A good-quality plate is the centerpiece of any meal. Choosing the right dish is one of the first and most important steps of setting a table.
A simple white plate is an everyday essential, suited to casual dining and formal feasts alike. A black plate makes a dramatic backdrop, while a patterned plate brings ornate elegance to the most ordinary food. Square plates add edge, while smaller dishes are most suitable for appetites and desserts.
That's even before you get into the materials. There's bone china for style and glazed stoneware for strength. There are so many types of plate for sale and so many dinnerware dealers that it can be difficult to know where to start.
That’s why I’ve done the hard work for you. I’m a shopping writer, and I’ve spent hours searching the top tableware sites to bring you the very best dishes. I’ve found the perfect plate for every budget and every occasion. Whether you’re looking for restaurant-quality kitchenware or a dish for the everyday, I’ve got you covered.
Best plates 2024
Diameter: 11”
Materials: Bone china
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Durable
+Lightweight
+Suitable for casual or formal dining
-May not be suitable for all diners
When a plate design is this simple, the finished product has to be quality. Created in collaboration with expert ceramics designer Robin Levien, this dish is perfect for both casual and formal dining. It’s made from bone china, which is the highest quality ceramic used for tableware. This plate is strong and durable, yet light and delicate, with a subtle rim to prevent food spills. Best of all, it’s totally dishwasher- and microwave-safe for quick cleaning and easy reheating.
Diameter: 11”
Materials: Ceramic
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Durable
+Stylish
+Heat-resistant
-May not suit all diners
This cream ceramic plate oozes Old World elegance. It’s a dinner party styling essential. Each dish has been hand-crafted, creating subtle variation from piece to piece. The size and style of these dishes makes them some of the best plates for plating food. At 11 inches wide, they’re large enough to accommodate bigger meals with room to spare, while the embossed border makes a beautiful frame for smaller desserts and appetizers. Dishwasher-, microwave-, and even oven-safe, they’re easy to heat and clean.
Diameter: 12.25”
Materials: Porcelain
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Durable
+Modern
+Microwave-safe
-May not suit all diners
Investing in the right square plate is a quick and easy way to elevate an everyday meal. This plain white plate is a dining staple, but its shape adds interest and intrigue. Like all porcelain dishes, this plate is relatively durable. It’s been fired at high temperatures to create a dense, hard material that can withstand everyday chips and cracks. It’s totally dishwasher- and microwave-safe, so it can be quickly cleaned and safely reheated. Just bear in mind that these plates are on the larger side. They’ll be less suitable for smaller desserts and appetizers, but they should still fit in most standard dishwashers.
Diameter: 5.9”
Materials: Stoneware
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Affordable
+Beautiful color
-Heavy
-Not suitable for larger dishes
Hand-crafted by Portuguese artisans, each of these stoneware plates has been carefully sculpted and fired with a reactive glaze. It’s this glaze finish that gives each piece its unique character and color palette. The color gradation reveals deep browns and neutral earth tones, which will fit right in with a rustic kitchen. Less than six inches wide, these plates are perfect for hors-d'œuvres, appetizers, and desserts. These plates are small, but they’re still stoneware, so they’ll be heavier than your average saucer.
Diameter: 17.8”
Materials: Porcelain
Dishwasher-safe: Yes, to 130°F
Microwave-safe: No
+Perfect for presentation
+Great for big portions
-Heavy
-Not microwave-safe
Black plates make dishes pop. They bring sophistication and elegance to every occasion. This Sambonet set in deep obsidian black is particularly dramatic. Each plate is seventeen inches wide, so they’re great for showcasing big dishes and bright colors. While the size of this plate makes each meal a spectacle, the dish itself is much heavier than average. The black color absorbs a lot of heat. These plates can quickly become hot to the touch, so they’re unsuitable for microwaves and warm dishwasher cycles.
Diameter: 13.6”
Materials: Stoneware
Dishwasher-safe: Yes, in soft water. Avoid salt and anti-limestone detergents.
