Ranking Of 12 Of IKEA's Dish Drying Racks, Mats, And Drainers By Real Customer Reviews

There are plenty of budget-friendly IKEA items that help keep kitchens clutter-free when you're laying out freshly washed dishes to dry. There are racks, mats, and drainers built to contain dishes in an organized and sometimes stylish manner until you're ready to use them or put them away. IKEA has a particularly wide selection of these items, and many of them are rated and reviewed by past customers.

Below are 12 IKEA dish drying racks, mats, and drainers ranked by customer reviews. We evaluated their star ratings, percentage of 5-star reviews, and overall number of testimonials to establish this ranking. These are the best of the best, so only fractions of a star separate one from another. We discuss the look, functionality, and review statistics behind each one of these dish-drying solutions. You can find out more about how we organized this list in the methodology below. In the meantime, read on to learn more about these IKEA products and their public reception.

The ORDNING Dish Drainer works like a customized kitchen dish rack with a two-tier setup. The stainless steel build has a plate rack on top and a ventilated tray on the bottom. The idea is that you can layer plates along the top and pile other dishes across the bottom, creating twice as much space to dry dishes. However, there is no catch tray beneath the bottom dish rack. This design drips all over countertops, unless you employ another method to soak up the moisture. It's also comparatively expensive.

Although this design leaves out an important element, many customers still appreciate the idea. It has a 3.7-star rating from 532 people, with 44% giving five stars. One customer summed up their experience: "Better design needed. Water from top-level dishes drips on dishes underneath. Dishes on bottom level sit in water, as the base has very small holes so there's not much drainage. To avoid puddles on countertop, you need to use a towel or flat dish drainer under the base to catch the water." Due to the poor execution, this drying rack landed at the bottom of our ranking.

If you're looking for something to specifically dry utensils and kitchen tools, such as whisks, spatulas, and wooden spoons, the VÄLVÅRDAD Utensil Holder is a basic solution. It's made of stainless steel with a white powder coating and has a simple design etched around the cylinder and a catch tray for moisture. It's 5 inches tall, making it large enough to hold cooking utensils and traditional silverware. A commonly mentioned downside, though, is that it's not very sturdy, so it can't hold heavy utensils. However, it holds wooden and lightweight metal utensils without a problem.

This VÄLVÅRDAD utensil holder has garnered 225 reviewers and has a 4.1-star average, with 35% of people saying it's not a five-star product. This review mostly sums up the positive aspects of this IKEA offering: "Keeps clutter down and drains." Although the reception is generally favorable, this product has a lower star rating than other products on this list, and some reviewers complain that it rusts if you aren't careful to dry the holder. Of course, you would need to buy another kitchen essential from IKEA to dry your dishes. Therefore, the VÄLVÅRDAD comes in second-to-last place in our ranking.

If you're looking for something subtle to improve your drain game by the sink, the STAMLING Dish Drainer will fit and complement most traditional kitchens. This white plastic tray slides into the space beside your sink, balancing plates, mugs, and silverware in intentionally designed slots. However, the tray doesn't have drainage, causing it to collect water. This can be both a pro and a con — it keeps water from leaking onto your countertop, but you must remember to dry off the rack once in a while to prevent mold growth. If there is enough collected water in the drainer, you may find yourself drying off your dishes a second time.

There are 332 reviews for this IKEA kitchen essential, and 64% of them awarded it five stars. It has a 4.3 rating overall, with one commenter claiming it's perfect for small households: "Looks nice, sturdy, and gets the job done. Works great in a studio apartment. Can hold meal dishes for 1-2 people." This is a great IKEA buy to optimize a small kitchen. It's highly rated by customers and is cheap and simple, but is outshone by products with more versatility and a higher number of reviews. It's also on the lower end of our list because it's relatively small, so it's only practical for small households, and it collects water.

Another IKEA item from the VÄLVÅRDAD series made our list: the VÄLVÅRDAD Dish Drying Rack. This is such a simple rack that it could actually be multifunctional, with several past IKEA shoppers claiming to use it outside of the kitchen, such as in bathrooms and bedrooms. It's a stainless steel rack that is primarily meant for plates, cutting boards, and other flat items. You can add the VÄLVÅRDAD Dish Drying Shelf, which is the same price and is sturdy enough to hold glasses, mugs, and other small kitchenware. Paired together, these could work well for a single person or a couple, and the simple stainless steel look subtly blends in with a kitchen full of other metallic appliances and fixtures. It can be dressed up with a cute drying mat underneath, sold separately.

