As anyone with school-aged kids knows, prepping the perfect packed lunch every morning is no easy task. And if this week’s episode of The Apprentice has taught us anything, it’s that finding children a lunch box they love is even harder.
The kids gave The Apprentice candidates a real roasting over their lunch box designs, which included a treasure chest that one child described as “really boring”, and a leaf lunch box that was a completely impractical shape for food.
Thankfully, The Apprentice candidates aren’t designing lunch boxes for a living, and trendy, modern and well-designed kids’ lunch boxes really do exist. You can find two-tier lunch boxes, which separate snacks from lunches, or sweet from savoury, while insulated options are ideal for hot food, with cool bags keeping culinary creations perfectly chilled. We, and our school-aged kids, have tested them all to find the best.
There are a few things to consider when buying a lunch box for school, however. Preschool and reception-age kids will need something that’s small enough to carry independently, but still big enough to accommodate their sarnies. Older kids will have stronger opinions on design, and might need a larger lunch box that incorporates a drink-bottle holder.
A bento box can be a helpful way of cutting down on packaging. These Japanese-inspired boxes have lots of small compartments to separate food, so they’re good for snacks as well as lunches. If you’re planning to send your child to school with hot food, consider an insulated food flask. Some lunch boxes even combine the two, with extras such as removable compartments, accessories and cutlery.
Finally, there are some seriously clever sustainable lunch box options to consider, from reusable eco wraps to bags and boxes made from recycled materials. Whatever you choose, make sure the size of your lunch box is sufficient. Nothing ruins an afternoon at school faster than finding your Babybel embedded in your banana – except double maths.
How we tested
We looked at a range of lunch boxes to find the ones that prevented our food from turning into a sweaty, soggy mess by mealtime. We tested options for hot and cold food – making sure everything stayed at the right temperature from 7am to 1pm as a minimum – and tried out standard lunch boxes as well as bento boxes and flasks.
To narrow down our list of favourites, we factored in price and durability, and awarded bonus points for sustainability. Finally, our school-age testers had the last word when it came to design and style. Or in their words: “How jealous our friends will be.”
The best kids’ lunch boxes for 2023 are:
- Best overall – Smiggle better together double-decker lunch box: £12.95, Smiggle.co.uk
- Best for toddlers – Munchkin kids’ lunch bento box: £22.99, Munchkin.co.uk
- Best for dinosaur-lovers – Joules munch lunch bag: £10, Littlepeoplestore.co.uk
- Best for everyday use – Mountain Warehouse printed lunch bag: £11.99, Mountainwarehouse.com
- Best for hot lunches – Rachel Ellen x Thermos funtainer food flash: £20, Thermos.co.uk
- Best for animal style – Hype gradient pastel animal print lunch box: £5.99, Justhype.com
- Best for hot and cold food – Omiebox bento box: £44.95, Yesbebe.co.uk
- Best for keeping food chilled – Packit freezable and foldable lunch food cooling bag: £26.57, Amazon.co.uk
- Best for wrapping sandwiches – Cotswold Eco reusable and washable children’s sandwich and snack wrap: £6.95, Thecotswoldecocompany.co.uk
- Best for salad on the go – Hip clutch: £20, Amazon.co.uk
- Best for sustainability – Huski Home multi-compartment reusable lunch box: £14.99, Biggreensmile.com
- Best for tiny superheroes – Smash Heros clip top bag: £11, Sainsburys.co.uk
- Best for hungry teens – Primus preppen vacuum jug: £35.50, Primusequipment.com
- Best for label-lovers – Fjällräven kånken mini cooler: £60, Fjallraven.com