Light will make coffee go stale faster. I wouldn't store a lot of it in a clear glass jar, but there have been times when I've ground beans enough to last 2-3 days and stored the extra in a Mason jar. It's been fine, but again, it's just a couple of days. I think I wouldn't store a lot of coffee in a clear container.

Some other coffee hound help me out--would you store coffee in clear glass? I wouldn't--I have a feeling the sunlight would deteriorate it. But that's just my intuition; I don't have any backup for it.

I do find the quart to be the handiest size. Holds a bag of Bob's Red Mill or the handiest amount of a lot of our bulk food items--lentils, nuts, polenta, etc. (Also holds a quart of soup/stock!)
It usually holds a pound of beans, depending on the size of the beans--sometimes there's a little overflow.

Yeah, the wide mouth ones are definitely handy.
Not sure of your budget or storage space, but I'd just get a case (12) each of pint, quart, and half-gallon sizes, and then figure out what fits what as you go. I don't use the half gallon size myself but I find it handy to be able to grab either a pint or quart at any time depending on need.

I use the 64 oz ones for crackers, cereal (very handy if you've ripped a big hole in the bag when opening the package), baking mix, and larger amounts of rice or grains that I buy at Costco. They're also great for iced tea, coffee, lemonade, etc. Our fridge is sort of narrow, and the jars are a good way to use the vertical space more effectively. I also have a half-dozen or so of the quart size and (I think) a dozen of the 16 oz ones. Amazon has a decent selection and I've found them ridiculously cheap at Shoppers' Food Warehouse. We also have an old-school variety store near us that sells individual ones, which was nice when I was just starting to use them because I could try out the sizes without buying a whole set. Good luck!

Wow, thanks so much for these responses! Super helpful.

Perhaps you could recommend the size of mason jars I'd need for these items:

coffee grounds
tea bags
flour (I have both small bags and the 1lb(?) bags
Bob's Red Mill packages of various grains
Standard box of crackers (Triscuits)

I'm not able to check the packages at the moment but hoping I can buy the jars online now. I guess I'd like the wide mouth variety so I can get a measuring spoon or cup inside. Thanks again!

I use glass storage in my pantry but chose the fido jars ( with the glass lids ) instead of mason jars

Our old farmhouse has no cupboard doors while we're renovating. Everything is in mason jars. I love them. I use a few different sizes for everything from sesame seeds to pasta. I use the good old metal lids for my dry goods, but the plastic ones are better if you plan on anything wet.

They're also really handy for making lunch - mason jar salads stay fresh for the better part of a week.

In my house, we have every size of Mason jar. They're drinking glasses, non-plastic food storage (both in fridge and pantry), bug catchers for the kids, pen storage, water bottles, and we even do some actual canning. They're cute, cheap, and super functional.

Be careful using them for freezing liquids. Put them in the freezer open on top until the liquid freezes, then put the lid on. If you put the lid on first, the expansion of the freezing liquid can crack or shatter the glass.

That said, I still use them (quart size) for freezing stock, because I find them more convenient than doing it in freezer bags (which others have recommended). I just accept that occasionally I'm going to lose a quart to cracking.

Get a canning funnel--a wide, metal funnel with a mouth the size of the canning jar. Very cheap, and so convenient.

An alternative for freezing liquids is the French working glass--it comes with plastic lids, and it's thicker and won't break.



I got a bunch at Ikea; you can also find them at crate & barrel, williams sonoma, etc. But I don't like it as well as the canning jars that are quart size and have marked measurements on the side.

Ditto on the plastic lids. Anyplace that sells the jars usually sells the plastic lids -- the two-piece lids are really only needed for actual canning.
I use mine for tons of stuff.

Absolutely, they are great for food storage. I use the regular canning lids (two pieces) and it's a bit annoying but not a big deal. I know the seal is tight so I can bring soup and other liquids to work. I make one big batch of oatmeal and then divide it up into multiple jars for breakfast over the next few days.
We also store rice and beans and flour all kinds of pantry items in them.

Go for it and see if they work for you.

I highly recommend the plastic lids PP referred to. My MIL cans a lot of things and I make jam, and whenever we open them we switch to one of the plastic lids. They're much easier. The mouth of the jars are standard sizes (regular and wide mouth), so you can use the lids interchangably on jars of all different sizes.

They work AWESOME for all those things. By the pint-size ones to start, but you'll probably want a stash in all sizes as you'll find so many uses.

As for the lids, you can use the metal lids that come with them or you can buy plastic replacement lids on Amazon. And you might be able to get them from Target.

Things I use my various-sized mason jars for:
drinking glasses
freezer storage: soups to breastmilk
pen and change storage
vases for fresh flowers

I like the look and size of mason jars but I've never used them before -- the lid looks like it's two pieces rather than one (presumably because its intended purpose is to be a canning jar? Does it work as food storage, and as something I'd open a few times a day? I wanted to store coffee and tea in them, and maybe some grains, but just wondered if they are a good choice. I'm trying to go for more glass storage in the kitchen, mostly because I like the way it looks but also so I can see what all I have and not overbuy. Thanks much for your input!