Best Kitchen Sink Strainer 2023: 5+ Detailed Reviews

Top 5 Best Kitchen Sink Strainers 2023:

1. KONE Garbage G231 3-1/2-inch Kitchen Sink drain
2. Fengbao 2PCS Kitchen Sink Strainer
3. Coflex Extra Deep Cup Sink Basket Strainer with Sealing Lid
4. Betwoo Plastic Sink Strainer Kitchen Easy Clean Sink Drain Filter Basket
5. HIGHCRAFT FAUC97333 Kitchen Sink Basket Strainer

People tend to look at clogged drains and pipes as a fact of life. They appear from time to time, we have to deal with them, and once the issue is solved, the only thing we can do is wait for the next fortunate meeting – something like the seasonal flu.

The difference between the two is that the clogged drains can actually be avoided – and fairly easy, for that matter. The only thing you need to do is to upgrade your sink with a small, simple tool called a kitchen sink strainer that keeps the food particles away from the sink and the pipes and puts your worries to rest.

Well, as long as your unit actually does a good job at this.

Let us take a quick look then at some of the most popular units floating on the market and try to determine what is the best kitchen sink strainer the money can currently buy.

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5 Best Kitchen Sink Strainers In 2023: Detailed Reviews

1. KONE Garbage G231 3-1/2-inch Kitchen Sink drain – Best Overall

This product stands out from the rest of the crowd, so we want to move it off the table first. So, as you can see from the very name, this is not only one incredibly solid kitchen sink strainer but also a full-blown sink strainer as well.

So, if you need to replace your entire sink unit, this is an excellent opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

The great thing is that this package performs both its duties pretty well. The sink has a 1.8-inch diameter, which makes it compatible with most of the pipes we can find in American households. The unit is tightly sealed with PVC waterproof pad, rubber gasket ring, and locking nut.

However, the good impression so far is slightly compromised by the fact that, although marketed as “all-stainless steel,” the unit actually features plastic housing with stainless steel insert.

Still, the performance is reliable, so we won’t take this fact against the product (too much).

Things, however, are getting better when we move to the strainer unit.

The holes you can find across the body are dense enough to allow the seamless water flow but big enough to let common food particles slip through. The rubber seal lid also does an excellent job of stopping the water.

Overall, a great strainer is slightly betrayed by the quality of the sink that shares the same package.

2. Fengbao 2PCS Kitchen Sink Strainer – Best One-Piece Strainer

Fengbao 2PCS is a thing of beauty. Seriously – how can something so simple be so good-looking and functional at the same time? But, that’s the main lure of one-piece sink strainers – they are simple to the point of ridiculousness.

So, is there anything that sets this unit apart from the rest of the bunch of similar products out there? Well, yes and no.

Although 2PCS looks and feels like countless other one-piece sink strainers we have used over the years, there are some things worth talking about here. First, there are the tiny little 2mm diameter holes. With the size so small, you will be able to capture even the smallest particles that somehow end up in your sink.

But, their incredibly high density at the same time allows a pretty seamless flow of water – high scores for design and craftsmanship.

The other thing we really liked is the choice of materials (or material to be more precise). Yes, this unit is built entirely from stainless steel, and it shows. Put this little fella through hell or high water, and it will come out unscratched and completely rust-free.

As for the drawbacks? Well, we weren’t able to find any except for the inherent ones. The strainer has a pretty good depth, but it’s hard to escape the fact you will need to empty the strainer after each use.

So, a great product, as long as you know what you are buying.

3. Betwoo Plastic Sink Strainer Kitchen Easy Clean Sink Drain Filter Basket – Best Plastic Sink Strainer

Although this unit is not technically made from one piece, we’ll classify it as such. Sorry kitchen purists – it looks like, and it performs like one. You place it on top of the sink, and it prevents your noodles from slipping down to pipes. So, it counts, ok?

So, the most important thing is how this thing looks and performs.

Well, in terms of design, this thing is controversial to say the list – you’re either gonna love it or hate it. Unfortunately, we fell into the latter group. Sure, it’s cute and funny, but it doesn’t quite mesh with how we imagine a modern kitchen.

If you don’t share the sentiment, that’s perfectly ok.

