Yeah, I know.  It’s a trash can.  And it is an expensive trash can (though we did get ours on sale on Amazon, so it was a bit less painful).  But the entire family is in love with this thing and if you consider how many times a day you use a kitchen trash can, the cost per use is danged low.  So why is it so great?

1. Dogs and cats cannot get in this thing.  Even smart and determined ones.  This is huge!
2. It’s good looking and it is “slimline” – takes up much less space than similar volume cheap trashcans.  I can’t say it is 100% fingerprint free, but it’s pretty resistant (especially being hands free).  It does collect some stray paw prints as the cat likes to walk across it.
3. Trash bags are easy to change out.  A standard kitchen bag fits this perfectly without fighting it on.  This was something I completely loathed about our old kitchen can.
4. A pizza box fits in the can.  This was a bigger deal around here than you would think.
5. It has a pedal open and a butterfly top – one hand trash dumping, slim profile, slow close.  Based on how slowly it closes, I’d say no issue with kid’s fingers but it hasn’t been determined kid tested.
6. It’s solid and sturdy without being stupidly heavy.  Though it’s heavy enough that it doesn’t get knocked around (or over) by accident.
7. It allows you to fill the trash bag up completely.  No more weird unfilled corners at the bottom and shaking the trash down to close the bag.

My son suggested it was time for a “good trash can” for the kitchen and I spent a few days researching trash cans (yep, I really did) to meet our requirements and eliminate all our complaints.  This thing scored a home run.  And looks good too.  Check out SimpleHuman for the Butterfly Step Can, really.  (They are also sold on Amazon and at Home Depot among other places – shop around, the prices vary by as much as $30.) 🙂