The best dessert cups for your plans may vary, but the top dessert cups all have a few qualities in common: They come with beautiful designs, durable glass or plastic materials, and handy accessories like spoons. They’re also generally easy to clean and come in a variety of sizes for different purposes and types of dessert. These are some of the best kitchen products that you should not miss.
But our favorite is easily the Godinger Dublin Tasters. These dessert cups come with a classic and familiar glass design that’s also one of the most beautiful around. These small cups are good for all kinds of tiny desserts and come with a matching set of dessert spoons that are the perfect accessory when serving. But for other options, including some great disposable cups, be sure to check out our full list!
Top 7 Best Dessert Cups
#1 Godinger Dublin Tasters Dessert Cups
Award: TOP PICK
WHY WE LIKE IT: These beautiful cups sport etched glass for a traditional take on dessert cups that you will be glad to show off. A set of equally beautiful spoons is also included.
- Stylish, timeless design
- Ships with a set of useful and gorgeous spoons
- Ergonomic design is easy to grip
- More fragile than some picks
- Can be difficult to clean
The traditional glass style of these beautiful dessert cups is perfect for showing off in your home, and the included set of dessert spoons is a perfect match – just what you need for the perfect after-dinner experience. This set of eight bowls is about three inches high and three inches in diameter.
While we don’t expect you to break out a ruler, that’s enough room for about 4 to 6 ounces of dessert, depending on what you have in mind. That makes them ideal for a small scoop of ice cream or sorbet, although you can use them for many other things, too. You can even bring them out as decorations for an important dinner. Or, if you’re trying to save a tree, check out our guide to the best reusable baking cups.
#2 Libbey Just Desserts Parfait Dessert Cups
Award: HONORABLE MENTION
WHY WE LIKE IT: This set offers both taller cups and a full dozen units that are easily stored or shown off depending on your preference. Included is the necessary and correctly sized spoon as well.
- Taller, minimalistic design
- A larger set for bigger gatherings
- Easy to clean
- Can be difficult to layer desserts
These tall glass cups have a more modern, minimalistic design that’s perfect for showing off beautiful desserts, especially fruits, jello, and similar ingredients. They also come with miniature stainless steel spoons for serving. Note that each cup stands five inches high, and has enough room for around 2.5 ounces of dessert.
These cups also come in a 12 pack, which may be suitable for a variety of purposes from adding a collection to your kitchen cupboards to saving up for catering events. However, their smaller size does mean that the amount of dessert you can use per cup is limited, so plan accordingly if you’re planning on desserts in a glass layered by ingredient. If you could use some extra storage space for your pantry, our guide to the best brown sugar storage might solve your problem.
#3 Tosnail Dessert Cups
Award: BEST FOR LARGE GATHERINGS
WHY WE LIKE IT: These are some of the sturdiest disposable dessert cups we’ve found, and can even be reused in many cases. They’re perfect for larger groups and include plastic spoons to help out.
- Excellent disposable design
- Broad rim for easy scooping
- Large 5-ounce cup size
- Square design not the best for all desserts
Not everyone needs glass dessert cups for repeated use – some buyers are looking for disposable cups that they can buy in bulk, but that still look good enough to impress. These Tosnail plastic dessert cups are the perfect solution: They look great, have a broad rim for easy use, and are particularly large at 5 ounces, able to hold a variety of ingredients depending on your plans.
Available in a pack of one hundred, these cups are ideal for birthdays, weddings, school events, big picnics, and all sorts of other situations. They’re sturdy enough to hold up under tough conditions, and you can even wash them out for a few more uses if you desire. For the rest of your cooking needs, take a look at our guide to the best automatic pot-stirrer.
#4 Anchor Hocking Mini Dessert Cups
Award: BEST FOR HOLDING
WHY WE LIKE IT: These glass cups have an excellent design with a base that’s particularly easy to hold while eating. They’re a great addition to any home and make an excellent gift idea, too.
- Transparent design with a sturdy base
- Dishwasher safe
- Durable transparent glass
- Only four cups in the set
The “foot” is the extended base of a cup that allows it to rest more safely when set down. For dessert cups, the foot plays a key second role: It makes it easier to pick up and hold the cup while you are eating, socializing, etc. This particular version has one of the best feet we saw, a perfect way to hold the cup while using it. Foot included, each cup is 3.5 in diameter and 4.25 inches high.
There are only four cups in this set, so it’s definitely designed for smaller home dinners, but the durable transparent glass is of very high quality as well as being dishwasher-friendly, so cleanup is quite easy, too. You might also want the best cake stand to display your cupcakes.
#5 Ilyapa Mini Dessert Cups
Award: BEST ON A BUDGET
WHY WE LIKE IT: These disposable cups are perfect for large gatherings, with a fully recyclable design. If you’re looking for an affordable way to offer small servings to a larger number of people, you’ve found it here.
