I Tested Paper Towel Holders by Going Through Dozens of Rolls and Cleaning Up Lots of Messes
We set up and used 11 paper towel holders, tearing off tons of towels. We found four great ones, including mounted options, that were sturdy and well-built.
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A paper towel holder may seem inconsequential. And truthfully, in a world that’s increasingly prioritizing reusable over disposable, maybe it’s becoming a thing of the past. But, also truthfully, I still use paper towels. Millennial that I am, I even employ them as napkins (gasp!). (Plus, you can stick a roll of reusable paper towels on a holder, too, so there ya go.)
In short, a good paper towel holder—one that keeps a roll easily accessible when I need to tear a square—is essential in my kitchen. It also shouldn’t traipse across my countertop with a tug. To find the best ones, I tested 11 models by loading up on fancy and cheap paper towels alike and got ripping.
The Winners, at a Glance
The “steady” in the name of this product is spot-on: In my tests, it didn’t wobble or waver in its paper towel-holding duty. I ripped off towels with little effort, and the snug fit prevented the roll from unspooling.
I’ve actually had this paper towel holder for years and thought nothing of it. But during testing, I realized that its hefty marble composition is not only pretty, it’s also practical: The weight keeps it from tipping over or sliding across my countertop when I tear a towel.
Like the standing paper towel holder from OXO, this mounted version sports a thicker rod that makes it easy to rip a piece off with one hand without tearing. It was also simple to install.
If you like a mounted paper towel holder but don’t want to (or can’t) drill holes in your kitchen, then this magnetic offering is a fantastic solution. I used it on both my fridge and a metal kitchen rack and it stayed attached even with some aggressive tugs.
The Tests
- Set Up Test: I set up each (or installed, in the case of mounted ones) paper towel holder, noting if it was easy or took some fiddling.
- Paper Towel Tear Test: I placed a roll of jumbo towels on each holder, then tore a piece off. I noted if the paper towel holder kept the roll steady, if the roll unraveled excessively with each rip, and if it stayed put on my countertop. I repeated this with cheaper paper towels to see if there was a difference.
- Daily Usage Test: I used my favorite paper towel holders for a week during my daily cooking and cleaning routine.
What We Learned
Weighty Paper Towel Holders Were Better
I often grab a paper towel when something spills or splatters during cooking. It’s not always a gentle action, and if the paper towel holder falls over mid-rip, then I’ve got two messes on my hands. So, the best paper towel holders were heavy-duty. The Crate & Barrel Marble Paper Towel Holder weighs 3.8 pounds, which helped keep it from tipping or moving when I tore a towel off. The same could not be said for the Hawkins New York Wood Paper Towel Holder, which only weighs 14.1 ounces and slid across my countertop every time I ripped off a towel. It was also so light that, a tug tipped it over.
Simple Was Best
Some paper towel holders include arms that supposedly make tearing off a towel easier. But, oftentimes, they were only an impediment to putting on a roll. The Yamazaki Tosca One-Handed Tear Paper Towel Holder featured a looped metal piece that you thread the towel through, which was supposed to make it easier to cleanly rip off a piece. But it didn’t make a big difference and it was more work to set up than just plunking a roll on a simple rod-and-base holder. The OXO Good Grips SimplyTear Paper Towel Holder and Simplehuman Paper Towel Holder feature arms that spring into place to hold the roll steady while you tear, but they didn’t perform any better than holders without arms.
Thicker Rods Made for More Control
Holders with thicker rods, like the OXO Good Grips Steady Paper Towel Holder, held the paper towel steady as I tugged. The roll fit snugly, which made tearing a towel off feel more controlled, so I could only rip off what I needed. Thinner rods, like on the Williams Sonoma x Morris & Co. Paper Towel Holder, caused the roll to wobble and spin quickly, and I’d often unravel too much towel in my effort to tear off a single piece.
Paper Towel Quality Affected Performance
While my favorite paper towel holders had qualities that made them better than others, I found the type of paper towel affected performance. For example, cheaper paper towels unroll much more easily than heavy, thick ones. When I used the latter in testing, most paper towel holders stayed steady when I pulled. But when I used Viva paper towels, which were stretchy and had a clingy, felt-like texture, it took more finagling to unwrap and tear off a piece. The tear test revealed which towel holders were prone to skittering across the counter or tipping over. The size of the roll also made a difference: The Williams Sonoma has an inset base that couldn’t accommodate a larger roll.
The Criteria: What to Look for in a Paper Towel Holder
A good paper towel holder should stay in place and be easy to set up and use. Lightweight, free-standing ones slid across the counter, while heavyset, weighty ones stayed rooted with each tug. Arms were superfluous, and a thick rod was more efficient at keeping a roll from unraveling excessively. Finally, holders with inset bases couldn’t accommodate larger rolls.
When choosing between a freestanding or mounted towel holder, consider your space: Most mounted holders need to be screwed into the wall but save counter space, while freestanding ones are super easy to set up but take up room. I did find a great in-between: a magnetic-mounted towel holder from Yamazaki, which I stuck on my stainless steel fridge.
