What are the best oil drain pans? 

In this guide, we will explore what features and options you will want when looking for the best oil drain pans on the market.  I will explain the differences between the two main styles of oil drain pans and what features you may want to have on the oil drain pan that you end up going with.

1. Oil Capacity

The number one consideration you should probably make when selecting an oil drain pan is the oil capacity that it can hold.  If you are like me you may not want to take your old oil to the auto parts store every time you replace the oil in your car. If you get an oil drain pan that has a large capacity then you would be able to drain your oil two to three times before needing to take your oil drain pan to an auto parts to be emptied.   

The oil drain pan that I ended up going with has an oil capacity of 16 quarts.  My car’s oil capacity is 5 quarts which means I could drain the oil of my car three times before needing to empty the oil drain pan if I wanted.  

2. Sealable Container

Another consideration you would want to make when choosing the best oil drain pan is a sealable container.  Some of the oil drain pans that you will find will just be an open pan. This may not be that big of a deal to you if you have a truck and don’t care about oil splashing around in your truck bed but if you need to transport your old oil to an auto parts store like me you will probably want to go with an oil drain pan that is able to be sealed up so that you can transport it without getting oil everywhere.  I personally don’t have a truck so I usually just put my oil drain pan in the trunk of my car to take to my local auto parts store where they will take your old oil.

3. Open Catch Vs Top Draining

There are two main designs when looking at most oil drain pans which is the open catch and top draining.  With an open catch drain pan, the drain pan is shaped like a bowl to allow you to drain the oil from your vehicle into the drain pan with allowing a minimal amount of splash from the oil hitting the oil drain pan.  

With sealable oil drain pans, most will be designed to have you drain your oil onto the top of the container which would then flow into the container.  While this is a good design some people have complained that this sort of design allows oil to splash onto the ground around the container when you go to drain your oil.  

I think that this may have to do with the oil weight that you go with but in my experience as long as you line the oil drain pan up with the oil drain plug then it will hit the top of the container and then drain inside without splashing.  

One thing I did last time to help control the flow a bit better was to keep the oil filler cap on my engine screwed on while draining my oil so that not as much oil would come out as quickly.

One thing to note if you go with a sealable oil drain pan is that you would want to make sure that you have the air vent open when you go to drain your oil otherwise it won’t be able to go into the container that easily and may overflow around the rim of the container. Don’t ask me how I know.

If you have a place to store your oil such as an old canister or old milk jugs then you could look at getting an open catch

4. Easy to Clean

Another factor that you will want to take in purchasing an oil drain pan is the ease of cleanup.  Since you are likely going to be transporting your oil drain pan in your vehicle to dispose of your old oil you will likely want to go with one that is going to be easy to clean up.  You would want to make sure that you clean off the oil container before you go to store it or go to transport it in your vehicle. Otherwise, you are taking the chance of getting oil all over the carpets of your vehicle.  

5. Durability

Whatever oil drain pan that you do end up going with you will want to make sure that it is made of durable materials so that it will hold up over time and you don’t have to keep replacing it.  The first oil drain pan I got was a cheap one from Walmart. I admittedly didn’t take that great care of it in regards to cleaning it but it also didn’t hold up that well as the side oil drain plug ended up breaking off after a few uses.  This was an issue as now the oil could spill out if you tilted the oil drain pan one way or the other. I ended up replacing it with this one down the line.

Hopkins FloTool 42003MI 16-Quart Drain Container

6. Price

When choosing the best oil drain pan on the market you will also want to look at the prices of the different options.  I don’t know about you but I’m not made of money, you will want to go with the best oil drain pan that you can afford. Luckily oil drain pans are not that expensive and should last you a long time as they are made of hard plastic.  You should not need to replace your oil drain pan unless something on it breaks from use.

7.Easy to Use

You would also want to choose an oil drain pan that is going to be easy to use by you and your other family members if they wanted to use it.  Most oil drain pans that are designed to be sealed will come with a drain hole on the top, an air vent, and another drain hole on the side or bottom so that you can easily drain the oil drain pan once it’s full.

