Best Food Dehydrator Trays for Five Specific Setups

How the Five Compare on the Numbers

The five picks split into two groups: liners and one full tray. The GUCUJI sheets are published as 12.6 inches in diameter. The Bright Kitchen sheets are 12.5 inches in diameter. The YGKATING mats are 11.8 by 10.6 inches. The Lova sheets are 14 by 14 inches. The NESCO WT-2SG is a tray, not a liner, and its dimension fields read 4.0 by 2.5 by 14.0 inches, with nothing in the listing to say which figure is which.

Weight ranges from 0.32 pound for the GUCUJI five-pack to 1.3 pounds for the YGKATING four-pack. The Lova twelve-pack is 1.23 pounds. The NESCO WT-2SG and the Bright Kitchen four-pack are both 1.0 pound. Pack counts are five, four, twelve, two, and four. Only the YGKATING and Bright Kitchen listings state a raised edge for liquids.

The table does not tell you whether a sheet will sit flat on your tray, whether the mesh holes line up with your machine’s airflow, or whether a raised lip will clear the tray above it. It also does not tell you how a sheet behaves after many washes. Those are things the makers do not publish, and nobody at Lush has used these products.

Round Mesh Against Edged Mats

What the mesh sheets are for

The GUCUJI sheets are published as 12.6 inches in diameter with mesh holes around 1x1mm. The maker states the mesh promotes airflow from top and bottom and keeps small fruit from falling through. That makes them a fit for berries, herbs, and thin slices where you want air moving through the tray. The listing does not state a raised edge, so a thin puree is not what this sheet is documented for.

The Lova sheets are also mesh, published at 14 by 14 inches, and the listing states the tight weave holds berries, sliced herbs, thin jerky strips, and small vegetable pieces. The difference is the size and the pack count. Lova gives you twelve sheets at 14 by 14 inches; GUCUJI gives you five at 12.6 inches in diameter. If your tray is round and near 12.6 inches, the GUCUJI shape is the closer match.

What the edged mats are for

The YGKATING mats are published as 11.8 by 10.6 inches with a raised lip around the edge. The maker states the lip prevents liquid spill and that the mats suit fruit leathers, eggs, tomato, banana puree, and pumpkin. The stated temperature range is -86 F to 446 F. The listing also states the mats are dishwasher safe. This is the pick for wet mixtures that would run off a flat mesh sheet.

The Bright Kitchen sheets take the same idea to a round shape. They are published as 12.5 inches in diameter with a 1/4 inch edge and a 3 inch center hole. The maker states the edge holds liquid batter and that the sheets fit NESCO round and square machines. The center hole is a published figure, and it matters because a round tray with a center post needs that opening.

Fit, Pack Count, and Expansion

Matching a sheet to a machine

The GUCUJI listing names NESCO FD-28JX, FD-35, FD-37, FD-39, FD-40, FD-50, FD-60, FD-61, FD-61WHC, FD-75A, FD-75PR, and MasterChef MTF-DHY-795. The YGKATING listing names Cosori CP267-FD and Magic Mill MFD-7070. The Bright Kitchen listing states it fits all NESCO round and square models but warns buyers of other brands to measure first. The Lova listing states the 14 by 14 inch sheets fit most standard round and square trays and can be trimmed.

The NESCO WT-2SG is the odd one out. It is not a liner at all. It is a set of two stackable trays for NESCO 20 and 30 series dehydrators, made of food-grade plastic, and the maker states it is compatible with 13 and a half inch diameter trays. If you already own a NESCO 20 or 30 series machine and want more rack space, this is the expansion part, not a sheet.

How many sheets you get

Pack count decides how much you can dry before you stop to wash. Lova gives twelve sheets, the largest count of the five. GUCUJI gives five. YGKATING and Bright Kitchen each give four. NESCO gives two trays. If you run a full machine in one batch, the Lova twelve-pack is the one that lines every rack without a mid-batch wash, as the maker states.

The trade is size against count. Lova sheets are 14 by 14 inches and may need trimming for a smaller tray. GUCUJI sheets are already round at 12.6 inches. YGKATING mats are 11.8 by 10.6 inches and are stated for specific machines. Bright Kitchen sheets are 12.5 inches round with a center hole. Pick the shape that matches your tray first, then the count.

Material, Heat and Washing

What each material is stated to take

Four of these five are silicone and one is plastic. GUCUJI states a range of minus 40 to 428 degrees Fahrenheit, repeats it as minus 40 to 220 degrees Celsius, and is the only pick here that publishes a thickness, 0.8 mm restated as 30 mil. YGKATING states minus 86 to 446 degrees Fahrenheit, the widest band on this page, on 100 percent food grade silicone.

The other three publish nothing comparable. Lova states only that its sheets are rated for standard dehydrator temperatures, which is a sentence rather than a figure. Bright Kitchen states 100 percent food grade silicone and no range at all. The NESCO trays state food grade plastic and no range, which on the one pick made of plastic rather than silicone is the omission a buyer would most want filled.

What each maker will commit to on washing

Three of the five state a dishwasher claim. YGKATING states the liners are very easily hand washed and can also go in the dishwasher after use. Lova states a wipe with warm soapy water or a place on the top rack. Bright Kitchen states non stick, easy to clean and dishwasher safe in a single line. All three put the claim in their own text rather than leaving it to a care label.

The other two stop short. GUCUJI states that food will not stick and that cleanup is a rinse in warm soapy water or a wipe, and never uses the word dishwasher. The NESCO trays are stated reusable and easy to clean with no method named at all. Neither is a refusal, but neither is a permission either, and on a tray that holds sticky fruit that distinction is worth reading.

Which One Fits Your Kitchen

NESCO round-tray owner. The GUCUJI five-pack is published at 12.6 inches in diameter and names a long list of NESCO models. If your tray is near that size and you want mesh airflow, this is the direct match.

Cosori or Magic Mill owner. The YGKATING four-pack is published at 11.8 by 10.6 inches and names Cosori CP267-FD and Magic Mill MFD-7070. The raised edge is there for puree and fruit leather.

Mixed or unknown tray sizes. The Lova twelve-pack arrives at 14 by 14 inches and the maker states it trims with household scissors. You get twelve sheets, the most of the five, and you cut them down.

NESCO 20 or 30 series owner wanting more racks. The NESCO WT-2SG adds two stackable trays. It is a tray, not a liner, and its dimension fields read 4.0 by 2.5 by 14.0 inches.

NESCO round-tray owner drying liquids. The Bright Kitchen four-pack is published at 12.5 inches in diameter with a 1/4 inch edge and a 3 inch center hole. The lip is the reason to choose it over a flat mesh sheet.

What We Could Not Verify

The makers publish some figures and leave others blank. These are the gaps I could not fill from the fact sheet.

• No thickness is published for the NESCO WT-2SG tray.
• The YGKATING listing does not publish a center hole size.
• The Lova listing does not publish a temperature range.
• The Bright Kitchen listing does not publish a temperature range.
• The NESCO WT-2SG listing does not publish a temperature range.
• No mesh hole size is published for the YGKATING, Lova or Bright Kitchen products, so only the GUCUJI figure of about 1 by 1 mm can be compared.