For any keen bakers – particularly cake decorators – a cooling rack is a much-needed gadget. Affordable and minimalist in design, cooling racks let cookies and cakes cool evenly and quickly, ready for you to slather on thick icing and precise decorations without the need to cool in the fridge or the fear of drippy icing.

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Even if you are more of a cook than a baker, a cooling rack is handy for everyday cooking. If you are deep-frying anything from chicken to deep-fried meatballs, a cooling rack will keep fried food crispy as the residual steam will be able to escape.

In our guide we have found wire racks from brands such as Tala and MasterClass to suit your kitchen's needs. Whether you want a round cooling rack for cakes or one that folds up for small spaces, read on to find the best cooling racks.

For more baking kit inspiration, check our more of our top recommendations including the best loaf tins, best stand mixers or best cookie cutters, for all weekend baking projects.


Best cooling racks at a glance

  • Best for a large kitchen: Onader stainless steel metal wire racks, £13.49
  • Best cooling rack for cakes: Tala steel cake cooling rack, £7.38
  • Best multi-use cooling rack: Le Creuset non-stick cooling rack, £28
  • Best tiered cooling rack: Vinsani set of three high-carbon steel tier cooling racks, £13.99
  • Best for small spaces: Tala folding cooling rack, £6
  • Best for a budget: Lakeland rectangular folding cooling rack, £6.99
  • Best for biscuits: MasterClass smart non-stick folding cooling rack, £10.18
  • Best extra large cooling rack: Vogue heavy duty cooling rack, £41.98
  • Best simple cooling rack: Ikea LÄTTBAKAD cooling rack, £5

Best cooling racks to buy 2022

Onader stainless steel metal wire racks

four cooling racks hovering on each other

Best for a large kitchen

Made from thick stainless steel so that it is resistant to warping from heat, this set of four cooling racks is great for cooking or baking for large groups. If you are a multitasker – frying donuts while having biscuits in the oven, for example – you know you'll have enough cooling racks for all your kitchen endeavours. Plus, these cooling racks have thoughtful details like smoothed-over metal edges to avoid any grazes.

Available from:
Amazon (£13.49)


Tala steel cake cooling rack

cake cooling tray

Best cooling rack for cakes

With large rectangular cut-out squares to allow cakes to cool very quickly, this cooling rack is well designed. At 46cm x 25cm, this rack fits nice and sturdy loaf cakes as well as round victoria sponges.


Le Creuset non-stick cooling rack

black cooling rack with orange handles

Best multi-use cooling rack

From cast iron experts Le Creuset comes this carbon-coated steel cooling rack. Like their other bakeware, this cooling rack is heat resistant up to 240C so it is suitable for oven use, too. The non-stick coating makes clean-up simple, plus this rack comes with silicone inserts which not only protects your hands from the heat but allows for better grip if transferring cakes from counter to table.

Available from:
Le Creuset (£28)


Vinsani set of three high-carbon steel tier cooling racks

black cooling rack one folded and one upright

Best tall cooling rack

At 8.4cm in height for a single cooling rack, these racks are the tallest in our selection, allowing for extra-speedy aeration. All three can be stacked on top of each other to save counter space but they are all collapsible too so they don't take up too much room. They have a non-stick coating for easy cleaning and their height also makes them perfect for using as a cake stand on your table.

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Tala folding cooling rack

rectangular-coolong-rack-with-blue-label

Best for small spaces

Good for a small budget and a small kitchen, this foldable rectangular cooling rack measures 43cm x 23cm when expanded. The non-stick steel also makes clean up a lot simpler.

Available from:
Fenwick (£6)


Lakeland rectangular folding cooling rack

three slot black cooling rack

Best for a budget

This cooling rack folds into two-thirds of its size when packed away. While it doesn't have the height of some of our other options, the non-stick coating means bakes slide off easily for when you want to transfer to a cake turntable or serving platter.

Available from:
Lakeland (£6.99)


MasterClass smart non-stick folding cooling rack

masterchef grill

Best for biscuits

With slats big enough to help cakes cool very quickly and meat juices to run, but small enough to stop small biscuits from falling down the cracks, this cooling rack from MasterClass can be used both as a roasting rack in the oven as well as on counter tops with bakes.

Available from:
Nisbets (£10.18)


Vogue heavy duty cooling rack

large cooling rack

Best extra large cooling rack

Vogue's cooling rack has a mesh-like design, ideal for small pastries that need to cool down from the oven. At 10kg, this cooling rack has the stability for icing lighter bakes as well as the ability to withstand large weights such as roast chicken and turkey.

Available from:
Nisbets (£41.98)


Ikea LÄTTBAKAD cooling rack

cooling rack stood up

Best simple cooling rack

Simple but effective, this stainless steel cooling rack folds flat so it is easy to store and is stackable if you purchase more than one of the same make.

Available from:
IKEA (£5)

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