- Affordable larger pack sizes
- Includes long spoons
- 100% recyclable
- 3-ounce size not large enough for some desserts
These tiny cups are perfect for larger events where you need a lot of disposable cups on a budget. The affordable pack includes spoons, as well, and the 3-ounce size is ideal for many situations, including parfaits and even options for small drinks or appetizers. They stand about 3.25 inches high, with longer spoons that can reach the base of the cup.
If you’re interested in being eco-friendly, note that these cups are 100% recyclable when you are done, so encourage guests to put them in recycling bins to help out the environment. These mini cups also don’t take up much space and will be easy to store in your kitchen. You can also serve crepes with your dessert if you get the best crepe maker.
#6 Duralex Gigogne Ice Cream Dessert Cups
Award: MOST DURABLE
WHY WE LIKE IT: These larger cups are perfect for using in all kinds of conditions. They are made of durable glass that’s both shock resistant and safe for everything from the freezer to the microwave.
- Microwave and dishwasher safe
- Can be placed in the freezer
- Plenty of space for larger servings
- A little pricey compared to other picks
Duralex makes its products out of very durable, tempered glass with a design that’s meant to improve integrity. If you want a set of high-quality glass cups that won’t chip or crack easily, then this is the choice for you. The glass is 2.5 times stronger than ordinary glass, shock resistant, and can handle temperatures between -4 degrees and 266 degrees Fahrenheit – so you can easily chill desserts in there if you need to.
The set offers six cups, and they are particularly large at 8.75 ounces, ideal for larger ice cream servings or similar dessert projects where a little extra room is handy. Note that while the glass is transparent, there are some decorative lines through the glass so it’s not entirely clear.
#7 DLux Mini Dessert Cups
Award: MOST VERSATILE
WHY WE LIKE IT: These very stackable mini dessert cups are perfect for caterers and others to keep around for all kinds of purposes, both decorative and food-related. The 5.5-ounce capacity is also the perfect size for mini desserts.
- Great transparent design for showing layers
- Recyclable or reusable
- Plastic spoons accompany cups
- Not as good for smaller slider desserts
Sometimes you need a disposable cup that can do…well, pretty much anything you want. Maybe you want to serve a dessert, a little salad, a fruit cup, a deconstructed dessert or sushi presentation – or maybe you want them to serve a product sample or even have a decorative use with flowers. Anything you want, these 5-ounce plastic cups are ready for it.
The pack of 100 does come with companion plastic spoons. They’re especially entirely recyclable, easy to stack together when you’re short on room, and if you need to you can rinse and reuse them. The square design is great for showing off all kinds of ingredients, too.
Related: You may also want to check out the best dinnerware storage sets.
How We Decided
Dessert cups aren’t any good unless they’re the right size – the best dessert cups will have just enough room for the ingredients you have in mind. Since this can vary, we included a variety of sizes in our top picks to help people cater to a variety of events, including small family gatherings and larger events, such as weddings. Most of our cups fall between 3 to 6 ounces and are several inches high.
Design is also important: We looked for cups that are easy to use, both when adding ingredients and when eating them. That means a limit to weird edges or shapes that are hard to navigate with a spoon. But we also know that people buy dessert cups for their style, so we gave extra points to cups that, well, looked good. Our top pick in particular is a good example of a classic dessert cup style that’s a favorite for an at-home set.
Finally, we awarded extra points for a variety of added features. That includes extra durability, sets that include dessert spoons as well as cups, and plastic cups that can be reused if absolutely necessary.
Best Dessert Cups Buyer’s Guide
The Most Important Features to Consider
- Capacity
You can choose how to fill mini dessert cups, but the size is important. Dessert cups are designed to be fairly small: Shooter style dessert cups are usually 2 to 3 ounces, while larger cups for layered desserts are usually 5 to 6 ounces or so. Also pay close attention to the measurements, because a picture of a cup online doesn’t really give you a good idea of how large that cup actually is in person. Some cups provide handy little visual guides that make it easier to see how large they are. - Material
Dessert cups are usually glass or plastic. Glass cups are used for durable houseware that can be kept around and even displayed when not in use. Plastic cups come in large packs for catering and similar events with a large number of people and are generally designed to be disposable after one or two uses. If you are interested in sustainability, you can also look for cups that are fully recycled or even made out of recycled materials. - Style
Appearance is important for dessert cups. We aren’t really going to recommend a specific style because it depends on what you are looking for and how you want to show off ingredients. Our picks include a wide range of styles for you to check out. Just keep in mind that disposable cups naturally have a simpler design. - Accessories
If you are looking for disposable cups, then you should see if they come with any accessories. The best packs come with little disposable spoons as well, which makes serving mini desserts to crowds much easier. Some glassware sets also come with their own spoons in the same style, which adds even more class to the experience.
