If you’re a traditionalist or short on space, a hand mixer is a great alternative. To ensure absolute precision you’ll need measuring spoons and kitchen scales. You’ll also need a mixing bowl and spatula to get every last drop of cake batter into your tin – no wastage here!
Best cake tins at a glance
Loaf tins
- Best enamel loaf tin: Falcon loaf tin, £32.50
- Best non-stick loaf tin: Circulon Momentum loaf tin, £18.99
- Best glass loaf tin: Pyrex Bake and Enjoy glass loaf tin, £11.69
Bundt tins
- Best enamel bundt tin: Falcon decorative cake tin, £34
- Best bundt tin: Nordic Ware Bavaria bundt tin, £46.40
- Best swirled bundt tin: Nordic Ware Heritage bundt tin, £52
- Best budget bundt tin: MasterClass fluted cake tin, £15
Springform cake tins
- Best non-stick springform cake tin: Pyrex Magic springform cake tin, £10.85
- Best springform tin available in different sizes: MasterClass springform cake tin, from £10.49
Circular cake tins
- Best enamel cake tin: Falcon cake tin, £22
- Best 20cm cake tin: Pyrex Magic cake tin, £14.97
- Best cake tin for tall sides: MasterClass 20cm cake tin, £16.55
Square cake tins
- Best enamel square cake tin: Falcon square bake tray, £31.50
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How we tested cake tins
We chose our most popular recipes to put these cake tins to the test. We tested a range of brands including high-end that focus solely on making cake tins, to budget-friendly offerings for those not looking to spend lots of money.
To test the loaf tins, we baked our lemon drizzle cake. For the bundt tins, we made Good Food’s banana and choc bundt cake with peanut caramel drizzle. In the springform cake tins, we made this and for the 20cm cake tins we baked our classic cappuccino cake. And what better recipe to try out a square cake tin than with our top-rated best ever chocolate brownies?
Photograph: Lydia Anderson / Good Food
We reviewed a representative sample of cake tins of different shapes and sizes and scored them against the following criteria.
- Practicality: we tested the tins we use most frequently in the Good Food kitchen, as well as showstopper tins for special occasions.
- Sturdiness: we chose hardy and robust tins that could withstand frequent use.
- Easy release: non-stick surfaces, springform release and loose bases were all given extra points.
- Even cooking: tins that conducted heat effectively came top of our list.
- Cleaning: tins with smooth curves, rather than sharp edges and folds, for ease of cleaning.
Best cake tins to buy in 2025
Best loaf tins to buy in 2025
Falcon loaf tin
Available from Season Cookshop (£32.50), Falcon (£32.50)
Best enamel loaf tin
Star rating: 5/5
This sturdy enamel loaf tin from Falcon is instantly recognisable, and available in a classic white and blue-rimmed finish as well as pillarbox red or pigeon grey. It’s generously sized, with a capacity of around 3lb, making it a great choice for larger loaf cakes or breads.
There’s a subtle lip on the underside that provides just enough grip to make removing it from a hot oven feel safe and steady, despite the absence of handles. The tin is solid and stood up well during testing. Our loaf cake released easily with no sticking or tearing and the enamel surface wiped clean with minimal effort.
We also appreciated the fully recyclable packaging – a thoughtful touch. While this tin isn’t non-stick in the traditional sense, its smooth enamel coating still delivered a neat, well-risen bake with a golden finish.
Available from:
Circulon Momentum loaf tin
Available from Amazon (£10.69), Circulon (£18.99)
Best non-stick loaf tin
Star rating: 5/5
Featuring Circulon’s tell-tale circular design on the bottom, this loaf tin is squat and wide with large handles on the short sides for easy removal from the oven.
Although the walls feel quite thin, this tin is sturdy. The loaf cake we baked came out with ease, nicely risen and golden. We did notice some sinkage in the centre of the cake, but it was minimal. This tin is also dishwasher-safe and comes at a reasonable price.
Pyrex Bake and Enjoy glass loaf tin
Available from Amazon (£8), Harts of Stur (£11.69)
Best glass loaf tin
Star rating: 4.5/5
From well-known bakeware brand Pyrex comes this glass loaf tin. Shape-wise, it’s not dissimilar to the KitchenAid model as it’s long and thin, producing professional-looking results. It only features two small lips on the short sides of the tin, so removing it from the oven isn’t the easiest.
