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Mar 17, 2025

We Tested Baking Sheets: Here Are the Best Ones

We independently evaluate all of our recommendations. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Never deal with burnt cookies again. In This Article Real Simple Every home cook or

We independently evaluate all of our recommendations. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation.

Never deal with burnt cookies again.

In This Article

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Every home cook or baker should have at least one baking sheet in their arsenal. When you aren't using it for making a little sweet treat, it can be used for roasting potatoes and veggies or whipping up a quick one-pan dinner. You shouldn't buy just any old sheet pan, though. You want one that's durable with even heating for uniform cooking. One that's easy to clean, doesn't cost an arm and a leg, and won't need to be replaced six months from now.

We tested 23 baking sheets in our lab to find the best of the bunch for both baking and cooking. (We made chocolate chip cookies and potato wedges.) We also spoke with three experts: Christina Chonody, culinary marketing director at Hestan Culinary, Wendy Kou, author of Colossal Cookies, and Sally McKenney, author of Sally’s Baking Addiction.

It’s lightweight, durable, and easy to clean.

It's a half sheet, so it's small, but it does come in a pack of two.

McKenney tells us that one of her favorite baking sheets to use is from Nordic Ware because they're excellent quality and have stood the test of time and very frequent use.

After seeing how well they performed in all of our tests, we're on the exact same page. Our cookies came out evenly browned, and our potatoes didn’t stick to the surface at all when flipping them midway through cooking and at the end when they were fully roasted.

Despite the oven being cranked up to 475°F, the pan didn't warp at all. This durability can be attributed to its aluminum material, which can withstand high heat settings and, unlike other baking sheet materials, won’t retain heat for too long after being taken out of the oven. It also excels at distributing heat evenly, so food on all parts of the pan will cook the same.

Its lightweight design made it easy to transport in and out of the oven, and the cleaning process was practically seamless. Keep in mind that because this is aluminum, it will react to acidic ingredients like vinegar and tomatoes, which cause additional wear over time.Material: Aluminum | Dimensions: 16 by 11 in. | Weight: 1.6 lbs. each | Care: Hand wash recommended

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It's spacious size is ideal for hosting and meal prepping.

Since it's so large, it may be difficult to maneuver in the oven and sink.

If you're equipping a kitchen on a budget, you can't go wrong with this large aluminum sheet from Winco. With its roomy size (22 by 16 inches), it's ideal for hosting, large families, and meal prepping. The tradeoff for its spaciousness is that the pan is a bit difficult to wash in a smaller sink, though its lightweight design certainly helps.

During testing, our cookies and potato wedges were slightly undercooked, but we found them easy to move with a spatula—they didn't stick to our pan at all. While some visible fingerprints were left behind, the cleanup process was ultimately hassle-free.

The manufacturer doesn't specify a maximum temperature, but the sheet didn't warp at all after being set to 475°F for 20 minutes, a testament to its durability for high-heat cooking. Overall, we think this large sheet is perfect for serving parties and prepping meals for the week.

Material: Aluminum | Dimensions: 22 by 16 in. | Weight: Not listed | Care: Hand wash only

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It’s pretty, nonstick, and can be used in 500°F+ ovens.

It’s an expensive choice for people who don’t bake often.

Although this baking sheet from Caraway is more than double the price of some other sheet pans we tested, we think it’s worth the splurge. The potatoes we cooked came out deliciously crispy while the cookies had a beautiful, golden-brown bottom with a slightly gooey middle. After seeing how perfect the final product was, we would trust this pan with any recipe.

This baking sheet is nonstick, which we found very effective during our testing, and we noticed that it even looked brand new after use. It can also handle very high heat (up to 550°F), which isn’t common with nonstick cookware. Because of this, we found this pan to be extremely durable and believe that it’s built to last.

Another unique feature of the Caraway Baking Sheet is that it comes in multiple colors, including blue, mustard, army green, and more—it's really pretty. Even though we loved this sheet pan, we did feel the price was a bit too high for those who don’t bake often.Material: Aluminized steel | Dimensions: 18 by 13 in. or 15 by 10 in. | Weight: Not listed | Care: Hand wash

It's so nonstick that we could just tip the pan over for the food to slide off.

Its thickness makes it less suitable for roasting.

Nonstick baking sheets are great for people who want to ensure the smallest amount of mess possible when roasting or baking, and in our tests, the Circulon Total Bakeware Nonstick Cookie Sheet lived up to its name.

Cookies effortlessly slid off the baking sheet, and the potatoes came off so easily that we could have simply tipped them off. The cleaning process was similarly hassle-free, with no scrubbing required. This baking sheet can also handle heat up to 450°F. It survived being in the broiler and didn’t warp, either.

Although both our cookies and potatoes came out tasting delicious, we would prefer to use this sheet for baking, as the pan’s thickness caused the potatoes to take a bit longer to cook. Despite this, we were still so impressed with the pan’s performance and would recommend it to family and friends. Material: Steel | Dimensions: 15 by 10 inches | Weight: 2 pounds each | Care: Dishwasher safe but hand wash recommended

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It’s dishwasher-safe and ideal for large batches of food.

It’s a bit pricey, and the color options may not be necessary for those seeking a standard sheet pan.

Sheet pan dinner enthusiasts will love this roaster-friendly baking sheet. During testing, we were delighted that our potatoes came out pretty close to perfect and slid off the sheet effortlessly without a spatula. They cooked evenly, didn’t stick to the pan at all, and ended up beautifully crisp without being overcooked. Our cookies also fared well during our testing, with crispy, dark golden bottoms and soft and gooey tops.

