Measuring Cups & Spoons – Testing & Results

The Cuisipro spoons are one of the most accurate in the test, with both the ½ teaspoon and the teaspoon measuring exactly the correct amounts.

The oval-shaped bowls proved to be a good compromise between round and rectangular. They fit well into spice jars, but were very easy to empty and clean. The set is medium in weight and features comfortable handles.

While it held up fine in the brown sugar test, we could bend the spoons a bit at the connection of the bowl and handle. The embossed markings a readable and appear to be durable. The ring is convenient, but the latch does not fit through the holes easily.

Accuracy was dead-on for both the ¼ teaspoon and 1 teaspoon, with both ends tested on both measures.

We loved this double-ended design, providing the best of both worlds in a single spoon. They’re also very convenient to handle since you only use one spoon at a time. These spoons performed well with both the flour and brown sugar.

As good as they are, these spoons aren’t perfect. The handles are a bit bendy, and when they flex, the label-plate with the magnet separates a little bit from the handle. That label is also only printed on, and it faded a little with a little scrubbing. These spoons need to be treated gently, and I don’t think these will hold up for the long haul.

Close to a top score, but just a smidge off. The ¼ teaspoon was right on, but the 1 teaspoon was high by 2%.

The rectangular measuring spoons are very easy to use, especially in tight circumstances. The handles feel substantial, but the edges are a little sharp. The leveler is an interesting idea, but not that useful. It’s no better than a butter knife, but you have to take it off the ring or arrange the whole mess just right. Nice idea, but not that good.

The handles are solid, with a little crosswise curve for stiffness. The rims of the bowls are reinforced to protect them while being bashed around. Markings are engraved near the bowls and easy to read. The ring is convenient, but the latch has to be maneuvered through the holes.

Accuracy was mixed for the U-Taste, with the ½ teaspoon reading 0.1 mL under the standard, but the 1 teaspoon measuring 0.4 mL over what it should.

This set of spoons has deeper bowls than some of the other round models, and that was very helpful when trying to dig into the sugar. The handles feel pretty raw, and dig into the skin a bit. The set is also pretty heavy and awkward since it has so many spoons.

These are built to last. The handles are very stiff, and they feel very solid. The markings are engraved and read easily. The D-ring is a good choice, and the holes in the handles are very large, so it moves easily.

This was the most inaccurate set of spoons in the test. The teaspoon was 10.2% too large, and the ¼ teaspoon was 7.7% oversize. These are significant flaws, and could botch a baking recipe. I’d love to test the 1/32 teaspoon just for fun, but even the 0.01 gram scale couldn’t adequately account for something as small as 0.31 mL.

We were surprised by how well these spoons actually worked. The spoons are extremely comfortable and level well. They can’t scoop the tough brown sugar well, but they’ll do.

Better than expected. These spoons bend, but they don’t break. The markings are well-placed on the back of the handle and are well-embossed. On the bad side, the oval ring is terrible. All the spoons really have to sit on one side, so it’s awkward to maneuver, and it falls apart with the slightest bump.

Accuracy for this set was solid. The ¼ teaspoon measured right on the money; the ½ teaspoon was about 2% on the high side.

These spoons are extremely basic, to the point of feeling unfinished. The edges feel raw and sharp, cutting into your hand as you scoop even flour. The brown sugar was quite uncomfortable to dig.

These spoons are extremely bendy, with thin, tiny handles. The ½ teaspoon was slightly bent right out of the package. The edges, as noted before, feel unfinished and sharp. The engraved marks are readable, but oddly written. The split ring is fine, as long as you never want to take one off for something.

The accuracy was reasonable for the Kitchenaid spoons, and was the best of the plastic sets in our test. The tablespoon was 2.7% too large, while the ½ teaspoon was worse at 8% too large.