We’d have liked to see Pyrex offer a little more information on baking in glass, as it cooks differently to metal. We followed our lemon drizzle cake recipe, baking it for the stated time, but the cake was still a little undercooked. Baking for 10 minutes longer helped us to achieve the results we were looking for. After baking, the cake had risen evenly was easy to remove from the tin.
Best bundt tins to buy in 2025
Falcon decorative cake tin
Available from Falcon (£34)
Best enamel bundt tin
Star rating: 5/5
Falcon’s decorative cake tin is a take on a classic bundt pan, with fluted sides and a rounded form that gives bakes an elegant, old-school finish. At 27cm across and 8cm deep, it’s generously sized and suitable for cakes, jellies or even a festive nut roast.
Made from heavyweight steel with a smooth enamel coating, it feels solid and well made. There was a brief moment of sticking during removal, but a firm tap on the base and a gentle shake saw the cake release cleanly, with the pattern clearly defined and intact. As with the rest of Falcon’s enamelware, it cleaned up easily and all the packaging is fully recyclable.
While it lacks the non-stick assurance of some other bundt pans, the enamel coating performed well with a properly greased tin. The result was a well-risen, evenly browned cake that needed little extra decoration.
Available from:
Nordic Ware Bavaria bundt tin
Available from Harts of Stur (£46.40), Amazon (£48.55)
Best bundt tin
Star rating: 4.5/5
This bundt tin from Nordic Ware features a unique pleated design that produces modern-looking cakes with minimal decoration, or you can add drizzles and icing to jazz it up. Made from cast aluminium, this pan is weighty and incredibly sturdy.
We’d have liked to have seen a little advice from Nordic Ware on how to best prepare the pan, but found that a generous layer of butter and tapping it on the counter when full helped to achieve a clean release and a well-defined pattern.
Our bundt cake was well cooked and evenly browned all over. This pan isn’t dishwasher-safe, so it does require some attentive cleaning to get into all the nooks and crannies.
Nordic Ware Heritage bundt tin
Available from Amazon (£51.99), Harts of Stur (£52)
Best swirled bundt tin
Nordic Ware’s sturdy tins come in a variety of beautiful shapes, creating architectural cakes that require no additional decoration for that wow factor. We love this 2.4-litre classic design. The non-stick finish ensures the shape holds perfectly on release. Available in 2.4 litres and 1.4 litres in different designs.
MasterClass fluted cake tin
Available from Harts of Stur (£12.95)
Best budget bundt tin
Star rating: 4.5/5
Although this Masterclass bundt tin doesn’t achieve as defined results as the two Nordic Ware tins above, the cake it produced was no less impressive. It comes at a fraction of the price of the others and produces bakes with a subtle ridged design.
It’s a lot thinner than the Nordic Ware tins, but still bakes exceptionally well. We removed our cake with absolute ease and nothing stuck to the pan. It was evenly baked and moist and fluffy on the inside.
Best springform cake tins to buy in 2025
Pyrex Magic springform cake tin
Available from Amazon (£15.71)
Best non-stick springform cake tin
Star rating: 5/5
This Pyrex springform cake tin has an impressive non-stick coating – nothing sticks to it. The clasp is easy to secure and release, though we did notice the tin popped open quite forcefully when undone, implying the seal was very tight. On the plus side, this tight seal did stop any raw cake batter seeping through the gaps.
Our cake was well risen and evenly baked, though there was a crack in the centre. Despite this, the cake was spongy and moist. The tin is dishwasher safe and was the easiest to use and cook with.
MasterClass springform cake tin
Available from Amazon (£9.99)
Best springform tin available in different sizes
Star rating: 5/5
MasterClass’s springform cake tin is available in six sizes: 15cm, 18cm, 20cm, 23cm, 25cm and 30cm. Ideal if the recipe you’re using is calling for an obscure size or you just want a range of sizes on hand. Plus, all these tins are dishwasher-safe.
This pan produced a super moist cake that was well risen and evenly baked. Usefully, the size of the pan is embossed onto the tin too. The mechanism is straightforward to secure and undo, it’s also ergonomically shaped for added ease of use.
Best circular cake tins to buy in 2025
Falcon cake tin
Available from Falcon (£22)
Best enamel cake tin
Star rating: 5/5
This enamel cake tin from Falcon measures 22cm in diameter and 4cm deep, making it a good option for sponge cakes, single-layer bakes or sandwich cakes. There’s a small lip around the edge, offering a bit of grip when lifting it in and out of the oven.
Although it doesn’t have a loose base, our cake released cleanly, with no sticking or tearing, helped along by the smooth enamel surface. The sponge was evenly baked with a gentle rise and golden edges. As with the rest of the Falcon range, the tin feels reassuringly sturdy thanks to its heavyweight steel construction.
