Brands

The best Hefty trash bags

Hefty sells on strength and on scent, and the two do not always come together. Here is which box does which, and the one Hefty can worth owning.

By Ryder M. · Last reviewed November 10, 2026

Lid & Liner is reader-supported. If you buy through a link on this page we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes which product we rank first — how we pick and how we make money.

The short answer

Buy Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon. It is the box the whole brand is built on: a 13-gallon drawstring bag with scent treatment aimed squarely at kitchen odor, and the one Hefty product that beats its Glad equivalent on the thing it is sold for. For a bigger can, the Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL is the same idea at 75.7 liters. The budget pick is the Hefty 8 Gallon Fabuloso 26-count, the smallest outlay here and the right size for a bathroom. The Hefty 12 Gallon Step Trash Can with Lockable Lid is the only can the brand puts its name on that we would buy.

#	Product	Best for	Price
01	Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 GallonThe main alternative to Glad, with odor control worked into the film rather than added as a scent strip.	Best for odor	$15.47 · View on Amazon $17.99 · 14% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
02	Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Lavender Vanilla, 80 CountThe one 20-gallon bag a household brand makes in a useful count, dimensioned tall rather than wide so it reaches the rim of a kitchen can.	Best overall	$22.99 · View on Amazon $24.99 · 8% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
03	Hefty 8 Gallon Medium Trash Bags, White, Fabuloso Lavender Scent, 26 CountHefty's medium drawstring in a 26-count - the low-commitment box, and the one most likely to be on a shelf near you.	Best small box to try	$5.75 · View on Amazon Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
04	Hefty 12 Gallon Step Trash Can with Lockable LidA plastic 12-gallon step can whose lid actually locks to the body — the cheapest honest answer to a dog or a toddler in the trash.	Best cheap locking can	$47.02 · View on Amazon Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

The Hefty versus Glad question comes up constantly and it does have an answer that depends on what you are buying for. Glad vs Hefty trash bags puts them side by side on measured dimensions and gauge rather than on marketing.

What Hefty is good at, and where it is not

Scent treatment. This is the brand's clearest strength. The Ultra Strong line leans hard on odor control and it is the reason the 13-gallon box is a repeat purchase in a lot of kitchens.
Drawstring quality. Hefty's drawstrings are consistently good, which matters more than gauge for a bag that gets carried through the house.
The cut is slightly narrower than Glad's at the same stated capacity - the measured dimensions on the comparison page show it. In a snug can that is an advantage; in a wide one it is not.
Scent is not for everyone. Hefty's range is overwhelmingly scented. If someone in the house reacts to fragrance, the best unscented trash bags is the alternative list.
Hefty is not really a can brand. The step can here is a decent lockable can, but the range is not comparable to the dedicated can makers - the best kitchen trash cans under $100 is where to look for the can itself.

Who each pick is for

Pick	Who it is for	Size	Scent
Hefty Ultra Strong 13 Gallon	The standard kitchen can, odor the main concern	13 gal	Scented
Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL	A 20-gallon kitchen or utility can	20 gal / 75.7 L	Lavender Vanilla
Hefty 8 Gallon Fabuloso	The budget pick - a bathroom or office bin	8 gal	Fabuloso Lavender
Hefty 12 Gallon Lockable Step Can	A can for children or pets, taking standard bags	12 gal / 48 qt	n/a

Sizes, counts and scents are the manufacturer's own listing figures.

The picks in full

01 — Best for odor

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

The main alternative to Glad, with odor control worked into the film rather than added as a scent strip.

Nominal size: 13 gallons
Closure: Drawstring
Resistance: Leak, puncture and tear resistant
Odor control: Continuous, built into the film

Hefty's Ultra Strong line resists leaks, punctures and rips and carries odor control across the whole bag rather than in one strip. If your problem is a can that smells within a day rather than bags that split, this is the more useful of the two big brands.

What we'd flag: scented bags mask rather than remove, and plenty of people find the scent worse than the smell it covers. Try one box before you buy a case.

$15.47 · View on Amazon

$17.99 · 14% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

02 — Best overall

Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Lavender Vanilla, 80 Count

The one 20-gallon bag a household brand makes in a useful count, dimensioned tall rather than wide so it reaches the rim of a kitchen can.

Capacity: 20 gallons / 75.7 liters
Count: 80 bags
Closure: Drawstring
Scent: Lavender Vanilla
Gauge: Not published at this size
Manufacturer claim: Holds 50% more than a 13-gallon bag

Twenty gallons is a size the bag aisle mostly skips, and the gap matters because a 20-gallon kitchen can gets its extra volume from height - 29 to 32 inches of it - so a 13-gallon bag physically cannot reach the rim. This is Hefty's answer: an extra-tall version of the Ultra Strong drawstring in an 80-count. Hefty's own claim on the listing is that it holds 50% more than its 13-gallon bag, which is the right way to read it. This is a taller bag, not a wider one.

What we'd flag: Hefty publishes no gauge and no bag dimensions for this size, which is frustrating given that its 13-gallon Strong bag is sold on a published 0.9 mil at 23.75 by 27 inches and its 30-gallon Ultra Strong on 1.1 mil at 30 by 33 inches. It is also scented, and lavender vanilla in a 20-gallon can is a lot of perfume at close range.

