The 19 Very Best Laundry Hampers and Baskets

Material

Size

Material:Steel, polyester |Size:25.2” x 11.81” x 14.17”

Yamazaki is a Strategist favorite for its inexpensive, durablesmall-space-specifichomewares. The brand’s Tower laundry hamper is an example of its thoughtful design: It’s a freestanding hamper that you can also collapse and tote to your laundry room (the frame serves as handles) or fold up into almost nothing and stow away.

The hamper has a lightweight steel frame that provides its structure, and it contains a removable polyester insert with a stiff bottom. (The only thing I’d ding this hamper for aesthetically is the optic-white color of the insert; the frame is a less harsh off-white.) The frame is well made and sturdy, it opens and shuts smoothly, and the entire thing can fit about a week’s worth of laundry.

When Strategist writer Ambar Pardilla tested the Tower, she agreed that the Tower is a solid pick for your money. (She does advise against filling it to the brim, which makes it difficult to completely collapse the frame and thus harder to carry.) Plus, it’s a hamper “that doesn’t really scream hamper,” says home organizer Caroline Solomon. Strategist senior editor Winnie Yang has owned the hamper since 2021 and says it has held up well through use by her family of four and still looks as good as new. It comes in two colors, and if you’re into sorting, Solomon suggests buying one in black and another in white to color-code your lights and darks.

Material:Plastic |Size:15.5” x 15.5” x 20.63”

This hamper-basket hybrid from Japanese brandLike-Iis the rare plastic bin that’s cute enough to leave out. It’s a favorite of professional organizerBritnee Tanner, who says it can be full“without being too awkward or heavy to carry.” (Tanner currently owns four of them; each member of her family has their own.) Its tall and slender silhouette fits into the corner of a room or in a closet without taking up much space, and Tanner’s have held up well for years. “It’s a trusty basket that is surprisingly durable,” she says. (You can also find it in ashorter sizeand inwhite.)

Material:Canvas, steel (with vinyl or leather trim) |Size:From 22” x 14” x 14”

Steele Canvas has been makingheavy-duty cartsfor laundry rooms since1921. The carts’ retro aesthetic is surprisingly versatile, and they’re also “the most practical laundry baskets for busy families,” says interior designerBetsy Burnham, due to their large capacity, sturdy construction, and bump-proof wheels.

I’ve been using a Steele canvas bin (the thin, tall 2.5 bushel size below) for more than a year and can confirm it’s delightfully sturdy and easy to use. It’s hardier than any laundry basket I’ve ever owned, and the wheels still turn as smoothly as the day it arrived. It’s available in several shapes, sizes, and colors, so there’s a model for most spaces. Strategist senior editorJen Troliojust got a corner-shaped caddy for her daughter’s room in sky blue, a favorite color. “The color, size, and shape were exactly what we needed for a specific tight spot, and it easily then rolls into the closet and out of sight, if desired,” she says.

Material:Steel, polyester, cotton |Size:24.25” x 14” x 18”

For a less-expensive rolling hamper, I like the Container Store’s Harvest. We found out about it from Rachel Winkler, founder of home-organizing serviceTidyspot. You can add a removable and washable liner — which you have tobuy separatelyfor $15 — that’s meant to fit through the elastic-trimmed cutout handles, ensuring that the layer remains in place. I recommend getting the liner, which will both keep laundry out of sight and prevent socks and smaller items from poking out of the metal frame. It comes in plain white or a gray-and-white stripe.

Material:Steel, water hyacinth, cotton canvas |Size:24” x 13” x 23”

For a natural-fiber hamper, Mary Cornetta, owner ofSort and Sweetand creator ofOrganized Overall, recommends Seville Classics two-compartment sorter. Each section comes with its own lid, two sets of handles, and contains a machine-washable bag that attaches to loop fasteners.

When I tested the Seville Classics Hamper, I found it sturdy and well made, with tightly woven fibers that wouldn’t be prone to fraying. It’s lightweight enough to pick up and carry around and has a relatively small footprint, great for compact spaces. (Cornetta says it can fit about a week’s worth of laundry.) It also has a softer, more earthy aesthetic than some of the plastic or metal hampers on this list. The dual-compartment design is helpful for separating colors or delicates, but you don’t have to use it — if you prefer one big laundry basket, the canvas liner can be removed.

