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Stanley vs. Yeti: Which buzzy brand makes the better insulated tumbler?
In one corner, the trendy Quencher; in the other, the classic Rambler. Did your favorite cup score a knockout in our ice test?
Gone are the days of drinking from a single-use plastic bottle. Instead, shoppers shell out good money to get their hands on a coveted, trendy insulated cup. Think about the last time you were out and about: Whether you were cruising around in your car or traveling via public transportation, there's a good chance you saw at least one person with a Stanley, Yeti or Owala.
Staying hydrated is a worthy investment, sure — but $30-plus for the best water bottles? Are they really worth it? According to one Yahoo editor, the answer is yes. But which one should you buy? Stanley's Quencher Tumbler has gone viral on TikTok many times over, but is it really the best of the best? Rival brand Yeti has its own legion of diehard fans who swear it "far surpasses the Stanley cups."
I drink plenty of water all day, every day, so I decided to take one for the team and buy a Stanley and a Yeti. I put both brands in a head-to-head ice test to discover which tumbler is better — once and for all. Keep reading for the results.
The Contenders
First up, we have Yeti's best-selling Rambler tumbler. It's made from dishwasher-safe stainless steel and features double-wall vacuum insulation to keep beverages cold. It's available in three sizes — 25 ounces, 35 ounces and 42 ounces — and more than 20 colors.
Next, we have the Stanley H2.0 FlowState Quencher Tumbler. Most people know the 40-ounce design with the handle, but it's also available in 14-, 20-, 30- and 64-ounce cups. Like the Yeti Rambler, it's crafted from durable stainless steel and has double-wall vacuum insulation. It's dishwasher-safe and comes with a reusable straw. The color selection is vast if you order directly from Stanley.
Stanley vs. Yeti
Before we get into the test, a few other details about the Yeti Rambler and Stanley Quencher worth nothing. First, the tumblers are not available in identical sizes. I'm comparing the 25-ounce Yeti to the 20-ounce Stanley. Because the Yeti is bigger, it shouldn't be surprising that it's also heavier. It's not a brick by any means, but you can tell it weighs more when you're holding the two cups.
The 25-ounce Yeti Rambler has a handle; the 20-ounce Stanley does not. Both tumblers easily fit inside the cup holders in my car.
Last but not least, neither of these cups are leakproof. I filled both up and tipped them over — the water came streaming out almost immediately. If you're looking for something that won't spill, consider Yahoo home editor Kristin Granero's top pick, the Stanley IceFlow.
The ice retention test
Okay, now for the main event. To help determine which tumbler is better, I had one simple question: Which cup kept ice frozen for longer? To find out, I put 10 ice cubes in each, filled them both with water from the refrigerator and sat them in the 85°F sun for two hours. Scientific? Probably not. Practical? Yep.
To my surprise, after two hours in the sun, there was no ice remaining in the Yeti. The Stanley still had some ice — granted, they were pretty small pieces, but they were there.
Could other factors have contributed to this outcome? Of course. As I mentioned above, the tumblers are slightly different sizes, so perhaps that played a role in why the ice melted faster in the bigger Yeti. The cups were different colors, so maybe that impacted the results. All that said, I feel confident recommending the Stanley as a top-notch tumbler that will actually keep your drink cold (and your ice frozen) for an extended period of time. I drank from both cups after they'd been out in the sun for two hours, and the water in the Stanley was colder. The difference wasn't stark, but it was big enough that I noticed.
TL;DR
The Stanley H2.0 FlowState Quencher kept my ice frozen and water colder for longer. But, the Yeti Rambler is no slouch either. It kept the water almost as cool — even once the ice had melted — and the handle is convenient. While this eagerly anticipated matchup wasn't quite a draw, you really can't go wrong with either of these heavy-hitters.
