Flat Lids Vs. Dome Lids - Which Lid Should You Choose For Your Cups?

Lids are important accessories for plastic cups. Nowadays you’ll hardly find any cold beverage to-go that doesn’t come in plastic cups with lids. Cup lids have the pivotal double duty of keeping beverages safe and clean inside the cup, and also making sure beverages don’t spill out of the cup and onto the drinker’s hands or clothes.

If you’re running a cafe, restaurant or any type of food business that offers different kinds of cold beverages, you definitely need lids to go with your cups. But now the question is, what type of lid should you pick?

Flat Lids and Dome Lids: Main Differences

When it comes to picking clear plastic cup lids, you have two basic options: flat lids and dome lids. Flat lids are classic lids that have been around longer than dome lids, and are of course, flat. They are often made of clear plastic, and because they are flat, are at the same level as the rim of the plastic cup.

Dome lids are dome shaped or conical lids made of clear plastic, often with a larger opening on top for straws than that of flat lids. They bulge out of the top of the plastic cup, thereby giving you more space for the contents of your cup.

Which Lid to Choose

Between domed or flat lids, which should you choose? The answer depends on several factors. First, let’s take a look at when it would be best to choose dome lids:

• Dome lids are the perfect lids for drinks topped off with whipped cream, ice cream or any other topping that might go above the rim of your cup. They’ve got the extra space required to keep those toppings safe and not squished into the drink or cup. So if you’re serving milkshakes, smoothies or iced coffees with whipped cream on top, you’ll definitely need to use dome lids.
• Apart from keeping those toppings safe, dome lids actually show off those toppings and make your beverages a lot more aesthetically pleasing. If you have fanciful and colourful drinks, they’ll be easier to see and better displayed with a dome lid.
• Dome lids are also ideal for frozen drinks or desserts as the extra lid space allows for the release of steam, as opposed to flat lids that force the steam to accumulate inside the cup.
• Speaking of desserts, dome lids are great for keeping frozen desserts like yoghurt and ice cream well-protected, while giving you a conveniently large enough opening on top for your spoon.
• With the extra space that dome lids offer, you can serve drinks up to the rim and even beyond the rim of the cup, and not be worried about spills or leakage.

Dome lids offer plenty of benefits for sure, but because of these are priced much higher than flat lids. So here is when you should consider opting for flat lids:

• If your drinks don’t come with toppings and you’re not all that concerned about showing off the contents of the drink (they’ll be readily seen anyway if you use a clear plastic cup), then by all means, opt for a flat lid. They’re more economical and will still serve the purpose of protecting the beverage, and protecting against spills
• If you’re going to deliver a lot of drinks, flat lids are a much better choice since they allow you to stack cups one on top of the other.
• Because of their shape, flat lids allow you to put your brand name and logo on top of it, enhancing brand recognition and retention.

The main advantage that flat lids have is that they are cheaper than dome lids, however they can be quite limiting. Of course you can’t expect to have toppings on your drinks with a flat lid, and you can’t stick a spoon or extra large straw (unless the straw opening is big enough) inside the cup unless you remove the lid. You also can’t fill the cup to the brim otherwise the drink might push the lid open and spill, however this can be viewed as an advantage for some-- it means they’re required not to give customers as much of the drink, and thereby save on the beverage product.

In the end, you could choose either the flat or dome lid. But if your establishment serves a variety of drinks that could use both types of lids, why choose at all when you can have both? Many establishments have a good balance of both lids and simply use the lid that’s most appropriate for the drink they’re serving.

Planning to purchase plastic containers with lids or any other type of clear plastic packaging for your establishment? Let us help you with that. Here at Alpha Food Packaging we offer a wide array of food packaging options to suit just about any need. Get in touch with us today on 1300 799 201 to get started.