For nearly a century, parchment paper has helped sweet treats and savory dishes alike slide easily off baking sheets. It’s a bit of a wonder material: thin, grease- and moisture-resistant, heat-distributing, and easily adaptable for different trays, pans, and purposes. But it’s also single-use and often includes a non-stick coating that makes it difficult to compost or recycle.
Silicone baking mats offer a less-wasteful alternative. They fit standard sheet pans, withstand high heat, and are incredibly non-stick. Great for baked goods, roasted veggies, and broiled fish, they also double as work surfaces for rolling out dough or tempering chocolate. While not ideal for every task (i.e., cooking en papillote, wrapping food for storage, or lining cake pans), a quality mat can last more than 2,000 uses.
To find the silicone baking mat worthy of your culinary creations, we spent two months testing six popular options in a professional bakery, then evaluated what each company does (or doesn’t) do to minimize their environmental impact. Our picks ranged in price from $10 for a three-pack to $30 for a single mat, and were made from either food-grade silicone only or food-grade silicone reinforced with fiberglass mesh. Our top-performing mat delivered batch after batch of well-baked treats—and comes from a company that’s also cooking up some good for the planet.
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one5c’s pick: Silpat Nonstick Silicone Baking Mat
A durable, easy-to-clean mat with excellent heat conductivity, the Silpat Nonstick Silicone Baking Mat ($28.50; silpat.com) produced evenly toasted batches of granola and crispy golden vegetables. It also delivered easy-to-release cookies that were brown and crisp on the bottom but perfectly gooey in the center. At 1.5 millimeters, it’s the thickest mat we tested. This made it more stable and helped it stand up well to washing—it required only standard dish soap and warm water to continue looking brand new after several uses. The Silpat is engineered to last a long time (meaning less waste in the garbage) and the food-grade silicone is processed using the least toxic of two available methods.
Why it’s good
The Silpat Nonstick Baking Mat is sturdy yet lightweight with well-sealed edges and angled corners that allow it to fit snugly in a standard half sheet tray without bending or creasing. This led to beautifully crisp Brussels Sprouts. Other mats, like the GIR Baking Mat ($10; gir.com), were quite thin, which caused wrinkles and bunching that led our little brassicas to steam rather than roast. Silpat was the only mat we tested that resulted in crispy, golden Brussels Sprouts.
The true test of these mats, however, was cookies. A common issue when baking dollops of dough on a silicone mat is too much spreading. The non-stick surface often causes dough to slide as it cooks, resulting in thinner, denser cookies. We had no such issues with the Silpat, a fact we largely credit to its construction: It has a fiberglass-mesh-reinforced core and unique, textured surface, both of which made spreading a non-issue. Our cookies also rose well and were crisp on the bottom.
Food aside, the Silpat checks all the important boxes. Its center is tinted light brown, which helps disguise the inevitable stains that appear on a mat after continued use. It’s also very easy to clean: Any leftover mess lifted off with hot water and a little bit of dish soap. Other mats needed a more substantial scrubbing. After more than a dozen uses, the Silpat looked the same as when we took it out of the box. It’s also dishwasher safe, freezer safe to -40 degrees F, can withstand temps up to 428 degrees F, and comes in a range of shapes and sizes—including quarter, half, and full sheet tray sizes, 8- and 9-inch rounds for cake pans, and 12-inch rounds for pizza.
Nothing’s perfect: Despite its stellar performance on all our tests, the Silpat did have a few issues. It’s not as flexible as other fiberglass-cored mats we tested, which means you have to store it flat instead of as a rolled tube. Its 428-degrees max temp was also lower than the rest of the field, which can all handle 450 or higher. The Great Jones Sweet & Savory Baking Mats ($50 for two; greatjonesgoods.com) are oven-safe to 550 degrees F. At $28, the Silpat is also the priciest option on our list. But, considering the company claims it’s made to withstand 2,000 uses (the brand is so confident in that number it’ll replace properly-treated mats that don’t last that long), it’s a fair price to pay. And, while the mat is dishwasher safe, Silpat recommends hand washing it for maximum longevity. That’s more resource-intensive than a run in the dishwasher.
Why it’s sustainable
The silicone used in baking mats is cured with platinum or peroxide, the latter of which can leave behind trace amounts of potentially toxic peroxide and peroxide byproducts. Silpat was one of only two brands we tested that is platinum-cured; the other was from GIR. The Silpat mat has an ISO 9001 certification, a globally recognized and hard-to-obtain seal that denotes a company’s consistency in producing high-quality products. Silpat’s parent company, Maison Demarle, also earned a bronze ranking from Ecovadis, a service that grades companies for their social responsibility. It also donates used materials to culinary schools, and provides in-depth instructions for prolonging the life of its mats. Each mat also has a Lifetime Warranty that covers material defects.
Nothing’s perfect. Silpat says zilch about its carbon emissions, energy mix, and water use and pollution; details about its waste-reduction measures are also scarce. It is, however, made in France, which gives it a leg-up energy-wise. Mats from Kitzini and GIR were made in China, which has an energy mix that’s dominated by coal. France, meanwhile, uses a higher-than-average proportion of renewables, especially nuclear energy. Still, we’d really like to know what type of energy Silpat’s factory and offices specifically rely on. Without that, it’s hard to have a clear view of the company’s footprint.
Runners-up
The OXO Silicone Baking Mat ($22; OXO.com) placed second overall. It produced evenly baked cookies that released easily and golden veggies that were crisp but not as satisfyingly browned as those cooked on the Silpat. The cook on a test batch of granola was also spotty. The mat was also too slick, particularly on countertops, and it still felt greasy after scrubbing. Plus, it’s white, which makes stains hard to hide. OXO has a slight edge on Silpat in terms of sustainability. A 1% for the Planet member, it donates a share of its profits to causes like the Trust For Public Land, which is dedicated to the creation and protection of parks, trails, schoolyards, and public lands in the United States. Its parent company, Helen of Troy, has committed to cutting emissions from its operations and purchased energy (referred to as Scope 1 and Scope 2) by 46% by 2030.
