Bottles, Jars or Jugs? How to Pick the Best Kitchen Funnel

A funnel is the tool nobody thinks about until salsa is running down the side of a squeeze bottle. In a Mexican kitchen it earns its place many times a week: pouring a batch of salsa verde or a blended chile sauce into bottles, filling a jug of horchata or agua de jamaica for the fridge, topping up the cooking-oil bottle, packing ground chile into a spice jar, and ladling pickled jalapeños or a pot of salsa into jars.

Funnels are simple, but the details decide whether one helps or makes a mess: how wide the mouth is, how narrow the spout is, whether air can escape from the bottle, whether a strainer comes with it, and whether it will survive hot liquid. This guide compares nine funnels and funnel sets, in plastic, stainless steel and collapsible silicone, from bottle funnels to wide-mouth canning funnels.

Julia’s earns a commission on purchases made through links on this page, at no cost to you. Recommendations are based on what a restaurant kitchen looks for in a funnel, the makers’ own specifications and the details on each Amazon listing.

Quick verdict: which kitchen funnel to buy

The table below compares our five standout funnels. All nine are reviewed in full after it, followed by how to choose and answers to common questions.

Five kitchen funnels compared

One pick for each kind of job, with the material and size each maker or listing states.

Product images from Amazon. Sizes and materials are as stated by each maker or listing; few makers give a spout diameter, so measure the bottles you fill most and check the listing.

Our picks for the best kitchen funnel

These nine funnels cover the four kinds worth owning. Small bottle funnels have a narrow spout for squeeze bottles, cruets and spice jars. Medium funnels with a strainer handle drinks and sauces. Wide-mouth canning funnels fit over a jar and let chunky salsa and pickles through. Collapsible silicone funnels fold flat for small kitchens. Each pick says who it suits, what the maker states, and one honest reason to skip it.

Plastic, stainless steel or silicone?

Plastic is light, cheap to replace and often comes in sets with strainers. It can stain from chile sauces and hold strong smells, and makers do not always give a heat rating, so check before pouring anything hot.

Stainless steel does not stain, will not hold the smell of garlic or chile oil, and does not melt. It dents if dropped, and it gets hot when you pour hot liquid through it, which is why handles matter.

Silicone folds flat and squeezes into odd openings. It is the least rigid, so it suits small pours better than a heavy blender jar. Look for a stated heat rating if you pour warm sauces.

How to choose a kitchen funnel

Match the spout to the bottle. The spout must fit inside the opening with room around it. Measure the inside of the necks of the bottles you fill most, such as squeeze bottles, oil bottles and drink jugs, before you buy, because few makers state spout diameters.

Let the air out. A funnel sealed tight in a bottle neck traps air, and liquid backs up and overflows. Ridges or a groove on the stem, like those on the OXO and Bellemain funnels, let air escape so the pour keeps moving.

Choose the mouth for the job. A wide mouth is a bigger target when you pour from a blender or pot. Canning funnels pair a wide mouth with a wide stem so chunky salsa and pickles pass through.

Decide on a strainer. A built-in strainer catches chile seeds, lime pulp and herbs. For drinks such as horchata, a separate fine mesh strainer set over the funnel catches more.

Think about storage. Nesting sets, clip-rings and collapsible silicone all save space.

Check the care. Several funnels here are listed as dishwasher safe; others do not say. Rinse right after using them with oil or chile sauce.

Funneling salsa and horchata without a mess

Let hot salsa or chile sauce cool a little unless your funnel has a stated heat rating, and stand the bottle in a bowl or the sink in case of drips. Pour slowly from a jug or a measuring cup with a spout rather than straight from a heavy blender jar; our guide to the best measuring cups covers glass cups with pour spouts. Lift the funnel slightly now and then if the liquid stops flowing, to let air out. For drinks, strain first and funnel second, and fill bottles only to the shoulder so there is room to shake. For cooking oil, a funnel makes refilling a cruet clean; our guide to the best oil dispenser covers the bottles themselves.

How we chose these nine funnels

We started from what a Mexican kitchen pours: salsas and blended chile sauces into squeeze bottles, horchata and aguas frescas into jugs, cooking oil into cruets, ground spices into jars, and salsa, pickles and beans into jars. We looked for funnels and sets sold on Amazon in the United States from identifiable makers, preferring brands with their own product lines over sellers labeled “Generic”, and checked each one’s stock with Amazon’s product data before writing. Materials, sizes, strainers and care come from each maker’s listing; where a listing does not state a diameter or dishwasher care, we say “not stated”.

Several funnels we looked for were not available when we checked: Norpro’s stainless funnels with detachable strainers, Winco’s stainless wide-mouth funnels and RSVP’s stainless canning funnels were nearly sold out or unavailable, and we did not find a Ball-branded or Tovolo funnel in stock. We did not use these funnels for this guide, and we did not read reviews from Wirecutter or other publications for this page, so we do not cite them.

Kitchen funnel questions, answered

What is the best funnel for the kitchen?

For most cooks, a small set with two sizes and a strainer, such as the OXO Good Grips 3-Piece Multi-Purpose Funnel Set, covers bottles, jars of spice and drink jugs. Add a wide-mouth canning funnel if you fill jars.

Is a stainless steel or plastic funnel better?

Stainless steel will not stain or hold odors and does not melt, which suits chile sauces and oil. Plastic is lighter and often comes in sets with strainers. Both work; choose by what you pour most.

Are collapsible silicone funnels any good?

They are good for small pours and save space. They flex when full, so hold them while you pour, and look for a stated heat rating, such as Tablecraft’s 450°F, if you pour warm liquid.

What does Wirecutter recommend?

We did not read Wirecutter’s coverage for this guide, so we cannot say. Our picks rely on maker specifications and listing details.

What size funnel do I need for canning jars?

A canning funnel has a stem sized to sit in the jar’s mouth. The PrepWorks and OXO adjustable funnels say they fit both regular and wide-mouth jars; Norpro’s stainless funnel is listed for wide-mouth jars.

Our final pick for bottles and jars

Buy the OXO Good Grips 3-Piece Multi-Purpose Funnel Set if you want one set for most jobs. Choose the Bellemain for a steel bottle funnel with a strainer, the Norpro canning funnel for jars, the Cuisinart collapsible pair for small kitchens, and the Winco 6¼-inch funnel for pouring drinks by the gallon.

If you are bottling sauces for a party, the rest of the spread matters too; our guide to the best food warming mat covers keeping the hot dishes at the right temperature, and the guide to the best horchata mix covers the drink you might be funneling into bottles.

And if you would rather leave the salsa to someone else tonight, see the menu or call to order.