How To Find Out The Best Insulated Tumbler

Do you make your favorite coffee first thing in the morning, take it to work, then find it tepid and undrinkable half an hour later? Maybe you take an ice-cold beer on a picnic, only to discover an unpleasant, warm can when you arrive?

You need an insulated tumbler in your life.

Insulated tumblers have double walls and a vacuum to maintain the temperature of the liquid it holds.

The same insulated tumbler can be used for keeping liquids hot or cold. They often come with a locking lid to maintain the inner temperature and are made from various materials such as stainless steel, plastic or glass.

The buying guide

What is a tumbler?

A tumbler is a cup or glass, with straight sides. It is a one-piece unit with no handle and no stem.

An insulated tumbler is a double-walled cup. The outer wall is wider than the inner wall, creating a cavity. The cavity between the two walls supplies the insulation.

An insulating tumbler works in precisely the same way as a brick-built house with double walls. The cavity between the brick walls produces a pocket of air, which creates a layer of insulation around the external walls of the house. It’s that air pocket that prevents heat from escaping from the inside of the house, and the cold from penetrating the walls, chilling the air on the inside.

An insulation cup contains a stainless steel inner wall. The outer wall is often made of stainless steel as well, but it can also be made from plastic.

The stainless steel inner wall can cause a slight metallic taste in hot drinks, especially black coffee. If this is problematic, you can also find vacuum tumblers with ceramic, glass, or plastic inner walls.

Stainless steel inner walls are most commonly available in the tumbler range, and are what we’ll be focusing on in this article. Glass inner walls are prone to breakage from knocking or dropping.

Most insulation cups employ a vacuum to maintain the temperature of liquids. The most well-known manufacturer of vacuum cups is Thermos.

How to make a Thermos

A Thermos is a double-walled cup, but there’s a vacuum between the inner and outer walls.

A vacuum is achieved by sucking all of the air out of the cavity between the inner and outer walls of the cup or flask.

A vacuum chamber is a highly efficient insulator. If the inner wall is made of glass, it is lined with a reflective metal layer to enhance the insulating properties. However, because glass is breakable, more and more vacuum cups are made with stainless steel interiors, with a reflective layer between the inner and the outer wall.

The vacuum prevents conduction of heat. The screw-on or sealed lid prevents air from entering or leaving the cup. The reflective layer prevents infra-red radiation from leaking from the liquid.

There’s virtually no way that heat can quickly escape a vacuum cup or flask, keeping liquids hot for hours. Likewise, cold drinks will stay cold, because the heat around the container cannot easily penetrate beyond the vacuum.

This Atlin stainless steel, vacuum insulated tumbler has a sleek, tactile finish and includes a lid and a metal straw. The two layers of insulation will maintain the heat of your drink for 6 hours and keep cold drinks fresh for 24 hours!

The set includes a tightly sealed, transparent lid, with a mouth hole so that the lid will remain in place while you safely take a sip. The transparent lid also allows you to inspect the volume of the liquid remaining inside the cup. The lid locks into place when secured, ensuring that no spillages occur.

The lid is constructed from BPA-free plastic, and the body of the cup is 100% stainless steel. The sleek design is grip-friendly. The entire product is entirely dishwasher safe.

Also included is a reusable metal straw, and a straw cleaner, for safer drinking while driving.

The base of the cup has been designed to perfectly fit into a standard-sized cup holder, to be found in most cars.

The cup is 7 5/8″ tall and is capable of carrying 30oz of liquid.

PROs

Comes with self-sealing, transparent lid which is BPA-free.

Mouth hole makes drinking comfortable while maintaining the seal of the lid

Metal straw and straw cleaner included

Entirely dishwasher safe

Keeps drinks hot for 6 hours and cold for 24 hours

CONs

You need to make sure that the lid is fully sealed before use; otherwise, the contents could spill. Although this tumbler fits into a standard-sized car cup holder, it may not fit smaller holders.

The MalloMe Stainless Steel vacuum tumbler is undoubtedly one of the best on the market. According to this experiment, the MalloMe cup consistently held its temperature better than insulated tumblers from other leading manufacturers, while most successfully maintaining the temperature of iced water.

The sleek stainless steel outer wall is embossed with MalloMe’s logo which is an attractive design feature.

This 6-piece package includes a removable tumbler handle’ two transparent, leak-proof lids; a metal straw; and a straw cleaner.

One of the most noticeable differences between the MalloMe and other products reviewed in this article is the leakproof seal to be found on both of the lids. There’s a sliding spout recommended for use with hot drinks and a rubber plug spout for cold beverages.

This insulated cup is perfect for hot drinks and soups. It would be wonderful for keeping your Homemade Wonton Soup piping hot, although you would need to remove the lid to enjoy the delicious wontons! It will hold heat for 12 hours and keep cold drinks cool for 24 hours.