Material:Plastic |Size:11.2” x 19.9” x 21.2”

The Rubbermaid Hip-Hugger is the Platonic ideal of a laundry basket. It’s durable, hard-wearing, and is designed to be easy to lug around on laundry day with three handles that allow for multiple carrying configurations. It’s a favorite of Sara San Angelo, a.k.a.the Cleaning Lady: “Thefolding mesh onesare flimsy and usually break, and the ones made of fabric or cloth tend to rip,” she explains. “The Rubbermaid ones are meant to be flung around.” Since the handles are built-in, they can manage the weight of larger loads, she says, and they stack easily when not in use.

Material:Plastic |Size:19” x 19” x 13.88”

The “pleasing squareness” of this Sterilite basket is one of the reasons Trolio has depended on it for more than a decade. She bought some of these baskets in bulk years ago, and now has six around her house. They’re highly versatile — she uses them to collect dirty laundry as a hamper in her closet, hold clean laundry that’s fresh from the dryer, and sort folded linens and clothes that are headed to separate rooms to be put away. When the laundry is done, she stacks the baskets to save space (and sometimes nests them inside her square Steeletrolley, which is nice looking but harder to move around).

Material:Birch base, rattan|Size:27” x 18” x 13 1/2”

MillerKnoll creative directorKelsey Keithbought this handmade basket from an online retailer run by three Amish families to replace a flimsy plastic one she hated. “It is signed by the maker on the bottom and is the most beautiful thing that I own,” she says. This basket fits two bushels of laundry (one large or two medium-size loads), but if you need different dimensions, you can ordera custom sizeon the Amish Baskets website.

Material:Polyester, plastic |Size:13.25” x 15” x 23”

If you’re short on space, consider this CleverMade collapsible basket, which comes in a pack of two. Naeemah Ford Goldson, owner ofRestore Order Professional Organizing, uses in her own home and appreciates its versatility. It’s large enough for two loads of laundry, but what really sets the basket apart is its handles, which allow you to carry it in a couple different ways. When flattened, the basket can also fit anywhere: inside a drawer, in between the washer and dryer, or on a shelf. Goldson prefers it to hard-sided baskets, which she says “always felt bulky, and I never knew where to put them, so they would just live on top of my dryer until the next laundry day.”

Material:Not listed |Size:18” x 24” x 3.5” collapsed or 10.5” tall expanded

For small spaces, this collapsible and waterproof basket from Camco — a company that makes accessories for RVs — gives you the utility of a laundry basket without needing to sacrifice floor space. You can store it collapsed near your hamper, then expand it when it’s time to do laundry, and its waterproof construction even means you could use it to hand-wash an item or two in a pinch.

Material:Cotton, polyester |Size:27” x 6” x 16.25”

If you don’t have enough floor space for a hamper, this hanging Household Essentials hamper is a great choice. I used it for about three yearswith no complaints — it is solid and durable, and, most important, allowed me tostow my dirty laundry in a small apartmentwithout taking up precious floor space. It has a lot of small quality-of-life features, like a zipper down the back that makes unloading laundry easier and a hook that can be reoriented to fit over a rod or doorknob. I sorted my laundry into Ikea bags before going to the laundromat (a very full Household Essentials hamper equals about two loads of laundry), but the hamper does have the capacity to convert into a bag you can tote around — simply unloop it from its metal frame and cinch the cotton drawstring.

Material:Polyester |Size:21.5” x 15” x 15”

If you’re someone who despises the walk to your local laundromat, prop stylistCait Guryrecommends this CleverMade hamper-slash-backpack. She likes that you can sling it over your shoulder or strap it to your back — whichever way you go, the drawstring top “ensures you won’t lose any socks along the way.” She adds, “It’s made the experience of going to the laundromat much less of a headache.”

Material:Polyester |Size:13” x 13” x 29”

I learned about this less-expensive laundry backpack from Strategist writer Bella Druckman’s reporting ondorm essentials. Trusted by college students, it is sturdy and not precious with a drawstring top and a mesh pocket for detergent.

Material:Polypropylene |Size:21.75” x 14.5” x 13.75” (19 gallon)

For hauling laundry to the laundromat, there’s no better carrier than Ikea’s recycled polypropylene bag. I’ve been using them for over ten years — they can fit an incredible amount of laundry, and no matter how beaten up they get, they never wear out or develop holes.