Bentgo Kids Bento-Style 5-Compartment Leak-Proof Lunch Box - Ideal Portion Sizes for Ages 3 to 7 - Durable, Drop-Proof, Dishwasher Safe, PFAS & BPA-Free & Made with Food-Safe Materials (Green)

If you're on the fence about which bento box to order for your child (BENTGO KIDS or YUMBOX), I will compare the two brands in this review. My family has used both kinds for about a month. **BENTGO KIDS** My 5 year-old kindergartner takes this box for his lunch, and it is truly the better choice for YOUNGER CHILDREN in my opinion. It has a more juvenile color scheme, five small food compartments, DURABLE RUBBER TRIM on the top and bottom, and overall exudes a higher quality product that will withstand more abuse than the Yumbox. The latches are more HEAVY-DUTY than the Yumbox, and although it can be a bit difficult for kids to close at first (it's a tight seal around the inner tray), my son got the hang of it after a couple tries. The Bentgo Kids trays come in three different colors and seem more durable than the Yumbox trays. The Bentgo Kids box doesn't hold a LOT of food, but it is plenty for my son, and I imagine it will provide ample food until he's in second or third grade (probably a good box for 3-8 year-olds?). The largest compartment will fit a half sandwich unless your bread is huge, but then you can just cut it in quarters. The Bentgo Kids shell is a bit larger than the Yumbox, so it's a tight squeeze into my son's soft-sided LL Bean box, but we manage to fit the Bentgo and a Lifefactory water bottle into the LL Bean box. *UPDATE* - We recently purchased an LL Bean Discovery lunch box, and this easily fits either the Bentgo or Yumbox as well as a water bottle and extras. The Bentgo also fits in a Lands' End ClassMate soft sided lunch box with a Goodbyn water bottle (see photo). Does the Bentgo Kids leak? Nope. The rubber gasket on the lid is impressive, and ranch dressing has stayed neatly in the center dip compartment. The gasket on the Yumbox doesn't seem to be as good, so this is another reason why I like the Bentgo Kids better for younger children. It's pretty much foolproof. To clean, simply remove the inner tray and put it in the dishwasher. I always hand wash the outer shell or at least give it a wipe-down each day. **YUMBOX PANINO** I purchased this Yumbox Panino for my 9 year-old third grader. I like the Yumbox Panino colors and design better for OLDER CHILDREN (maybe 7-12 year-olds?). It's less juvenile than the Bentgo Kids box, and the Panino version has room for a larger sandwich. Since its tray has thin dividers, it will HOLD A BIT MORE FOOD too. The Yumbox has a slightly SMALLER FOOTPRINT than the Bentgo Kids, and it fits snugly in my son's LL Bean lunch box, but his water bottle does make his lunch box lid bulge out - not a big deal. We have since upgraded to the LL Bean Discovery lunch box, which is much deeper and has plenty of room. If you only have room for a small, narrow water bottle, the Goodbyn bottle is a great option (found on Amazon). We have packed ranch dressing in the center, and as long as I press down tightly while latching the lid, it doesn't leak. The inner tray has printed text underneath (they are not removable stickers), but it does have a more grown-up look to it than the whimsical designs on other Yumbox trays. Yumbox sells plain trays on their website. The tray easily snaps out for washing in the dishwasher, but we always wash the outer shell by hand. FOUR compartments or SIX? Yes, Yumbox offers two different versions - same size, but the trays have either more or less compartments. I debated greatly over which to buy, but ultimately I decided that the Panino (4 compartment) style would grown with my son better than the 6-compartment Yumbox, and on days when he doesn't pack a large sandwich, I simply use silicone baking cups as dividers. Links to the cupcake liners and leaf-shaped food picks shown in my photo are at the end of this review. SUMMARY: Both boxes have different features, so the box to choose really depends on your child's needs. The YUMBOX PANINO is my favorite for OLDER CHILREN or those who eat larger lunches because of the tray design and color combinations. The BENTGO KIDS is terrific for younger kids as it seems MORE DURABLE yet holds plenty of food for little ones. I do wish the Bentgo Kids box came in more colors, but perhaps this is in the works. For now, my son enjoys using his different-colored trays to switch things up a bit. Links to other products shown in my photo: Silicone Cupcake Liners (this set has red, which my sons had to have): http://www.amazon.com/Silicone-Cupcake-Kitchen-Buddies-Included/dp/B00LR84HXA/ref=sr_1_1?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1425867226&sr=1-1 Leaf Food Picks: http://www.amazon.com/Tornado-P-2759-Leaf-pick-10P/dp/B0019XLGLE/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1426438596&sr=1-1&keywords=leaf+food+picks Goodbyn Bottle: http://www.amazon.com/Goodbyn-20064BT-Bottle-Blue/dp/B0050O92PK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442187692&sr=8-1&keywords=goodbyn+bottle February, 2017 UPDATE: My second grader is still using his Bentgo Kids nearly every day, as it holds more than enough food for his appetite. The rubber trim began to peel off a bit on the outer container (though I always hand wash it), and Bentgo sent me a replacement! What a wonderful product and equally great customer service!

