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Loading...Fourteen 30 oz tumblers, $10 to $45, tested against a $2 uninsulated cup as the control. Cold retention was measured after roughly six hours in a 75°F room. Hot retention is the harder test: filled at about 200°F and left for four hours in a commercial freezer set to -40°F, which is severe enough that the uninsulated control froze.
They were then tipped on their sides and turned upside down to see what escaped, tilted on a ramp to find the angle at which each falls over, dropped onto concrete from 30 inches, measured for the force needed to work the lid one-handed, filled to check whether a 30 oz tumbler actually holds 30 oz with its lid on, and soaked in hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and salt to compare corrosion resistance.
Very little of it correlates. The most stable tumbler is nearly the worst insulated, the best insulated one leaks around its straw, and the two hardest lids to open belong to tumblers that never leak a drop.
Best Performance
Won both temperature tests
Purchased for: $45
Made In: China
The most expensive tumbler here and the only one to win both temperature tests: 42.4°F on cold and 126°F on hot, nearly six degrees clear of the Stanley. The heavily insulated lid is doing most of that work. Against it: the straw gasket leaks badly when inverted, it tips at 14.6°, it overflows before the lid seats at a full 30 oz, and the metal straw bent when it hit the floor.
42.4°F cold and 126°F hot, clear of everything else. Expensive, tip-prone, and it leaks around the straw.
Best Value
$26, strong at both temperatures
Purchased for: $26
Made In: China
The best all-round performer at the price. It was fourth best on cold at 43.9°F and fifth on hot at 111.9°F, one of the more stable tumblers at 16.8°, and its raised slider is well placed and light at 620 g. It does leak when tipped and when inverted, and its lid cover flew off in the drop test — though it snapped back undamaged.
Fourth on cold and fifth on hot, stable, with one of the easiest lids to work one-handed.
Best Sealed
Genuinely leak-proof
Purchased for: $40
Made In: China
The leak-proof claim is real: with the straw closed it lost nothing on its side or upside down, and even with the straw open it only seeped a little. It was third best on cold at 43.5°F, showed no corrosion, opens at 556 g, and its screw lid came through the drop test untouched. The catches are stability — its narrow base tips at 12.3°, second worst here — and 636 g of weight.
Lost nothing on its side or upside down, third best on cold, and no corrosion at all.
| Name | Purchased for ($) | Link | Made In | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chillout Mix | $10.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The cheapest tumbler here and the lightest at 304 g. It is also the second most stable in the group, tipping only at 18.1°. The compromises show elsewhere: it was the warmest tumbler in the cold test at 48.7°F, it corroded more than almost anything else, its lid takes 800 g to flip open, and the lid broke into two pieces when the tumbler hit the floor from 30 inches. | ||||
| Ozark Trail | $19.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Solid and unremarkable in the best sense. It held cold at 45.1°F, seeped only a little from the lid when tipped, and held everything upside down. Its lid opens easily at 644 g and survived the drop test undamaged, though the lid came off and made a mess. It is one of the least stable tumblers here, tipping at 14.7°, and it runs warm on hot drinks at 106.7°F. | ||||
| Contigo | $21.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The only 32 oz tumbler in the group, and the only one with room to spare for the lid at 30 oz. Its tall narrow profile made it third best at keeping drinks hot at 116.1°F, and its lid takes the least force of any here to open at 340 g. It leaks badly when tipped and worse upside down, though its lid stayed on and undamaged in the drop test. | ||||
| Arctic Tumblers | $23.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The first tumbler in the lineup to lose nothing at all when tipped on its side or turned upside down, and one of only four with no visible corrosion. Its flip top is easy to reach and takes just 380 g. The weaknesses are heat — 104.9°F, near the bottom of the group — and a lid cover that partly broke in the drop test, making it very difficult to open afterwards. | ||||
