Best Travel Coffee Mugs (2024): Keep Drinks Hot with Expert Picks
The best travel coffee mugs are essential to keep your morning coffee hot and spill-free. We tested more than two dozen to find stylish spillproof insulated mugs that will save your morning commute (even if it’s only from the kitchen to the living room). Whether you walk, ride, or drive, we looked at both aesthetic and practical aspects, from slim, modern design to leakproof lids and whether they were easy to clean. We’ve continued to add to our existing tests to give you the ins and outs of over two dozen popular and top-rated travel coffee containers.
Black Friday Sales on Coffee Mugs
If you've been waiting to get an insulated coffee mug (or if your current insulated mug has seen better days), now is the time, with discounts on several cups that performed well in our tests. It may be time to jump on the Owala bandwagon with these featured deals:
- Owala SmoothSip Slider Insulated Stainless Steel Coffee Tumbler
- Zojirushi Stainless Steel Mug, Black, 16 Ounce
The Best Travel Coffee Mug to Toss in Your Bag: Zojirushi
Of all the travel mugs we tested, there are only a few we’d feel comfortable tossing into a bag with our laptop or favorite book, and of them all, this one was the absolute best at keeping our coffee hot. After five hours the hot coffee we poured in was almost too hot to drink. That excellent heat retention is due to the Zojirushi’s vacuum-insulated, double-walled stainless steel.
Though it sounds like a beast, this travel mug is actually relatively lightweight and has a super-slim design that fits perfectly in your hand or bag. It also looks really nice, a definite plus for a mug you'll be carting around everywhere. And you never have to worry about coffee spilling inside your bag or briefcase because the spout cap has a pretty serious sliding lock on the top that when engaged makes it impossible to open or spill. Shake, rattle, roll this thing—it's not going to leak any hot drinks on you or whatever else you’re carrying. The lid also comes apart for easy hand washing.
Technical Specifications and Performance
Here are the key factors we evaluated for the Zojirushi model:
- Dishwasher safe: No
- Fits in car cup holder: Yes
- Leakproof: Yes, very
- Sizes available: 12 ounces, 16 ounces, 20 ounces
- Warranty: 5 years
Pros and Cons
Pros: Truly incredible heat retention and totally leak proof. Cons: Not dishwasher safe, as the narrow opening makes cleaning a little tougher. The super-slim design also means this mug may rattle around in a car cup holder, and the 20-ounce size is too tall to fit under our Nespresso VertuoPlus spout.
Other Considerations
Sipping from the Zojirushi is slightly more awkward to drink from than many of the other mugs we tried, but it’s a small price to pay for such incredible heat retention and the peace of mind that comes with having a truly leak-free travel mug to use for hot drinks on the go. Read on for the pros and cons of everything we tested, including options like the Brumate for those seeking a dishwasher-safe travel coffee mug.
