The best vacuum food sealers can keep your leftovers for longer thanks to their ability to create an airtight seal around food placed in a compatible plastic bag. This removes oxygen and so prevents mold growth. While it may sound high-tech, this tried and tested method dates back to the 1940s. Vacuum food sealers even enjoyed a moment in the 1970s as a popular cooking method to intensify flavor called the sous vide technique. From a sustainability perspective, using vacuum food sealers enables you to preserve foods for longer without using chemicals. On top of that, they protect your food from the dreaded freezer burn which can affect the quality and look of your produce. When figuring out the best vacuum food sealer for you, consider what you eat regularly and want to preserve. Whether you’re looking for a model with wider openings to store larger items or your priority is one with fast suction times for maximum efficiency, there’s a food saver machine for you. We’ve rounded up the top picks that get our seal of approval. If you’re looking to give your cooking kit an upgrade, check out our guides to the best air fryers (opens in new tab) and the best food steamers (opens in new tab).
Best vacuum food sealers
We’ve rounded up the best vacuum food sealers to help you get the most out of your kitchen adventures. Whether you want to simply preserve your food for longer, or you’re interested in experimenting with sous vide cooking, take a look at our best picks below.
Best vacuum food sealers
We love the Hamilton Beach NutriFresh because of how well it seals, and its ease of use. The suction was good in our tests; the sealer bags formed tightly against the food we preserved, and even the pineapple rings got a snug seal despite the juice in the bag. The NutriFresh boasts a 15-inch wide vacuum chamber which will work for large items and bags, and it has multi-functional settings including a ‘Vacuum and Seal’ button and the option to either vacuum or seal independently, which can make it easier to vacuum seal fruits and fragile foods or to create a seal on new bags before filling them. There are two speeds on this machine. Hamilton Beach suggests using the Extended setting for moist foods and the Normal for dry. On top of all its great features, the Hamilton Beach NutriFresh also has an inbuilt bag dispenser which makes it easy to cut new bags for vacuuming. Read our Hamilton Beach NutriFresh Review (opens in new tab) The FoodSaver V4400 2-in-1 Automatic vacuum food sealer is a mid-price and high-performing sealer which will save vast quantities of food in any home kitchen. We were impressed that this food vacuum sealer provides two closure seals to ensure freshness, and it can handle delicate items with care. You get a removable drip tray with his vacuum food saver, which can be removed and placed in a dishwasher to spare you any spills of meat or fruit juices. It has a hand-held hose which can work on additional extras including a marinade attachment or jar sealer, which makes this a versatile food sealer for all kinds of uses. We were also very impressed by the five-year warranty which comes with this food sealer, which is way above the industry standard. Read our FoodSaver V4400 2-in-1 Automatic Review (opens in new tab) The Mueller Vacuum Sealing Machine is a great choice for people who wish to seal both dry and moist foods. With its dual sealing modes, you can seal both dry foods and more delicate moist foods without worrying about them getting damaged or squashed by the vacuum. The machine also comes with everything that you need to start sealing right away, with five 7.8” x 11.8” vacuum bags and one 7.8” x 79.0” vacuum bag roll. Both of these bags are waterproof and reusable, so you don’t need to worry about running out of bags. The touchscreen display is designed to be straightforward and easy to use, with bold and bright LED indicator lighting and a clean minimalist look. When it comes to simplicity and usability, NutriChef’s PKVS Sealer is a great choice. With minimal soft-touch digital buttons and a fully automatic sealing feature, this is designed to be a great sealer for novices who are new to vacuum sealing or sous vide cooking. With the machine, you will receive a complete starter kit, consisting of a wine stopper cork, five medium vacuum bags and one extra-long vacuum bag roll, both of which are reusable and waterproof. The machine comes in black or silver so that you can match it with your other small appliances. The sealer can be easily wiped down and sanitized when unplugged, making it perfect for sealing messier foods. The MegaWise 80kpa Sealer Machine is a lightweight and compact option if you have limited space in your kitchen. It’s designed to efficiently and effectively vacuum seal both moist and dry foods at the press of a button. The suction and heat wire combo is designed to vacuum seal your food in as little as 10-20 seconds, for longer-lasting freshness or for sous vide cooking. You don’t need to worry about buying bags, as this machine comes with 5 medium bags and 5 large bags, all of which are reusable and washable. It’s easy to use with a built-in slide cutter to get a neat, straight cut every time without needing to use scissors. Due to its compact size, it’s easy to store, being small enough to be neatly tucked away in a cupboard or above a fridge/freezer. Our favorite choice for preserving large chunks of meat, including big game and fish, is the Weston Pro 2300 (opens in new tab). While this is a commercial-quality vacuum sealer, it works well in home kitchens, too. It handles storage bags that are 15 inches wide, which accommodates good-size cuts of meat. Also, you get both automatic and manual sealing modes that give you some control over the vacuum pressure. The see-through acrylic lid lets you see into the machine to make sure the bags are lined up correctly, and it comes with a two-year warranty. This vacuum seal is pretty heavy at 22 pounds, which makes it inconvenient to pull out for a quick seal.
Buying advice for the best vacuum food sealers
How we tested the best vacuum food sealers
When it comes to figuring out the best vacuum food sealers, we’ve got you covered. We’ve been testing food saver machines for over four years and we’ve researched and reviewed other small appliances like food processors and turkey fryers for even longer. We also use vacuum sealers when testing sous vide machines so we know what to look for. We scoured consumer reports to check whether there were any safety issues and contacted associations like FoodSave.org (opens in new tab) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (opens in new tab) (FAO) to give you expert advice on how best to store food and how long you can keep it before it spoils. We put the best vacuum sealers that we tested through a rigorous process to give you peace of mind. We spent three days testing the food saver machines with different types of food including hamburger patties, chicken breasts, cereal, slices of bread, and pineapple rings. We chose pineapple rings to see how the sealers fared with wet foods. This is so we could observe how tight the seals were and determine whether the suction was effective. We placed the vacuum-sealed meats in a freezer and observed them over several days. You can rest assured that we put the vacuum sealers through their paces. Our testers kept an eye out for issues like discoloration, air bubbles, freezer burn, and ice crystals inside the bags. We lined them up side by side so we could observe any small differences. We checked whether the bags laid flat, an important consideration if fridge and freezer space is at a premium. Our testing process took place over several days so we could spot any issues that didn’t develop immediately. While the seal may appear tight at first glance, air bubbles can become visible after a period of resting so we checked for that. On top of all that, we checked in with people who use vacuum food sealers both for short-term and long-term storage to gather their insights and to get a real-world perspective. We know that value for money is important so we factored in the cost of each machine, what is included, and the warranty to give a rounded view.
How to choose the best vacuum food sealer for you
How much does a vacuum food sealer cost? The best vacuum food sealers come in at a range of prices. For a decent model, you’re looking at starting prices of $125. While you can find cheaper machines, they don’t offer the same quality which is important when it comes to storing food safely. If you’re a big game hunter, then one of the higher-end models ranging from between $600 and $1,000 may be worth the extra investment. For most homes, however, a vacuum sealer at around $125 is a solid choice. Can I use ziploc bags in a vacuum sealer? In short, no! While it may seem convenient to use sandwich bags you already have in the house, they can’t stand up to the pressure and heat of a vacuum food sealer. Vacuum sealer bags are textured on the inside and this design feature allows them to extract air from the bag and fit snugly around your food. After an initial outlay, you can re-use vacuum sealer bags, good news for the planet and for your wallet. Many models even come with sealer bags designed for that specific food saver machine. You can also buy a roll of sealer bags (opens in new tab) which work well with all of the devices we tested.
