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See why.Aprons
A good apron is a kitchen essential. We put seven no-nonsense, utilitarian cooks’ aprons to the test.
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What You Need To Know
We waded through a lot of ruffles, pleats, and chintz—and fronts reading “Kiss the Cook”—to round up seven no-nonsense, utilitarian cooks’ aprons in different materials and lengths, priced from $6 to $69. Since grease and other kinds of splatters often land above the waist, we stuck with bib-style aprons. Styles ranged from the most basic, no-pockets, nonadjustable shapes to feature-laden designs such as one that included a towel in its own carrying loop and a built-in corduroy potholder.
We enlisted seven test cooks, including men and women of different heights and girths, to try them all on and assess their comfort and fit. Then we assigned each cook one apron to wear for a week in the kitchen. We got the aprons back, along with an earful about what worked and what didn’t. While making a fudgy brownie pie, we saw the advantage of the widest apron of the lot, a 39-inch-wide cotton/linen combination that wrapped completely around all testers and offered handy coverage for chocolate splatters.
Last came our stain-making test: a dousing of yellow mustard, soy sauce, chocolate, and coffee that we let soak into each apron overnight. Not everything came out in the wash. In fact, our winner was the only apron to emerge completely clean in one wash. This was a nice addition to its other advantages of comfort and coverage. With an adjustable neck strap, long strings that wrap around the back to tie in front, and a chest area reinforced with an extra layer of fabric, it was soft but rugged. Its look is pure practicality—which suits us just fine.
Everything We Tested
Highly Recommended
- Protection: 3 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 3 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 3 stars out of 3.
This wide apron gave cooks total coverage. Its adjustable neck strap ties at the front, as do the long waist strings. Washing instructions call for bleach, which obliterated tough stains, and it’s dryer-friendly.
Recommended with reservations
- Protection: 3 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 2 stars out of 3.
This comfortable cotton apron was long and thick—stains never soaked through and they came out in the wash. But it shrank 3 inches in length and width from five runs through the dryer.
- Protection: 3 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 2 stars out of 3.
This thick apron softened after washing, which failed to remove an olive oil stain in five tries. It shrank an inch in the dryer. Two of its four pockets stuck out. But no stains soaked through.
- Protection: 2 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 2 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 2 stars out of 3.
The corduroy patch worked for wiping hands or holding pots, and the flat pockets worked well. But the towel stuck out, and the apron shrank and remained stained after five washes.
Not Recommended
- Protection: 1 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 1 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 2.5 stars out of 3.
This simple apron felt lightweight and comfortable. But it gaped in the back on larger cooks, and a mustard stain soaked through to clothing. Tougher stains never came out.
- Protection: 1 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 1 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 2 stars out of 3.
This rough linen apron held on to towels tucked into the waist level strings, but its tie scratched at our testers’ necks. Machine drying is prohibited—an inconvenience. Mustard soaked through and stayed on.
- Protection: 1 stars out of 3.
- After Washing: 0.5 stars out of 3.
- Comfort and Fit: 1 stars out of 3.
This apron was not long enough even for our shortest tester. Mustard soaked through the thin fabric and remained after five laundry cycles.
Reviews you can trust
Reviews you can trust
The mission of America’s Test Kitchen Reviews is to find the best equipment and ingredients for the home cook through rigorous, hands-on testing. We stand behind our winners so much that we even put our seal of approval on them.