Is the Stanley Quencher Really the Best (Ridiculously Large) Travel Mug You Can Buy?
You’ve probably noticed something strange is happening in America right now. People are carrying around really big travel coffee cups, and by “big,” I mean comically large, and by “carrying around” I mean obsessing over them like a trust fund baby obsesses over their teacup dog. The large mug in play is the Stanley Quencher, a 40-ounce vessel that comes in a variety of colors and has become a social media star. Yes, there’s been some pushback (see below), but generally, the thirst for these oversized sippy cups has reached a feverish pitch. Little girls are crying on camera when they receive the perfect Stanley mug as a gift, people are standing in line for hours to grab limited edition drops at Target, grown women are dedicating entire closets to their Stanley collection. And the resale of limited edition models of the Stanley Quencher are insane. I found a Winter Pink edition Starbucks Quencher that sold for $265 on StockX.
It all makes you wonder how an oversized travel mug become the must-have accessory of 2024.
Stanley, as a company, has been around for more than a century. I have two of their flasks and one of their thermoses. The Quencher has been on and off the market since 2016, but hit its stride in 2023, boosting Stanley’s annual sales to $750 million, almost doubling its revenue from the previous year. This particular trend can be traced back to 2017, when the women behind The Buy Guide started touting their love for the oversized mugs, which had until that point been marketed towards dudes going camping (I was one of those dudes!). The founders of The Buy Guide fell in love with the cups and started seeding them to their favorite influencers.
Most agree that Stanley also got a huge bump during WaterTok, where influencers showed the world how to make water taste better than water by adding flavor (because this is what the internet is for, now), and then someone filmed their Stanley Quencher surviving a car fire. The craze has even gotten its own spoof on SNL.
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But that begs the question: Are these massive tumblers any good at doing things a huge travel mug should do? Like holding water and keeping it cold? And is the Stanley Quencher the best travel mug of them all? Stanley might be the most popular mug at the moment, but how does it fare against the competition in head-to-head competition?
We found, that after being subjected to a battery of tests and weeks of constant use, the RTIC Road Trip has risen to the top of the list and is the best travel mug we tested. It was just as durable as the others, but kept the water the coldest of them all. It’s also the most versatile, because it comes with a straw (which my wife and daughter insist is mandatory), but it can also be used without a straw as a regular sippy cup. And the lid locks closed, creating a no-spill seal that’s ideal for traveling. It’s also a little less expensive than most other mugs on this list.
Read on for our rundown of some of the most popular mugs and decide for yourself which huge travel mug deserves your attention.
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Best Overall Travel Mug: RTIC Road Trip
Yes, the RTIC Road Trip outperformed the other mugs on this list, particularly in terms of ice retention (see specifics below), but there’s more to love about this mug than just cold water. RTIC added a ceramic lining to the vessel, eschewing the metallic taste that turns some people off of stainless steel. I also really like the lid, which can be used with a straw or in sippy cup mode, or you can lock it shut for a leak-proof experience. It's the largest mug on this list in terms of stature, barely edging out the Stanley Quencher in height. The size will either appeal to you or turn you off, but nobody will complain that the Road Trip is a few bucks cheaper than most other mugs on this list. RTIC also makes a 30-ounce version if you’re looking for something smaller.
Capacity: 40 ounces
Weight: 1.5 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: It leaks when in straw mode, but is water tight when the lid is locked.
Drop Test Results: The Road Trip can take a beating.
Ice Retention Results: True to its name, the RTIC retained the most amount of ice after 24 hours and tied for the coldest water temp at 31.9 degrees.
Best Travel Mug for the Yeti Ecosystem: Yeti Rambler
You’ve got the Yeti hard-sided cooler, the soft-sided cooler, the backpack, the coffee mug that doesn’t fit in any cup holder; you should probably go ahead and get this Rambler too. It’s large and heavy, the way you’d expect a Yeti to be, but it does actually fit inside a standard cup holder. I like the fact that you can interchange this straw lid with Yeti’s MagSlider lid if you want. I noticed that the lid can be hard to press into place and take off because the seal is so watertight, and my wife complained about the weight of the Rambler. The girls in my life were very impressed with the pink color of the Yeti Rambler. If the 42-ouncer is too big for you, it comes in 25-ounce and 35-ounce versions too.
