Imagine that you’re at work, and it’s lunch time. Your colleagues have shuffled back in with their meal deals, grumbling about how that few pounds on food every day really stack up in the long run and take a fair chunk out of their salaries. They mention that they should “really start preparing lunches from home” at some point soon. That’s where you, sitting there with a food flask containing something delicious you brought from home at no extra cost, can allow yourself to feel a little smug.

Food flasks, like their drinks counterparts, are a superb invention, meaning that you don’t have to always fall back on cold/room temperature food when you’re at work, travelling, or wherever you find yourself needing one. We’ve got the selection of the best food flasks on the market today right here, so do yourself a favour and read on!

1. Thermos Stainless King Food Flask

Thermos’s King Stainless Food Flask is big on volume and big on colours. Cranberry Red is pictured, but a total of 9 colours are available, with Duck Egg a particular highlight. Thermos’ own vacuum insulation system promises to keep food hot for up to 9 hours and cold for up to 14. Both the interior and exterior walls are made from durable stainless-steel.

The lid is dual-purpose, also functioning as a bowl while insulated like the rest of the flask, meaning your food stays hotter for longer even after serving. A full-size folding spoon is supplied for convenience’s sake. This particular model is a moderately-sized 470ml, suitable for a generous serving of whatever you like (a wide opening helps), but a 710ml version of the King is also available. Thermos also have a huge 50-year guarantee on this food flask.

2. Prime Horizon Food Flask

This food flask by Prime Horizon is available in two colours, either stainless-steel silver or a deep (and very smart) blue. Utilising a bold, almost utilitarian design, its 500ml capacity should prove enough for a couple of small servings or one generous serving. The flask is double walled stainless-steel, with vacuum insulation as well as an internal copper coating designed to minimise heat loss. Heat retention time is claimed at a massive 24 hours for hot food, as well as up to 36 hours for cold food (subject to outside temperatures), making it a great choice for any all-day affairs.

The lid of the flask doubles up as a bowl, and a foldable full-size spoon is also included. A water-resistant carry bag is also provided, which as well as adding a layer of thermal resistance, also features a carry handle and a carabiner to attach to backpacks, making it a great choice for outdoor excursions.

3. Pioneer Food Flask

This food flask by Pioneer sets out its stall as a tough piece of kit at first glance thanks to two things; a chunky-looking shape, and a military-esque stencil font logo. It’s available in 3 sizes as well as 3 colours – the 500ml stainless-steel variant is pictured, but 700 and 1000ml options in white and matte black are also for sale. Made from double-wall stainless-steel, designed to radiate heat back inwards, which includes a layer of vacuum insulation, it promises to keep contents hot for up to 8 hours, and cold for up to 24 hours.

One neat feature is the inclusion of two cups; the lid naturally functions as a container, but a second also sits inside the first, making it a viable option for 2-person outings. A wide opening also gives you plenty of options as to what can be stored in the flask, which is topped off with a guaranteed leak-proof lid seal.

4. Keetan Food Flask

Promising to keep food hot for up to 6 hours and cold for up to 10 hours, Keetan’s food flask is a large-volume choice with a decent heat retention time. Counting on vacuum insulation between two layers of kitchen-grade stainless-steel, as well as a copper coating on the internal layer, it not only has good temperature retention but is also easy to clean. Available in 3 colours it’s a simple but stylish affair; blue is pictured, but red and stainless-steel silver are also for sale.

With a wide mouth for easy access to most foodstuffs, it also comes with a full-size foldable spoon. The lid is fully leakproof and doubles up as a serving bowl. Keetan also offers a 2-year warranty on the flask.

5. 720°DGREE wunderJar Food Flask

The wunderJar (literally Wonder Jar or Miracle Jar in English) by German brand 720°DGREE is sold with a mindset of reducing plastic waste and actively supporting charities promoting fresh drinking water. The flask is constructed out of the company’s proprietary ‘KeppDGREE’ technology which uses durable double-walled food-safe stainless-steel to keep food hot for up to 9 hours and cold for up to 16 hours.

It has a wide mouth to ensure ease of adding food which is sealed and leakproof, but also has a neatly engineered pressure relief button. The lid also doubles up as a bowl, generously proportioned and made from BPA-free long-life plastic. The lid also provides a little colour splash with an orange rubberised strap on top complementing the understated matte grey of the flask. It’s available in 450ml (pictured) or 650ml.

6. SHO Ultimate Food Flask

The Ultimate Food Flask by SHO is a colourful range of flasks available in 2 sizes; 600ml and 800ml; and the 5 different colours pictured; ‘Brilliant Blue’, ‘Sunset Orange’, ‘Gorgeous Green’, ‘Original Stainless Steel’ and ‘Perfect Pink’. The large carry handle makes it a convenient choice for even the tiniest hands, and provides a solid lever to open the flask with. Using a layer of vacuum insulation between two walls of stainless-steel, the Ultimate promsies to keep food hot for between 8 and 12 hours, and cold for between 18 and 24 hours.