Most customers consider this IKEA product a good find, and 315 reviewers have left a 4.4-star average. Over 63% of them gave it a full five stars, leaving comments such as, "I have a small countertop, and this fits the space without taking up too much room. I now have a place to drain my dishes without cluttering up the counter." There are no complaints about tarnishing, which is an important feature in a dish-drying rack, so this item easily made our ranking according to customer reviews. However, it still scored on the lower end, since the percentage of five-star reviews was lower than other similarly rated IKEA dish rack options. You also need to buy both items in order to dry most of your kitchenware, and even then this, product is comparatively small.

The LILLHAVET Multifunctional Dish Rack is a step up from the STAMLING Dish Drainer in terms of design, size, and customer reviews. This black dish rack looks best when slid beside a sink in modern-style kitchens with black appliances or accents. It can also be combined with other options in the LILLHAVET series, more of which appear later and higher in our ranking. It's a mix of steel and plastic and can hold cups, tableware, and other everyday kitchen items.

More than 818 people have reviewed this item, giving it an average rating of 4.4 stars. Over 68% of them gave five stars. Many of the high reviews are from people who bought it for smaller spaces and kitchens, with one customer writing, "Purchased this for my son who moved into a university apartment with friends with a very small kitchen. I love that you can use this rack as is, or separate it and use both pieces for more dishes. Works wonderfully. Very nice space saver!"

With 4.4 stars, this IKEA product landed in the bottom five of our ranking; however, it's still one of the higher-rated IKEA items for the kitchen. Keep in mind that many of the low reviews are from people who have a plethora of dishes, larger sinks, and bigger kitchens, making this space-saver less practical for their setup.

The LILLHAVET series is popular among IKEA shoppers, and this next product is aimed to complement the LILLHAVET dish rack and holding utensils. The inexpensive LILLHAVET Colander looks like a cooking tool at first glance, but it is intended as a multipurpose product, so don't think you can only pour spaghetti into it. This black rectangular colander fits over most sinks, according to testimonials. It has a flat bottom, so it easily holds silverware, kitchen utensils, and small glasses while they dry after being hand-washed. Since it fits over a sink basin, water drips directly inside, making it perfect for drying cutlery.

There are 416 ratings behind this product, and 74% of them rated it a full five stars. It has a 4.5-star average, and most customers share that it's useful for draining washed dishes and fresh produce alike. One person commented, "I like that it isn't taking up too much room in the sink, but can also hold a decent amount of items. Whether it be a few dishes or just having it there to wash some fresh fruit. It is coming in very handy." With 4.5 stars and almost three-quarters of the reviewers giving it five stars, this item earned a mid-tier spot in our ranking, as it's great for utensils but not capable of drying most things in your kitchen.

The RINNIG Plate Holder ranks surprisingly high on our list, given its limited functionality and the fact that it looks like a rake. This pronged steel holder is coated in black plastic and is a minimalist way to dry plates. It fits up to nine plates at a time and pairs with a RINNIG Dish Drainer, which guides water droplets directly into the sink. With a little DIY, this inexpensive IKEA dish rack can also be turned into a stylish bookshelf, the same way the VÄLVÅRDAD Dish Drying Rack could.

Over 733 reviewers shared their opinions about this plate drying rack, and 74% of them awarded it a 5-star rating. Its actual average score, however, is 4.5 stars, and people seem to especially enjoy the product when paired with other kitchen solutions. As one person writes, "A surprisingly functional rack that I use as a dish drying rack. It is designed to fit most of the IKEA dish drainers. I personally use it with the small VÄLVÅRDAD dish drainer, and together it makes for a compact, easy-to-clean, but highly functional dish drying system." With roughly 300 more reviewers than the LILLHAVET Colander, this item barely overtook it to earn sixth place in our ranking.

IKEA has several utensil holders, but you may not want to risk them dripping all over your countertop or collecting standing water. This is where the plastic EKIPERA Utensil Holder Tray comes into play. This black, rounded tray is built as a base for two items from the IKEA ORDNING series (which you can find on our list below), catching any moisture that escapes the holders. It's built to the exact size to fit beneath them, and the black color blends in with other similarly colored kitchen accents. As a bonus, it's very cheap and also dishwasher safe.

According to the product listing page, 395 reviews average out to 4.6 stars, with 74% of them rating it five stars. One happy customer wrote, "This adds a bit of extra class to an already classy IKEA product. The stainless steel utensil holders look fine all by themselves on your counter, but this just gives them a bit more panache." Other reviewers mention that it works as an extra coaster or cup holder. It's a little unfair to rank the EKIPERA alongside other products, as it's specifically meant to connect with and improve other kitchen drainers, but people really love it, and we're sticklers for simple, yet hardworking and functional items.

