When temperatures rise, nothing beats an ice-cold drink. If your fridge lacks a built-in ice maker and you’d rather skip the store-bought ice bags, traditional ice cube trays offer a simple, affordable solution.
The This Old House Team reviewed the top-rated ice cube trays available on Amazon to help make your choice easier. Discover our five favorite picks below.
Top 5 Ice Cube Trays
- DOQAUS Ice Cube Trays: Best Spill Prevention
- Tovolo Sphere Ice Molds: Best Spheres
- ZALIK Ice Cube Trays: Best Value
- Glacio Ice Cube Trays: Best Combo Pack
Best Spill Prevention
DOQAUS Ice Cube Trays
On this tray, the bottom portion of each ice cube slot is made of silicone. The flexibility of this silicone allows you to pop out a few cubes without contorting the entire tray. Additionally, the trays have fill lines to prevent overfilling and lids to prevent spilling and accommodate stacking.
Key Features
- Made of silicone and plastic
- Makes 14 cubes per tray
- Comes in a four-pack
What People Are Saying About The DOQAUS Ice Cube Trays
These silicone ice cube trays had overwhelmingly positive reviews, with many happy customers highlighting their stackability. Reviewers used them to make popsicles, baby food, and other items aside from ice cubes. However, some unhappy customers found that the lids didn’t fit the trays properly.
Best Spheres
Tovolo Sphere Ice Molds
These spherical ice molds are made of silicone and plastic for durability and flexibility. The lid of each mold creates a seal around the lip of the body, which keeps your ice and the mold from absorbing freezer odors. The shape of the ice spheres allows you to chill your drinks quickly without too much melting water.
Key Features
- Made of silicone and plastic
- Makes one sphere per mold
- Comes in a two-pack
What People Are Saying About The Tovolo Sphere Ice Molds
Happy customers reported that this ice mold set created perfectly round ice balls as advertised. They enjoyed using the ice spheres in elaborate cocktails and other novelty beverages. However, it took some customers multiple tries to get the hang of using them because the directions were confusing. Another pain point was that each mold only made one sphere.
Best Value
ZALIK Ice Cube Trays
These ice cube trays are made from thick plastic and can tackle even the toughest culinary projects. They won’t crack if they’re exposed to below-freezing temperatures or overstuffed with food or liquid. Additionally, they have silicone bottoms for quick cube removal and lids for easy freezer stacking.
Key Features
- Made of silicone and plastic
- Makes 14 cubes per tray
- Comes in a four-pack
What People Are Saying About The ZALIK Ice Cube Trays
Customers left positive feedback about these trays’ easy stackability and cube removal. Some users complained about the trays making strange-tasting cubes, but that taste faded after a few washes. Though most customers were happy with how these trays held up, some experienced durability issues.
Best Combo Pack
Glacio Ice Cube Trays
These ice trays are made from flexible silicone instead of hard plastic, making it easier to remove your ice. This silicone is BPA-free, so it’s safe to come into contact with foods and drinks. The spherical tray has a two-piece design that creates three-dimensional ice balls and stacks on top of the cube tray.
Key Features
- Made of silicone
- Makes six cubes or spheres per tray
- Comes in a two-pack
What People Are Saying About The Glacio Ice Cube Trays
Satisfied users appreciated the variety of shapes that these molds made. They also valued their overall durability and longevity. Customers could make perfect cubes with one tray, but they struggled to get round ice with the spherical tray.
Best Cubes: Kootek Ice Cube Trays
Key Features
- Made of silicone and plastic
- Makes six cubes per tray
- Comes in a four-pack
What Customers Are Saying
In positive reviews, customers highlighted the stackability, food-grade silicone, and easy ice removal of these trays. Most reviewers thought the trays didn’t alter the ice or beverage flavor. However, some reviewers didn’t like how large the trays were.
Buying Guide for Ice Cube Trays
Several factors go into deciding which ice tray works for your needs. Our buying guide below explores these factors.
Stackability
Unless you a lot of freezer space, such as with an upright freezer, look for ice trays with lids. These lids allow you to stack the trays without the ice from the lower tray sticking to the base of the top tray.
Shape
When most people think about ice, they imagine the standard cubed shape. While this shape works well for day-to-day use, you can create fun drinks with other shapes. For example, spherical ice cubes can add an elegant look to a cocktail.
Material
You’ll find ice trays made of both silicone and plastic. Plastic trays are more affordable. However, it’s easier to remove cubes from silicone trays. You can also find plastic trays with silicone bottoms to give you the durability and firmness of plastic and the easy removal of silicone.
Size
Many ice trays make pieces of ice that measure between one and 1.5 inches long. However, some molds make two- or 2.5-inch spheres or cubes. Each size has its place. Larger ice cubes are meant for fancy beverages, such as cocktails, because their larger size prevents them from melting quickly and diluting your drinks. Smaller cubes are designed to cool drinks almost instantly.
How To Get the Most Out of Your Ice Cube Tray
Using an ice cube tray is as easy as filling the slots with water and sticking the tray in the freezer for a few hours. However, check out these simple tips to get the most use out of the tray and the ice it makes.
- Note the material of your tray, as each material has a specific method for removing ice. For plastic ice cube trays, twist the cubes free. For silicone trays, poke or push the bottom of the slots to release the cubes.
- For optimal storage in your freezer, look for ice cube trays that stack on top of one another.
- You can take your ice on the go with a cooler or mini cooler.
- Don’t be alarmed if you notice a white or gray residue on your ice cube tray. This comes from the mineral content in your tap water. If you have particularly hard water in your area, consider filling your tray with filtered water or use a water softener.
- Clean your ice cube tray after every few uses. Using ice that’s made in a dirty tray could change the flavor of your drinks.
- Even if your ice cube tray has a lid, don’t place it in the door of your freezer, as the water is likely to slosh around.
- You can use your ice cube trays to make candles, popsicles, soaps, desserts, and more. Make sure to clean the tray when you’re done so that your ice doesn’t pick up any residual flavors or smells.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ice Cube Trays
What can I use instead of ice trays?
If you need to make ice but don’t have ice trays handy, you can use silicone molds, plastic egg trays, or plastic sandwich bags. However, these methods may result in poorly shaped ice.
Are silicone ice trays safe?
Yes, silicone ice trays are safe. Unlike some plastic ice trays, silicone trays don’t contain BPA, a potentially harmful organic compound.
How do you make clear ice cubes?
To make clear ice cubes or spheres, boil water and let it cool before pouring it into your tray.
Why Trust The This Old House Team
This Old House has empowered homeowners for more than four decades with top-notch home improvement content in the form of television programs, print media, and digital content on its website and social media platforms. The This Old House Team focuses on creating in-depth product and service review content to help inform your purchasing decision for just about any item or resource that you might need for your home. The This Old House Team has written over 1,000 reviews on products in the home space, from cordless drills to kitchen trash cans, lawn mowers, and dining room decorations.
We recommend products in each review using an intensive research process, spending hours combing through the best available models on Amazon. For a product to make our list of top picks, it must hold a solid sales record on Amazon, have consistently positive customer reviews, and offer unique features, among other factors. After narrowing down our list of recommendations, we conduct additional research and sometimes in-person testing to ensure that the products meet our standards. Once we conclude the research phase, we craft a well-rounded, user-friendly article that includes our recommended products and additional information to help homeowners like you make the right purchase.