A robust sustainability portfolio from parent company Whirlpool earned the KitchenAid Silicone Baking Mat ($18; amazon.com) top marks in planet-friendliness. It did, however, have a few performance struggles that put it in third place overall. Whirlpool ships its products in minimal materials, has cut 12% of its water use over five years, and recycles 95% of production waste. We had no complaints about the cookies we made on this mat. The granola, however, took slightly longer to brown, and our Brussels Sprouts stayed soggy. That’s because the mat is sized to fit KitchenAid’s own pans, so it’s too large for a standard half-sheet. The excess material bunched up and trapped moisture, resulting in sprouts that steamed rather than roasted.
What silicone baking mats we tested
We chose six silicone baking mats from established kitchen gear favorites and up-and-coming brands alike: the GIR Baking Mat, Great Jones Sweet and Savory Baking Mats, KitchenAid Silicone Baking Mat, Kitzini Silicone Baking Mats, and OXO Silicone Baking Mat. Our field enjoys favorable reviews from professional product testers and customers, come in a variety of sizes, and ranges from $15 to $28.50 per mat. The one exception is Kinzi, which sells a set of three mats for $10.
How we picked our winning mat
Our product recommendations are based on two parallel assessment tracks: one for performance and one for sustainability. These ratings combine to land on our final winner, which represents the ideal blend of a product that’s good for the Earth and for your life. Read more about our assessment process here.
How we tested silicone baking mats
To assess how these mats hold up to rigorous use, we tested all six over the course of a month in a professional bakery. In addition to evaluating each mat’s design, price, and durability, we subjected them to a series of more controlled tests:
- Cookie test: We baked six identical mounds of chocolate chip cookie dough (they were big boys at 115g each) for 16 minutes at 350 degrees F, with one rotation midway. We evaluated browning consistency as well as how much the cookies spread. We also noted how easily they released from the mat and how golden the bottoms were. Before baking, we froze the dough for an hour. This helped us evaluate how the mats took to freezing and a rapid temperature shift.
- Granola test: We baked one batch of maple granola on each mat, evaluating how evenly the bits browned and the time it took to reach an even golden color, with one stir halfway through the bake.
- Vegetable test: We coated one pound of Brussels sprouts in two teaspoons of oil and roasted them for 20 to 30 minutes at 425 degrees F, stirring once. We looked for even browning, good crispness, and any evidence that they’d steamed instead of roasted.
- Cleaning test: We scrubbed each dirtied mat by hand and in the dishwasher if the manufacturer’s instructions indicated that was OK. After the wash, we looked for any lingering odors and discoloration.
How we scored sustainability
Our sustainability ratings take into account three factors: a product’s environmental impact at its production, what happens at its end-of-life, and the manufacturer’s environmental behavior. Production factors in where, how, and with what a product is made—as well as how it’s transported through the supply chain. End-of-life takes into account the quality of the materials used, the product’s warranty, and any repair or care options for consumers. The final factor involves actions the company takes outside the life of a product to minimize its footprint or benefit the environment, and we award bonus points for transparency, as well. These scores are informed inferences based on available information, not full-blown life-cycle analyses.
FAQs
Are silicone baking mats safe to use?
Yes, as long as they’re made of food-grade silicone, which is non-toxic and free from harmful chemicals. While some mats are engineered to endure super-high temperatures, most cannot and may begin to break down if placed under the broiler or baked at temperatures higher than the manufacturer specifies. It’s also important that the mat is not cut: Although certain purely silicone mats are intended to be sliced to fit cake pans or other such equipment, those with fiberglass cores are not and should be thrown away if perforated.
When should you use a silicone baking mat?
The best silicone baking mats are incredibly non-stick and conduct and distribute heat well, which makes them a good swap for single-use parchment paper or aluminum foil when lining a baking sheet. The mats work well as a base for everything from proteins and vegetables to candy and baked goods. They also double as great non-stick prep surfaces when working with dough or particularly sticky ingredients.
When should I not use a silicone baking mat?
While quite versatile, silicone baking mats aren’t suitable for all cooking tasks. Most aren’t meant to withstand super-high temperatures (check your mat’s specifications) and they’re not ideal for especially soggy or greasy foods. The excess moisture can’t escape and may result in foods that are steamed rather than crisped.
Do you need to use oil on a silicone baking mat?
Anything cooked on a silicone baking mat’s non-stick surface should easily release, so you don’t need to use any extra fat. If you prefer your veggies on the crispier side, feel free to give them an extra coating of oil. But it’s not necessary.
How do you clean a silicone baking mat?
Most silicone baking mats are top-rack dishwasher safe. But read the label to make sure that’s the case with your particular model. Still, many manufacturers suggest limiting runs in the dishwasher to extend the mat’s life. Instead, the best way to clean a silicone baking mat is to soak them in warm, soapy water and scrub them gently with a sponge. It’s not recommended to clean them with anything rough, as this may result in abrasions or other damage.
Gabriella Vigoreaux is a recipe developer and test-kitchen veteran whose work has appeared in Good Housekeeping, Epicurious, Saveur, and Cherry Bombe. She’s co-owner of Bandidas Bake Shop in Lakeland, Florida.
Tyler Santora is a freelance science journalist, editor, and fact-checker. He’s written for publications such as Undark, Scientific American, and Popular Science.
one5c does not earn a commission on any product purchased through our reviews.