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Which Trash Bags Brand Wins?
We compared 18 trash bags options head to head. Glad Force Flex came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Winner
Glad Force Flex
Price shown in test: $34 for 20 bags or 28 each
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Runner-up
Kirkland and HDX
Price shown in test: $32 for 200 bags or 16 each
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Drawstring | Bag Strength Soft Weight | Bag Strength Nuts Bolts | Leak Test | Puncture Resistance | Grip Strength | Tear Resistance | Seam Strength |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Glad Force Flex$34 for 20 bags or 28 each | 56 lb (tied with Amazon Basics for best) | 65 lb | 50 lb | very well sealed, no leaks | 420 G | 54 lb, stretched to bottom of can, one of only three bags that maintained grip and outlasted the bag | 642 G | 66 lb, tore along one seam |
| 2Kirkland$32 for 200 bags or 16 each | 48 lb | 56 lb | 48 lb | dry, no leaks | top area 734 G (most puncture resistant of the top-of-bag tests), main area 468 G | 40 lb | 546 G | 74 lb, first bag to survive the seam/railroad test without failing |
| 3HDX$33 for 140 bags or 24 cents each | 47 lb | 64 lb | 55 lb | nicely sealed, no leaks | thicker top area 454 G, main area 402 G | 39 lb | 464 G | 71 lb, barely edged out Amazon Basics |
| 4Ox Plastics$60 for 200 bags or 30 each | no drawstring on this bag | 74 lb, survived with several tears | lifted all the nuts and bolts and refused to blow out even after being bounced off the bottom of the trash can several times, eventually failed | holding water without any leaks | 312 G | not designed to grip the top of the trash can | 1,586 G, dominated this test | 70 lb, tore without benefit of a drawstring |
| 5Amazon Basics$19 for 120 bags or 16 cents each | 56 lb (tied with Glad Force Flex for best) | 57 lb | 44 lb | very small leak in the bottom seam | 246 G | top never let go, bag stretched to bottom of can at 74 lb, one of only three bags that maintained grip and outlasted the bag | 822 G, moved into the lead at the time | 70 lb, performed by far the best yet at that point, tore at the seam |
| 6Neat$30 for 200 bags or 15 each | 23 lb, gave up very early | 62 lb | 68 lb | still dry, well sealed, no water accumulation | 264 G | 33 lb, fell into the can | 804 G, about eight times the tear resistance of Reli | 53 lb |
| 7Hefty Ultra Strong$15 for 80 bags or 19 each | 36 lb | 38 lb | 52 lb | very well sealed | 366 G | 35 lb | 554 G | 36 lb, seam ripped, about half the strength of Kirkland |
| 8EKO | 34 lb | 74 lb, survived | 70 lb, almost lifted the entire load | no leaks | 312 G | 2 lb, gave up almost immediately | 720 G | 50 lb, tore on one side of the seam |
| 9Full Circle$14 for 70 bags or 20 each | not tested | 50 lb (wrapped metal test) | 35 lb | no leak noticed until gently laid on concrete, then a leak appeared | 352 G | 4 lb, struggled to gain a grip | 442 G | 19 lb, very light duty |
| 10Commander | not tested | 58 lb | 48 lb | holding water without any visible leaks | 274 G | 5 lb | 472 G | 34 lb, tore along the seam on both sides |
| 11Perk$25 for 100 bags or 25 each | 42 lb | 74 lb, survived | 53 lb | very well sealed | 118 G, last place at that point in the test | 19 lb | 484 G | 41 lb |
| 12Steelcoat | 19 lb, gave up the earliest of all bags at that point | 42 lb | 54 lb | pretty bad leak on two different sides of the bag | 430 G | 34 lb | 52 G (figure as transcribed, appears possibly truncated/mangled in the auto captions) | 35 lb, both seams tore |
| 13Hippo Sak$27 for 90 bags or 30 each | not applicable, uses plastic handles instead of a drawstring; handles gave out at 60 lb | 74 lb, survived | lifted about 70 lb of nuts and bolts, gave up a little sooner than Ox Plastics | no water leaks | 310 G | 5 lb, not designed to grip the top of the trash can | 330 G | 56 lb |
| 14Glad Force Flex Max (Glad Max)$27 for 90 bags or 30 each | not tested | 71 lb | 60 lb | leaking on both sides of the seam, still leaking after several minutes | 504 G, took the lead over Kirkland at the time | 25 lb, tested twice with the same result | 876 G, moved into second place | 74 lb, bag itself performed very well despite a weak drawstring |
| 15Reli$28 for 250 bags or only 11 cents each | 37 lb | 48 lb | 32 lb | leaker, failure at the seam at the bottom of the bag, later described as a very small leak | 126 G | 44 lb | 92 G | 42 lb, both sides failed at the seam |
| 16T.Foring$17 for 110 bags or 15 cents each | no drawstring, bag is torn away from the roll | 73 to 74 lb, survived without blowing out | 55 lb | did not create a puddle within 5 minutes but was leaking, later described as leaking badly | 162 G | essentially failed immediately, fell into the can without registering on the scale | 34 lb (34 G) (very light duty bag) | 37 lb |
| 17Tuff Bros$5 for 13 bags or 38 each | advertised as having a drawstring but the bag does not actually have one | lifted 74 lb (with a tear forming) before eventually failing, exact failure weight not stated | 7 lb, destroyed almost immediately | very small leak, later described as leaking quite a bit | 8 G, weakest of all bags tested | 3 lb | 24 G | 32 lb |
| 18Hold On$29 for only 40 bags or 73 each | 16 lb, gave up the soonest at that point | 60 to 62 lb | 53 lb | very very small leak, not caught immediately | 120 G | 27 lb | 346 G | 64 lb |
How it was tested
- drawstring strength (metal wrapped in a towel)
- bag strength with soft weight (metal wrapped in a towel)
- bag strength with nuts and bolts
- leak test with 20 lbs of water over several minutes
- puncture resistance with a 16 penny nail on a drill press, measured in grams of force
- grip strength on the top rim of a trash can using a sledgehammer ram
- tear resistance on a single layer cut section, measured in grams of force
- seam strength lifting a roughly 70 lb piece of railroad iron wrapped in a towel
“the best all-around trash bag in The Showdown is the Glad Force Flex”