Oil Change Tips

Wear Gloves

When changing your oil you are going to get dirty from working underneath your car and handling your old oil and oil filter.  It’s a good idea to put on some nitrile gloves like the ones below to protect your hands from all the grease and grime of doing your oil changes.  This also has an added benefit of adding another layer to your hands to protect them. You could wear Mechanix gloves while doing your oil change but if you get oil on them they are not that easy to clean which is why I recommend disposable nitrile gloves.  Below is a link to the nitrile gloves that I ended up going with.

AMMEX Industrial Nitrile Gloves – Gloveworks – Disposable, Powder Free, 5 mil

Dispose of Old Oil Properly

You should take your old oil to your local auto parts store so that they can recycle that old oil instead of dumping your old oil somewhere.  You are damaging the environment when you dump oil outdoors and it could potentially cause greater harm than you are aware of. If you dump your oil it has a chance of getting into the rainwater when it rains killing all sorts of animals and wildlife.  You can also be fined if you are caught illegally dumping your oil outdoors.

Storing Old Oil

Some people will clean out used milk jugs and then store their used engine oil in said milk jugs so that they could then transport them to their local auto parts store to dump later.  If you already have another fluid storage container with a tight-fitting lid then that would probably work better but an old milk jug is also an option. Just make sure that whatever container you decide to store your old oil in has a tight-fitting cap so that it does not have a chance to spill or leak out.

Transporting Old Oil

I usually put down a couple of old boxes underneath the oil drain pan when I go to transport my old oil to the local auto parts store to help protect the carpet of my vehicle.  If you do a good job of making sure that your oil drain pan is clean after every use then this should not matter as much but I like to do it as an extra precaution anyway.

Cover Your Garage Floor

If you are new to changing your oil or just want to help protect your garage floor it may not be a bad idea to put down a protective barrier between your garage floor and the oil that you will be draining from your car.  I will typically grab a couple of cardboard boxes and put them down on the garage floor and then put my oil drain pan on top of them to create a barrier between my garage floor and any oil that may splash onto it. As you get better at draining your oil and using your specific oil drain pan you may no longer need to put down cardboard.

Vent While Using

If you decide to go with a sealable oil drain pan you will want to make sure that you unplug or open the vent cap on the side or on the top before draining your oil.  This vent cap is designed to allow your oil to flow more smoothly into the container and if you do not open up the vent cap then the used oil can spill over the sides of the container.  I’ve made this mistake myself before so don’t be like me.

Use Vehicle Ramps and Jack Stands

If you are planning on changing your own oil frequently it may not be a bad idea to invest in some vehicle ramps.  Vehicle ramps will allow you to drive your vehicle onto the ramps so that the underside of your vehicle is easy to access to make changing your oil easier.  You can get your vehicle as high in the air using a floor jack but using vehicle ramps such as the ones listed below make the job easier as you don’t have to mess with jacking up your vehicle in the air.  

You can also use vehicle ramps along with jack stands if you really want some added protection against your vehicle falling on top of you.  You would first drive your vehicle onto the ramps and then set your jack stands underneath the vehicle. Then if one of the ramps were to fail the vehicle would fall onto the jack stands instead of your face.

RhinoGear 11909ABMI RhinoRamps Vehicle Ramp

These are some of the best selling vehicle ramps on Amazon and have a 12,000-pound vehicle capacity so most personal vehicles would be able to use them with no problem.  Most cars are going to weigh anywhere from 3,000 – 5,000 pounds just to give you an idea of how much weight these could hold.

My Oil Drain Pan Recommendations

Hopkins FloTool 42003MI 16-Quart Drain Container

This Hopkins FloTool oil drain pan is designed to hold up to 16 quarts of oil at full capacity and is made of heavy-duty plastic.  The heavy-duty plastic should ensure that it holds up over time and does not crack or break from use. This oil drain pan is the one that I own and is the best one that I have seen online.  

What I like about this oil drain pan is that it is sealable and it can hold 16 quarts of oil before needing to be emptied.  With my car, this means three oil changes but I usually go and dump it after two oil changes.

Because I currently have a car as my main means of transportation I need to transport my old oil to the auto parts store in my trunk.  This pretty much ruled out any open style oil drain pans for me as I did not want the oil to spill out into my trunk when I was driving around.  

This Hopkins FloTool was a good solution to this as I have not had any issues with getting any oil on the carpets of my car trunk or having the container leak.