| Beast | $23.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Completely leak-free in both tip-over tests, third most stable at 17.1°, and the only tumbler that genuinely holds 30 oz with room left for the lid. It held cold well at 44.8°F. Against that: 104°F in the hot test is second worst in the group, its lid takes 1,176 g to open — three times the Arctic Tumblers — and part of the lid cover broke on impact. | ||||
| CamelBak | $26.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Genuinely good at temperature, holding cold at 44.6°F and hot at 115°F, fourth best in the group. Everything else about it is a problem. Its narrow rounded base makes it by far the least stable tumbler tested, tipping at just 10°, it leaks badly on its side and upside down, and its slider needs 2,228 g to move — more than five times the Contigo's. | ||||
| Buc-ee’s | $26.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The best all-round performer at the price. It was fourth best on cold at 43.9°F and fifth on hot at 111.9°F, one of the more stable tumblers at 16.8°, and its raised slider is well placed and light at 620 g. It does leak when tipped and when inverted, and its lid cover flew off in the drop test — though it snapped back undamaged. | ||||
| Norday | $29.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Its leak-proof claim holds up: nothing escaped when tipped or inverted. Little else does. It was among the warmest in the cold test at 46.6°F and among the coolest in the hot test at 104.9°F, it rusted more than most, its slider is stiff and awkward at 1,468 g, and its lid cracked in the drop test so the slider no longer opens fully. Rubber padding on the base hurt its stability. | ||||
| Tervis | $30.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Copper-lined and triple insulated, printed with plant-based inks. It is the second most stable tumbler at 17.8°, has one of the smoothest lids at 468 g, was one of only four with no meaningful corrosion, and survived the drop with both lid and body intact. Temperature is its weakness: 46.2°F on cold and 103.8°F on hot, the worst hot result in the group. It also leaks in both tip-over tests. | ||||
| Stanley Quencher H2.0 | $35.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Second best in both temperature tests, at 42.8°F on cold and 120.2°F on hot, which its tall narrow shape earns. It holds a full 30 oz with room for the lid, its screw lid opens easily at 678 g, and it survived the drop with no damage. It is only leak-resistant by design and does spill when tipped, it is middling for stability at 15.6°, and it rusted more than several cheaper tumblers. | ||||
| YETI | $38.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The most consistently competent tumbler here without leading anything. Fourth most stable at 17.7°, one of only four with no corrosion at all, a magnetic slider that is the second lightest to operate at 402 g, and it survived the drop undamaged. Temperature is middling at 44.6°F cold and 108.5°F hot. The MagSlider is not sold as leak-proof and it is not. | ||||
| BrüMate | $40.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The leak-proof claim is real: with the straw closed it lost nothing on its side or upside down, and even with the straw open it only seeped a little. It was third best on cold at 43.5°F, showed no corrosion, opens at 556 g, and its screw lid came through the drop test untouched. The catches are stability — its narrow base tips at 12.3°, second worst here — and 636 g of weight. | ||||
| Milwaukee PACKOUT | $40.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
Locks into the PACKOUT system, which is the main reason to choose it. It backs the temperature claim reasonably at 44.4°F cold and 112.8°F hot, fourth best on heat. Its lid cover is well designed at 636 g and snapped back undamaged after the drop. It leaks a little tipped and drips slowly inverted, it is tip-prone at 14.8°, and it rusted more than most. | ||||
| Corkcicle | $45.00 | Search on Amazon | China | |
The most expensive tumbler here and the only one to win both temperature tests: 42.4°F on cold and 126°F on hot, nearly six degrees clear of the Stanley. The heavily insulated lid is doing most of that work. Against it: the straw gasket leaks badly when inverted, it tips at 14.6°, it overflows before the lid seats at a full 30 oz, and the metal straw bent when it hit the floor. | ||||
Lower is better
Prices are the purchase prices at the time of testing. Price tracks temperature performance loosely at best — the $26 Buc-ee's beat the $38 YETI on both, and the $10 Chillout Mix was the most stable tumbler in the group.
