13 popular Rice Storage Containers [for 2023]

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Are you tired of having little baggies of rice in your pantry cupboard? Or big bags on rice sitting on your kitchen floor? Not only, does it make your kitchen look cluttered, but improper rice storage can lead to food waste. And so this article on rice storage containers will help with two things:

1. organize your pantry or cupboard
2. reduce food waste by helping you store your rice properly

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What is the best storage for rice?

Rice should be stored in tightly-sealed containers kept in a dry environment at room temperature or cooler.

The best temperature for storing rice is 40-degrees Fahrenheit or 4-degrees Celsius: this is refrigerator temperature. (Reference) But if you store your rice at room temperature in a tightly-sealed container and use oxygen absorber packets, your white rice will keep for up to 10 years. (Reference)

And brown rice can be stored for about 6 months out of the refrigerator, and for longer if you refrigerate or freeze it. (Reference) Brown rice has a higher oil content because of the layer of bran, and this oil can oxidize causing earlier spoilage compared to white rice.

The use of sealed plastic bags with oxygen absorber packets to create an oxygen-free environment is more for people looking to create survival food supplies for long term storage. And you’ll also come across articles discussing the use of #10 food storage cans with an enamel lining to store rice. But this is also generally for longer-term rice storage. (If you are looking for more information on storing rice long term, I suggest you check out this reference PDF. )

In this article we’ll be focusing on storing your rice at home for regular consumption in your kitchen, not for survival rations.

According to the Utah State University, the best rice storage containers include food safe plastic (like polyethylene terephthalate…aka PET plastic) and glass jars. The USA Rice website states that your rice storage container should also keep out moisture, dust and other things that could infiltrate and contaminate your rice (such as odors).

Will storing rice in a plastic container cause micro plastics in my rice?

Researchers (Dessi et al.) found detectable amounts of plastic contaminants in some store-bought rice products. The most commonly found plastics were PET, polyethylene, and polypropylene. And polyethylene was the most commonly discovered plastic contaminant in the rice in this study.

The researchers also discovered:

Washing the rice with water significantly reduced plastic contamination.

Dessi et al.

They elaborated that washing your rice before cooking will reduce plastic contamination by 20-40%.

You may have notice that I already mentioned the plastic PET in the section above. That’s because PET (polyethylene terephthalate) is a plastic that the Utah State University said is a good material for a rice storage container.

What I get out of this is that to reduce your microplastic consumption you should wash your rice before cooking it. Most of you probably do this anyway, but it is a good reminder.

List of 13 popular Rice Storage Containers

Now that we’ve got some of the science of the best rice storage conditions and rinsing precautions out of the way, let’s look at some proven rice storage containers.

1) Airtight Rice Storage Container 20 lbs (by TBMax)

This airtight plastic rice storage container can hold up to 20 pounds of rice.

It is made from Polypropylene plastic which is BPA-free.

Interestingly, the handle on the top of the lid is NOT for carrying the container. Instead, it is part of the sealing mechanism to ensure an airtight container. So that means you’ll have to pick this rice container up by the sides…not the handle.

It is a well-rated, popular rice container on Amazon with lots of reviews.

2) KOMAX Biokips Airtight Rice Storage Container (18-pounds of rice)

This airtight rice container is made by Komax. They claim it can hold up to 18 lbs of rice.

This particular rice bin gets an airtight seal by having a gasket inside the rim of the lid, and it gets squashed tight against the body of the container when you snap on the lid using the 4 clips.

Some people have complained about the lid clips breaking. To help prevent the plastic lid clips from breaking you can try lifting this container by the sides and not the handle. Plus, make sure you have the lid properly placed atop the container before you try to snap the clips down.

This is a highly-rated rice storage container that works well.

But the one potential downside is that it can hold up to 18 lbs of rice, and most bags of rice are not sold in 18 pound sizes. They are sold in 10 lbs, 20 lbs, or other sizes. So if you buy a large bag of rice you may still need another rice container to hold the remainder.

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3) Rice Container with Wheels (22 lbs size)

In the picture above, the container on the right is the 22-pound size. Meaning it will hold 22 lbs of rice. (The container on the left is their 11 lbs size.)

This rice container is made from BPA-free Polypropylene plastic. It has an airtight lid, and an airtight access hatch on the top of the lid. It achieves this “airtightness” by using silicone gaskets in the rim of the lid.

This rice bin also has little wheels at the back so you can easily slide it out of a cupboard.

Does your family usually buy 20 pound bags of rice? If so, this may be right for you.

4) Rice Dispenser with rinsing cup (by U-miss)

This rice dispenser is made by the company U-miss.

The company claims it can hold 25 lbs of rice, but customers claim it stores less than that. (Some people claim it holds closer to 20-23 pounds of rice.)

A cool feature of a rice dispenser like this is that it rotates your stock or rice. You add newer rice up top and you’ll get the rice that has been in there longer dispensed first.

This dispenser also comes with a measuring cup that you can use to rinse your rice and strain it. Pretty cool.

Another drawback to this rice dispenser is they don’t claim it is airtight. So it may work well for families that go through a lot of rice (and regularly turnover stock in the dispenser), but since it isn’t airtight, it won’t be the best rice storage container for infrequent rice eaters. (And I don’t think infrequent rice eaters would need a container that stores 20+ pounds of rice anyway.)

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5) Aroma Housewares Rice Dispenser (model ARD-125)

This rice dispenser by Aroma Housewares has a really cool feature. When you press down on the button on the front of the unit, it measures and dispenses about 3/4 of a cup of rice into the removable compartment. (This is the amount of rice that most rice cookers take…not a standard “cup” like in your measuring cup set.) So it’ll work really well if you use a rice cooker.