Our Favorite Paper Towel Holders
What we liked: This is truly the perfect paper towel holder: It stayed put when I ripped towels off and the thick rod prevented rolls from excessively unraveling with each tug. The stainless steel base has a classic look that’ll fit into any kitchen, and it can accommodate rolls of all sizes. It’s also less than $30.
What we didn’t like: Honestly, there wasn’t much to dislike. It was more wobbly when I got down to the last few pieces of paper towel.
Key Specs
- Height: 13.75 inches
- Weight: 1.15 pounds
- Width at base: 7.13 inches
- Materials: Stainless steel
What we liked: I’ve been using this paper towel holder for years, and its sturdy marble construction is elegant and practical. Marble is heavy and prevents the holder from sliding across the countertop when a towel is tugged. It also looks nice. Because the bottom of the holder is a simple disk, it could fit standard and jumbo rolls easily.
What we didn’t like: A roll of paper towels doesn’t fit snugly on the rod, so they are prone to unraveling more.
Key Specs
- Height: 13.25 inches
- Weight: 3.8 pounds
- Width at base: 6.5 inches
- Materials: Marble
What we liked: This is the mounted version of my favorite paper towel holder, and it’s great for the same reasons: It has a wide rod so a roll of paper towels fits snugly, ensuring you only get what you want and don’t unspool the whole thing. It was also easy to install, with no awkward angling of the drill necessary, and it hung down far enough that I could fit a jumbo roll on without smushing it.
What we didn’t like: Without a roll on it, the gray faceted rod isn’t very attractive.
Key Specs
- Pole length: 11.75 inches
- Weight: 8.6 ounces
- Hanging depth: 5 inches
- Materials: Stainless steel
What we liked: I was skeptical that a magnetic paper towel holder would stay put with more desperate tugs. But I was pleasantly surprised: It held fast both on my stainless steel refrigerator and metal kitchen shelf. This made it super convenient, since I could have the space-saving quality of a mounted holder without having to break out a drill. Plus, it’s easy to move. It fit both slim and jumbo rolls, and it was easy to tear off a piece without it ripping wonkily.
My colleague Rochelle Bilow has been using the Yamazaki for a few months now and loves it. “I own loads of Yamazaki stuff, so when I saw Grace was testing this, I bought it without waiting to read her results. I immediately loved the modern aesthetic that matched the rest of my kitchen,” she says.
What we didn’t like: The o-rings that secure the wooden rod to the holder are clear; I dropped one once and it took me a while to find it. The rod is thin, so rolls do wobble and spin more than on a thicker one.
Key Specs
- Pole length: 11.5 inches
- Weight: 10.3 ounces
- Hanging depth: 3.5 inches
- Materials: Wood, alloy steel
The Competition
Also Good
- OXO Good Grips SimplyTear Paper Towel Holder: This was another solid contender that held jumbo and smaller rolls, spun tightly, and was easy to rip from. The arm didn’t help nor hinder its usage. It was edged out by the OXO Good Grips Steady Paper Towel Holder, which is a smidge cheaper.
- Simplehuman Paper Towel Holder: This tall paper towel holder was a little tippy, but other than that, it performed fine. It’s quite expensive, though, and not any better than my more affordable top picks.
- Simplehuman Quick-Load Paper Towel Holder: Another solid performer, this was just edged out by the OXO Mounted Paper Towel Holder, which had a thicker rod and produced less unraveling. It was also a little more difficult to install since some of the screw holes were near or under the rod, which made angling the drill tricky.
Not Recommended
- Yamazaki Tosca One-Handed Tear Paper Towel Holder: This holder has a built-in metal loop that you thread a towel through that’s supposed to make ripping off a piece easier. But it didn’t, and it was more work than just plopping a roll on a rod. It also wasn’t the sturdiest holder and a strong tug sent it across the counter.
- Williams Sonoma x Morris & Co. Paper Towel Holder: This pretty holder features a base with a raised lip, so only smaller paper towel rolls can fit. It was also wobbly and slid across the countertop.
- Hawkins New York Wood Paper Towel Holder: A mere 14.1 ounces was way too light for a standing towel holder—it stumbled across the countertop every time I pulled a towel off. It's currently out of stock.
- IKEA TORKAD Kitchen Roll Holder: Another incredibly lightweight towel holder (it’s 7.7 ounces), it fell over when I ripped off a piece of towel. It does have drill holes on the bottom so you can screw it into a wall, but it’s just so flimsy.
FAQs
What’s the best paper towel holder for large rolls?
All of our winners, including picks from OXO, Crate and Barrel, and Yamazaki, worked really well with jumbo paper towel rolls.
Is a paper towel holder worth it?
If you want to keep paper towels within arm's reach and not have them rolling around when you tear off a piece, then yes, we think they’re worth it.
Why We’re the Experts
- Grace Kelly is an editor at Serious Eats.
- She’s tested kitchen gear for four years and worked in restaurants and bars.
- For this review, she used 11 paper towel holders, examining if they fit rolls big and small, were steady when tugging a piece off, and if they were easy to set up and use.
