Best Compost Bins: Top 5 Containers Most Recommended By Experts
By Elsa Lee
Composting is a natural process of collecting organic ingredients such as food scraps from your kitchen or leaves from your yard. The decomposed product can then be used as a nutrient-rich fertilizer to nourish plants. Composting is a great way to reduce waste while improving soil quality in your garden. However, finding the right compost bin can be overwhelming with so many options on the market. The best compost bins provide a balance of functionality, durability, and affordability. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced composter, the right bin can make all the difference in your success.
Being eco-friendly simply means living in a way that is less harmful to the environment. There are many small lifestyle alterations that can be made to reduce personal environmental footprint. Composting, recycling, producing less waste by reusing or buying items with less packaging, or purchasing from sustainable brands are all great strategies. More brands have started manufacturing products marketed as “eco-friendly”. However, a national survey of 2,000 adults found that seven in 10 Americans don’t believe companies that they’re being fully honest with consumers. Only one in four (26%) respondents believe in a company that uses words like “green” to describe their products.
If you don’t trust companies that claim to be “green”, you can make your own personal decisions that will have a direct impact. Composting is a great way to start – an easy and simple process to recycle your kitchen scraps or other biodegradable waste. Reducing the amount of personal waste that goes into the trash reduces the amount that goes into landfills. According to the Environmental Research Institute at Indiana State University, 28 percent of waste deposited in landfills can be composted.
If you’re not sure where to start, getting your own compost bin is the first step in collecting all your organic waste. StudyFinds has researched the best compost bins to purchase so you can begin your own journey. Our list is based on the top recommendations across 10 expert websites. Already an active composter? Let us know which bin you use in the comments below!
The List: Best Compost Bins, According to Experts
1. OXO Good Grips Compost Bin
This no-nonsense bin has a small footprint and isn’t hard to figure out. It is lightweight, easy to clean, and can be used as both a freezer and countertop bin. According to Pop Science, “Oxygen flows through the soft-close lid to combat odor and insects. It can also be switched to stay-open mode, for ease when tossing in scraps.”
The bin is quite affordable at $23. The Strategist reports “It checks all our boxes: comes in two sizes, works as both a freezer and countertop bin, has a non-airtight, removable lid, is made of easy-to-clean plastic, and is lightweight enough to carry to a drop-off site.”
Better Homes & Gardens writes: “At 0.75 gallons, it’s compact enough to store on your countertop or under the sink for easy access, and its convenient handle makes it easy to transport to a larger outdoor compost bin.”
2. Epica Stainless Steel Compost Bin
If you want a more durable bin and love the look of stainless steel, try this option. It doesn’t cost more $22 to $35 depending on when you purchase, and the activated charcoal is great for trapping odors. Better Homes & Gardens adds “Its stainless steel construction is made from one piece, so there are no welded edges that could leak liquids or smells.”
The Epica bin holds a gallon of solid food waste and can be simply washed with soap and water after emptying into your larger composting receptacle or community compost site. “Overall, it’s an easy, mess-free solution for your composting needs, and its small size and affordable price tag fit most kitchens and budgets,” says Food & Wine.
According to The Strategist, “I used this Epica stainless-steel compost bin for about three years, and it performed ably on the countertop through some hot New York summers”
3. simplehuman Compost Caddy
The simplehuman compost bin is probably the sleekest on the market, with a shiny brushed stainless-steel finish and slim dimensions that makes it easy to fit on the counter if you wish. Variety explains “A soft-seal lid minimizes the odor from food scraps and keeps pests like fruit flies away, while the caddy’s stainless steel exterior is coated with Agion, an antimicrobial that inhibits the growth of bacteria and fungi.”
If you have a garbage can that works with the mount, you also have the option to attach it to your kitchen trash can. “The unique feature is that it comes with a magnetic mount that lets you attach the caddy to Simplehuman trash cans so that it’s stored out of the way and accessible for quick use,” adds Good Housekeeping. The simplehuman caddy retails for $50.
According to a reviewer at Better Homes & Gardens, “Its integration with her existing trash and recycling system ‘really soothes both the aesthetic and functional parts of my brain.’”
4. Bamboozle Food Composter
The Bamboozle Food Composter does double duty when it comes to sustainability. This bin is not only great for composting, it’s also biodegradable and still looks good in your kitchen. “Bamboo, a fast-growing resource, can be harvested without environmental damage. The resulting material is incredibly strong and dishwasher safe; plus, it’s biodegradable,” says Tree Hugger.
The bin costs $40 and comes in 2 different shades, Graphite and Neutral. It’s light, has a handle, and does a good job of holding food scraps and trapping odors. Reviewed writes “Even with some stinky leftover food scraps, we couldn’t smell anything. The filter worked really well, and the bin came with a replacement filter.”
“After accidentally leaving a semi-full bin of compost out on her countertop while she was away over the summer, Baron cracked open the bin and smelled ‘an odor that can be described only as all the reasons people don’t compost.’ After replacing the lid, ‘within seconds, it was as if it had never happened,’” describes The Strategist.
5. Full Circle Breeze Fresh Air Kitchen Compost Collector
The Full Circle bin has a large capacity at 1.5 gallons and makes life a bit easier by functioning like a regular trash bin, but with liners that are compostable. “Full Circle sidesteps the cleanup question with an innovative design that eliminates the need for cleaning your bin by employing compostable bags to collect the waste,” says The Spruce Eats.
The bin is designed with a perforated lid and vented base to allow airflow in order to start the composting process. The bin itself is also manufactured sustainably to reduce waste, as its parts are easily repairable and replaceable so you don’t end up throwing the entire unit away. Trees mentions “when it comes ready to clean, you can break down the bin into three parts and toss it in the dishwasher.”
Treehugger names this model the best for large capacity composting: “If you cook a lot, you need something that won’t need to be emptied every five minutes. This countertop bin holds a generous amount of kitchen waste, which means fewer trips to the outdoor compost pile.”
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Sources:
- Pop Science
- The Strategist
- Better Homes & Gardens
- Food & Wine
- Variety
- Good Housekeeping
- Tree Hugger
- Reviewed
- The Spruce Eats
- Trees
Also Read from Natural Blaze: NYC Master Composter Certificate Program
Note: This article was not paid for nor sponsored. StudyFinds is not connected to nor partnered with any of the brands mentioned and receives no compensation for its recommendations. This post may contain affiliate links.
Source: Study Finds
Elsa is a freelance journalist, copywriter, and marketer based out of the Los Angeles area. She has been writing for 7 years.
Top image: Photo by Lenka Dzurendova on Unsplash
