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There’s a reason why the margarita is one of the most popular cocktails of all time. The beverage’s refreshing balance of sweet and sour with food-friendly tequila (or mezcal!) is perfect for almost any situation. You can make it a classic, salted, or spicy margarita; shaken or blended; and with added flavors from sour cherry to mango and rose. No matter how you prefer it, one important factor makes or breaks the entire drinking experience: the glassware you use.
Like many other classic cocktails, the margarita has a unique, instantly recognizable glass shape — or it can be served in a high-quality multipurpose vessel. We polled our editors for favorites and researched dozens more to find the best margarita glasses for every drinking occasion. From versatile stemless to fun and cactus-shaped, here are our favorites.
Best Overall
West Elm Recycled Mexican Glassware
This hefty set checks all the boxes when it comes to the perfect margarita glass: The thick walls, wide rims, and slight curves work to keep the cocktail insulated, contained, and proportionally salted. These vessels are mouth-blown in Mexico using recycled glass, making for slight variations in each piece that only add to their uniqueness. There are tall or short options, in amber, metallic, lustrous, or plain clear colors, in sets of four or eight — the artisan-designed glasses can house any variation of margarita, but they also make for a versatile option when it comes to serving everyday juice, water, cold brew coffee, whatever.
Dimensions: 3 x 4 inches (short), 2.8 x 5.9 inches (tall) | Capacity: 12 ounces (short), 13 ounces (tall) | Material: Recycled glass | Dishwasher-Safe: No
Best Splurge
Woloch Company Tumbler
Your margarita will look gorgeous poured into one of these distinctive tumblers. Every piece is artisan-blown in Mexico from recycled glass and has a unique pattern of blended marbled hues. The flat, wide rim and substantial walls will ensure your cocktail stays icy cold and perfectly balanced, but the glasses can be used for a variety of other beverages as well. If you’re looking to invest in a truly one-of-a-kind set of glasses, these special pieces are worth the splurge.
Dimensions: 3.3 x 3.8 inches | Capacity: 12 ounces | Material: Glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Value
Fortessa Jupiter Double Old Fashioned Glass
With 12 color options and a fun vintage-y bubbled texture, this glass looks much more expensive than it is. The price would be a good deal for a set of four, and it's actually for six. The durable vessels are dishwasher-safe, and they're big enough to hold the double old fashioned of their name, as well as just about any on-the-rocks cocktail, or to serve as an everyday water glass.
Dimensions: 3 x 4.75 inches | Capacity: 15 ounces | Material: Glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Plastic
DuraClear Tritan Outdoor Margarita Glasses
If you want to enjoy margaritas on the beach or by the pool, shatter-prone glass is a definite no-no. Instead, we prefer Tritan, a BPA-free plastic that's dishwasher-safe and so strong that it's popular in the jars for heavy-duty blenders. Williams Sonoma's set includes a half-dozen extra-large vessels in the classic stemmed shape, each in its own color for quick cocktail ID-ing. As a bonus, the bases fit perfectly inside the bowls, so you can stack the glasses and save on space.
Dimensions: 5.25 x 6.75 inches | Capacity: 16 ounces | Material: Tritan plastic | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Cactus
Libbey Cactus Margarita Glasses, Set of 4
If you're want just the right amount of kitsch for margarita night or taco Tuesday, these fun glasses are the choice for you. The durable glass is safe for dishwasher, as well as freezer if you'd like to do slushy margaritas. Because they're oversized, these vessels can also double as serving dishes for salsas, queso dip, and desserts.
Dimensions: 4.38 x 6.25 inches | Capacity: 16 ounces | Material: Glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Versatile
Bormioli Rocco Bodega Collection Glassware
“As regular margarita drinkers, our household finds this set of Bormioli Rocco bodega glasses indispensable,” says associate editorial director Megan Soll. “They are the perfect volume for a classic marg on the rocks, it’s easy to salt the rim, they come sparkling clean in the dishwasher every time, and they’re versatile enough to serve other rocks drinks, juice at breakfast, or even parfait cups in a pinch.”
Soll has had the glasses for four years and not one has shattered, clouded, or discolored. “Half the time we default to them as wine glasses as well — a true choose-your-own-adventure piece of drinkware.” She uses the 12-ounce mid-sized version, but you can also get the stackable glass as a 7.5-ounce shortie or an extra-tall 17.25-ouncer.
Dimensions: 4.75 x 3.5 inches | Capacity: 12 ounces | Material: Tempered glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Blue Rim
Novica "Cobalt Classics" Glasses
A refreshing margarita and a blue-rimmed glass go hand in hand, and this hand-blown Novica set certainly fits the bill. Durable, medium-sized, wide-rimmed, and dishwasher-safe, this set of six glasses elevates any drinking experience. Because the sides curve slightly inwards towards the top, you can expect minimal spillage — even after you’ve had a few. (For a more distinctive look, Novica also makes a colorful "Liquid Confetti" set of similar shaped glasses at a slightly higher price.)