Capacity: 42 ounces
Weight: 1.7 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: Tip the Rambler over and water will leak from the straw. The MagSlider lid will solve this problem.
Drop Test Results: It’s a Yeti. It will survive an apocalypse. But water gushed out of the Rambler when I dropped it on the floor and the straw popped out of the lid.
Ice Retention Results: I was shocked to see there was no ice in this mug after 24 hours. The water temp was 35.7 degrees.
Best Travel Mug for Aesthetics: Hydro Flask Travel Tumbler
Hydro Flask makes my absolute favorite coffee mug and the Travel Tumbler was a strong contender based on its looks and design alone; it’s pretty with a soothing color palate and soft silhouette. The rubber, flexible straw made the Travel Tumbler a top choice for my wife. If ice retention is your No. 1 concern, though, the Travel Tumbler might not be the right choice for you (see results below). It’s a large mug, and my wife said it almost broke her foot when she dropped it one day, but they make a 32-ounce version if you’re looking for something smaller. Also cool: Hydro Flask has a trade-in program designed to reduce waste and recycle their old mugs and bottles.
Capacity: 40 ounces
Weight: 1.3 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: It’s gonna leak if you tip it over.
Drop Test Results: Bomber. This thing hit concrete and came away almost unscathed.
Ice Retention Results: I was surprised that the Travel Tumbler didn’t do better. It had no ice after 24 hours and a balmy water temp of 42.8 degrees.
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Best Travel Mug for Coordinating With Your Outfit: Stanley Quencher
Overall, the Quencher did well during my testing. I like the fact that the lid rotates into three different positions (straw, sip, and closed), so you don’t have to use the straw if you don’t want to. It’s also made from 90 percent recycled stainless steel, which earns points in my book. Will they move away from lead soldering and find an alternative way to seal the layers of stainless steel? Who knows. The Quencher is large and almost as heavy as the Yeti, but it comes in a variety of sizes, from 14 ounces up to 64 ounces. No other company makes as many colorways for their mugs as Stanley, especially when you consider all of the limited edition drops.
Capacity: 40 ounces
Weight: 1.4 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: If you tip this thing over with a straw in it, it leaks like a waterfall. Take the straw out and flip the sippy cup lid closed and, well, it still leaks.
Drop Test Results: The Quencher can take whatever you throw at it.
Ice Retention Results: There was a little bit of ice left in the Quencher after 24 hours, and the water temp was 32.7 degrees, the third coldest of the test.
Best Budget Travel Mug: Iron Flask Co-Pilot
I had never heard of the Iron Flask brand before this test, but I was intrigued by the price, which is almost half the cost of some others on this list. The Co-Pilot is as large as the Stanley, but it feels thin and unsubstantial in my hand. The straw is also made of a thin, bendy plastic that would warp if you absent-mindedly put it in the dishwasher. It comes with two lids (straw and sippy cup), and while I don’t like having an extra lid to store and keep track of, I do like the option of not using a straw. One thing to note about the Co-Pilot—it’s hand wash only, which could be a deal breaker for some. I do like the non-slip coating on the bottom of the cup, though. It also comes in a 32-ounce version.
Capacity: 40 ounces
Weight: 1 pound
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: Of all of the straw mugs, this one leaked the least.
Drop Test Results: The Co-Pilot withstood the drops, but given the thinner walls, I don’t think you could drive over it with a truck.
Ice Retention Results: The Co-Pilot didn’t fare well here. There was no ice left in the mug after 24 hours, and it had the warmest water temp of all at 43.7 degrees.
Best for Travel Mug for Trips: CamelBak Thrive
Leak-proof lid. That’s the key to the Thrive, which is a little smaller than the other mugs on this list, holding just 32 ounces of liquid. It also doesn’t have a straw, which my wife and daughter insist is a non-starter for them, but the Thrive was my personal favorite mug because of its slightly smaller size and the fact that it doesn’t leak, even if you throw it across the room. Both those characteristics make it ideal for travel. CamelBak makes a smaller 16 ounce version, and also a version without a handle if you’re into that. My favorite feature: it has a non-slip bumper on the bottom of the mug, which dampens the noise and softens the impact when you set it down on a table.
