OXO Good Grips Box Grater Review: A Kitchen Standard That Plays It Safe
The OXO Good Grips Box Grater has been a kitchen staple for the better part of two decades — long enough to accumulate over 7,500 Amazon ratings and earn a Best Choice designation from America's Test Kitchen. It's a four-sided stainless steel box grater with a detachable collection container, non-slip handle, and a drawer-friendly slim profile. For most home cooks, it does exactly what it promises, though one persistent design quirk has followed it across every version.
Product Overview
The classic OXO Good Grips Box Grater offers four grating surfaces — coarse, medium, fine, and slicing — in a slim, drawer-friendly body. A detachable collection container at the base catches and measures grated ingredients and includes a lid for refrigerating leftovers. The handle is soft, non-slip, and arched at the top for a comfortable grip.
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Grating surfaces | Coarse, medium, fine, slicing (4 sides) |
| Construction | Stainless steel grating surfaces, plastic body |
| Collection container | Detachable; markings at ¼, ½, ¾, and 1 cup; includes lid |
| Handle | Soft-grip, non-slip |
| Dimensions | Approx. 7 in. tall |
| Care | Dishwasher safe |
| Amazon rating | 4.7/5 (7,548 ratings) |
| Current price | ~$24.99 |
Version note: Amazon now shows a "Newer Version Available" notice pointing to the OXO Good Grips Etched Box Grater with Removable Zester (B07V426CJZ), which adds etched blades and a detachable fine grater that doubles as a zester. The classic reviewed here remains widely sold and well-reviewed, but prospective buyers should compare both before purchasing.
Performance & Real-World Use
The OXO's main selling point is consistency. All four sides stay sharp through sustained use — shredding a block of cheddar, grating a pound of carrots, or breaking down a wedge of Parmesan takes minimal effort. America's Test Kitchen praised the sharp stamped teeth and noted they "easily shred vegetables and soft mozzarella," and the broader record of 7,500-plus ratings backs this up.
The two wider sides (coarse and medium) get the most use in a typical kitchen, and they perform well for hard and semi-hard cheeses, chocolate, potatoes, and firm vegetables. The fine side handles Parmesan-style grating and bread crumbs. The slicing side is noticeably narrower — about 1.5 inches — which limits the width of vegetable ribbons you can produce. It works for cucumbers and zucchini cut lengthwise, but wider produce requires multiple passes.
Ergonomics are genuinely strong. The angled non-slip handle positions knuckles clear of the grating surface, and the soft material absorbs pressure during longer sessions. ATK specifically highlighted the "nice, grippy handle and rubber bumper" as standout features.
The collection container, however, is where this grater has a well-documented limitation. It's narrow, which makes the combined height of grater-plus-container unwieldy when grating with any downward force. Both ATK and Wirecutter flagged the tippy stance — ATK called the container "too small to be useful and made the grater tippy," Wirecutter noted it leaves a gap that traps food fragments. In practice, many owners default to grating directly onto a cutting board or plate, using the container only when they need to measure — which is a reasonable workaround, but it's worth knowing the container is a partial solution rather than an everyday base.
Cleanup is straightforward. The open construction rinses clean quickly, and the whole unit is dishwasher safe. Sharp grating edges mean you should handle the fine side carefully when washing by hand.
- Four sharp grating surfaces cover coarse, medium, fine, and slicing without needing a second tool
- Slim profile fits into standard kitchen drawers — easier to store than wider flat-style graters
- Detachable collection container with measurement markings is useful for baking and meal prep portions
- Soft, arched handle keeps knuckles away from blades and absorbs pressure during extended grating
- Fully dishwasher safe with an open design that rinses clean under the tap
- America's Test Kitchen Best Choice designation — validated by hands-on testing, not just popularity
- 300+ sold per week on Amazon, indicating sustained real-world demand after more than fifteen years
- Collection container is narrow and makes the grater-plus-container stack tall and prone to tipping under grating pressure
- Gap between container and grater body traps food fragments and requires deliberate cleaning
- Slicing surface is only about 1.5 inches wide, limiting usefulness for wide vegetable cuts
- Not the sharpest grater tested — Wirecutter's evaluation found the Cuisipro Surface Glide outperforms it for raw cutting efficiency
- Amazon's own inventory shows "no featured offers available" at time of writing; buyers are purchasing through marketplace sellers, which can affect price and shipping consistency
- A newer OXO version (Etched Box Grater with Removable Zester) now exists; the classic may gradually be harder to source at retail prices
The OXO Good Grips Box Grater earns its 4.7-star rating through a combination of sharp-enough blades, thoughtful ergonomics, and durability over years of use. Its collection container is a genuine design flaw — narrow, tippy, and prone to trapping food — but most users adapt by using it selectively rather than as the default grater base. At roughly $25, it's priced correctly for what it delivers. Buyers with a few more dollars to spend should compare it against the newer OXO Etched model before clicking buy; if you're fine with the classic, it will serve a typical kitchen well for years.
