Keeping a mug clean is one of those tasks that makes the difference between “buy it for life” and trashing an expensive mug in disgust. Our rating here is based on hand-washing with a sponge, scrubber, or bottle-brush, but we’ve also noted if the manufacturer says you can put the whole mug in the dishwasher. The West Loop is a good mug, but the Transit is more durable and holds heat better. The only trade-off is that the Transit sacrifices dishwasher compatibility because of the silicone grip. The West Loop’s insulation is guaranteed to be safe in the dishwasher, but if you buy a painted model you can count on flaking and peeling of the finish after a few months of cleaning it that way. Klean Kanteen – 16 oz. Wide-Mouth If you need your drink to stay hot for an entire day and you don’t want to fill a giant thermos, the Thermos – Sipp is a fantastic mini-thermos you can drink from with one hand. The Contigo Autoseal system is great for convenient spill-free sipping, but its springs and levers are immersed in your pumpkin-spice foam and nutmeg sprinkles. So, if you are simply looking for slightly better insulation in a ceramic tumbler that can go in the microwave and the dishwasher, the Mesa is worth considering; if you want to stop spills and keep your drink hot for a long commute, read on. The bottom line

We ran two tests to measure how well these mugs retain heat. The first test gives a broad overview of mug performance when starting with water at typical restaurant serving temperature; the second test shows how our favorite mugs performed when starting with a lower temperature. After 30 minutes, 50ml of water was decanted from each mug into a 100 ml pyrex beaker every 15 minutes. With a bench thermometer and K-type probe, we took eight samples from each mug, leaving a slightly larger sample at the end. This controls for the way most of us drink away the specific heat capacity of the water in our travel mugs if we sip periodically over the course of a commute or while working at a desk.The best and worst performance in this test still correspond roughly to what we saw the first test we ran, but it does show that even in this less-generous scenario the Forge can keep coffee in the “comfortably hot” zone all the way up to two hours, though it’s 15°F cooler than the Thermos. That’s longer than any of us likes to keep the same mug of coffee around, so we’re more than satisfied. (Any insulated mug is also far, far better than a ceramic open-top mug, which lost the same amount of heat in less than 20 minutes.) Drop test The Redditors were absolutely right: when we made tea with freshly boiled water in either of the top two insulation performers (the Zojirushi – SM-SA48 or the Thermos Direct Drink Insulated Bottle) we found that it won’t be cool enough for most people to drink (below 155°F) until an hour later, even if you leave the lid off completely. Whether you are new to supplying artwork for branded products or experienced don’t worry, we are here to help. Cup holder/single-brewer compatible: For those looking for compatibility with a single-cup coffee brewer, we’ve noted which mugs are seven inches or shorter (typical height for a single-cup brewer when the drip tray is removed; your machine may vary), and whether a “shorty” model (usually in 12 oz capacity) is available. Editor’s note: The Camelbak – Forge was discontinued in 2018, and we’re sad to say that it hasn’t been replaced with an equivalent design. Our original review is preserved here for posterity.)

We included one non-steel mug in our lineup, the Ello – Mesa double-wall ceramic mug. We looked at other popular ‘reusable to-go cup’ designs, but none of them had spill-proof lids or insulating properties that would make them competitive in this line-up. (Some issues, like reports of a smelly latex rubber lid on one popular brand, or lids that were difficult to snap on, made our choice not to test even easier.) In our temperature test, the Transit only lost 34°F of heat in the first hour, while the base-model Contigo – West Loop lost 40, so the minimal price difference is far less significant than the performance gap. That’s still a major difference from the Thermos and Zojirushi mugs, which lost less than half as much heat in the same time. The Transit’s result is in line with other good wide-mouth mugs that you can fit a sponge into, but it’s not amazing. Contigo is now one of the most prolific brands in the travel mug market, and the Auto-Seal Transit is the best model in their line. File Types– It doesn’t have to be a specific file type at this stage, but we prefer vector .ai, .eps or .pdf files. Don’t worry if this doesn’t mean anything to you, we can work with almost any file type so just send us what you have to hand. Another important duty of a travel mug is stopping spills. Some of our testers have worked in locations where only spill-proof mugs are allowed, and far too many of us have experienced the tragic consequences of using unworthy mugs in moving vehicles or at desks covered with important documents.Additionally, this mug prioritises safety and ease of use. It is BPA-free, ensuring that no harmful chemicals leach into your drinks. And when it's time to clean up, there's no fuss – it's fully dishwasher safe, saving you time and effort. Caffeine keeps us alert, awake, and energized. The Contigo – Transit ensures that it will also go into your mouth, not onto your lap or computer. The easy-to-sip-from self-sealing design makes it a clear winner for most uses, though it doesn’t have the best heat retention. While some manufacturers of the stainless steel mugs say you can put them in the dishwasher, the microwave is territory held securely by mugs like the Mesa: we microwaved water to a piping-hot 186°F and were happy to find that the outside of the mug was only a pleasantly-warm 93°F, unlike some ceramic mugs that get insanely hot on the outside when nuked.