What about performance? Here, the things stand a lot better, at least in our opinion. Instead of using tiny round holes, the manufacturers of this sink strainer opted for the combination of round and 2.5mm petal holes.

That, on paper, should produce the best of both worlds. This time, though, the density is not that great, so the strainer prevents the pass-through of particles as much as water. That’s too bad because the idea is pretty good.

However, what it lacks in flow, Betwoo plastic strainer compensates in depth. Yes, the unit can take quite a lot of waste before it needs to be emptied. And we are grateful for that.

As for materials – we are not overly fond of plastic, but in this case, it’s durable enough to sustain a lot of damage. So, it’s ok.

4. HIGHCRAFT FAUC97333 Kitchen Sink Basket Strainer – Premium Choice

Highcraft FAUC97333 is an excellent kitchen strainer that could have been. Does that make it bad? Hell no! We are still talking about a rock-solid piece of kitchenware. Is it great, though? Well, not quite. Let us elaborate.

For a start, this strainer is extremely well-built. The high-quality 304 stainless steel is hard as nails, scratch-resistant, and dishwasher safe. No matter what you do to this simple piece of metal, it will, eventually, come out un-bruised.

So, we have nothing but praise for the materials and build quality.

The design, on the other hand, speaks a bit different story. Namely, the unit features too few holes to be truly functional. Even worse, they are almost completely absent on the bottom when they are needed the most (to allow the seamless water flow).

The other thing we would like to talk about is the knob. Unlike the rest of the strainer, it’s made of plastic, feels flimsy, and the plunger you can find underneath the unit often needs to be manually adjusted if you want to stop the water completely.

When you move the strainer away from the sink, though, the unit lets too much waste to pass through.

But that’s not the only problem. The bottom pole often fails to reach the drain opening (it depends on the sink, though). When it does, it tends to end up stuck.

Even so, we do understand the appeal and popularity of this unit. The stainless steel we have on display here is truly unprecedented.

5. Coflex Extra Deep Cup Sink Basket Strainer with Sealing Lid

We have started our list with a strainer that doubles down as a sink unit. It would be only appropriate to finish the roundup with one as well. So there you have it – Coflex Extra Deep Cup Sink Basket that will solve all of your plumbing problems in one swift stroke.

The very product looks and feels awfully like the first product we covered. But, everything here simply looks a bit more refined. And that bit more refined makes a lot of difference.

For instance, stainless steel parts (body and basket) are top-notch. They are heavy, sturdy, stain in place no matter how much water you pour over them, and can sustain an incredible amount of abuse. This time, the lid is touched by the steel as well.

As for the very basket, what to say – it’s simply excellent. The holes are narrow enough to keep all the common food particles out. Their density, on the other hand, allows pretty good water flow, so everything works as well as you can imagine.

Also, the whole thing is very easy to disassemble and clean, and the lid does a good (if not excellent) job at keeping the water out when you put it on.

Are there any drawbacks? Sure. The plastic parts are as plasticky as it gets and the portion of the drain that connects to the p-trap is very flimsy. But, we are still damn satisfied with an overall score.

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Why Should You Buy A Kitchen Sink Strainer?

The better question here would be – why would you not?

Granted, modern sinks have come a very long way from their rudimentary ancestors that simply devoured anything that ended up on your dishes after cleaning. Some of them even have built-in mechanisms that are keeping the food particles out.

But, the kitchen sink strainers are often so affordable and so simple that you have virtually nothing to lose by upgrading your sink with an additional layer of protection. In most cases, simple strainers cost no more than ten bucks.

More intricate units with built-in wastebaskets usually sit at 10-15 USD.

So, the expenses you are asked to make are relatively minimal. The added convenience, on the other hand, more than makes up for the trouble.

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Types Of Kitchen Sink Strainers

Kitchen sink strainers are relatively simple kitchen items. Still, it wouldn’t be fair to say they hadn’t evolved as time went by. As a matter of fact, they made some quite significant leaps. So much so that today, all the kitchen sink strainers you can find in shops can be divided into two main groups:

• One-piece sink strainers – The name says it all. These simple kitchen devices are made in one piece, feature no extra layers of protection, and are incredibly easy to use. Besides that, they are also incredibly cheap. On the downside, since they don’t feature additional containers, they need to be emptied after each use.
• Complex kitchen sink strainers – Unlike their simplistic one-piece cousins, complex strainers feature additional layers of protection like, for instance, lids and wastebaskets, etc. Because of this, these products are usually a bit more expensive and harder to install. Nothing off the charts, though.