I will begin using the two Bentgo Kids that I bought daily next week to send lunch with my 1-year-old and not-quite-3-year-old to daycare. They have not stood the test of going to daycare with them yet, but so far I really like the Bentgo Kids. They seem to be good quality and durable. The latches are easy enough that my older child is able to open them on her own (once she was shown how), but secure enough that I'm not worried about them coming accidentally unlatched. She did have a little difficulty closing the box on her own though since simply closing the lid doesn't really close it... you have to kind of pull it out/toward you when you close it in order for it to close all of the way to latch. But she will have her teacher(s) available to help her, as will my younger child. I felt that the outer shell was easy to wash. The inner tray was also easy to clean, but the deep recesses on the bottom were difficult to clean while hand washing; some of them are pretty narrow to be able to fit a dish cloth or brush up there. Of course, these areas shouldn't get too dirty either. I did a quick test to see how leakproof the box is by filling a couple of compartments about halfway with water and sloshing it around a bit. I shook it a little, rocked it back and forth, turned it upside down, etc. The water stayed in place. There were a couple of drops (literally drops) in a neighboring compartment, but I'm pretty sure it is from dripping from the lid when I opened the box. Based on this, I doubt it will be a problem to include foods such as yogurt, applesauce, or cottage cheese. The leakproof seal was actually the predominant reason why I ultimately decided on the Bentgo Kids... so I could send the foods I just listed and not worry about other foods, such as crackers, getting soggy. I am very excited to start using these boxes every day. I love that the sizes of the compartments seem perfect for kid-sized portions, and that the number of compartments gives me the ability to send a variety of foods every day so my picky toddlers will hopefully at least eat something. Also, the overall size of the box is perfect for little hands. Both of my kids are able to carry it around easily. Overall, I would rate the Bentgo Kids at a 5... I'm rounding up a bit because I love the product so far, but it is a little hard to reach some areas of the underside of the tray when washing.

I bought this lunchbox in April 2022 and four years later, it’s still functioning the same as day one. Worth every penny. My daughter has used this daily during the school year and never had a leak or an issue. She opened and closed it on her own at three years old, the compartments don’t leak onto each other, or out of the lunchbox. The inner plastic piece gets put in the dishwasher on occasion, but never the outer shell.

This is our second Bentgo Box we have purchased because we love them so much. They are high quality and do not leak. I wash the inside tray, top rack in the dishwasher. I hand wash the outside box/shell. Has held up nicely. I would recommend.

