A decent dish-drying rack simplifies the hand-washing process immensely. Not only does it eliminate the need to half-ass blotting up the fancy wedding china after Christmas dinner, but giving dishes space to air dry makes it less likely that excess water will linger, causing water spots and bacterial growth.
Lydia Sims, Procurement Director of Pearl Lemon Catering, is well aware of what a bad look it is to entertain using glassware with water spots. Dishwashers are the workhorses of the kitchen, but some goods aren’t compatible. Knives, cutting boards, and other delicate, dishwasher-unsafe items need a place to dry, Sims told Spy. “For adults, having a drying rack for keeping your utensils and plates clean and intact is a must,” Sims said.
There are alternatives, like dish-drying mats and high-tech electric dish dryers, but one simplifies the process too much and the other overcomplicates it. While comparatively more affordable, drying mats only allow a few dishes to be washed and dried at a time — not to mention, they create a real “who’s on first?” situation if a guy named Matt is on cleanup duty.
High-tech and higher-priced electric dish dryers promise to leave glasses spotless and dry, but according to Amazon customers, many of them don’t get hot enough and took too much work.
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Dish drying racks remain a reliable staple in home and commercial kitchens alike. While stainless steel is one of the most popular materials used for this category, several members of the Reddit community “Buy it for life” like plastic dish racks because of their lack of rust and drainage trays.
Ranging from simple tubs to complicated systems resembling a sturdier Rube Goldberg machine, drying racks can cost anywhere from $13 to over $60. Knowing which one suits your kitchen is a great way to avoid having wet dishes for dinner.
The Best Dish Drying Racks: At a Glance
What the Experts Say
Sims and other entrepreneurs in the cleaning industry agree that stainless steel racks are great for drying dishes, but there are suitable silicone and plastic options too. It’s more about the shape, and use of counter space, than the material.. “A good dish drying rack makes the most of your kitchen space without getting in the way,” Ryan Knoll, the owner of the cleaning service Tidy Casa. “That’s why I’m a fan of designs that go over the sink.”
Over-the-sink drying racks have become a favorite among cleaning professionals because of their functionality. By hanging over the sink, dishes don’t need a tray to catch the water. The problem is they cut down on sink space, which can come at a premium in small apartments. Countertop options can control excess water with drip trays that slant into the sink, but they eat up counterspace. It’s a question of which one is willing to sacrifice for an easier time with dinner clean up, and how one’s kitchen is configured.
Spy spoke to Sims, Knoll, and Aaron Christensen, the vice president of the growth house cleaning platform Homeaglow, who all agree that if your dishes are not fully dry, then they’re not fully clean. Here are the products they recommend for homes in the market for a desiccation solution.
NEX Silver 2-Tier Adjustable Stainless Steel Dish Rack
If the goal is to dry the most dishes and take up the least amount of counter space, it is hard to beat the NEX two-tier adjustable rack. The product includes two shelves and four areas for plates, bowls, pots, and pans, as well as separate compartments for flatware, hooks for rags, and a special slot for cutting boards to dry. The stainless steel bars are narrow enough to keep dishes in place but wide enough to allow air to circulate for faster drying, and most of the water drips into the sink.
While he likes the Farberware model for smaller households, the NEX rack is Knoll’s pick for anyone who does 100 percent of their dishes by hand, along with large families. “Adjustable tiers and ample space for dishes of all sizes are a plus,” Knoll said. “It’s like having a customizable kitchen assistant.”
Such customizability allows for height adjustments for shorter members of the household to wash dishes. Given the massive size of the rack, it’s the only one that cannot be thrown in the dishwasher, but it can be wiped down with a sanitizing cleaner. The chrome finish, “does mean you might be wiping fingerprints more than you’d like,” Knoll noted.
The NEX rack is by far the most expensive expert recommendation at $90, “But the practicality and the look?” Knoll added. “Chef’s kiss!” The rack’s design is closer to a Finnish dish drying cabinet called “Astiankuivauskaappi” than a simple $20 rack. Since Finnish cabinets would call for a much pricier kitchen remodeling job, $90 is not so bad for someone who needs to dry a lot of dishes regularly.
SAMMART Collapsible Dish Drainer with Drainer Board
The BPA-free SAMMART Collapsible Dish Drainer is a perfect example of an appealing plastic dish rack that’s easy to assemble and clean. It only takes up 14.6 by 12.6 inches of counter space but has room for plates, bowls, cups, and utensils.
“What’s great about this dish rack is its separate storage area for utensils and cups, a feature my family would definitely appreciate,” Sims said.
Unlike most dish racks, the ability to collapse the SAMMART rack into a flat surface makes it easier to store it when it’s not time to do dishes, avoiding an eye sore in the kitchen. Likewise, the removable drip tray is “easier to thoroughly clean so mildew doesn’t build up,” Christensen added. For added mildew defense, among other bacteria, the rack is also dishwasher safe.
The main downside of this dish rack is that it’s small and would be best suited for camping or a dorm room, Christensen advised. RV users on Amazon agree, and enthusiastically endorse the SAMMART brand, calling it “a requirement” for such travelers. Its size matches its low price, at $13.30 it’s one of the more affordable options on this list. Larger families, however, should seek racks with larger capacities.
