best set.

Maybe you’re a world-class meal prepper, or maybe you have a family that eats on the go. A set with 52 pieces is no joke. This variety and volume of storage containers mean this set has options for large and small food quantities. You can store leftovers from dinner, easily prep for tomorrow’s meals, and save extra dessert for later (who has ever heard of extra dessert, though?). As is typical with Rubbermaid products, we were impressed by how easily containers snap closed. The set also did well in our freshness test, keeping fresh produce in good condition for at least a day longer than it would have fared in other storage options.

Price at the time of publish: $22

Food & Wine / Michael Navarro

Food & Wine / Michael Navarro

Food & Wine / Michael Navarro

Amazon

0% leakage, 100% affordable.

We’d prefer a broader range of sizes, but these are perfect for condiments or sauces all the same.

Storing liquid contents is a task with which some storage containers struggle. When it comes to sauces and condiments, we sought containers that wouldn’t leak, whether they were stationary in the fridge or jostled around in a lunch bag. The Snapware Meal Prep 16-Piece Plastic Mini Kit with Lids is just that, and it’s highly affordable for a sixteen-piece set. Its containers come in an adorable range of colors — green, blue, yellow, and orange — that complement their rounded design and nest into each other. While our avocado browned a little bit quicker than other sets we tested, these containers kept food fresh otherwise. We recommend this set to anyone toting salads or grain bowls to work; these little guys are perfect containers for dressing, and any unsavory or lingering smells were quickly washed away.

Price at the time of publish: $8

Food & Wine / Julia Warren

Food & Wine / Julia Warren

Amazon

With eight reasonably-sized pieces, this set is useful without taking over your kitchen.

This set would benefit from an additional medium-sized container; there are better fits for freezer use.

A small set of containers is functional for one-person households, those with limited storage space in our fridges, or anyone looking to bolster their current reusable container lineup. A solid small set should have a conservative number of pieces in a small variety of sizes, which are things the design of this Popit! set does. The nestable components work well in storage spaces with limited room, and the containers are extraordinarily sturdy. When it comes to a smaller set, this one scored well in our leakage, durability, and airtightness trials.

Price at the time of publish: $32

Food & Wine / Bailey Fink

Food & Wine / Bailey Fink

Food & Wine / Bailey Fink

Amazon

A bounty of small, medium, and large storage solutions.

These containers left us wanting better results during the freshness test, so they might not be best for storing items like fresh produce.

While the Snapware Total Solution 20-Piece Food Storage Set has the range to suit fridge and freezer storage, a variety of container sizes is useful for pantry storage. The blue lining on the lids is attractive enough to display with dry goods like nuts, seeds, and pasta inside. They’re also stackable, meaning these containers will be lined up in neat rows, whether next to a carton of eggs or a cereal box. That said, this set didn’t pass our leak test, and we wouldn’t recommend using them for meal prep or anything else that requires preserving fresh produce.

Price at the time of publish: $24

Food & Wine / J.R. Duren

Food & Wine / J.R. Duren

Food & Wine / J.R. Duren

Amazon

An ingenious locking system makes these containers super easy to store.

Not the best option for anyone needing large storage containers.

Typically, storage containers that nest together neatly leave the lids out of the picture. The Joseph Joseph Nest Lock Plastic Food Storage Container Set sees your bin of loose, orphaned container lids and raises you a modern design solution: Why not make the lids nest within one another? This set is not only attractive. It stacks well enough to take up very little room, no matter where you store your reusable containers. Apart from its nifty design, this set held up well in multiple washes and freshness tests. We did experience some oxidation during our avocado test, but that didn’t stop us from still enjoying it.

Price at the time of publish: $24

Food & Wine / Siobhan Wallace

Food & Wine / Siobhan Wallace

Food & Wine / Siobhan Wallace

Don’t let the standard design of the Rubbermaid Premier Easy Find Lids Food Storage Containers, Set of 10 fool you: This set is a storage powerhouse ready to tackle anything you throw at it. (Or, instead, in it.) Our experts vouch for this Rubbermaid set, as it never once leaked, let air in, or showed damage during testing. We expect longevity and perfection from this set, and the perfect 10-container size makes it ideal for anyone’s kitchen cabinet.

It’s important to ensure that your plastic food storage containers are made of food-grade plastic. Some plastics aren’t safe for storing food, even if it seems like they should be. “Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is not safe for food storage as it contains toxic chemicals that can leach into food,” says food safety expert and chef Jake Brach. Polystyrene material can also be dangerous for food storage. “The styrene component of polystyrene can harm the human body,” he notes.

Plastic storage containers can house anything from roasted nuts to half a rotisserie chicken, from a dollop of peanut butter or a slice of cake. Consider the use for which you’ll most likely need containers and purchase a set that suits your primary needs. While you don’t want to buy an excess of containers you’ll never use, having a set with a variety provides more options for storing things you’ve maybe never used a reusable plastic container for. Perhaps now you can say goodbye to one-use plastic bags (though reusable storage bags are always an option).