Water temperature in °F after about six hours in a 75°F room — lower is better
The uninsulated control sat at 75.6°F, essentially room temperature, and every insulated tumbler beat it by around 30 degrees. Between the tumblers themselves the spread is only 6.3 degrees, and eleven of the fourteen finish within two degrees of each other. The Corkcicle leads at 42.4°F with the Stanley two fifths of a degree behind. The $10 Chillout Mix is the only real laggard at 48.7°F.
| Rank | Product | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corkcicle | 42.40 |
| 2 | Stanley Quencher H2.0 | 42.80 |
| 3 | BrüMate | 43.50 |
| 4 | Buc-ee’s | 43.90 |
| 5 | Milwaukee PACKOUT | 44.40 |
| 6 | CamelBak | 44.60 |
| 7 | YETI | 44.60 |
| 8 | Beast | 44.80 |
| 9 | Ozark Trail | 45.10 |
| 10 | Arctic Tumblers | 45.70 |
| 11 | Contigo | 45.90 |
| 12 | Tervis | 46.20 |
| 13 | Norday | 46.60 |
| 14 | Chillout Mix | 48.70 |
| 15 | Uninsulated Cup | 75.60 |
Water temperature in °F after four hours at -40°F, starting near 200°F — higher is better
Four hours at -40°F separates these far more than the cold test did — a 22-degree spread, and the shape of the tumbler predicts most of it. The four best here all have tall narrow profiles that expose less surface area, with the Corkcicle's heavily insulated lid taking it to 126°F, nearly six degrees clear of the Stanley. Note that the ranking is almost unrelated to the cold results: the Contigo is fourth from bottom on cold and third from top here. The uninsulated control froze solid.
| Rank | Product | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corkcicle | 126 |
| 2 | Stanley Quencher H2.0 | 120.20 |
| 3 | Contigo | 116.10 |
| 4 | CamelBak | 115 |
| 5 | Milwaukee PACKOUT | 112.80 |
| 6 | Buc-ee’s | 111.90 |
| 7 | YETI | 108.50 |
| 8 | BrüMate | 108.30 |
| 9 | Chillout Mix | 107.60 |
| 10 | Ozark Trail | 106.70 |
| 11 | Arctic Tumblers | 104.90 |
| 12 | Norday | 104.90 |
| 13 | Beast | 104 |
| 14 | Tervis | 103.80 |
Degrees of tilt before the tumbler falls over — higher is more stable
Tumblers are top heavy, and this is the angle at which one goes over on a car seat or a sloped desk. The $2 uninsulated cup beat every tumbler in the test at 18.4°, and the $10 Chillout Mix came closest at 18.1°. The trade-off with the previous chart is direct: the narrow profiles that hold heat best are the ones that fall over easiest. The CamelBak's narrow rounded base is the worst design here by a wide margin at 10°, and the BrüMate is close behind at 12.3° — which matters less for a tumbler that does not leak.
| Rank | Product | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uninsulated Cup | 18.40 |
| 2 | Chillout Mix | 18.10 |
| 3 | Tervis | 17.80 |
| 4 | YETI | 17.70 |
| 5 | Beast | 17.10 |
| 6 | Buc-ee’s | 16.80 |
| 7 | Arctic Tumblers | 16.70 |
| 8 | Contigo | 15.70 |
| 9 | Stanley Quencher H2.0 | 15.60 |
| 10 | Milwaukee PACKOUT | 14.80 |
| 11 | Ozark Trail | 14.70 |
| 12 | Corkcicle | 14.60 |
| 13 | BrüMate | 12.30 |
| 14 | CamelBak | 10 |
Grams of force to work the lid one-handed — lower is easier
The measurement nobody checks before buying, and the one you feel every day. The spread is more than sixfold. The Contigo's slider is the lightest at 340 g but sits awkwardly on the lid, so the YETI's magnetic slider at 402 g and the Arctic Tumblers' flip top at 380 g are the genuinely best lids here. At the other end the CamelBak needs 2,228 g — about five pounds, one-handed, on a slider — and the Norday's 1,468 g is compounded by a raised tab that is hard to grip. The Corkcicle is not on this chart because its straw simply stays open.