The lid can be used as a bowl, but there is also a smaller saucer that sits inside the lid which functions as a bowl as well. SHO offer a lifetime warranty on this flask and promise to fix and issues. They also donate 10% of profits to  Mary’s Meals, a charity that offers food and education to needy children.

7. VonShef Food Flask

This food flask from VonShef is an uncomplicated and highly functional food flask. Featuring a double-walled insulation system, which combines layers of stainless-steel with a middle layer of vacuum insulation to keep food warm, or cold, for a good amount of time. The lid is also wide mouthed so as to allow you to fit almost any kind of food in with ease.

A foldable full-size metal spoon is also supplied, and sits in the top of the sealing cap, which screws in to ensure the whole thing stays leakproof. The lid also doubles up as a bowl so you can eat on the go. Only available in the smart matte black, VonShef sell two different sizes of 500ml (pictured) and 750ml, and they provide a 2-year warranty with the flask.

8. ValueTalks Hot Food Flask

ValueTalks Food Flask is a compact option that will keep foods hot or cold for up to 12 hours – they usefully offer data on temperature change rates so you can keep on top of things. It can maintain temperatures around 73oC for up to 4 hours, 60oC for 6 hours and 50oC for 12, while the cold temperature guides are 3, 6 and 12oC over the same timeframe. At 450ml it’s a good size for most people, with a wide mouth allowing you to put almost anything in it.

The crew-in sealing cap has a pressure release button, as well as holding a folding stainless-steel spoon. The spoon pairs with the lid, which can be used as a bowl, to give you an effective on-the-go solution. It also looks pretty neat, with an almost seamless matte black finish.

9. WayEee King Jar Food Flask

This Food Flask from WayEee is, as the name suggests, designed with king-size portions in mind. At 710ml, and with an extra-wide mouth, it’s more than capable of holding large portions, even conceivably enough for two people. The thermal protection comes courtesy of double-walled stainless-steel, a vacuum insulation layer and a thing internal copper coating. With an internal and external double-lip design rounding off the insulation, food is well insulated. This results in a claimed hot and cold temperature retention time of 12 hours.

The flask comes with a folding spoon, made of food-grade stainless-steel. The lid can be used as a lid, giving you an ideal on-the-go storage and eating solution. A pressure release button is also situated underneath the folding spoon in the flask seal to help with pressure changes. The flask is available in light blue and grey as well as the black (pictured), and WayEee offers a 3-year warranty.

10. oneisall Food Flask

This surprisingly glamorous-looking flask by oneisall is a compact solution for keeping food warm on the go. With a carry handle built into the lid, the flask is also supplied with a thermally insulated carry bag with an integrated pocket for a spoon (also supplied). The flask has a very wide mouth to allow you to eat directly from it.

There are 8 different varieties of this flask, with the pictured gold variant one that particularly stands out. The 450ml volume is good for a single portion, promising to keep hot food at a high temperature for up to 9 hours, while keeping cold food at lower temperatures for up to 12 hours. This is thanks to a vacuum-insulated stainless-steel construction.

11. Black & Blum Food Flask

This super stylish compact flask from ethically minded brand Black & Blum (technically ‘black + blum’) is as much a fashionable accessory as it is a useful food container. The main flask has a brushed stainless-steel finish, offset by the artificial vegan leather strap which serves as both a grip to hold while eating and a strap to hold the provided spoon. Said spoon is a bold splash of colour, either orange (pictured) or ‘ocean’ blue, and more ergonomically shaped than similar products.

The flask uses vacuum insulation to offer a temperature retention time of up to 6 hours for hot food and up to 8 hours for cold food. The opening of the flask is designed to be wide enough to work in tandem with the spoon for straightforward, self-contained mealtimes – with 400ml of volume, it should be enough for a single portion.

12. IGZOM Food Flask

The bright and bold colours and whimsical designs of IGZOM’s food flask make it a great choice for the young and young at heart alike. With 9 varieties including the plain pink option pictured, some of which are cutesy animal designs, it’s sure to bring a smile to your face come lunchtime. Made from 2 layers of food-grade stainless-steel separated by a layer of vacuum insulation, it will keep food warm for up to 6 hours and cold for up to 12 hours.

It has a very compact design at 17.5cm tall, with a diameter of 8.8cm, which with a wide mouth tops out at 540ml – perfect for popping in a backpack. The durable steel construction paired with BPA-free tough plastic for the lid and fixings ensure it stays tough.

Which Food Flask to Go for?

Best quality & features – The Thermos Stainless King Food Flask proves why Thermos are the standard when it comes to flasks. The durability and build are second to none, something which is exemplified by Thermos’ 50-year guarantee. Although not the largest flask here, the excellent heat retention times of up to 9 hours (hot) and up to 12 hours (cold) are among the best out there for a good-sized single portion of food. The colour options are a nice bonus, too.

On a budget – The 720°DGREE wunderJar Food Flask makes for surprisingly good value for those not wanting to overspend on a food flask. Even with its environmentally-friendly credentials, which often come with a little extra on the price tag, this particular flask is very reasonably-priced for a flask with a solid amount of volume for single portions and exceptional build quality and style.

