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From the left: a Pyrex glassware loaf pan with a pumpkin bread in it, a Rachael Ray Yum-o! Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan with banana bread in it and a USA Pan loaf pan with a lemon pound cake in it. Credit: Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser
Kitchen & Cooking

The Best Loaf Pans of 2026

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From the left: a Pyrex glassware loaf pan with a pumpkin bread in it, a Rachael Ray Yum-o! Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan with banana bread in it and a USA Pan loaf pan with a lemon pound cake in it. Credit: Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser

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Editor's Choice Product image of Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan
Best Overall

Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan

Check Price at Home Depot

The nonstick coating on this loaf pan really does its job, and large handles with orange nonslip pads make it easy to handle, too. Read More

Pros

  • Large, grippy handles
  • Nonstick coating safe up to 500°F
  • Large capacity

Cons

  • None that we could find
Editor's Choice Product image of USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan
Best for Tender Cakes

USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan

Check Price at Amazon

Made of steel coated with aluminum and with a colorless nonstick coating, you can get an even bake on quick breads and cakes with this pan. Read More

Pros

  • Nonstick finish performed well in testing
  • Easy to clean
  • Great for non-crust breads and cakes

Cons

  • No handles
Product image of Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan
Best Non-Nonstick Loaf Pan

Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan

Currently
Unavailable

Pyrex's Easy Grab pan has ample handles and is dishwasher and microwave safe. It's a versatile pan for those who don't want nonstick coating. Read More

Pros

  • Great handles
  • Microwave and dishwasher safe

Cons

  • Must grease well
Product image of AmazonBasics Nonstick Carbon Steel Bread Pan

AmazonBasics Nonstick Carbon Steel Bread Pan

Check Price at Amazon

Sold as a set of two, these pans have a dark nonstick coating that turns out a nice crust, even if it doesn't release perfectly every time. Read More

Pros

  • Sold as a set of two
  • Dark nonstick coating good at crusting

Cons

  • Nonstick coating performed so-so in testing
  • Small handles
Product image of Staub Cast Iron Loaf Pan

Staub Cast Iron Loaf Pan

Check Price at Amazon

Despite the heft, the Staub enameled cast iron loaf pan bakes gorgeous bread. Read More

Pros

  • Superb heat retention
  • Large, grippy handles
  • Good at crusting

Cons

  • Heavy
  • Color makes it hard to clean

  • Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan

  • USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan

  • Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan

  • Other Loaf Pans We Tested

  • How to Choose the Best Loaf Pan

  • More Articles You Might Enjoy

  • Best Overall Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan
  • Best for Tender Cakes USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan
  • Best Non-Nonstick Loaf Pan Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan
  • Other Loaf Pans We Tested
  • How to Choose the Best Loaf Pan
  • More Articles You Might Enjoy
Sharon Franke
Valerie Li Stack
Written by Sharon Franke, Valerie Li Stack, and Lily Hartman

Updated March 12, 2024

The Rundown

  • Our favorite loaf pans are the Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan and the USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan.
  • Dark-colored pans create a darker, thicker crust, ideal for breads, while lighter pans are better for tender cakes.
  • Metal pans are lightweight and durable, but glass or ceramic options are more attractive for serving directly.

Wonder why your banana bread doesn’t come out so great? Maybe the problem is your pan. In a good loaf pan, your quick breads will bake within the time called for in your recipe. They’ll come out rounded on top with crispy (but not thick or tough) crusts, with moist and tender interiors. In other words, they’ll bake perfectly.

Our pick for the best loaf pan is the Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan (available at Home Depot for $13.99) , which comes at an excellent value and aced all of our tests in the kitchen.

A Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan is in the center of a crowded kitchen counter. Inside the pan, there's a loaf of quick bread.
Credit: Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser

The best loaf pan we tested is Rachael Ray's Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan.

Best Overall
Rachael Ray Yum-o! Nonstick Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan

It has a silly name and it doesn’t look like a professional tool, but when it came to the pan’s performance and ease of use, we liked everything about the Rachael Ray Yum-o! Oven Lovin' Loaf Pan. We found this to be the best bread pan for baking. Plus, the handles are large and have silicone inserts in Rachael’s signature orange color that make it super easy to get a firm grip on the pan. The nonstick finish never faltered, even when we didn’t grease the pan. And because the nonstick finish is dark, it gives a nice deep crust to white bread. This 1-pound loaf pan is lightweight, yet still roomier than some of the others we tested, so meatloaf juices never bubbled over onto the oven floor. As it’s safe up to 500°F, you can quickly brown off a crumb topping, if need be.

Pros

  • Large, grippy handles

  • Nonstick coating safe up to 500°F

  • Large capacity

Cons

  • None that we could find

$13.99 from Home Depot


$13.99 from Amazon


$18.99 from Walmart

The USA Pan with a loaf of lemon pound cake is next to a carton full of eggs and a halved lemon.
Credit: Reviewed / Betsey Goldwasser

The USA Pan Loaf Pan will save your cakes from a deeply browned crust.

Best for Tender Cakes
USA Pan 1 1/4 Lb. Loaf Pan

When you’re baking a lemon pound cake, bread loaf, or a blueberry quick bread, you probably don’t want a thick and deeply browned crust. For those times, it’s best to choose a pan with a light-colored finish. Our best bread and loaf pan in this category was the USA Pan Loaf Pan, which is made of steel coated with aluminum. This silicon pan's colorless, nonstick finish helped everything we baked pop right out of the pan and made hand washing a cinch. The downside to this pan is that it has no handles so you have to grasp it firmly on the sides. Choose from different sizes, such as 8.5 x 4.5 or 1.5 pounds.