We all know what it’s like to have a drawer overflowing with mismatched storage containers. Sets of multiple stackable containers are the perfect solution. These nest into one another like Matryoshka dolls, making for efficient, space-saving storage. When stacking full containers — whether in the pantry, fridge, or freezer — sets designed with stackability in mind will have lids and bottoms shaped for compatibility with other pieces. This often looks like raised bumps and indents that work together to stop the containers from sliding when moved in tandem.

Plastic storage containers are easily stained by fatty or highly-pigmented food; we’ve all seen what Mom’s red sauce or our favorite curry can do to unsuspecting plastic. While some discoloration is inevitable, containers designed with cleanliness in mind have some longevity when it comes to retaining their looks. The cleaning process is simple. After wiping or scraping excess food from the plastic, washing by hand should require nothing more than hot water and soap. After one wash, a really good plastic storage container should retain no smells or stains from its last contents.

We wanted each container candidate to face a variety of tests. Data helps us understand each storage container's capabilities and weaknesses — no matter what it’s storing. We observed whether fresh foods remained fresh by tracking ripening avocados and the speed at which cut apples browned in each container. We also looked for signs of freezer burn on foods stored in the freezer and noted whether the containers leaked food smells into our fridges and freezers. Damage from using the containers in the microwave and dishwasher measured the quality of the material. We checked how leak-proof each container was with liquids — including checking the product's lid, lip, or seal. Lastly, we stored foods likely to stain each container (think pungent pasta sauce, ketchup, or beets), looking for remaining marks and color post-wash, and then noted how easy each container was to clean. This gave us a full picture of each container’s performance abilities.

“Different leftovers have different shelf lives,” says chef Jake Brach. With over 40 years of practical experience in the food and beverage industry, Brach (also known as The Sustainable Chef) has dealt with his fair share of storage containers. “Most leftovers can be stored safely in the refrigerator at or below 41 degrees Fahrenheit for 3-4 days,” he says. “Raw poultry or sausage should only be stored for two days in the refrigerator.” Because temperature is a primary concern, Brach advises that food should be kept at a temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below and reheated to 140 degrees or higher.

After removing any leftover food from the container and wiping grease or oil from the container, start the cleaning process by rinsing the container and its lid under hot water. Then, wash them in the sink with dish soap and hot water. Some containers are dishwasher safe, but handwashing helps the containers stay in good condition for longer. “When washing by hand, you can sanitize your containers by rinsing them in a solution of 2 ounces of bleach per gallon,” says Brach. He also suggests that it’s better to put your containers on the top rack if you prefer using the dishwasher.

Avoiding particularly oily foods will help keep your containers in good condition and avoid premature staining. “In rare instances, plastic containers are made with fat-soluble materials, and those chemicals could be transferred to your food,” Brach says. This doesn’t apply to food-grade storage containers and plastic food containers, which are manufactured following specific safety regulations.

Raw and cooked meats, dairy products, eggs, seafood, cooked rice and pasta, ready-to-eat foods, and prepared mayonnaise-based or fruit salads are all safe to store in plastic food containers but cultivate bacteria very quickly. Because these foods are at higher risk of developing bacteria quickly in storage, it’s best to take care when dating each container and cleaning out your fridge. Use painter's tape and a marker, like a restaurant, to add dates to your leftovers and stored food.

Brach says the best way to identify food-grade plastic containers is to look at the bottom. “The Resin ID Certification Code identifies the type of plastic material. Look for a small triangle of arrows surrounding a number. Generally, numbers 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 identify food-grade plastic.” Many storage containers also note whether they’re freezer- or microwave-safe alongside this code number.

FullStar 50-Piece Food Storage Container Set ($45 at Amazon)Our highest-rated runner-up, this set of storage containers is durable, comes in a useful variety of sizes, and easily cleans up.

Utopia Kitchen Plastic Food Containers Set, Pack of 24 ($20 at Amazon)These performed well outside of their durability. Our experts agree that a glass set of storage containers might hold up better than this set.

Zoku Nested Food Storage Containers, 11-Piece Set ($36 at Amazon)This container set has a variety of sizes and great stacking options. Unfortunately, we experienced occasional leakage and air exposure issues in testing.

Cambro 2-Quart Translucent Round Container with Lid ($20 at Amazon)This set has some of the sturdiest containers we tested. We noticed a small amount of leakage, and the avocado we stored began to brown.

We also tested sets from OXO, Ziploc, Bentgo, and more. While some sets fared well in one or two tests, they did not meet the mark on all. Some experienced more leaking than we’d be comfortable throwing in a bag or a cooler, while others did not keep produce as fresh as we wanted. This, paired with staining or warping when cleaning, kept us from adding to our list of recommendations.

Christa Glennie has been a freelance writer and food editor for nearly 20 years. She is also the author of two cookbooks and specializes in food and drink trends, agriculture, the regional foodways of Western New York, and the restaurant business. Her respect for simplicity and uncluttered counters in the kitchen ultimately fuels a desire to find and own well-designed, multi-purpose, best-in-class kitchen tools. For this piece, she used testing insights from Food & Wine’s professional testing lab as well as spoke to a chef, author, member of the Culinary Institute of America’s Society of Fellows, and certified ServSafe Instructor.