Best for big meals – SHO’s Ultimate Food Flask is not the biggest flask out there, but it is bigger than most. 2 sizes are available for the Ultimate, both of which are bigger than comparable flasks. The smaller is 600ml, which beats out other similarly sized flasks which are usually around 500ml, and the 800ml compares with others usually around 700ml. So unquestionably, if you’ve got a big appetite (or are carrying food for two) then the Ultimate should be your flask of choice. An honourable mention does go out to Pioneer’s 1000ml food flask, however.

The longest heat retention –  The King Jar Food Flask from WayEee claims a temperature retention time of up to 12 hours for both hot and cold food, of which the time for the hot food is the most impressive claim. These claims are backed up with some cleverly-designed insulation, with lots of insulating layers and a double-lip technology to maximise the effectiveness of the seal.

Best for camping/outdoors trips – The Prime Horizon food flask comes with a carry bag which has its own handle, as well as a carabiner clip attached, making it purpose-built for use with backpacks. On long hiking trips, maximising internal bag space is a major concern and keeping your food source outside the bag is a big help. The bag is fully insulated and zips all the way around the flask to maximise the insulation, and with the included spoon and lid-bowl, you’re all set on your next camping trip.

For the style-oriented – Black & Blum’s Food Flask is proof that even things like flasks can be accessories. Its minimalist and stylish exterior combines a brushed stainless-steel body with a vegan-friendly artificial leather strap and colour-splash spoon. It’s not simply a case of form over function however, as it’s an effective solution for keeping food warm during the day, thanks to a 6-hour heat retention time.

For the kids’ lunchbox – The Food Flask from IGZOM is a great choice for kids thanks to a wide range of colourful and cheerful designs. It has plenty of volume (540ml) and heat retention capabilities (up to 6 hours hot) to keep food warm all the way to lunchtime and is compact enough to fit into a schoolbag without taking up too much room.

Food Flask Buying Guide

Knowing the differences between different food flasks is imperative! After all, each food flask is ultimately designed for a different purpose, whether it’s for people on their commutes who want a hot breakfast, or at least something warm for lunch; hikers and travellers relying on a hot pick-me-up halfway up a chilly mountain; or just someone looking for something simple and functional for a warm meal later in the day without the need for a microwave.

Whatever it is you need from a flask, our buying guide is here to help you make a bit more sense of what you need in terms of the most essential criteria – after reading this, you should be absolutely sure which food flask is right for you.

Capacity

The amount of food you can get into your flask should be one of the main considerations you make when looking for the right food flask. Nobody knows your appetite and eating habits better than you do, so take a close look at the volumes of the flasks you’re considering and weigh that up against how much you’d be looking to carry. After all, it defeats the point somewhat if you can only fit half a lunch portion in what you’ve bought, or on the other end of the spectrum, buy one that’s too big and realise you’ve wasted money on flask volume you just won’t fill. Also bear in mind how many people you’re feeding – one large flask might feed two, if you’re going on a trip somewhere and are trying to economise on how much to take with you.

Lid

The lid can be a major functional part of any kind of flask. Just like drinks flask which utilise the lid as a miniature cup/mug, so do food flasks have convertible lids. It might be a pertinent consideration, especially if you’re getting a food flask for camping or hiking trips, to have a flask with a lid that doubles up as a bowl. Some also come with foldable spoons, meaning cutlery becomes one less thing that you have to bring.

Materials

As with so many things, you get what you pay for with flasks. The cheapest are usually made out of plastic, which might be perfectly fine for short-term use. Typically though, they don’t retain heat for very long and can be very fragile, and spillages are the last thing you want! Seriously, have you ever opened a bag to find that soup has spilled out of a cracked flask? Nightmare. Most good-quality flasks are constructed from stainless-steel, which is normally a bigger initial investment, but one that will pay for itself in the long run thanks to its longevity. They’re easier to clean, tougher and hold on to heat better.

Heat Retention

Of course, one of the main reasons to buy a flask is to keep hot food hot. As such, heat retention is another of the most important factors to consider before buying. This heat retention time can vary hugely between around 4 hours, up to 12 hours and potentially even longer than that. This means that you have to factor in how, where and when you intend to use your flask. For single portions, a few hours is probably fine, but on longer expeditions with multiple meals, you’re naturally going to need one that’ll hold onto that heat for longer.

Some flasks are also designed with the intention of maintaining a low temperature for cold food. While not fully refrigerating them, flasks designed for this purpose will usually keep things cold longer than they keep things hot. But, some flasks are not meant for this, so bear that in mind.

A food flask can be a great choice if you decide you want to bring your own food with you when you leave the house, as well as their obvious practical value when you’re off travelling. They can be very handy and cost-effective when balanced against the cost of buying food out, and it can also be comforting eating the food you’ve brought from home. Hopefully our buying guide has cleared up any questions you might have had about what to consider before buying a food flask.