While many people are ditching traditional dish racks for something special, there is still a lot of functionality and nostalgic charm to a standard dish rack. If that's what you're after, the FLUNDRA Dish Drainer is said to be one of the best, especially for its size and price. While it looks a bit like a laundry basket, this white plastic drainer is an all-in-one winner, with storage space for bowls, cups, cutlery, plates, and more. If the main bin is full, mugs can hang upside down from the outside hooks.

There are 1,073 reviews behind this product, and 71% of them gave it a five-star rating. It has a 4.6 average. One reviewer summed up its attributes, and shared, "This is by far my favorite dish rack. It's inexpensive, dishes dry well, and it's deep and a very good size." Although it has the same star average as the EKIPERA Utensil Holder Tray, the FLUNDRA is obviously the better choice if you're looking to purchase a single item for drying kitchenware, and it has nearly twice as many reviews, which bumped it up a spot on our list.

IKEA's ORDNING series is notable for organizing kitchen utensils without taking up too much space, which is why they show up multiple times in this ranking. The ORDNING 5.5-Inch Utensil Holder has a simple stainless steel look with ventilated sides for drying and airing out standard cutlery. It has a more industrial look than other products on this list, which may not suit more fashionable kitchens. However, its functionality and dishwasher-safe build make up for the rudimentary appearance. In fact, these cylinders are useful beyond the kitchen, as reviewers claim to use them to hold craft supplies, makeup brushes, and even live orchids. Pairing this with the EKIPERA Holding Tray will keep your counter and utensils dry.

With a 4.6-star average from 1,079 people, this 5.5-inch utensil holder barely beat out the IKEA FLUNDRA product for the top three spot in our ranking. Of those past customers, 76% agreed it's a five-star product, and the product page is full of reviews like, "Perfect product. Stainless steel is a plus. Easy to clean," and "This product is great! I use it to store kitchen utensils. It is lightweight. The holes around the container allow adequate ventilation. The cost is very reasonable." This item only ranks higher than the previously mentioned FLUNDRA because it has a higher percentage of five-star reviews; if you're looking to dry dishes, either FLUNDRA product is a good bet.

Two ORDNING items dominate the final three in our ranking of IKEA items. The ORDNING 7-Inch Utensil Holder is only a few inches taller than its sibling product, which makes it more useful to the masses. It has the same design and is also made of stainless steel, but is slightly larger to accommodate larger cooking utensils.

The 7-inch version of this product has an average star rating of 4.7 and about 1,000 reviews. Around 80% of them claim it's a five-star item, with many people saying the height is better for a wider range of products. One customer wrote, "I use mine next to my sink to hold the few utensils that I may hand wash ... very convenient and large enough to handle a good number of items." Due to a slightly higher star rating and the percentage of customers who rate it five stars, this is the superior ORDNING utensil holder.

The simplest method for dish drying has stood the test of time, and IKEA's best air-dry product is a dish mat. The NYSKOLFD Dish Drying Mat works in conjunction with other dish drying solutions and is the fail-safe if they don't soak up all of the pooling water. For example, tucking the NYSKOLFD under the ORDNING Dish Drainer could solve common customer complaints that it spills water everywhere.

This mat also works as a standalone solution when set beside a kitchen sink, and it absorbs excess water from piled-up dishes. Another perk is that it's machine-washable, making it easy to toss in with the rest of a laundry load. It also has a tab that makes it convenient to hang up and dry. The manageable upkeep makes it easier to keep clean and sanitary for long-term use. Many customers also mention using it for unconventional purposes, like underlaying coffee mats or pet bowls.

With nearly twice as many reviews as the next best-reviewed IKEA item in its category, the NYSKOLFD mat is indisputably number one in our ranking. About 81% of past customers gave it a full five stars, and it has a 4.7-star average. Many of the 1,920 reviews echo the same sentiments: "This drying mat works very well. Dries all my dishes super quickly and doesn't leave any water on the counter," wrote one customer, while another added, "This drying mat is a great size. Doesn't take up too much counter space."

With dozens of IKEA items on the market, we narrowed down our ranking to their best-reviewed products. We only chose items with an average of at least 3.5 stars. A minimum 40% of the reviews had to be five stars, and we only considered items with more than 300 total reviews. Although most of these items are highly rated by the majority, some do have negative testimonials. As long as they met our minimum requirements for ratings and five-star percentages, they still made our ranking, though they landed at the lower end of the list.