Microwave-safe: No
+One-of-a-kind
+Perfect for presentation
-Expensive
-High-maintenance
Painted in deep blues and grass greens, this patterned plate will look great in a colorful kitchen. Every dish in this collection has been hand-sculpted by expert ceramicist Bela Silva, resulting in natural variation and transforming each plate into a collector’s item. This stoneware plate is perfect for presentation, but it’s a nightmare to clean. It’s dishwasher-safe, but only if you can use soft water, avoid strong detergents, and minimize prolonged contact with steam. Unless you’re looking for a plate that’s a real conversation piece, and you’re happy to wash it by hand, you’re better off looking elsewhere.
Diameter: 11.25”
Materials: Glazed stoneware
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Durable
+Versatile
+Stylish
-Heavy
These Anthropologie dishes come in six shades, so you can choose the style that best suits your dining room. The stoneware has been finished with a satin reactive glaze, creating tonal highs and lows that will deepen over time. Like all stoneware plates, this dish has been fired at extremely high temperatures to maximize strength and durability. That means it’s heat-resistant, so it’s dishwasher- and microwave-safe. It also means it’s chip-resistant, able to withstand everyday use. If you like the look of these Jasper Portuguese Dinner Plates, you can shop the rest of the collection, which includes cereal bowls and side plates. The only downside is its weight. These stoneware dishes are on the heavier side, so they’re not suitable for small children.
Diameter: Unspecified
Materials: Ceramic
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Made from natural, non-toxic materials
+Perfect for presentation
-Fragile
The design of these dinner plates is inspired by Ming and Qing period pottery. Each dish has been hand-painted with a gorgeous blue underglaze, which creates a perfect contrasting background for your food. You can collect the whole set of Kraak dinnerware on OKA’s website, or mix and match their dishes to create a range that’s totally unique to you. This one-of-a-kind dish is made from ceramic, which is one of the most delicate materials for dinner plates. OKA’s high standards for the safe transportation of their ceramics mean your plate should arrive in one piece, but it’s up to you to care for it in your kitchen. If you’re prone to skids and slips, these are not the dinner plates for you.
Diameter: 9”
Materials: Unspecified
Dishwasher-safe: Yes
Microwave-safe: Yes
+Made in the USA
+Durable
+Microwave-safe
-On the smaller side
Unlike many of the dishes on this list, this dinner plate has been made in the USA using domestically-sourced raw materials. USA Dinnerware Direct has been manufacturing plates in Newell, West Virginia, for over 150 years. Their Americana Luncheon Plate is an everyday essential. Hand-finished with a durable, chip-resistant design, it’s dishwasher-, microwave-, and oven-safe. Slightly on the smaller side at nine inches wide, this dish is ideal for plating midday meals, salads, and desserts.
Best plates 2024 FAQs
Which dinner plate material is best?
Every dinner plate material has its own strengths and weaknesses. Which is best all depends on the dining occasion, as well as your personal preferences.
Stoneware plates are among the most common you’ll come across, and they’re also some of the most durable. These plates have been fired at extremely high temperatures, so they’re chip- and crack-resistant. Be warned, though: as plates go, stoneware dishes are pretty heavy. Ceramic dishes are lightweight, and often less expensive, but they’re less durable. Porcelain plates are long-lasting, and less likely to get scratched, but they may be prone to cracks. Your color options are more limited, too.
Can dinner plates go in the oven or the microwave?
Dinner plates are designed to be somewhat heat-resistant, so that you can serve hot food. While many dinner plates will be microwave-safe, only some can withstand oven temperatures. You should always check the product details of your plate before placing it in the oven or the microwave.
Final thoughts
Once you’ve bought one, some, or all of the best plates, you’ll need somewhere to store them. There are many ways to organize plates in a kitchen to save space and make cooking and cleaning more enjoyable.
If you’re investing in new dinnerware, you’ll want to kit out your kitchen with one of the best flatware sets.
Some of the best dinner plates are so beautiful, you won’t want to eat off them. You can repurpose old plates as a stylish wall feature, though you might want to learn how to hang plates on a wall first.
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