So easy to use to pack for kid lunches/snacks. 5 separate containers for different things. Easy to open for the kids. Easy to wash since you can take the tray out and clean it. It fits in the lunch boxes that we have for the kids. Durable as we have had it for a couple years and 2 kids have used it. Looks just like the day we got it still. Fits enough food that they never complain about being hungry (age 2 and 7). Kind of hard to clean the sauce compartment sine that opening is hard

UPDATE: I emailed Bentgo to let them know about the latch issue, and received a same-day reply (a few hours after I sent my email--the person replied at 9PM!). Though our bento box was no longer under warranty, the customer service rep offered to replace our bento box anyway, free of charge. She asked that I send her proof of purchase plus a photo of the breakage; as soon as I did that, they sent out a replacement bento box, which I received within a few days. I'm really impressed with the level of responsiveness and their commitment to customer service, so I'm changing my review to five stars. I'm more than happy to support companies that stand by their products like this! And our new bento box is back in rotation, as easy and functional as ever! ORIGINAL REVIEW: We love this bento box and it's great for school lunches, except after about a year of use, one of the two latches broke off. It held up okay with only one latch for about six more months, and then the second latch broke. So now I have to keep it closed with a rubber band--still usable but kind of a pain. We didn't overstuff it or otherwise misuse it, so the latches really should have lasted longer. Until the latches broke, the bento box was my favorite thing to pack lunches in. The compartments allow for a lot of variety, and it sealed really well. I wouldn't put soup in it, but thicker liquids like ketchup, ranch dressing, etc., were all fine in the bento box and always stayed in their compartments without leaking. It's not really insulated but it does keep things fairly cool, and if I need something to stay cold I'll pack it in a lunchbox with an ice pak. It cleans up easily, too. Just a bummer about the latches, and makes me hesitate to buy again.

Have washed it once and is already taking on scratches. I would like to see a different plastic material for the interior trays. There is a company that makes kids bowls and plates and spoons that have a really nice plastic made from recycled milk jugs that I feel wears well and maintains its integrity. I am a huge fan of that plastics feel, hardness, and even feel comfortable briefly microwaving in it. It almost has a hydrophobic quality. Food juices and liquids pools up and doesn’t seep-into the material. Also very easy to runs out and clean. I do love how this one has a nice seal and comes with a layer of plastic film fresh out of the box to protect the integrity of the gasket. So far the hinges work well but I do worry when my 1.5 year old son plays with them and feel they could easily break. Maybe look to pelican for aluminum hinge designs with air pressure purge valves to deal with hot and cold foods. I have also notice very deep and tight spaces under the removable tray. This area could hold onto food and is not easy to clean out. Makes me worry about mold growth. The multiple recesses was a big selling point as well as the tight seal that will allow for confident storage in my wife’s nice expensive leather purse. I am quite happy with the tolerance of the fit and the very snug solid feel when all matched up. I really hope the materials used improve because after the first few days of use I can’t see the materials lasting as long as they will need to for the intended purpose. Basically with kids and eating it needs to be able to survive a throw across the room or a fall from a high chair repeatedly as a game. I’d like to see yeti bear proof build quality in the hinges. Further I feel like the plastic will stain easily and tomato products or beets on the salad or possibly even berries could do perminant damage. Would also like to see maybe some way of storing some utensils. Possibly a neoprene sleeve for wipes and utinsils and posiblly a collapisable stainless steel cup. See mizu for that. I’d give negative stars for the durability of the removable tray. Oh and I worry about the plastic taking up smells too. The probability of that happening is high since the food will be stored in the air tight container for a while. Like garlic beef in the same spot as a strawberry salad might not be good in the long term. Now that I have though all this out I’ve realized that for the price and initial use I have had I am going to start looking for a possible alternative. I’ll look to a stainless steel set with similar numbers of trays recesses. Variety in the diet to me is very important and the more spaced the better. I really hope the r&d team reads all this and gets to work in an improved version. Btw great packaging build quality. It’s very satisfying maruvering the right tolerances in the boxing. I might eventually return this.. I hope that in the future this product improves. I do appreciate the product and it’s intent and do feel strongly about having children eat with your products idea and intent.

Love these for my kiddos!! They don’t eat much at school so this gives me a way to give them a great variety for the day. They also enjoy them when we go in day trips for their snacks