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Products are chosen independently by our editors. Purchases made through our links may earn us a commission. Silicone Suction Bowl
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These eco-friendly dishes come in dozens of colors and fun designs, such as Batman or Minnie Mouse. Best of all, your toddler won't be able to move it. Read More
This bowl is nice and large, handles wood and texture well, and it's easy to remove once you're finished with dinner. Read More
This eco-friendly baby bowl from Avanchy Bamboo is a bit of an investment, but it also comes with a sturdy toddler spoon. Read More
You may have to press down on it occasionally, but with a once-monthly application of coconut oil, this bamboo set should last you for years. Read More
This flexible, easy-to-clean bowl is pretty nice, but poor suction means it doesn't stay in place very well. Read More
Picking up messes like spaghetti and yogurt from the floor is no doubt a parenting rite of passage, but if you’re looking to reduce the amount of time you spend cleaning your floors, a suction plate or bowl for kids is the answer. We tested almost a dozen suction plates and bowls for kids to find out which ones actually stay put.
Of the products we tested, the Bumkins Silicone Grip Dish (available at Amazon for $10.99) is the very best suction plate for kids. The Bumkins Silicone Grip Dish won us over for several reasons, but mostly because my toddler son wasn’t able to lift the plate from a textured or smooth surface and throw it on the floor.
If you or your toddler prefer a bowl for mealtime, the OXO Tot Stick & Stay Suction Bowl (available at Amazon) is our pick thanks to its large size and how easy it is to remove.
The Bumkins Silicone Grip Dish was our overall winner for best suction plates and bowls for kids.
The Bumkins Grip Dish is our best suction plate for kids pick because it offers long-term suction on a variety of surfaces, is made of durable silicone, and is easy to clean. The plate feels nice and sturdy like it’s going to last a while and—most importantly—my toddler wasn’t able to unhinge this one during our month-long tests.
Another factor that makes this suction plate a great choice is it’s made from 100% food-grade silicone free of harmful chemicals like BPAs, PVC, lead, or phthalates. Plus, unlike some of the more expensive suction plates or bowls for kids we tried, It’s also dishwasher safe (hello, easy cleaning). A toddler-friendly plate that offers good suction, is easy to clean, and is free of harmful chemicals? That’s a win-win (win) in my household.
We also like that there are over a dozen colors to choose from to please your toddler’s tastes, including a modern marble color, as well as character designs like Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Batman, and Winnie the Pooh that will make mealtime fun for your little one. You can also opt between a three-section plate, a five-section or a single section, or choose between a plate with or without a lid.
None that we could find
The OXO Tot Stick and Stay suction bowl for kids is easy to clean and was hard for our kid testers to move off a table.
If you prefer a suction bowl to a plate, the OXO Tot Stick & Stay Bowl is the best suction bowl for kids because it’s easy to clean, has great suction, and is larger than any other bowl we tested. This suction bowl is made without BPA, phthalates, and PVC.
The suction bowl works best on a smooth, flat surface like a kitchen countertop, but, surprisingly, still worked well on my textured wood dining table and on my son’s plastic high chair tray.
Of all the suction plates and bowls for kids we tested, the OXO Tot Stick & Stay Suction Bowl is the largest. So, if your toddler is like mine and can pack away quite a bit of oatmeal or spaghetti, then you’ll appreciate how much food this suction bowl can handle without causing a big mess.
One of my least favorite parts of suction plates and bowls of any kind is the removal process, but OXO makes it a breeze.
On this suction bowl, the suction portion is separate from the bowl itself. When you’re ready to clean up, turn the suction bowl counterclockwise until it detaches from the suction base. Then, remove the suction base from the table by lifting up on the side. The whole process takes less than 10 seconds, and you can put it straight in the dishwasher for an easy clean.
None that we could find
Avanchy bamboo suction plates and bowls are a bit of a splurge, but if you’ve got the budget, they’re a great choice. The bowl stuck to clean and dry textured and smooth surfaces with no problem. The suction ring on the bottom of the suction bowl is removable, so you can pull it right off to clean by tugging on the tab located on the suction piece.
The quality of this suction bowl is above and beyond the plastic and silicone options we tested, both in the bamboo bowl portion and the silicone suction portion.
We also appreciated that the suction plate is biodegradable, eco-friendly, non-toxic, and is coated with an FDA-approved, food-grade varnish. It also comes with a baby spoon, so you don’t have to worry about buying additional products to use with it.
