The 8 Best Pastry Bags

Best Overall

Kasmoire Piping Bags and Tip Set

$10 at Amazon View on Kasmoire.net

This pastry bag set has just about everything you need to create and decorate memorable treats. It comes with six sturdy and reusable pastry bags–two 12-inch bags, two 14-inch bags, and two 16-inch bags. It also has six metal icing tips for different decorating styles, six icing bag couplers, and six ties to keep things secure and mess free. Since the TPU plastic bags are flexible and durable, they can handle anything from meringue to heavy frosting. 

Bag Material: TPU plastic | Bag Size: 12, 14, and 16 inches | Bag Count: 6 | Reusable: Yes

Best Budget

Keenpioneer 16-Inch Disposable Cake Decorating Bags

Orig. $12 $10 at Amazon

These clear plastic bags have good thickness and flexibility, and they come in an easy-to-use dispenser box. They are available in two sizes—10 inches and 16 inches for larger projects—and since they’re disposable, cleanup is easy. If you’re doing decorating work with many different colors or products, time saved in not having to clean or change bags in between is substantial. The downside is their ecological footprint and lack of artisan feel.

Bag Material: Plastic | Bag Size: 10 and 16 inches | Bag Count: 56 | Reusable: No

Best for Beginners

Kootek 100-Piece Piping Bags Set

Orig. $15 $12 at Amazon

When you're first starting to learn piping and decorating work, there'll be a lot of mishaps most likely including the frosting shooting out the top of a pastry bag. (We've all been there.) That's why it's best to use bag ties! These help keep the top closed so you can focus all your attention on what you're doing. This set includes 5 easy-to-use bag ties, plus 100 disposable plastic bags. That way, if a bag is accidentally trimmed too high up, there'll be another bag within reach.

Bag Material: Plastic | Bag Size: 16 inches | Bag Count: 100 | Reusable: No

Best Reusable

Wilton Professional Decorating Bag

$7 at Amazon $7 at Walmart

Many people get a little sick of buying new piping bags once they start decorating regularly. Luckily, Wilton has this 16-inch professional featherweight piping bag that you can reuse over and over again. Made from very durable polyester, the seams won't bulge or split during the job. Once you're done, the grease-resistant interior is easy enough to wipe down with hot water, or you put in on your dishwasher's top rack for a thorough cleaning. Our only issues with it is that you have to buy them one-at-a-time. If you're looking for something smaller, it comes in a variety of sizes from 8-inch to 14-inch.

Bag Material: Polyester | Bag Size: 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16 inches | Bag Count: 1 | Reusable: Yes

Best for Cookies

Weetiee 12-Inch Tipless Piping Bags

$10 at Amazon $20 at Walmart

This design is specifically made for cookie decorating, though it's also adaptable to other uses. The 12-inch size is great for detailed work, and the weight of the bag is light enough so that heavy pressure isn’t required. The opening is round and can be cut to any size desired, and the outside surface has a slight texture for an enhanced grip to prevent slippage. This package includes one hundred 12-inch disposable piping bags, one scriber needle, and two tip clips.

Bag Material: Plastic | Bag Size: 12 inches | Bag Count: 100 | Reusable: No

Most Versatile

Weetiee Silicone Pastry Bags

$10 at Amazon

Since piping bags can be used for so many kitchen tasks, multiple sizes are necessary for versatility. This set of six pastry bags includes two counts each of three different size bags (12, 14, and 16 inches) and six couplers. The reusable bags are silicone for strength and ease of filling and cleaning—they can handle being cleaned on your dishwasher's top rack. The three different sizes help when doing more than one task at a time, and with the flexibility the couplers add for switching out one tip for another, this set really is a time-saver.

Bag Material: Silicone | Bag Size: 12, 14, and 16 inches | Bag Count: 6 | Reusable: Yes

Best All-in-One

Pillsbury Ready-to-Use Frosting Bag

$15 at Amazon $4 at Walmart $4 at Target

If you're still very new to decorating or need to frost on-the-go, don't mess about with tips, couplers, or even your hand mixer. Instead, get a piping bag filled with frosting so you can add those finishing touches right out of the box. Pillsbury's line of frosting bags—which is available in vanilla, chocolate, and cream cheese flavors—is also a great to have on hand for decorate-your-own-cupcake parties or when you want to let your kids explore their artistic side. When we tested these out in our home kitchens, we did find the frosting benefited from being chilled prior to piping, but otherwise, it was the same frosting you've come to know and love!

Bag Material: Plastic | Size: 16 ounces | Bag Count: 1 | Reusable: No

Best Compostable

Williams Sonoma Compostable Pastry Bags

$20 at Williams-Sonoma

Being able to compost your waste has really taken off in the kitchen, but there are only a few compostable pastry bags available. Of them, we like William Sonoma's version. They're made from cornstarch and PBAT, a biodegradable plastic that breaks down in soil after about six weeks. These 12-inch bags won't split or balloon, at least not until they're being to degrade, so you can be free to decorate away. And the neutral color means you can see the true color of the ingredients you're using.

Bag Material: Cornstarch, PBAT | Bag Size: 12 inches | Bag Count: 100 | Reusable: No