| Rank | Product | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Contigo | 340 |
| 2 | Arctic Tumblers | 380 |
| 3 | YETI | 402 |
| 4 | Tervis | 468 |
| 5 | BrüMate | 556 |
| 6 | Buc-ee’s | 620 |
| 7 | Milwaukee PACKOUT | 636 |
| 8 | Ozark Trail | 644 |
| 9 | Stanley Quencher H2.0 | 678 |
| 10 | Chillout Mix | 800 |
| 11 | Beast | 1176 |
| 12 | Norday | 1468 |
| 13 | CamelBak | 2228 |
Grams, empty — heavier often signals thicker steel and more insulation
Weight is a rough proxy for how much steel and insulation you are getting, and here it half works. The two heaviest tumblers, the BrüMate and Corkcicle, are the third-best cold performer and the outright winner respectively. The lightest, the Chillout Mix at 304 g, is the worst on cold. But the Norday and CamelBak are the next lightest and finish well apart from each other, so it predicts very little in the middle of the field.
| Rank | Product | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uninsulated Cup | 58 |
| 2 | Chillout Mix | 304 |
| 3 | Norday | 395 |
| 4 | CamelBak | 398 |
| 5 | Arctic Tumblers | 410 |
| 6 | Buc-ee’s | 423 |
| 7 | Beast | 429 |
| 8 | Tervis | 439 |
| 9 | Ozark Trail | 458 |
| 10 | YETI | 488 |
| 11 | Stanley Quencher H2.0 | 523 |
| 12 | Milwaukee PACKOUT | 534 |
| 13 | Corkcicle | 635 |
| 14 | BrüMate | 636 |
The Corkcicle wins the tests that matter most and it is not close. At 42.4°F after six hours it was the coldest tumbler in the group, and at 126°F after four hours at -40°F it was almost six degrees ahead of the second-place Stanley — a bigger margin than separates second from seventh. The heavily insulated lid is doing most of that work. At $45 it is the most expensive tumbler here, it tips at 14.6°, its metal straw bent when it hit the floor, and it leaks badly around the straw gasket if inverted. It is a cold-drink tumbler that happens to be excellent with hot ones, provided it stays upright.
The best buy is the $26 Buc-ee's. It finished fourth on cold at 43.9°F and fifth on hot at 111.9°F, ahead of the $38 YETI on both, and it is one of the more stable tumblers at 16.8° with a well-placed slider that takes only 620 g. It does spill when tipped and its lid cover flies off in a fall, though it snaps back undamaged. The $35 Stanley is the pick if temperature is the whole story and you want something less expensive than the Corkcicle: second in both tests, a full 30 oz with room for the lid, and an easy screw lid.
If leaks are your concern, buy the BrüMate. It is the only tumbler here that lost nothing on its side and nothing upside down even with the straw open, and it was third best on cold with no corrosion at all. Its narrow base tips at 12.3°, which is second worst in the group — but that matters far less when nothing comes out. The $23 Arctic Tumblers and $23 Beast are the budget versions of the same idea, both fully sealed in the tip-over tests, though both had lid covers break in the drop test.
Two to think twice about. The CamelBak insulates well but is the least stable tumbler here at 10°, leaks badly in both directions, and needs 2,228 g to work its slider — five times the YETI. And the $10 Chillout Mix, while the most stable tumbler in the test at 18.1°, was the warmest in the cold test at 48.7°F, corroded heavily, and its lid broke into two pieces on the first drop. For corrosion resistance specifically, only the Arctic Tumblers, Tervis, YETI, and BrüMate came through the peroxide and salt soak clean; the Stanley and Milwaukee both rusted more than several tumblers costing half as much.