The Bubba was included because it has the highest price to consumer rating ratio of any of the mugs we found, and the ceramic liner is a unique feature. While on the whole, this mug seems a decent value, that liner didn’t prove to be an asset in any way we could find, and the way the lid collects drips, and spreads them around is just annoying. The fact that the plastic ring which attaches the lid to the body just popped off in our eight-foot drop test makes us wonder how long it would take for grime and water to start collecting at that joint (even in normal use). Timolino – Icon It’s probably worth noting here: all these manufacturers specify that they use BPA-free plastics. Non-steel mugs The Klean Kanteen is still a drink container we like, but it’s not easy to open and close with one hand (and in fact took a fair bit of effort to open with two hands), and it has more parts to disassemble for cleaning than any of the other mugs. Thermos – Stainless King Travel Mug Thermos is the oldest and best-known name in insulated drink containers in the western world (“thermos” became such a prevalent word that US courts ruled it was legal to use as a generic term for insulated bottles in 1963). We tested the Thermos – Stainless King Travel Mug along with our runner-up, the Thermos – Sipp.You can get a bump in heat if you take the time to boil some extra water and dump that in the Burnout for a few minutes before you add your beverage. (Pre-heating with 110°F tap water does basically nothing.) Boiling extra water isn’t such an inconvenience for pour-over, french press, and tea drinkers, but it’s a big hassle if you’re relying on a coffeemaker like our favorite Keurig. Auto-sealing mugs like the transit are perfect for use at your desk, around fussy librarians or while driving. It’s basically impossible to spill anything from this mug while you’re drinking from it, and the spout prevents drips from gathering the way they will in flip-top designs. Worse still, even when the stopper is in the closed position, it leaks. It’ll keep dribbles from coming out if you turn it upside down, but as soon as you drop it on the floor or shake it around it’ll let drips out. The slider switch is fairly easy to use, but it’s also vulnerable to getting bumped open inside a bag; this mug did poorly in our tumble test. Mugs like these are great if you want to keep drinks hotter for longer. Just be sure you cool your coffee or tea before adding to the mug, or pour out your beverage to drink until temperatures inside the mug have reached a safe level. Note: This is one of the more confusingly named products we researched — it’s sometimes called things like “Sipp Stainless Insulated Drink Bottle” and is nearly identical to the “Commuter Bottle.” Whatever the name, we liked it.

Two of the mugs we tested kept heat inside so well, they actually made it difficult to test what we considered “normal” use because we had to dump extra cold half-and-half or ice cubes in so that we could drink from them without suffering burns. Make no mistake, this almost-magical feat is surely appreciated by those who want to drink a hot cup of home-brewed coffee eight hours after they pour it. The Mesa does keep your drink hot three times longer than a conventional open-top single-wall ceramic mug (an hour above 140°F instead of 15 minutes), but the sliding closure on the lid did not prevent spills. Studies show that the severity of burns starts getting significantly worse at temperatures above 175°F, so temperature curves between 200°F and 175°F aren’t showing anything but a danger zone. A study published in the Journal of Food Science shows that most people will mix cream/milk (or colder coffee) into their hot coffee to bring it down to around 140°F if they’re going to drink it immediately. Further, the Specialty Coffee Association of America cupping and tasting protocols recommend that evaluation of flavor should not begin until coffee has cooled to between 160 – 140°F.For secure carry in a bag, the Transit was better than most, but it did leak a teaspoon worth after half an hour in a spin-cycle.