One thing to note with this oil drain pan is that it seems like it was designed for use with smaller vehicles.  The top drain plug holes do a good job of keeping up with the amount of oil that my car outputs when changing the oil, however, if you had a large truck with a higher oil capacity I could see it struggling to keep up or the oil overflowing on the sides.  Hopkins does offer larger 24 and 58-quart models for sale through which I’d imagine were larger and better able to handle large oil capacities.

My car only takes 5 quarts of oil which this thing seems to take down like a champ. However, if you had a large truck with a higher oil capacity I could see the drain pan holes

Some people have complained of the build quality in their reviews but I have not experienced what they said they had issues with.  Some issues that people had mentioned was that the plastic was thin and that the oil air vent would not stay shut. I will store this container laying flat so as long as the main drain plug works it does the job for me.

Another complaint in the reviews was that the top drain plug would not stay secure or would strip over time.  I would say that on my oil drain pan the top drain plug is not the most secure but it will stay attached to the top of the drain. If you were planning on storing this container in an upright position then you may want to go with another one as I don’t know how well the top drain plug would hold the weight of oil inside of it.  I feel like it would have a good chance of leaking if you were planning on storing it upright.

Capri Tools CP21023 Portable Oil Drain Pan

The Capri tools portable oil drain pan is an open style drain pan that can hold up to 4.5 gallons of oil.  It is designed with an anti-splash lip to help contain fluids when draining them from your vehicle. It is made from high-density polyethylene so it should hold up well over time and will be resistant to chemicals and different solvents.  It also features a 1-inch pour spout so that you can easily drain your used oil into storage containers. This oil drain pan also has handles on both ends to make pouring your used fluids easier.

This style of oil drain pan would typically be used in combination with some sort of oil storage container as you won’t really be able to store your used oil in this drain pan without the chance of something falling into it or having it splash out.  

ATD Tools 5184 Black Drain Pan – 4-1/2 Gallon Capacity

This ATD Tools oil drain pan is designed to be an open or oil catch type oil pan.  It is shaped like a small above ground pool to help to catch every drop of oil from the bottom of your vehicle while you are draining your oil.  This oil drain pan has a capacity of 4 and ½ gallons so it’s large enough to hold plenty of oil. Even from heavy-duty trucks with large engines and high oil capacity should have no problem draining their oil to this oil drain pan.

This oil drain pan can be stored with oil inside of it but that’s probably not the best option.  You never know when someone could accidentally kick the oil drain pan or drop something into it. This style of oil drain pan should be used in conjunction with containers that you could then pour your used oil into to then transport to your local auto parts store to dump.

This oil drain pan comes with a large side spout with handles to make it easy to pour out the old oil that you have collected from your vehicle when you are done changing your oil.

Hopkins FloTool 42008 Crude Control Oil Drain Pan – 58 Quart

If you are looking for a very large capacity oil drain pan look no further.  This Hopkins Flotool oil drain pan can hold up to 58 quarts of liquid. This oil drain pan is designed to have leak-proof drain caps and seals to help protect against leaking.  It also comes with built-in handles and a drain spout to help you pour out your used oil easily.

I don’t know about your vehicle but mine only takes 5 quarts of oil which means that I could drain my oil over 10 times before needing to dump it from this container.  Just keep in mind with that large of an oil capacity it is going to be a large container so you are going to need a larger area to store this when not in use than some of the smaller oil drain pans listed here.  

This oil drain pan is a sealed style oil drain pan so you don’t have to mess around with transporting your used oil from this oil drain pan to other storage containers to dump later.  You can take this oil drain pan and put it in your vehicle without worrying about it spilling out or leaking.

Matrix Concepts M28 Oil Drain Container, Clear

The Matrix Concepts oil drain pan is a sealed style oil drain pan that from reviews says can take 6-7 quarts of oil.  One thing that makes this oil drain pan stand out from the rest of the sealable oil drain pans is that it has clear plastic so that you can see how full the container is by looking through the plastic to gauge how close the oil is to filling up the container.  

With other sealable containers, they are going to have black plastic that you can not see through, you would need to judge how full they are by guessing based on the weight of the container.

One thing to note with this oil drain pan is that with a 6-7 quart oil capacity you will most likely need to drain this oil drain pan after every use.  For you, this may not be that big of a deal but I just wanted to make that clear. If you want to go a couple of oil changes without having to dump your oil look elsewhere.  