The Great Jones Holy Sheet Pan is made of aluminized steel with a nonstick ceramic coating that feels both durable and long-lasting, and it didn’t warp or scratch at all during our tests. Its large size also makes it perfect for preparing big batches of food. Plus, unlike many other baking sheets, you can put this one in the dishwasher.

What stands out about the Holy Sheet is its beautiful collection of vibrant color options. While this baking sheet is a pricer option, its raspberry, broccoli, and blueberry designs are a nice departure from a run-of-the-mill gray aluminum pan that can be found almost anywhere.Material: Aluminized steel | Dimensions: 17.25 by 12.25 inches or 18.5 by 13.5 inches | Weight: 2 pounds | Care: Dishwasher safe but hand wash recommended

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Thehe Nordic Ware Naturals Baker's Half Sheet is our favorite sheet pan because it made evenly baked cookies and potatoes in our testing, and nothing stuck to the surface. If you're seeking a less-expensive option, we recommend the Winco ALXP Aluminum Baking Sheet. Its lightweight design and spacious size make it ideal for hosting and meal prepping.

We tested 23 baking sheets in our lab and assessed them on durability, performance, ease of cleaning, and value. Our first test involved making chocolate chip cookies on the baking sheets. We put as many cookies as we could fit on the baking sheets, so long as they were spaced between 2 and 3 inches apart.

We recorded that amount and then proceeded to bake them at 350°F for 12 to 13 minutes, flipping them halfway through baking. Once the cookies cooled down, we observed how dark and crispy the bottoms were and if they were easy to remove from our baking sheet.

Our second test involved roasting potato wedges. We flipped the potatoes halfway through cooking to test for stickiness in addition to observing how easy it was to release the potatoes from the baking sheet once they were done.

We also noted if the pan warped and how easy it was to clean after it cooled down completely. We then conducted a separate warping test by putting our baking sheets in the oven for 20 minutes with the broiler on (475°F).

We took them out and recorded if there was any warping, and if there was, we took a look at whether they went back to their original shape once cooled down. In the end, we recorded how easy it was to use each baking sheet, noting what factors made it easy to use. We took all this information to come up with the best baking sheets.

Sheet pans come in various sizes, including full sheets, half sheets, and quarter sheets. Depending on the size of your oven and how much or little food you’re cooking, it may be helpful to have all three sizes in your kitchen.

For example, if you’re using a toaster oven or only baking a few cookies at a time, you might want to utilize something like a quarter sheet so as to not have to lift and clean a heavier, full-sized pan. On the other hand, half sheets are perfect for roasting vegetables, everyday dinners, and meal prepping for the week. Half sheets are typically 13 by 18 inches and are most likely what you would picture when you think of a baking sheet.

At 22 by 16 inches, the Winco ALXP Aluminum Baking Sheet is the largest option on this list, and at 15 by 10 inches, the Circulon Total Bakeware Nonstick Cookie Sheet Set is the smallest. It’s a good idea to think about what you will be baking so you choose the size that will work best in your kitchen.

All of the experts we spoke to favor baking sheets made from a combination of steel and aluminum. Kou has found stainless steel to be the most durable material for baking sheets because it can withstand high heat but also yields an even bake.

Chonody likes stainless steel too but says a baking sheet made of this material alone will not get the job done. “Steel or stainless steel on its own is not a great heat conductor, which is why you often see it clad with other materials—aluminum and copper, for example,” she says.

Aluminum is such a great conductor of heat that you will also find baking sheets made of aluminum only. These types of pans are thin so they’re able to heat up and cool down quickly—and because they don't hold on to heat after being taken out of the oven, your food won’t continue to cook.

Chonody says one drawback of aluminum is that it reacts to acidic foods like tomatoes or citrus. McKenney, whose favorite pan is the Nordic Ware Naturals Baker's Half Sheet (our overall best pick), prevents this by lining her baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats, which prevents discoloration in the pan.

Nonstick baking sheets are great for people who want supremely easy cleanup. During testing, we found this to be true. However, if you simply put a piece of parchment paper over your baking sheet, you’ll get very similar results on other baking sheets.

One downside to nonstick cookware in general is that it typically isn’t able to handle high heat of around 500°F or higher. “The finish will start degrading and lead to peeling and flaking,” Chonody says. Be sure to read your instruction manual to confirm the temperatures your nonstick baking sheet can handle.

You've probably heard that wearing darker colors on a hot day makes you warmer, and it turns out that the same rule applies to baking sheets. “Light-colored [baking sheets] will reflect heat, while a darker pan will absorb the heat,” Kou says.

Because darker pans absorb heat, they also hold on to heat longer. This heat can result in crispier roasted veggies or baked goods with browned bottoms. For this reason, McKenney uses lighter-colored pans when baking.

Kou owns both dark- and light-colored pans and recommends choosing which to use based on what you’re cooking as well as your personal preferences. “I prefer to bake on darker colored pans, because I want cookies to be lightly brown and have that crispy edge," she says.

"If you're baking white sugar cookies and don't want the browned color, then I would recommend using a light-colored sheet. I would make focaccia bread on a light-colored pan, because I don't want the edges to get hard and crisp, since that bread is meant to be more light and fluffy.”

She also recommends not using darker-colored pans for cakes, as this could result in a deep and/or thick crust around the edges.

This article was written by Rachel Center, a product tester and home goods writer for Real Simple, and updated by Jamie Fischer, a writer for Real Simple who focuses on home, lifestyle, and fashion content. We researched the best baking sheets and tested 23 of the most popular in our lab, evaluating them on durability, performance, ease of cleaning, and value.

We also sought the advice of Christina Chonody, the culinary marketing director at Hestan Culinary, Wendy Kou, author of Colossal Cookies, and Sally McKenney, author of Sally’s Baking Addiction.