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Things To Consider Before You Buy A Kitchen Sink Strainer

Although the difference between one-piece and complex kitchen sink strainers tends to be quite significant (the latter mention is obviously more convenient and efficient), this is not the only feature these products are classified by.

Knowing what sets different strainers apart will help you to find the unit that suits your needs the best. And, don’t make a mistake that all these units fall into the same line – although they may look similar and feature similar parts, their performance can vary drastically.

It is in your best interest to find the best unit for the money. So, let us take a look at some of the most important things to consider before you buy yourself your new kitchen sink strainer.

1. The Type Of Basket

Based on the type of their basket, most of the complex sink strainers can be divided into two groups – the ones with the porous baskets and the ones with the mesh baskets. The first group features the small holes that let the water through. The latter mention is built from stainless steel mesh.

While in terms of durability, these two groups are pretty much the same (it really depends on the quality of the unit you end up with), the porous basket sink strainers feature smaller holes and thus offer better performance when it comes to seeds, smaller food parts, and thinner noodles.

So, we tend to give this type a slight advantage.

2. Stopper Function

In ideal conditions, kitchen sink strainers need to enable good water flow. Otherwise, your sinks would quickly turn into a soapy, grimy mess. But, sometimes, you want to have your sink full of water – for instance, when you want to keep the dishes soaked for a couple of minutes before washing.

Well, keeping that in mind, it is good to know that some of the kitchen sink strainers feature a built-in stopper that will allow you to prevent anything from passing through the drain and fill in your sink to the top.

This stopping function is usually regulated by a stopper post or a knob.

3. Materials

When it comes to materials, the niche sink strainer market proved to be surpassingly diverse. However, most of the products you will be able to find will be either made of plastic or some type of metal.

Now, plastic strainers are, indeed, quite affordable and perform really well. But, they are not very durable (for instance, they can be easily damaged by a knife) and look horribly odd. For some reason, kitchen sinks and big pieces of plastic simply don’t mesh together.

The metals, on the other hand, don’t have these sorts of problems and suit the kitchen setting like a well-tailored glove. However, if you don’t go all-in and get yourself a full-stainless-steel unit, your sink strainer will start picking up rust sooner than later.

4. Ease Of Maintenance

We could have just as easily called this section “the ease in which you can set your strainer apart,” but “ease of maintenance” has a much better ring to it. Here, the one-piece kitchen sink strainers have a distinct advantage – the only thing you need is to pull them out, empty, wash them over, and put them neatly back in place.

Complex, multi-piece strainers are a completely different story. But, as we already mentioned, they offer much better performance and other useful benefits.

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Final Thoughts And Recommendations

Finally, the time has come for us to pass the judgment and declare the winner of the roundup. One would assume that kitchen sink strainers don’t offer enough variety for an exciting race. But boy, you would be surprised how much material we had to work with.

So, here are our top 3 picks:

Best Overall: KONE Garbage G231 3-1/2-inch Kitchen Sink drain

• We had a lot of discussion about this one, but when all is said and done, the fact remains that this strainer simply strikes the best balance between pros and cons, price, and values. It looks good, performs even better, and effortlessly puts your future plumbing worries to rest.

Budget Pick: Fengbao 2PCS Kitchen Sink Strainer

• We honestly wanted to put this strainer on the number one spot. That, however, wouldn’t be fair to the manufacturers that put more thought and effort into this niche. Even so, this is one incredibly gratifying one-piece sink strainer, and we had a blast using it.

Premium Choice: Coflex Extra Deep Cup Sink Basket Strainer with Sealing Lid

• If you want to enjoy all the perks of high-quality stainless steel and you are not afraid to pay a couple of dollars more, this is definitely a product for you. Sure, there are some drawbacks, and plastic parts could be way better, but the positives more than outweigh the complaints we had.