The Cups + Straws Guide
It’s time to introduce an open cup and a straw cup around 6 months of age. It’s a common misconception that infants should not drink from anything except mom’s breast or a bottle for fear of getting confused. Let’s be clear that babies are NOT confused! Drinking from an open cup and straw are different oral motor patterns than breast or bottle feeding. Babies can do ALL of these skills in infancy, and do them well! The main reason why cups are recommended to be introduced in infancy is for PRACTICE. If they have been practicing from 6-12 months, then when it’s time to wean from the bottle between 12-15 months old, baby will have already had plenty of opportunities and it will likely go smoother. Take a look at all of the cups I recommend and why!
The Olababy Cup: This is #1 because it’s my all time favorite cup! I love that it’s made from silicone, has a straw stopper so baby can’t pull the straw out, has a weighted bottom so it’s harder to knock over, is a great size for little hands, and doubles as an open cup. My FAVORITE part is that it teaches straw drinking! Plug the hole in the lid with your finger and gently squeeze the cup so liquid goes up the straw and into baby’s mouth. They quickly learn that if they suck on the straw, liquid will come up and BAM, they just learned how to drink from a straw. Great for water, smoothies, and milk!
The EZPZ Tiny Cup: This is a perfect sized cup for teaching open cup drinking! Little hands can hold it and it has a nice weight to the bottom. My favorite trick to teach parents is to fill it to the brim with a familiar PUREE that they have eaten on a spoon, and bring it to baby’s lips so they immediately get a taste of what is inside! And you don’t have to tilt it too much to give them some. Over time you can add some water to it so it’s not so thick and you work towards drinking plain water, but that skill takes time and isn’t expected to be done independently until 18 months. So starting at 6 months gives baby plenty of time to practice!
The Honey Bear Straw Cup: This cup has a simple design that is easy to clean! Just squeeze the bear’s tummy and the liquid goes up! Baby can then take sips by themselves or you can continue to squeeze as they need assistance. Start using 6 months + to teach straw drinking and you can continue to use into toddlerhood as your little one becomes independent!
The Tum Tum Silicone Cup with Handles: This cup is great for learning how to drink from a straw! Fill up at least halfway with water, cover the small hole in the lid with your finger and squeeze the cup to push the liquid up. Love that it has handles for easy holding AND it has a straw stopper so baby can’t pull the straw out. The narrow design of the straw also helps baby not suck up TOO much water, which is great as they learn! Great for water and milk!
The Richell Straw + Travel Cup: This is such a cute cup set! The straw cup is like a tea cup and you can push on the lid when it’s filled with water to help the water go up the straw! So, another teachable cup option. It’s a free flowing straw- so great for babies learning how to drink! The travel cup is also free flowing with a snap lid that prevents leaks on the go. Love both of these as options!
The Nuby Tiny Cup: It does exactly the same things a the EZPZ Tiny Cup…. but it’s half the price. I have both cups and they work the same. So pick whichever one you like!
Remember that baby doesn’t need A LOT of liquid when offering cups and straws. It’s just good to get practice in before the transition off of bottles occurs around 12 months of age! It takes time to learn skills, so give your baby the time they need to learn them! Having a straw cup on the go is great for meals out and if you’re working on bottle weaning, too!
The Lollaland Weighted Straw Cup: This cup is my favorite weighted straw because it does not have a valve. A valve is a piece of material in the straw itself that is a spill proof feature BUT it requires babies to suck extremely hard to get liquid out, since a lot of force is needed to get the valve open. This cup is not 100% spill proof when the top is down, but when the top is pulled over and the straw is pinched down instead, it is. The handles are also removable so it easily fits in the side pocket of a diaper bag for travel! This is one of my favorite cups for milk since it’s easiest to clean and there aren’t a lot of nooks and crannies.
The Thermos Funtainer: This is my favorite travel cup for littles 10 months and older since it’s very easy to open and shut and the straw is skinnier, so not as much liquid can be sucked through! It also comes in lots of sizes and colors so if your little one likes it, you have options for a long while! Great for water and milk!
The Num Num Spill Proof Cup: This cup has a free-flowing straw and is decently spill proof, making it a great choice from an oral motor perspective! Valveless straws are the best as they don’t restrict water flow and baby doesn’t have to put their jaw in an atypical position to drink (like biting or using excessive force). Love this one for travel, and the handles are great! Great for water and milk!
The Grosmimi Cup: This cup is all the rage on social media. It DOES have a small valve at the top of the straw, but since the silicone is very thin and the valve is easily movable when you take a sip of water, it does NOT impact baby’s oral positioning. It doesn’t require a forceful suck or an atypical mouth posture to suck from. The cap makes it super spill proof in the diaper bag, and if your little one drops it, the thin valve helps liquid not seep out. The design is also decent for milk as there aren’t too many nooks and crannies to clean out! A good cup to transition to milk!