Capacity: 32 ounces
Weight: 1.2 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: It ain’t gonna spill, no matter what.
Drop Test Results: It’s burly. No worries there.
Ice Retention Results: The Thrive was one of the better performers in this category, with plenty of ice left after 24 hours, and a water temp of 31.9 degrees.
Best Slim Travel Mug: Miir All Day Straw Cup
I’ve always been a fan of MiiR’s products because they look so damn beautiful, and the All Day Straw Cup is no exception. It’s sleek and slender, and even though it holds 32 ounces of beverage, it seems like it takes up much less space than the other mugs. My wife likes this one because the straw isn’t hard plastic—it’s a squishy rubber. It wasn’t a top contender in the ice retention test, but I can attest that it’s an easy mug to use and it looks great on my desk. MiiR also uses 90 percent recycled stainless steel for this mug.
Capacity: 32 ounces
Weight: 1.5 pounds
Will It Fit in a Standard Cupholder? Yes
Spill Test Results: It’s gonna leak when you tip it over, but it didn’t gush during the drop test like some other straw options.
Drop Test Results: This is high-quality stainless steel with a powder coating. It’ll last.
Ice Retention Results: There was no ice left in the mug after 24 hours, and the water temp was 36.9 degrees.
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How We Tested
I spent a few weeks interchanging each of these options into my daily life and got my wife and kids to help test them as well. I also subjected each tumbler to a battery of mostly scientific tests to determine which kept drinks coldest, and which offered a truly no-spill experience. I thought about starting a car fire with all of the mugs in various cupholders inside the vehicle, but decided that might be a bit overkill. Also, if your car catches on fire, you have bigger things to worry about than whether your mug keeps your water cold.
Most of them are dishwasher safe (the IronFlask asks for hand-washing only), but only up to a point. Trust me, if you run these things through the machine daily, at some point that powder coat of paint begins to bubble and crack. They’re all pretty damn durable, though. I dropped these things onto a hardwood floor from table height multiple times and I couldn’t find a scuff or scratch on any of them. My wife dropped the Hydro Flask from her backpack on concrete and there was just the tiniest dent on the rim of the lid, otherwise it still looks brand new. Stainless steel with a powder coat is a good combo for durability.
As for which mug spilled the most water during that drop test, the Yeti and Hydro Flask both leaked profusely because the straws popped out of the lids. The only mug that didn’t leak at all was the CamelBak because of its lock-tight lid, which has no straw.
I put the same amount of water and ice in each of these mugs and let them sit at room temperature for 24 hours. Then I got technical and dropped a thermometer into the water of each mug to see if there were any temperature differentials. I was surprised at the results of both tests.
Should You Be Worried About Lead in Your Massive Travel Mug?
As it was widely reported recently, there’s a concern about lead content in vacuum-sealed, double-wall insulated stainless steel mugs with Stanley taking most of the heat. Stanley says it uses a lead pellet to seal the vacuum insulation at the base of their products in a process called “lead soldering,” but that the lead is covered by more stainless steel and shouldn’t come into contact with consumers unless the Quencher comes apart. It’s a fairly common practice in the industry. Yeti and MiiR have also confirmed using lead soldering for its stainless steel products. Hydro Flask says they stopped using lead soldering in 2013. Now, Stanley is getting sued for not disclosing that they use lead in their Quencher mugs, with one suit filed in Washington and another in California.
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To some degree, these mugs have shifted from status symbol to a symbol of over-consumption. I’ll let you decide for yourself which camp you’re in, but let me just point out that you shouldn’t go crazy and buy a different massive mug for every day of the week. I shouldn’t have to say that, but it’s 2024 and people are weird, so I thought I should write it down.
Why You Should Trust Me
I’ve been writing about gear and trends for more than two decades, during which time I’ve tested my way through a series of these hard-to-explain trends. I have every over-priced/over-engineered coffee mug and cooler you could possibly imagine. There was a time when every college kid in America owned a massive Nalgene bottle, and I was right there with them. My wife still has a Nalgene with the faded crest of her Alma Mater emblazoned on the side. I actually have one of the early versions of the Stanley Quencher (it doesn’t have a handle and it’s just plain old black), but I’m not an influencer so I can’t take any credit for the current trend.