$22.99 · View on Amazon

$24.99 · 8% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

03 — Best small box to try

Hefty 8 Gallon Medium Trash Bags, White, Fabuloso Lavender Scent, 26 Count

Hefty's medium drawstring in a 26-count - the low-commitment box, and the one most likely to be on a shelf near you.

Capacity: 8 gallons
Count: 26 bags
Closure: Drawstring
Scent: Fabuloso lavender

If you have just bought a small can and you do not yet know whether an 8-gallon liner fits it properly, this is the box to buy first. It is a drawstring bag from a brand that has to stand behind it, in a count small enough that getting it wrong costs very little. Hefty's scent system is a continuous-release additive rather than a top note, which in practice means it is less sharp on opening than the Glad bleach-scented bags and more persistent over a week.

What we'd flag: the per-bag cost in a 26-count is the worst on this page by a wide margin, so this is a sampler rather than a standing order. Hefty does not publish a gauge for its medium bags either, which at this size matters more than the brands admit. And Fabuloso lavender is a committed perfume - try one before you commit a case.

$5.75 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

04 — Best cheap locking can

Hefty 12 Gallon Step Trash Can with Lockable Lid

A plastic 12-gallon step can whose lid actually locks to the body — the cheapest honest answer to a dog or a toddler in the trash.

Capacity: 12 gallons / 48 quarts
Dimensions: 17.6" L x 11.7" W x 23.6" H
Lid: Lockable to the body
Pedal: Step-to-open, hands-free
Included: 40 Hefty trash bags
Material: Heavy-duty plastic

A heavy lid is not a lock. What stops an animal is a mechanical catch between the lid and the body, and that feature normally costs premium-can money. This has it on a 48-quart plastic step can for the price of a few boxes of bags: step to open, and the lid locks shut again rather than resting on a lip. Forty Hefty bags come in the box, which is unusually honest for a can that cheap — it arrives working.

What we'd flag: 12 gallons is a gallon short of the 13-gallon bag the whole category is built around, so a standard tall-kitchen bag will overhang a little. It is also plastic, so it scuffs where a steel can would dent, and the lock is a catch rather than a latch a large determined dog could not eventually work.

$47.02 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Buying Hefty well

Buy on count, not on box price. The same Hefty bag appears in several counts, and the larger box is almost always better per bag - the best bulk trash bags covers the thresholds.
Do not use a 13-gallon bag in a 20-gallon can. It is the most common Hefty mistake and the reason the bag ends up inside the can - why your trash bag does not fit.
Use the scent where it helps and not where it does not. Scented in a kitchen can, unscented in a bedroom or bathroom bin, is the arrangement most households settle on.
For the full 13-gallon market, not just Hefty, the best 13 gallon trash bags ranks every brand we cover against measured dimensions.

The two Hefty boxes worth standing orders: the 13-gallon Ultra Strong for a kitchen can, the 20-gallon XL for anything bigger.

Best for odor

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

The main alternative to Glad, with odor control worked into the film rather than added as a scent strip.

$15.47 · View on Amazon

$17.99 · 14% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Best overall

Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Lavender Vanilla, 80 Count

The one 20-gallon bag a household brand makes in a useful count, dimensioned tall rather than wide so it reaches the rim of a kitchen can.

$22.99 · View on Amazon

$24.99 · 8% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Common questions

What is the best Hefty trash bag?

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon. It is the box the brand is built on, with the scent treatment that makes it a repeat purchase in a lot of kitchens.

Is Hefty better than Glad?

On scent and drawstring, generally yes. On cut width at the same stated capacity they differ, and which is better depends on your can - the direct comparison page has the measured dimensions.

Does Hefty make unscented trash bags?

The mainstream Hefty range is overwhelmingly scented. If you need fragrance-free, other brands cover that better.

What size Hefty bag fits a 20-gallon can?

The Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL, rated at 75.7 liters. A 13-gallon tall kitchen bag will not reach the rim of a 20-gallon can.

Does Hefty make trash cans?

There is a Hefty-branded step can range. The 12 gallon lockable step can is the one worth owning; for a serious kitchen can, buy from a dedicated can maker.

What is the cheapest Hefty box?

The 8 gallon Fabuloso 26-count. It is the smallest outlay in the range and the right size for a bathroom or office bin.

Sources

Every specification on this page traces to one of these, checked at the time of writing. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure, the page says so rather than estimating it.

The short answer

What Hefty is good at, and where it is not

Who each pick is for

The picks in full

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Lavender Vanilla, 80 Count

Hefty 8 Gallon Medium Trash Bags, White, Fabuloso Lavender Scent, 26 Count

Hefty 12 Gallon Step Trash Can with Lockable Lid

Buying Hefty well

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

Hefty Ultra Strong 20 Gallon XL Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, Lavender Vanilla, 80 Count

Common questions

What is the best Hefty trash bag?

Is Hefty better than Glad?

Does Hefty make unscented trash bags?

What size Hefty bag fits a 20-gallon can?

Does Hefty make trash cans?

What is the cheapest Hefty box?

Sources

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