The Dr. Brown’s Milestones Cup: This is NOT my favorite cup for baby, but it’s a very cost effective option, so I like to include it. It has a valve under the lid, so making sure that the straw is not too tightly suctioned to the lid is key! If the lid is pulled through the top too tightly, it is very hard to suck from, so try to loosen if you’re noticing that it’s hard! It’s pretty spill-proof and for only $6 it’s a decent choice! I’d use for about 6 months and older.
The Olababy Cup: This is #1 again because it’s my all time favorite cup! Now, it’s just in the NINE OUNCE! Perfect for your toddler that drinks more! I love that it’s made from silicone, has a straw stopper so baby can’t pull the straw out, has a weighted bottom so it’s harder to knock over, is a great size for little hands, and doubles as an open cup.
The Hippypotamus Open Cups: I love the size of these for toddlers because they are bigger than the smaller open cups, but still not too big for their hands. The textured pattern on the side also helps them grip the cup better! Two cups for $7. Dishwasher safe and come in many colors!
The Elk and Friends Stainless Cup: This cup is great for toddlers who already drink from a straw very well! Perfect for milk or smoothies, the straw is a little bigger in diameter, so bigger sips come out. Also very easy to clean and plastic free!
The Elk and Friends Glass Cup: This cup is also great for toddlers who already drink from a straw very well! Perfect for milk or smoothies, the straw is a little bigger in diameter, so bigger sips come out. Also very easy to clean and plastic free!
The Tommee Tippee Straw Cup: I like this cup for toddlers especially because it has a short straw and when locked down is spill-proof! It is made of plastic and has a small valve, but drinking is not forceful. It’s a very cost-effective option!
Munchkin Cool Cat: This stainless steel cup has a pretty strong valve that requires biting to break the seal and suck liquid up. I don’t recommend for littles under 2 years or so who are learning how to drink because we don’t want them to learn how to drink by biting! But once your little one can drink from a straw normally and is competent with drinking, using a valve is not a big issue!
Owala Straw Cup: This stainless steel cup also has a pretty strong valve that requires biting to break the seal and suck liquid up. I don’t recommend for littles under 18 months- 2 years or so who are learning how to drink because we don’t want them to learn how to drink by biting! But once your little one can drink from a straw normally and is competent with drinking, using a valve is not a big issue!
The Thermos Funtainer: This is my favorite travel cup for littles 10 months and older since it’s very easy to open and shut and the straw is skinnier, so not as much liquid can be sucked through! It also comes in lots of sizes and colors so if your little one likes it, you have options for a long while!
Zak Straw Cup: This stainless steel cup also has a pretty strong valve that requires biting to break the seal and suck liquid up. I don’t recommend for littles under 18 months- 2 years or so who are learning how to drink because we don’t want them to learn how to drink by biting! But once your little one can drink from a straw normally and is competent with drinking, using a valve is not a big issue!
Pura Kiki Plastic Free Water Bottle: I LOVE that this water bottle is plastic free! It does have a small valve that slightly impacts water flow, so I don’t love it for babies learning how to drink, but for toddlers who already have the skill down, it’s a thumbs up for me! 18 months + is likely best!
The Klean Kanteen Straw Cup: My new favorite stainless steel and silicone cup for older toddlers! The cap twists to close making it spill proof and the design is easy to clean. It requires some good fine motor skills for littles to open and close by themselves so it’s best for about 2.5 years and older. It’s also 12 ounces so a good cup for toddlers and preschoolers who drink lots of water throughout the day! Sometimes the smaller bottles just aren’t enough.
These cups are on the preschool list because they allllll have one thing in common: a hard straw or a harder to drink from straw! Hard straws are NOT recommended for little ones because of the mouth injury risk. Babies and toddlers are constantly walking around with cups and sometimes letting them hang from their mouths OR walking and running while drinking. They get distracted! And that is ok, but if they were to fall while drinking, and a hard straw is in their mouth that is a recipe for disaster! So, save these for your preschool-aged kiddos and older!
Click the picture to see some stainless steel options for your older kiddos!
The Sippy Cup
You’ll notice that sippy cups with a soft or hard spout are not on the list of recommended cups. While sippy cups are not “bad,” they to do not promote the most optimal oral motor pattern for drinking. In fact, they are very similar to baby bottles, as the spout of a sippy cup sits on the tongue just like a bottle nipple. A straw cup anchors the tongue high and back in the mouth, which the the optimal position for mature drinking.
The bottom cup is a well-known cup on them market, but it is also a “sippy cup” as it’s no-spill design requires biting and forceful sucking to extract the liquid. We don’t bite and suck when drinking, so it promotes an atypical drinking pattern.
When babies and toddlers are learning to drink, it’s important to support their oral motor skills and work towards optimal drinking patterns. Since these cups do not support mature oral motor skills, they are not recommended for frequent or long-term use. So, if you can avoid them, I would!
For more of my favorites for littles, check out my Amazon Storefront! I have favorite toys, books, feeding utensils, and more all organized!
And if you’re about to start bottle weaning or are needing some help getting baby off that bottle, this guide is for you!
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