(The Aroma company makes rice cookers so you can see why they do this.)

They claim it’ll fit up to 22 pounds of rice. So not only will it store the rice for your family, but it makes it easy to get your rice for meal time.

They do not claim it is airtight though. So this is best suited for families that go through rice quickly.

6) Airtight Rice Storage Container with Pouring Spout (by TBMax)

Here is a rice storage container that is better suited for small families or infrequent rice eaters.

This is because this compact container can only hold up to 4.4 lbs of rice (2kg).

It is an airtight container made from BPA-free plastic that has a pouring spout on the lid. The included measuring cup screws down over the pouring spout creating the airtight storage.

Things to be aware of with this rice container:

• it can hold up to 4.4 lbs of rice, but many bags of rice come in 5 lbs increments
• it is quite small (only about 9.5-inches tall)
• on the upside, because it is small it should easily fit into a pantry or cupboard

Do you think this rice container with the spout will work well for your family?

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7) Rubbermaid Flex & Seal 1.5 Gallon Food Container

This is the 1.5 gallon BPA-free plastic storage container made by Rubbermaid.

They usually market it as a cereal container, but it works well as a rice container too.

(We have one that we use to store home-made granola and it keeps it fresh. It works well for us.)

The lid pushes down onto the container snugly and limits the amount of air that gets in. And there is a pouring hole on the lid so you can pour out the rice that you need.

A 1.5 gallon container will hold about 10 pounds of rice. (Reference)

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8) Set of 4 Airtight Kitchen Containers (by Chef’s Path)

Here is a very popular, and highly-rated set of kitchen storage containers made by Chef’s Path.

These BPA-free plastic containers will hold about 10 pounds of rice each.

Of course, you could use one for rice, one for beans, one for flour or other pantry staples.

Could this set finally help you get your pantry organized?

But some people say the lids are a bit tricky to get on. So make sure you’ve got the lid properly lined up with the container before trying to snap the lid clips closed.

9) Airtight Kitchen Container Set (2x175oz & 2 x 220oz)

Here is another well-rated set of airtight kitchen containers, but this set features 2 extra-large containers (220oz), and 2 large containers (175oz).

And it comes with four 1-cup measuring cups too.

So it is very similar to the kitchen containers I listed before, but those were 175 oz each. This set has two containers that size, and it has two containers that are the larger 220 oz size.

They have snap-down lids that provide an airtight seal because there is a silicone gasket inside the lid that gets squashed down when you close the lid.

Glass Rice Storage Jars

Remember back to the first section in this article about “What is the best storage for rice?” and I mentioned that the Utah State University website says that glass jars can be great rice storage containers.

Glass jars look good and will help your pantry look like those jealousy-inducing pantries you see on Pinterest. (Which I’m sure are staged…but anyway…)

Just make sure the lids for the jars are tight and provide a good seal. And you don’t want the glass to be thin or cheap.

I searched for glass rice jars on Amazon and Walmart, and I found some options that you can consider. (You may want to go to a local retailer though so you can handle the glass, feel its thickness, and test the fit of the lid.)

10) One Gallon Glass Food Storage Jar with screw-on lid

What’s cool about these one gallon glass jars is that they are intended for kombucha tea, so they are leakproof and airtight. They feature a screw-on lid.

They measure 10-inches tall, and 6-inches across.

According to this website, you should be able to fit about 7 pounds of rice in a one gallon container.

Will this be big enough for your family’s needs? (Maybe you could buy a couple of them if you like the look.)

11) One Gallon Glass Jar (by Anchor Hocking)

Here is another glass jar option for rice. This is also a one gallon jar with a screw-on lid, but these have a different shape than the ones featured above.

The different shape may work better for your pantry (or you may like the look better). These are made by the company Anchor Hocking. They have been in the glass-making business since 1905!

Keep in mind:

The one caveat to this jar, is that they don’t explicitly say it is airtight. They claim this “cracker jar” will help keep your food fresh and it’ll keep odors out, which suggests to me it is fairly airtight, but they don’t specifically say this. (So you can decide if this option is right for your needs.)

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(Note Walmart sells a single jar [they call it 2-piece because of the jar and the lid], and Amazon sells as a set of 4 jars).

12) Rice Container 50 lbs (foldable with top access door)

I had never seen anything like this foldable rice bin before. It can unfold to hold up to 55 pounds of rice. (It is shown unfolded in the picture above.) [Another part of the description said it can hold 50 pounds of rice, but this variation may be due to different types of rice.]

Or it can fold down (shrink or collapse) to fit 15 pounds of rice. (The green bin in the picture below shows it folded down to its smaller size.)

I didn’t know why someone would want a collapsible rice storage container, but then I read that people like to shrink its size as the rice is used up. (Takes up less space in the pantry.)

Plus, it has two little rollers on the bottom so you can wheel it out for easier access.

If your family eats a lot of rice, check this out.

13) Food Safe 5 Gallon Bucket with Threaded Lid

Is this bucket the best looking option on here? No. But if you want a simple rice storage container, then here you go.

A 5 gallon bucket will be able to hold about 35 pounds of rice. (Reference) And it is stackable.

One of the most common negative comments about this bucket is that when you buy a couple of them at a time, they’re shipped inside each other, and it can be very difficult to separate them.

To get around this, you could just buy one bucket at a time. Give it a try, and if you like it you could order more.

I hope this article has helped you. Did you find a set of rice storage containers that’ll work best for your family?

The best rice container for you will depend on factors such as how much rice does you family eat because this will impact how large of a rice bin you need, and how often you’ll be turning over your rice stock. And the available size in your pantry or cupboard will obviously affect your choice too. (It’s hard to fit a big bucket in a tiny cupboard!)

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