Dimensions: 3.2 x 3.9 inches | Capacity: 10 ounces | Material: Glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Colorful
Material Full Glass Set
If you're in the market for a new set of drinking glasses that double as chic cocktail vessels, look no further than this elegant small-footed set from Material. The four-packs of stackable, dishwasher-safe glasses are available in classic clear and a gray called Haze, but we think the green Malachite hue is the one that most screams for a margarita.
"After testing these for months, I like these glasses for just about anything — my daily water with lemon, an after-dinner glass of wine — but I really love them for serving up my favorite cocktails," says senior editor Dana Fouchia. "They’re whimsical and interesting to look at, and they add a touch of elegance that my other cocktail glasses simply do not."
Dimensions: 3.11 x 4.9 inches | Capacity: 12.6 ounces | Material: Borosilicate glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Stemmed
EagleandTwineLLC Mexican Hand Blown Margarita Glass
A bit like a giant coupe glass, the wide, deep-bowled shape of this glass is a great choice for a coated rim, or to hold a frozen margarita — the stem keeps your hands from warming the drink or picking up grains of salt. The blue foot and rim are a modern-classic design, though this set is an artisanal version, blown by hand from recycled glass. Nonetheless, the glasses are thick and durable enough for the dishwasher.
Dimensions: 4.5 x 7 inches | Capacity: 16 ounces | Material: Recycled glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Stackable
Our Place Short Night & Day Glasses
Another versatile pick for serving much more than just margaritas, these stackable glasses from Our Place do double duty as everyday drinking glasses and chic barware. You can choose from multiple individual subdued colors (or the bright-blue Azul), and we love the options that give you a set of four different warm or cool tones. These match well but allow guests to identify their marg at a glance.
"As their name implies, these versatile drinking glasses seamlessly go from day to night in my household," says senior commerce editor Danielle St. Pierre, who owns three sets of these glasses. "Beyond the fact that the sets stack neatly in my cabinet, these glasses also make whatever I'm drinking look chic, whether it's sparkling water or an evening spritz. At 12 ounces, they're the perfect size for any beverage. I've even used them to serve frozen treats." (There's also a tall version with a 16-ounce capacity, but they're more expensive and have fewer color choices.)
Dimensions: 3.3 x 3.8 inches | Capacity: 12 ounces | Material: Glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Best Large-Capacity
Dos Sueños Margarita Glasses
Another take on the deep-bowled stemmed margarita glass, this design adds a distinctive blue spiral design for a fun aesthetic element. Each one holds 16 ounces, which is easily enough for a triple 'rita, with thick glass to help insulate an extra-large drink and keep it cold. The substantial body, wide rim, and "cantina" look make these margarita glasses fun — and hard to break — to use for dinner parties.
Dimensions: 4.5 x 6.5 inches | Capacity: 16 ounces | Material: Recycled glass | Dishwasher-Safe: Yes
Factors to Consider
Material
The most popular material for a margarita glass is, well, glass. Margarita glasses shaped by machine will generally be cheaper and more uniform, available in an astounding variety of shapes, colors, and sizes. Hand-blown glasses have a heavier, organic feel, with thicker walls and an artisanal look that can vary slightly from one piece to another. Recycled glass is a popular material with a smaller environmental impact, while borosilicate glass is a special type that's extra strong and costly.
Another option is plastic. The outdoor-friendly material is shatter-resistant and an ideal choice for the beach, poolside, on a boat, or anywhere else glass is forbidden. It's often cheaper than glass, albeit not as good at insulating a cold drink from heat. Reusable plasticware is generally dishwasher-safe, but you should recycle the one-use stuff when you're done.
Size and Capacity
Because it's diluted via shaking, and often served over even more ice, the margarita tends to be one of the more larger cocktails for its strength. Margarita glasses are, accordingly, fairly sizable. Our basic margarita recipe, for example, calls for just 3.25 ounces of ingredients, but its final volume after shaking will be closer to 5 — more if served on the rocks. In general, 8 to 10 ounces is a good capacity for a small margarita glass to hold a full drink without spilling. Party-sized glasses can get much larger, at 16 ounces or more to hold multiple servings at once. The disadvantage of a bigger glass is that your drink will get warm before you can finish it.
Another consideration is the size of the glass itself. Cylindrical rocks glasses take up less space in storage than tall stemmed ones, and they're often stackable to save even more room.
Versatility
Along with size, you’ll also want to consider shape to assess the drinkware’s versatility for drinks besides margaritas. The stemmed margarita glass with a wide rim generally has less all-around versatility for everyday water or coffee, though it can be a fun way to serve ice cream or other desserts.
Stemless rocks glasses are a more versatile option. Easier to store and more manageable to hold, rocks glasses can be used to serve a wider range of beverages and feel straightforward to drink from. But they won't look as distinctively margarita-esque.
Our Expertise
- Stella Totino is a former pastry chef���turned–food writer with years of experience testing and researching all things food. She's invested in discovering fun new flavors and the tools that help to create them, and you can find her work in EdibleLA, Apartment Therapy, and the Kitchn.
- Food & Wine senior updates writer Jason Horn updated this story with additional products and information. He's been writing about food and drinks for nearly 20 years, including at Liquor.com, Serious Eats, and Playboy. He has a weird aversion to lemon in cocktails, which makes the margarita one of his absolute favorites.