All of the parts, including the tumbler handle, are dishwasher safe. The narrow bottom means that it will fit in a standard-sized cup holder.

PROs

Comes with a removable tumbler handle to make drinking with one hand safer

Includes 2 transparent lids, with self-sealing spouts, to keep the temperature consistent, and avoid drips and spillages

Comes with metal straw and straw cleaner

Perfect for hot soups

Maintains heat for 12 hours and stays cold for 24 hours

CONs

Designed to fit a standard-sized cup holder. It won’t fit anything smaller. Although the sliding spout for hot drinks creates a better seal than a permanently open mouth hole, it may not be entirely leak-resistant. Should be kept upright when in use.

Yeti was one of the first companies to manufacture insulated tumblers, and the name has become indelibly associated with quality. So, what are Yeti cups made of?

The 18/8 stainless steel walls are “over-engineered,” which means that this durable tumbler will maintain the temperature of your drink, regardless of the beating it might take during everyday use. Yeti claims that this tumbler is practically indestructible.

The insulated tumbler comes with a shatter-proof, crystal clear, transparent lid. The lid diameter is 3.5”, and the cup is 7” tall.

The Yeti Rambler is a 20oz tumbler, with a vacuum-insulated chamber. Both the inner and the outer walls are constructed from 18/8 stainless steel.

The “No Sweat” design ensures that your hands remain dry – the vacuum insulation prevents the outer wall of the cup from getting hot or cold, so it’s always comfortable to hold.

This is a perfectly straight design, without the “lip” in the middle of the cup like some of the other tumblers featured in this article.

PROs

Simple, slim design

“No Sweat” design ensures that the cup stays in your hand

Shatter-proof, transparent lid makes it easy to see how much liquid remains in your cup

“Over-engineered” build makes this practically indestructible

All parts are dishwasher safe

CONs

This particular cup holds just 20oz of liquid. However, they also make a 10oz lowball and a 30oz tumbler.

RTIC is one of the most well-known names in insulated tumblers, producing excellent-quality products, durable enough for the great outdoors. In fact, this product comes in a choice of sleek 18/8 stainless steel finish, or a Kanati Camouflage design – perfect for bird-watchers and people who spend a lot of time in the great outdoors.

The narrow bottom fits snugly into a car cup-holder, while the broader upper half makes a perfect diameter for drinking. The cup stands at 7.75″ tall, with a 3.9″ diameter opening.

This product is not recommended for dishwasher use. Hand-washing will retain the beautiful finish and keep your tumbler in action for as long as you are.

The mouth opening is shaped to accommodate a straw for splash-proof drinking on the go. Coupled with the easy grip base, this is one of the best-insulated tumblers for people on the move.

The transparent lid shows you exactly how much liquid remains in your cup, producing an airtight seal and a sweat-free exterior, meaning that you won’t need a coaster.

If you’re keen to get your hands on this wonderful item, but you’re not sure where to buy an RTIC tumbler, look no further than here. You can choose between the 20oz and 30oz models, and between the stainless steel or the camouflage finish.

The Chill Cups insulated travel cup is a vacuum-insulated tumbler that doubles as an ice bucket! It keeps cold drinks chilled for 24 hours and maintains the heat of hot drinks for 6 hours.

The package includes an extra-long, stainless steel, 8mm straw, and straw-cleaner; making this cup perfect for drinking while driving. Also included is an exclusive Chill Cups cork coaster.

Do you have a cat that insists on drinking from your water glass during the night? There’s nothing worse than waking up thirsty, reaching for some hydration, only to find your water tasting of cat food! Gross. Store your nightly water in the tightly sealed tumbler, and your cat won’t even know that it’s there!

The stainless steel build and sliding mouth hole cover make this durable cup the perfect drip-resistant tumbler to take into the car with you. It fits into your golf cart, bicycle water-holder, and a standard car cup-holder. The airtight seal makes this a perfect container for taking your lunch to work with you. You could enjoy piping hot Soup Dumplings at lunchtime!

This item comes with a full 5-year guarantee.

PROs

Self-sealing lid makes this great for leak- and spillage-free drinking

Great for keeping soup hot as well as hot drinks

Keeps cold drinks cool for 24 hours.

Includes an extra-long, stainless steel straw and straw cleaner

CONs

Like all stainless steel insulated cups, this can add a slightly metallic taste to some hot drinks – especially black coffee.

So, which is the best-insulated tumbler?

As ever, this is a tough choice, because they all perform the task of keeping your drinks perfectly hot or cold.

However, based on our research, and on the fact that it comes with a removable tumbler handle and two separate lids for hot and cold drinks, we think that the MalloMe Stainless Steel Vacuum Tumbler set is the best value for money, while offering the best performance. It comes with a metal straw and straw cleaner and is very reasonably priced; making it the Best Insulated Tumbler.

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