The Best Honey Dispensers for Your Money

If you’re tired of sticky messes on your countertops, or if you’re looking for that perfect gift for just about anyone, a great honey dispenser might be what you need.

The best honey dispensers keep mess to a minimum and provide the perfect conditions to keep honey fresh for years. After all — as archeologists who discovered perfectly preserved honey in ancient Egyptian tombs can confirm — honey has an almost eternal shelf life, as long as it’s stored properly.

The most effective dispensers do just that, providing a tight seal to protect it from moisture and the elements. They’re also made from quality materials — like heavy-duty glass — that don’t alter honey’s taste and keep its freshness intact.

As an additional perk, many of them are also beautiful and can be a nice, elegant addition to your dining table or countertops.

With this in mind, these are the best of the best when it comes to honey dispensers.

Best honey dispensers

1. Best overall: Hunnibi Honey Dispenser

Hunnibi, as the brand’s name suggests, specializes in honey-related products, specifically dispensers.

Its line of honey dispensers comes in a variety of styles and materials, in a wide range of prices. This glass-and-stainless steel model retails for around $40 (and can sometimes be found on sale for $35).

The distinctive shape has the pour spout at the bottom, and a silicone cup to hold it, which prevents any leaks from reaching the counter top.

The cup serves a few other purposes as well: it keeps the rounded dispenser upright and, on cold days, can be filled with hot water, which will help honey keep its smooth consistency and make it flow easily. Reviewers praise this model, saying that the pour spout is just the right size to get an even flow, even with very thick honey.

This dispenser's honeycomb shape looks beautiful in your kitchen or table, but more importantly provides the perfect conditions for honey storage. It seals effectively until it’s time to use it, and the thick glass protects it from moisture without altering its taste like some plastic or metals do.

2. Best overall runner-up: Norpro Glass Honey and Syrup Dispenser

A popular (and less expensive) option to the Hunnibi is the Norpro Glass Honey and Syrup dispenser, which offers a similar design for a lower price.

Retailing for only $20 (that’s almost half the price of the Hunnibi, unless you find it on sale), the Norpro is one of the most popular dispensers in the market.

Like the Hunnibi, the Norpro is made of glass (albeit a thinner, lighter type), but its top is chrome-plated, not stainless steel. Users rave about how easy to use it is, and how it protects their honey from crystallization; however, some say that the pour spout might be too small and the flow can be uneven.

3. Best honey jar: Handmade Honey Jar with Dipper by Hunnibi

If you prefer a nice slow drizzle of honey rather than a pour, this beautiful dispenser made by Hunnibi is a wonderful option.

Most dispensers with a dipper have an opening for a stick. This means that your honey isn’t completely covered, which could allow moisture in. (As you’ll see in our tips for honey storage below, moisture is one of the few things that can make honey spoil.) Additionally, the sticks for dipping are usually made from wood, which isn’t as easy to clean as glass and could trap bacteria.

This dispenser from Hunnibi solves all those problems. Both the stick and the jar are made from easy-to-clean glass, and it can be completely closed when not in use. This ensures the freshness of honey pretty much indefinitely.

These dispensers might not be as mess-free as others on this list because the dipper could spill some drops on the way from jar to plate; however, the perfect drizzle of honey over your yogurt might just be worth the risk.

If you like this design, but the Hunnibi is out of stock (and it does happen), try the Mkono Honey Jar.

Houseware brand Mkono also uses high-quality glass and the same closed design that ensures honey’s freshness. Like Hunnibi’s model, this one also has rave reviews from users; however, some complain that the dipper is too short, which makes it awkward to use when you’re running low on honey.

4. Best everyday dispenser: Winco Maple Syrup or Honey Dispenser

Winco makes some of the most popular commercial-grade honey dispensers around. But you don’t have to run a professional kitchen to use them — for a bit less than $15, the Winco dispenser is a useful and reliable addition to any honey (or syrup) lover’s kitchen.

There are some good reasons restaurants all over the country use this type of dispenser. It offers an even, reliable pour, and the steel lid cuts off the flow effectively, keeping stickiness to a minimum and protecting honey’s freshness and color, even for years. Given the low price, reliability and ease of use, this is a great buy for very busy cooks and large families, especially those with children.

5. Best everyday dispenser runner-up: eHomeA2Z Syrup Dispenser Honey Glass Jar

If the Winco is out of stock, this is a great alternative for busy households. The eHomeA2Z syrup dispenser is made from high-quality glass and an alloy top. It’s easy for children to use, and for anyone to clean and refill. Reviewers praise its even pour (even with unprocessed, thicker honey) and the effectiveness of its lid, which keeps mess to a minimum.

6. Best gift: Studio Silversmith Beehive Crystal Honey Jar

If you want a truly beautiful dispenser and gift, and aren’t too worried about preserving honey for years, then Studio Silversmith’s Beehive Crystal Honey Jar is the one.

Shaped somewhat like a beehive (of course), the Studio Silversmith dispenser is built with real crystal, not glass, which highlights honey’s beautiful amber color and gives the jar itself an antique heirloom look.

Although we generally recommend dispensers that seal completely to provide the best protection for your honey, for households that go through honey fairly quickly (and don’t live in a particularly humid environment), the Studio Silversmith Crystal Jar could be a gorgeous addition to any table.

Tips on storing honey

Honey is a known super food: it’s not only nutritious, but its distinctive taste will improve anything it touches, from sweet desserts to savory sauces. It’s also, as we said above, almost immune to spoilage if it’s stored under the right conditions.

To store honey properly, it’s helpful to understand what exactly makes it last so long.

First, there’s its acidic nature, which makes it a potent anti-bacterial and antimicrobial. In fact, its bacteria-fighting prowess has been so well-established, honey is now routinely used in band-aids and wound dressings to speed up healing.

Second, unlike most foods, honey barely contains any water, making it an inhospitable environment for bacteria and mold.

This means that honey will not spoil — as long as it’s protected from moisture. So, even if you’re not planning to keep honey for millennia, there are some things you can do to ensure it will stay fresh for as long as you need it.

• Choose dispensers that seal completely. There are some beautiful honey containers that feature a stick for drizzling; however, many of them have an opening for that stick. If you live in a humid environment, this could let moisture into your honey, making it spoil faster.

• Keep it in heavy-duty glass, when possible. Some cheaper plastic and metal containers can change the flavor or even cause honey to oxidize.

• Make sure the pour spout is large enough for different types of honey. The honey sold in the characteristic plastic bear on supermarket shelves has been filtered and processed, which makes it flow easier. If you’re getting honey from the farmers’ market or the coop, the texture will be much different and will take longer to dispense, especially if the dispenser has a very small pour spout.

• Don’t put it in the fridge. This will definitely change honey’s texture and sometimes its taste. Keeping it in the right container and at room temperature — that is somewhere between 64° and 75° — will preserve its texture best.

• Don’t use oil dispensers for honey. Those dispensers have smaller pour spouts, designed for oil which flows easily and smoothly, not for the viscous texture of honey, maple or chocolate syrup.

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