Sticks well to clean, dry surfaces
The suction ring is detachable
None that we could find
This suction bowl for kids looks and feels just like the more expensive set by Avanchy, and to be quite honest, there doesn’t seem to be any immediate differences between the two suction bowls. When placed side by side, the Bamboo Bamboo suction bowl and the Avanchy suction bowl are the same sizes and their quality is comparable.
As for suction, Bamboo Bamboo recommends placing it on a non-porous surface, which explains why it stuck so well to my quartz countertops. The suction was okay on our plastic high chair tray, but it needed a few firm presses throughout mealtime to stay in place to keep it from coming loose.
The Bumkins suction bowl for kids is made from bacteria-resistant silicone and is BPA-free. It can also be placed in the microwave, freezer, and dishwasher. The silicone is pretty thick, but, unlike other hard plastic suction bowls we tested, this one is easy to bend when you pick it up (or if your toddler pushes in on the sides).
While we love the Bumkins Grip Dish, the Bumkins suction bowl for kids didn't stick well to crumb-covered surfaces, nor did it adhere to my plastic high chair tray for very long. If you're going to use this suction bowl with your toddler, make sure to do it on a clean, dry, smooth surface to avoid food on the floor.
These suction bowls for kids come in a 3-pack, offering the most bang for your buck. They are also microwave safe and can be easily washed on the top rack of your dishwasher. Made without BPAs, the suction bowls feature three different sizes including small, medium, and large. However, the largest Munchkin bowl was still smaller than our favorite suction bowl for kids from OXO.
You have to give this suction bowl a hard press in order to get it to stick on a smooth surface. While this suction bowl initially sticks to smooth surfaces, it unsticks easily, slides around on textured surfaces, and it doesn't stick well on water or crumbs.
Come in a convenient three-pack
Doesn't handle textured surfaces or crumbs well
Although these suction bowls are from the same line as the First Essentials by Nuk Tri-Suction Plates, the bowls offered more suction and, therefore, performed better than the plastic suction plate version. The bottom of the suction bowl has three large suction cups, but this suction bowl for kids still isn’t perfect. It barely stuck to our high chair tray for more than a few seconds during use and I had to reattach the suction bowl several times so my son could finish eating without making a mess.
The suction bowl comes with a lid in case you need to save any food for later. Another bonus? These suction bowls can be stacked on top of one another for easy storage in your kitchen. As for cleaning, the suction bowl can be placed in the dishwasher, however, I recommend washing it by hand if you’re serving a meal like spaghetti to remove any saturated stains.
The quality of this suction plate for kids is what impressed us most. It’s durable without being heavy, and, due to its hefty construction, feels like it would last a very long time.
These suction plates stick to smooth and textured surfaces, but they do lose their suction over time. If you have a toddler who likes to play with their dishware, they may try to slide this one around, but it will take some real muscle to pull it up from whatever surface you’ve got it stuck to.
These suction plates aren’t dishwasher safe either, so you’ll have to wash and dry them by hand. However, my husband accidentally ran this suction plate through the dishwasher and everything was fine, but I wouldn’t recommend that as a regular method of cleaning for this suction plate.
We found this suction plate works best on smooth and flat surfaces like my quartz kitchen countertop or glass patio table, but it didn’t offer enough suction to last the duration of mealtime and didn’t stick well on wood. Ultimately, this suction plate became very easy for my toddler to slide around.
One place this suction plate excels, though, is the multiple divided sections for food, including a circle compartment in the center of the plate, which is a great place for dips and condiments like hummus or mustard.
The First Essentials by NUK Tri-Suction Plates are the most affordable suction plates for kids we tested. But, if you’re looking for a suction plate that’s going to last and stays in place, this one probably isn’t for you.
My toddler was able to move this around, undoing the suction plate’s grip from my dining room table and countertop. It didn’t stick very well to the plastic high chair tray, either. The suction plates, which are designed for ages 6 months and up, are microwave and dishwasher safe.
The suction plates feel flimsy and cheap—you’re probably going to replace them after a few weeks of continuous use. However, they are very lightweight, making them ideal for traveling or using sparingly at a grandparent’s house.
Hi, I’m Rachel Murphy—better known as “mom” to my son, Arlo, age 16 months, and my daughter, Reese, age 6. I’ve spent countless hours researching children’s products, searching for the best options for my family. Rest assured you’re in good hands (because I don’t want a big mess all over the floor any more than you do).
For nearly a month, my toddler and I tested 12 different suction plates and bowls for kids suitable for children ages 6 months and up. To identify which products to test, I researched the best suction plates and bowls for kids from well-known kids’ companies like OXO, NUK, and even fancy bamboo suction dishware that’s sold at Pottery Barn.
