The Zojirushi SM-SHE48 Stainless Steel Mug (16 oz) meets
the Contigo West Loop AutoSeal Travel Mug (16 oz)
The insulation benchmark every other travel mug gets measured against. We tested it head-to-head against the Contigo West Loop AutoSeal Travel Mug (16 oz) across 6 key dimensions.
Zojirushi SM-SHE48 Stainless Steel Mug (16 oz)
“The insulation benchmark every other travel mug gets measured against”
Contigo West Loop AutoSeal Travel Mug (16 oz)
“Near-Zojirushi insulation and a one-touch leakproof lid for around thirty dollars”
Head-to-Head Breakdown
Strengths & Weaknesses
Zojirushi SM-SHE48 Stainless Steel Mug (16 oz)
- Insulation that no rival matched: Prudent Reviews recorded 117 degrees F at 15 hours versus a field that mostly sat below 90, and America's Test Kitchen kept coffee hot for a full 10 hours
- The flip-and-lock lid opens and drinks one-handed and sealed without a single leak across the shake, tip-over, and inverted tests at Prudent and America's Test Kitchen
- Built to last, with a five-year warranty and a Wirecutter staff mug that survived concrete drops with only a dent
- The narrow 1.5-inch opening that America's Test Kitchen called tricky to fill also makes it the hardest mug here to clean, and it is hand-wash only
- Prudent timed the slowest pour in its test (26 seconds to empty 16 oz), so it is a sipper rather than a gulper
- CNN found it too tall to slide under many home and office coffee machines, so you may be filling it from a carafe instead
Contigo West Loop AutoSeal Travel Mug (16 oz)
- Insulation that trails only the Zojirushi: Prudent Reviews logged 89 degrees F at 15 hours, second place in a nine-mug field and far ahead of popular names like Yeti and Hydro Flask
- The AutoSeal button seals itself between every sip, which is why Wirecutter picks it as the spill-proof, leakproof mug for commuters
- Fits standard car cup holders and costs around thirty dollars, roughly ten less than the top pick
- The AutoSeal lid has more parts than a simple flip lid, so there is more to take apart and wash even with the 3.0 Easy-Clean update
- America's Test Kitchen testers were divided on press-to-drink buttons, finding the constant pressing less relaxing than a fixed-open lid
- Insulation is excellent for the price but still a clear step below the Zojirushi over a long day
The Verdict
Our Bottom Line
We rarely see a category this lopsided. The Zojirushi SM-SHE48 took the top spot in seven of the eight expert tests we analyzed, and the data behind those wins is not close. Prudent Reviews ran nine mugs through a 15-hour hot test and the Zojirushi held 117 degrees F at the finish, roughly 30 degrees ahead of the next mug and more than double the worst performers. Outside's lab at CU Denver clocked it keeping drinks hot for up to nine hours in winter cold, and America's Test Kitchen kept coffee hot for a full 10 hours.
Zojirushi SM-SHE48 Stainless Steel Mug (16 oz)
We rarely see a category this lopsided. The Zojirushi SM-SHE48 took the top spot in seven of the eight expert tests we analyzed, and the data behind those wins is not close. Prudent Reviews ran nine mugs through a 15-hour hot test and the Zojirushi held 117 degrees F at the finish, roughly 30 degrees ahead of the next mug and more than double the worst performers. Outside's lab at CU Denver clocked it keeping drinks hot for up to nine hours in winter cold, and America's Test Kitchen kept coffee hot for a full 10 hours.
- Long commuters who want a drink that is still genuinely hot hours later
- All-day workers and trades who fill once in the morning and sip until afternoon
- Anyone who tosses a mug into a bag and needs zero leaks
- Buyers who want a five-year warranty and a mug that survives drops
Contigo West Loop AutoSeal Travel Mug (16 oz)
The Contigo West Loop earns Best Value by getting remarkably close to the winner for roughly ten dollars less. In the same Prudent Reviews 15-hour test where the Zojirushi led, the Contigo finished second at 89 degrees F, ahead of every other mug including far pricier names like Yeti and Hydro Flask. That is the headline: this is not a budget mug that merely gets by, it is the runner-up on raw insulation at a fraction of the premium tier's price.
- Drivers who need true one-handed open-and-sip with a cup-holder fit
- Commuters who want most of the top insulation for around thirty dollars
- People who prefer an auto-sealing button over a manual flip lid
- Anyone choosing between popular names who wants the one that actually out-insulated Yeti and Hydro Flask