It cleaned up easily and comes in fully recyclable packaging – a thoughtful touch for eco-minded bakers. While the tin isn’t traditionally non-stick, a thorough greasing proved more than sufficient.
Available from:
Pyrex Magic 20cm cake tin
Available from Amazon (£13.87)
Best 20cm cake tin
Star rating: 5/5
Another from Pyrex’s Magic range, this 20cm cake tin is ideal for sandwich cakes. It features a small lip for easy removal from the oven and our cake released cleanly from the non-stick surface with ease. The cake itself was well risen and evenly baked. There were no rips or tears anywhere.
Although the pan is thin, it’s sturdy and robust. The tin is oven-safe to 230C and dishwasher-safe.
MasterClass deep 20cm cake tin
Available from Amazon (£10.99)
Best 20cm cake tin for tall sides
Star rating: 4.5/5
MasterClass’ 20cm tin is the deepest we’ve tested. Featuring high sides, it’s ideal for taller cakes. If you’re into cakes with lots of layers, the pop-up base means you could use it as a mould to build a layer cake, then simply pop it out. The silicone seal is very secure, so you do need a bit of force to release it – just as we’d expect.
Although it was soft and moist inside, we did think the cake looked a little lopsided and wasn’t quite as dark in the centre as we’d have liked. We solved this by another five minutes in the oven. This tin is dishwasher-safe.
Best square cake tins to buy in 2025
Falcon square bake tray
Available from Falcon (£31.50)
Best enamel square cake tin
Star rating: 5/5
This square bake tray from Falcon measures 25cm across and is 6cm deep, offering a generous amount of space for brownies, traybakes or deeper bakes like focaccia. Made from heavyweight steel with a smooth enamel coating, it has a solid, practical feel that held up well in testing.
We baked a batch of brownies and found they released cleanly, despite the absence of a loose base. The enamel surface proved easy to clean and didn’t leave any residue. A subtle lip on the underside provides a bit of grip when moving the tray in and out of the oven, and all packaging is fully recyclable.
Available in Falcon’s core colours, it’s a versatile piece that works just as well for serving as it does for baking.
Available from:
How to choose the best cake tin
It seems obvious, but one of the first questions you need to ask yourself before you buy a cake tin is ‘what am I going to bake in it’? All of our cake recipes will outline the size and type of cake tin you need for the bake, so you’ll know exactly what you need to buy. Whilst we favour versatile tins, like loaf tins, springform cake tins and simple 20cm tins, we’re also big fans of those used to produce showstopping desserts, like bundts.
What can a cake tin be used for?
Like most bakeware, cake tins are pretty versatile. They come in a range of shapes and sizes, but we’ve picked our most popular five to focus on.
- Loaf tin: these generally come in two sizes: 1lb and 2lb. They’re ideal for classic loaf cake recipes, like our brilliant banana loaf and easy pound cake. Or make an impact with our snowy coconut loaf cake and lemon curd and blueberry loaf cake. Not just reserved for cake, these tins are – unsurprisingly – ideal for loaves of bread, too. Try our simple seeded wholemeal loaf or our flavoursome honeyed carrot and thyme loaf
- Bundt tin: these ornate, highly decorative cake tins produce cakes that look fabulous straight out of the tin. Glamorous pans require equally glamorous recipes, like our banana and choc bundt cake with peanut caramel drizzle and our pineapple passion bundt. They also make great jelly moulds, so why not try our fresh raspberry jelly or fruity milk jellies recipe? The layers look really effective in a bundt tin.
- Springform cake tin: designed to make releasing a cake from a pan easier, springform cake tins have a mechanism that loosens the walls of the cake tin, allowing you to easily unmould the cake. They’re ideal for cakes like our easy caramel cake and chocolate and raspberry birthday layer cake, as well as cheesecakes. Try our no-bake chocolate cheesecake and white chocolate and raspberry baked cheesecake.
- Circular cake tin: otherwise known as sandwich tins, these cake tins are made from a single piece of stamped out metal. Cakes made in these tins need to be turned out from the mould. They’re ideal for sandwich cakes, like a Victoria sandwich. Riff on a classic with this summer apricot Victoria sponge recipe.
- Square cake tin: ideal for traybakes and brownies, use these tins to make perfect bites for picnics or lunchboxes. They’re the best choice for blondies, flapjacks and old-school desserts like chocolate sponge with hot chocolate custard.
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