The Kitchenaid spoons have an arch in the handle that is a bit awkward. Each spoon can balance level on its handle, but they’re really hard to separate, so I don’t know that it would ever come up. That arch makes them harder to level with a butter knife, since the knife doesn’t move cleanly down from the handle to the bowl. The holes are coated in rubber, and while the connection is tight, it’s still a worry for cleaning as it changes over time.

These are not strong spoons, and they did not hold up well in the brown sugar test. We snapped one by hand without any significant effort. These things won’t last. The markings are very good and embossed very high. I think the marks will age better than the spoons. The ring is acceptable, but you can’t take spoons off easily, and I don’t trust it over the long haul to stay shut.

Accuracy was a mixed bag for the Chef Craft spoons. I tested the tablespoon at 14.6 mL, just 1.4% less than the standard. The teaspoon was farther off at 5.4 mL, a whopping 10.2% over the standard.

These spoons are flimsy plastic and extremely bendy. They could not scoop the brown sugar at all. The handles are comfortable.

Build quality is low, as you might expect for less than $5. The handles are unworkably bendy (though we could bend one double without breaking it). The markings are good, but even after a matter of hours they are starting to pick away. The ring is terrible and falls apart at the slightest force. The spoons can’t fit around the ring joint, so they have to be used in one orientation.

This set is one of our best for accuracy, with the ¼ cup spot on, and the 1 cup just 2mL short of the standard.

These handles were extremely comfortable, and the thumb rests naturally in a little rest on top. In this position, they scooped brown sugar better than any of the other plastic cups. The leveler is no better than a butter knife, but the snaps are a great way to keep the set together.

The cups are sturdy and well thought out. The handles increase in thickness after the joint for easier handling, but there is a section of handle level with the rim of the cup for easy leveling. There are two sets of marking, and both are easy to read. The ¼ cup and ⅓ cup are imbalanced and can’t hold up their handles.

Tied for best-in-the-test with the OXO plastic set, the ½ cup is dead on, and the 1 cup was just 2 mL high.

The handles are short, but have a nice thumb groove for a good grip. If you change your grip, though, the corners are pointy and unpleasant. The rims dig nicely into the hard sugar.

The handles are a little bendy and stubby, but the design of the cups is excellent. The rim has a little roll for strength, and the pour spout is a nice touch. The markings are great, with engraved marks on the handle and embossed markings on the bowls.

The NorPro plastic cups were mid-pack in accuracy with the ¼ cup 5.1% short of the standard and the 1 cup 3.8% low.

The handles are comfortable and provide a good grip. There’s a bit of flex on the brown sugar, but they could handle it. Annoyingly, these cups are unbalanced and can’t hold up their own handles. If you keep your cups on the ring for storage, you will not like this ring, which was extremely awkward to deal with.

These cups were solid for plastic, with very easy-to-read markings on the handles. The design of the handles has perpendicular ridges on the bottom for stiffness, but that leads to little pockets at the attachment that are tough to wash. The 1 cup is not quite level.

These cups were very good for accuracy, with the ⅓ cup just 1 mL too big and the ½ cup 2 mL too large.

These handles are a problem. They’re comfortable on the top and bottom, but sharp on the edges, right where your fingers rest when trying to scoop the brown sugar. The magnets are a nice idea, but not powerful enough relative to the weight of the cups to really keep them together unless perfectly positioned.

Construction on these is solid. We were worried about the three-part handles, but when we bashed them around, we couldn’t separate the materials. There are some awkward places on the underside of the handle where washing is difficult. Unlike the other cups in this roundup, the markings are not engraved or embossed, and won’t last too long. The ¼ cup and ⅓ cup are imbalanced and won’t hold themselves up.

These cups were medium in accuracy. I tested the ⅓ cup as 2.5% short and the ½ cup at 1.7% short.

The short handles on these cups were awkward, and dug into our hands when scooping brown sugar. The corners are especially jabby. The rim of the cup dug nicely into the hard sugar.

The handles on these cups are bendy, but the cups themselves are solid, with a nice little roll on the rim for reinforcement. They store very compactly, but the chain will not hold them together effectively. The engraved markings are on the small side.