Surpahs Over Sink Foldable Multipurpose Roll-Up Dish Drying Rack
While stainless steel is the favorite metal for drying racks, it can rust over time. However, by covering that same steel in silicone, companies like Surpahs have come up with a convenient alternative: the roll-up dish rack. Designed in four different sizes for pretty much any sink, the Surpahs roll-up dish drying rack combined the sturdiness of steel with the non-slip grip of silicone for a secure fit.
“One advantage of this style is that you wouldn’t need to clean a drainage tray; just wipe down the stainless steel rods,” Christensen pointed out. “The silicone edge on this Surpahs rack is a nice touch to avoid scratching counters or sinks.”
The bars are far enough apart to let more air circulate than in a plastic tub, cutting down on drying time, but close enough so silverware doesn’t fall through the sink. In lieu of dirty dishes, the rack can also be used to rinse produce or to protect counters from hot pots and pans.
The Surpahs roll-up rack also saves valuable counter space because it can be rolled up and stored between uses. And when the dishwasher itself isn’t full, this rack can be easily thrown in alongside all the bowls and plates it’s already acquainted with.
The only downside is that the Surpahs roll-up rack does not leave a lot of room for a lot of dishes and cookware, so it’s best for someone who is doing minimal entertaining or has a dishwasher at their disposal as well. But for $22.48 for a standard half-sink size, this rack is good for anyone on a budget with basic dish drying needs.
Five Two Over-the-Sink Dish Drying Rack
If the previous roll-up rack recommendation had a more sophisticated sibling, it would be the Five Two’s over-the-sink dish drying rack. It has all the perks of the previous dish rack, including silicone-coated steel for a firm grip on a standard sink. It can also be used as a trivet to wash produce, and is dishwasher safe for easy maintenance.
One thing that makes this product more high-end is the removable utensil cup that can double as a colander. Created by the recipe blog-turned-houseware line Food52 (because the brand is for people who cook 52 weeks out of the year), Five Two’s is a more stylish choice as well. The product comes in three color options — peppercorn smoked salt and slate blue. “Food52 has a great over-the-sink dish rack for homes with less counter space,” Christensen said.
The price is the main caveat to consider with the Five Two rack. For about twice the cost of the Surpahs’ rack, $45, consumers are still not getting a ton of dishes dried at the same time. But for busy professionals who order in as much as they cook, this decidedly sharper rack could be the perfect place to dry those dishes that takeout sushi was plated on.
Farberware Stainless Steel Dish Rack
Farberware’s stainless steel dish rack is one of Knoll’s personal favorites, she calls it “a game changer and space-saving hero for smaller kitchens.” With the dimensions of 20.28 by 14.96 inches, it is larger than the SAMMART tub, but packs in an impressive amount of dishes, pots, and pans, and it has a separate caddy for flatware.
The rack is coated in satin powder to protect the steel from rusting and it has a self-draining water tray and non-slip feet that keep counters scratch-free, so the durable design doesn’t degrade over time. It’s dishwasher safe, and can hold over twice the amount of dishes that the roll-up racks can shoulder. It’s a great option for households with a medium amount of dishes or someone who entertains semi-regularly. “And the price?” Knoll pointed out, which is just under $40. “It’s like finding a designer piece without the designer price tag.”
In other words, this steel is a steal.
Frequently Asked Questions About Dish Drying Racks
How Often Should I Clean My Dish Rack?
Sims recommends cleaning dish racks once a week. For collapsable and roll-up models, she stressed the importance of making sure they’re bone dry before putting them away, in order to avoid bacteria growth in tighter spaces. Christensen agreed, but for homes washing a lot of dishes, he also suggested deep cleaning with equal parts water and white vinegar or another household cleaner that discourages mold.
Do I Really Need a Dish Rack if I Have a Dishwasher?
Although over 89 million Americans have dishwashers in their homes, the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Residential Energy Consumption Survey found that nearly 20 percent of them did not use the machine. This is for many reasons, including a lack of trust in the technology to adequately clean dishes. Sometimes people prefer to wash dishes by hand and use the dishwasher as a drying rack.
On the surface, this quirky kitchen hack seems like a smart idea for saving space. But by closing the dishwasher, not enough air is able to circulate, and that is what is needed to dry dishes without harboring bacteria. Also, it renders a very large, inefficient, and expensive appliance the same as a $20 plastic alternative.
So you might not “need” a drying rack, but your shins will surely appreciate not getting nailed every time you walk into the open dishwasher door.
What About Bamboo Dish Drying Racks?
Bamboo gets a lot of hype for being sustainable, but it is one of the worst materials for dish racks. “Bamboo is a porous material, so it could lead to mold,” Christensen warned. Plus most bamboo drying racks don’t come with a drainage tray, so all of the water that isn’t absorbed by the porous rack will trickle down to the counter. It will take a lot of dish towels to clean that up.
Ultimately, there are better ways to go green than with mold on your drying rack.