I spent time scouring Amazon, looking for recommendations from other parents for suction plates and bowls that can stand up to my toddler’s growing strength and determination to make as many messes as possible with his food.
I tested the suction plates and bowls on a variety of surfaces such as glass patio tables, wood dining tables, quartz kitchen countertops, and plastic high chair trays to find out which ones work best. They were also tested on crumb-covered surfaces and wet surfaces using a few drops of water to a giant puddle. Surprisingly, a few drops of water seemed to offer better suction to some of the products we tested.
Of course, since you’re a busy parent like me, cleaning is another important factor to consider. Most of the suction bowls and plates we tested are dishwasher-safe, but some are made of certain materials that aren’t made to be submerged in water. We took other essential details into consideration, too, like how easy it was to use the dish, the quality, portability, storage, and if it offered any special features or not.
As a parent, you already spend enough time cleaning…everything, so using suction-based dishes can help prevent food from ending up all over the floor. There are additional reasons to invest in this type of cutlery, though—preventing your little one from tipping over plates and bowls at mealtimes can also cut down on food waste and help encourage independent eating skills from kids who are still developing their fine motor grasp.
While there are a variety of materials available for suction plates and bowls for kids from silicone and bamboo, the best material is the one that you and your child find works for your household. There are two common materials you’ll find for kids’ suction plates and bowls—bamboo and silicone.
Bamboo is eco-friendly and non-toxic, but may need to be oiled and requires some additional maintenance. It also rarely lasts in the dishwasher, and tends not to be microwave-safe. It is, however, durable and adorable (our favorite novelty plates—which are now out of stock—were bamboo foxes that my toddler adored).
Silicone resists staining and odors, is often okay to be gnawed upon, and is non-toxic and food-grade, meaning it’s free of BPA’s PVCs and Phthalates. Silicone is considered easy to clean as it can be put in a dishwasher.
Other plastics are often used because they are lightweight and inexpensive, but they may stain, crack when dropped, get warm when microwaved, or be less environmentally friendly. Other materials that you may find less often include glass (which isn’t ideal for younger children as it retains heat, is heavy and can be dangerous if broken), and stainless steel (which isn’t as common and is often a bit more expensive than other options).
Smaller, kid-sized plates can provide toddlers and babies with the correct portions, and having a divided plate can present toddlers with a variety of different types of food. Babies and toddlers who are exposed to different types, tastes, textures, and flavors of food have a higher chance of becoming an “eager eater” and less picky overall. It can also make mealtime fun and more engaging for children.
Most of the suction plates and bowls for kids we tested must be pushed down onto a surface in order to trigger the suction, and they occasionally needed to be rimmed with water to activate their suction.
Some of the products we tested, like the First Essentials by NUK Tri-Suction Plates, needed to be pressed down multiple times during mealtime. So, if you’re hoping for a few minutes to yourself while your toddler chows down, just know that won’t always be the case without having a big mess to clean up.
Suction plates and bowls can be odd shapes and sizes, meaning that they won’t always fit nicely and neatly inside of your kitchen cabinets. The larger suction plates may need to be stored separately from your everyday dishes due to their large and cumbersome sizes. But, we did find that some of the bowls, especially the ones that come in a two or three-pack, easily stack on top of one another for clutter-free storage.
If you’ve got a tiny kitchen, you may want to consider how you’ll store the bowls before making a decision. And if you’re shorter, consider whether or not the suction on the suction plates and bowls may or may not stick to your shelves; it is an added hassle to be fighting with a suction bowl or plate that’s stuck onto a top shelf when you’re already reaching over your head and your kid is hungry.
After testing so many different options, some suction plates and bowls for kids performed better than others, but much of it hinges on the kind of surface you’ll be placing the suction plate or bowl on. Even our favorite picks slide around ever-so-slightly when nudged, but they still offered enough suction to prevent dinnertime from becoming a total mess.
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time. The product experts at Reviewed have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Reviewed on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, or Flipboard for the latest deals, product reviews, and more.
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
The product experts at Reviewed have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Reviewed on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, or Flipboard for the latest deals, product reviews, and more.
Rachel Murphy is Reviewed's home editor. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Central Florida. Prior to joining the team, she worked as a freelance writer for publications like Insider and Mashable, and as an associate editorial producer for Good Morning America. Aside from smart home tech, her interests include food, travel, parenting, and home renovation. You can usually find her sipping on coffee at any time of the day.
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