Accuracy here was not good. The ½ cup was 6.8% too large and the ⅓ cup was 6.3% on the big side.

The handles are comfortable and effective. They were better at scooping the brown sugar than you would expect based on their looks.

These cups aren’t flimsy, but they’re not exactly strong either. The markings are OK, but you have to be at the right angle to read them easily. The rings are extremely awkward. They are also remarkably ugly.

The New Star cups were the least accurate cups in the test, with the ⅓ cup 6.3% too large and the ¼ cup a whopping 8.5% too big. This was a bit surprising since the spoons were relatively good.

We loved the handles on these cups the most of any of the ones in the test. These loops were comfortable and easy on the hands. The well-shaped rims cut through the brown sugar easily. The measurement markings are almost unforgivably bad, though. They’re on the bottom of the cup and very faint.

The cups look to be well built. The handle attachment looks questionable, since they are a separate piece unlike most of the other handles in the test. We tried to snap one off, but it stayed on. The design is especially attractive, but the cost of that beauty is that the measurements are very poorly marked. They are faint now, and I could see those getting obscured over time pretty easily.

Accuracy was a mixed bag for the Chef Craft spoons. I tested the tablespoon at 14.6 mL, just 1.4% less than the standard. The teaspoon was farther off at 5.4 mL, a whopping 10.2% over the standard.

These spoons are flimsy plastic and extremely bendy. They could not scoop the brown sugar at all. The handles are comfortable.

Build quality is low, as you might expect for less than $5. The handles are unworkably bendy (though we could bend one double without breaking it). The markings are good, but even after a matter of hours they are starting to pick away. The ring is terrible and falls apart at the slightest force. The spoons can’t fit around the ring joint, so they have to be used in one orientation.

Accuracy was on the bad side of moderate, with both the ¼ cup and ⅓ cup 3 mL short of the standard.

The scoop shape was effective at scooping up flour, but the cups were heavy and awkward to maneuver.

The cups themselves are well made sturdy stainless steel, with a solid rim that will hold up well. The engraved markings on the handles are legible. Unfortunately, there’s a disqualifying problem. The rubber covers on the handles are loose, and it’s going to be basically impossible to wash under them. Food will get trapped in there and can’t get cleaned out. As a matter of food safety, we can’t use these cups.

The Anchor Hocking cup was solid in accuracy, measuring 4 mL short of a cup.

The handle was very good, with a sure, comfortable shape. The markings were easy to read, but you have to hold the cup in your left hand to read the imperial side. We’re all right-handers who hold the cup in our right hand, so that’s not so good.

Quality is good with solid thick glass and a well designed pour spout and markings designed to endure dishwasher cycles.

When read from the side like most cups, the OXO was just 1 mL over a cup. The unique top reader was a little more off at 4 mL too high.

We love that angled reader. Filling on the counter is a snap with that, since you can fill and read from the same position. The handle was the best of the four cups.

As comfortable as that handle is, I don’t love its long-term future compared to the glass cups. The angled reader has one drawback – there are lots of little tight angles that have to be cleaned carefully. The pouring spout is nice with a great point at the end making it ideal for pouring without liquid running down the outside of the cup.

The Pyrex is not as accurate as the Anchor Hocking or the OXO, measuring 8 mL over the standard. This cup is also wider than the others, making it hard to really dial in the measurement.

The handle is short and difficult to get a good grip on. It doesn’t feel in control when the cup is full. The markings are easy to read.

The pour spout does not work right. Construction is solid, and it feels like the markings will last making it completely dishwasher safe.

The Rubbermaid cup is an astonishing 9.7% too small. The lines are thick and hard to dial in precisely.

The handle is the best of the group. The cup is compact and easy to hold. For a cup with no pour spout, it pours surprisingly well.

The whole thing feels flimsy and cheap. The marking lines are readable, but too thick.