Pros

  • Nonstick finish performed well in testing

  • Easy to clean

  • Great for non-crust breads and cakes

Cons

  • No handles

$20.95 from Amazon


$22.89 from Walmart

Product image of Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan
Best Non-Nonstick Loaf Pan
Pyrex Easy Grab 1.5-qt Loaf Pan

If you’re hell-bent on avoiding nonstick, consider the Pyrex Easy Grab Loaf Dish. Just be absolutely sure to grease the glass well before using it for baked goods. With its large handles, the Easy Grab is a great upgrade on the classic Pyrex glass loaf pan as it lives up to its name and lets you get a really good grip even with bulky oven mitts. Unlike many of the metal pans, this dishwasher-safe pan is easy to clean and can also be used for microwaving meatloaf.

Pros

  • Great handles

  • Microwave and dishwasher safe

Cons

  • Must grease well

Other Loaf Pans We Tested

Product image of AmazonBasics Nonstick Carbon Steel Bread Pan
AmazonBasics Nonstick Carbon Steel Bread Pan

You can’t beat the price on the Amazon Basics Nonstick Carbon Steel Bread Pan which is sold as a set of two. If you’re baking pumpkin or zucchini bread to give as a gift you can gift the pan right along with the loaves or if you bring one to a party, not worry if you forget to bring home the pan. The dark nonstick coating will bake the bread with a nice dark crust but may often fail to release cleanly. While the pan does have handles, they’re small and can be hard to grasp with bulky oven mitts.

Pros

  • Sold as a set of two

  • Dark nonstick coating good at crusting

Cons

  • Nonstick coating performed so-so in testing

  • Small handles

$9.79 from Amazon

Product image of Staub Cast Iron Loaf Pan
Staub Cast Iron Loaf Pan

This enameled cast iron loaf pan doesn’t require seasoning and bakes well, giving a superbly browned exterior and evenly cooked interior. Though it weighs 6 pounds, making it the heaviest loaf pan on our list, its two handles make lifting and transporting the pan to and from the oven a lot easier.

For people who cook a lot in loaf pans and expect a perfect outcome each time, the Staub won’t disappoint. Thanks to its cast iron construction, it can be brought up to a temperature higher than some other pans and maintains that temperature so the food gets evenly cooked.

However, in terms of cleaning and maintenance, the dark color makes it harder to see the food bits that get stuck in the pan.

Pros

  • Superb heat retention

  • Large, grippy handles

  • Good at crusting

Cons

  • Heavy

  • Color makes it hard to clean

$225.39 from Amazon


$229.95 from Walmart


$229.95 from Best Buy

Product image of Nordic Ware Naturals 1.5 Pound Loaf Pan
Nordic Ware Naturals 1.5 Pound Loaf Pan

This is a simple light-colored aluminum pan without a nonstick finish of any kind. By using the Nordic Ware Naturals Loaf Pan, you’ll avoid over browning which you’ll appreciate when you’re baking a pound cake but might miss it if you're the kind of person whose favorite part of a loaf of sourdough is the crispy chewy crust. You will definitely want to hand wash the Nordic Ware or the aluminum will discolor and could skew your results.

Pros

  • Prevents overbrowning

  • Simple and lightweight aluminum construction

Cons

  • Requires washing by hand

  • Not ideal for developing crusts

$10.99 from Amazon


$14.40 from Walmart

Clockwise from top left: A fully baked loaf of bread in a USA Pan loaf pan, a fully baked loaf in a Pyrex glass loaf pan, a loaf of bread sliced in half in the middle, and a fully-baked loaf of sandwich bread in a ceramic loaf pan.
Credit: Reviewed / Sharon Franke

We baked banana bread, meatloaf, and white bread in each of the different loaf pans we tested.

How to Choose the Best Loaf Pan

Loaf pans come in a variety of sizes, colors, and materials. For best results, it’s important to use the size called for in your recipes. If you use a different size, your baked goods may not come out with the texture and/or height that you expected and may also take more or less time to bake than specified in the recipe.

Dark-colored pans hold in more heat and consequently give a darker, thicker crust, which makes them excellent for breads. However, you may also want to have a lighter colored pan in your collection for those times when you’re baking cakes and prefer a lighter, more tender crust.

For ease of use, you can’t beat metal pans. They’re lightweight and easy to handle and of course, pretty much unbreakable. If you plan to serve right from the pan, both glass pans and ceramic pans are more attractive. However, they may not brown as deeply or evenly as metal pans.

Our tests proved that nonstick pans really help when it comes to releasing baked goods and cleaning up. But even when you use a metal pan, such as a glass or ceramic loaf pan, with nonstick finish, it’s best to grease the pan as extra insurance against sticking.

Meet the writers

Sharon Franke

Sharon Franke

Contributor

Sharon has tested and reviewed kitchen equipment for over 30 years. Before becoming a cooking tools maven, she worked as a professional chef in New York City restaurants.

See all of Sharon Franke's reviews
Valerie Li Stack

Valerie Li Stack

Senior Staff Writer

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Valerie Li Stack is a senior staff writer for Kitchen & Cooking. She is an experienced home cook with a passion for experimenting with the cuisines of countries she's visited. Driven by an interest in food science, Valerie approaches the culinary scene with a firm grasp of cooking processes and extensive knowledge of ingredients. She believes food speaks to all people regardless of language and cultural background.

See all of Valerie Li Stack's reviews
Lily Hartman

Lily Hartman

Staff Writer, Search

Lily Hartman is a staff writer who also enjoys writing magazine articles about health and outdoor recreation. In her free time, she likes to hike, camp, run, and lift weights.

See all of Lily Hartman's reviews

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