Hopkins 11838 FloTool 15-Quart Oil Drain

If you are looking for the cheapest oil drain pan available look no further.  Now with this oil drain pan, the old adage of you get what you pay for applies.  It is a very cheap oil drain pan which I have also owned that does not come without its flaws.  I’m putting this last on the list for this reason.

For starters, I don’t know that I would really recommend this oil drain pan for most people just because of how cheaply made it is.  However, if you understand that it is very cheap and you may need to keep replacing it occasionally then go for it.

The one that I had ended up holding up alright over time but the oil drain cap ended up breaking off from the ring that is designed to attach it to the oil drain pan.  Not that big of a deal but others have complained of low quality plastic in their reviews as well.

Related Questions

What is the best oil drain pan that doesn’t leak?  The best oil drain pan that doesn’t leak that I have found is the Hopkins FloTool oil drain pan that I mentioned previously in this article.  It features a sealable screw plug that you can use to secure the oil drain to prevent any used oil from spilling out of it when you least want it to.  

With that said the oil drain pan can be stood up on its side to store the oil drain pan.  I don’t know that I would trust the drain pan plug to hold in the oil while it is sitting upright for a long time.  These sorts of oil drain pans are designed to hold oil for a short amount of time to be able to get the old oil to an oil recycling facility.  They are not meant to be used to store oil for extended periods of time.

If you are planning on storing your used oil for extended periods of time before being able to dump the old oil, then I would recommend going with a metal container that would have an actual metal screw top lid or store the old oil in another temporary storage container such as a milk jug until you have time to take the old oil to the recycling facility.

The Hopkins flotool oil drain pan would be fine to store old oil laying flat on it’s back for a long period of time.  As long as you don’t need to stand it up on its side then you should be fine.

What is the best motorcycle oil drain pan?  I use the same Hopkins flotool oil drain pan that I use on my car to drain my motorcycle’s oil as well.  I bought a motorcycle lift stand that I use to lift the rear end of the motorcycle up in the air to be better able to access the oil drain plug and have the engine oil flow more quickly out of the oil drain pan.  

The rear motorcycle lift stand will hook on to pegs that are fitted to the rear swing arm to be able to lift the rear end of the motorcycle into the air safely and securely.  Once the rear of the motorcycle is positioned onto the rear lift stand I then have enough room to slide the Hopkins flotool oil drain pan underneath the engine oil drain plug on the motorcycle then drain the oil.  

This is nice because I don’t have to have two separate oil drain pans for both my car and motorcycle.  Having just one allows me to save trips between dumping the old oil as well as the Hopkins flotool oil drain pan has a 16-ounce capacity.  I can usually change my oil 2-3 times before needing to take the old oil to an oil recycling facility.

If you are interested in buying the motorcycle stands that I went with I’ve included a link to Amazon here:  Venom motorcycle lift stands

What is the best plastic oil drip pan?  The best plastic oil drip pan is the Hopkins flotool oil drip pan that I mentioned above.  It has a 16-ounce capacity which should be enough to get you through two or three oil changes before needing to dump out the old oil from your vehicles.  

It has tough durable plastic construction that makes it easy to clean.  It has two main fill points that you can use to drip oil into. If you lay it flat on the ground it has a raked surface that allows the oil to flow directly into the drip pan hole.  

It also has another oil fill and drain hole at the top of the drip pan if you stand it up vertically.  It features a vent hole to be better able to dump the old oil out once you are ready for that step.

How do you keep an oil drain pan clean?  The best way to keep an oil drain pan clean is to clean it after every use.  That way the old oil doesn’t become caked to the surface of the oil drain pan and become impossible to remove down the line.  

When you get done draining your oil from your vehicle then you want to take a shop towel or paper towel to wipe down the oil that did not flow into the drain pan hole.  

You would also want to make sure that you wipe the sides of the oil drain pan and check the bottom for any oil before transporting it.  That way your oil drain pan stays clean between uses.

I’ve had an oil drain pan that I did not clean after each use and it eventually got so caked with oil, dirt, and debris that I eventually just replaced it with my current oil drain pan.

In Conclusion

There are a lot of different oil drain pans on the market all with different uses and capacities.  Depending on the capacity that you need your oil drain pan or if you want to go with an open design versus a sealed design should be your two main considerations to take when choosing from the best oil drain pans on the market.