Side by Side Comparison of: FoodSaver vs FoodVacBags

I love my FoodSaver! I mostly use it for blocks of cheese - it keeps them fresh for months and saves money over buying shredded. I also use it for buying bulk chicken and steaks and freezing them. It works wonders on preventing freezer burn and making them last longer. I was initially worried that I wouldn't use it because of the extra time it takes over just sticking stuff in a bag, but it takes less than a minute to set it up and make the bag and use.Pros: Does a great job at keeping stuff fresh. Extends the life of bulk food, ultimately saving money. Not too large to keep out on the counter top.Cons: Special bags (Costco always has a large value pack of the rolls).

My in-laws raise meat on their hobby farm and are always giving us free meat (great in-laws huh?!). I found that the butcher paper that the meat was wrapped in after processing didn't hold up to freezer burn very well, so I got this vacuum sealer so we could package our meat and keep it safe from freezer burn. I have to say that I am extremely impressed by this sealer. We have been using this for over a year and have not had one single failure. All of the seals are nice and tight and when we pull the meat out, even after many months, it still tastes very fresh with no residual tastes. I would definitely recommend this sealer.

So happy we finally decided to add a vacuum sealer to the kitchen arsenal. I've used this for a variety of purposes from preparing food packets for sous vide cooking to freezing whole loaves of bread with excellent results. Very easy to use with both dry and liquid items. Both the bags and the rolls are simple to use, though the rolls give you the most flexibility and are what I prefer. Occasionally I've had a seal that doesn't quite stick so I've gotten in the habit of double sealing any seams, it takes only a few more seconds and gives a guaranteed seal. I am eager to try some of the accessories that can work with the FoodSaver like the bottle stoppers and quick marinator.

Takes a little getting used to, as this is my first sealer. I figured out that I need to hold the vacuum switch for as long as I felt was needed for the desired vacuum (soups/berries less, steaks more, etc), and then quickly hit the seal switch, which shuts itself off. After a few tries I got it.I found it easier to put a thick cutting board in front of the sealer so that the bag was level with the opening. Just having it on the counter prevented the ends to not line up when closing the lid.Submersion tests were successful. I've had meats in there for a few months now. I rebuilt my kitchen, so I haven't cooked, and everything I've opened so far is as fresh as the day I put it in.

I did a lot of research before deciding which FoodSaver would be best for me. I watched You-Tube videos and read the reviews here. The reason I chose this style vs. the most expensive was that it's NOT automatic. The more expensive models cut the roll for you and it wastes a lot of plastic. It takes no time at all to cut the size you need and the plastic isn't cheap! Being an "empty nest" now, I noticed food was ruining due to freezer burn before my husband and I could eat it. I got used to buying in bulk when we had a house full of kids and now I don't want to pay a higher price for a smaller amount of food.I saw many reviews complaining about their FoodSaver not working well. Most of these were the more expensive models. This one is perfect! Now I can continue to buy in bulk and our food wont freezer burn. If you're cooking your meat first (like meatballs), make sure you refrigerate them before packing so the juice won't be pulled out. I do dap off any excess liquid - like on chicken before I seal because it does pull a lot of juice and can keep it from completely sealing. I wiped off the edges and re-sealed just above the first seal and it worked perfectly. Great save! I've used it about 5 times - make sure you let it cool for 20 seconds in between each sealing process - and it will work fine. I've had no problems with it.You can cook your food in the bag, too! Low and slow is the way to go! Heat a pot of water to about 180 degrees, place the frozen food in the water and it will be ready in about 30 minutes. I cooked a 4 oz. piece of frozen salmon and it was delicious! Moist and flaky and I didn't have to use the oven! Let the food rest for about 5 minutes before opening the bag.

I'll admit I was skeptical at first - I wasn't convinced that vacuum-sealing would make any impact in reducing the outrageous quantity of food my family wastes in the deep, dark, forgotten recesses of the freezer. But in just two months of use, it actually has. Granted, much of the savings are attributable to more enthusiastic management of the freezer, but it's working. We are now also purchasing meats, cheeses, poultry, etc. in quantity when they're on sale and also cooking sauces in quantity and sealing in multiple bags. The unit has officially paid for itself in our two months of use. The ability to freeze "pre-leftovers" is convenient and saves money. And the quality of the vacuum sealed foods is practically the same as fresh-prepared.Based on reviews (though mostly of other models), I was concerned about the quality and durability of the sealer, but this unit is well built and performs very consistently. No doubt in my mind that it wouldn't hold up to commercial use, but for family use - weekly and occasionally in-between - I'm confident it will last at least one or two years without problems. Certainly, vacuum pumps are never long-lived and will probably be the demise of the unit, but a unit with a serviceable, commercial grade vacuum pump would cost much, much more and would also require periodic maintenance. This unit is inexpensive enough to justify replacement should it fail.When ordering we also purchased an assortment of rolls along with the two standard sized bags. I wish we had passed on the rolls - we haven't sealed anything yet that didn't easily fit into either the quart or gallon bags, but I suppose if you are sealing excessively long (and narrow) items like full racks of ribs the rolls would be helpful. The bags are far more convenient and not that much more expensive. Here's another trick - when you need an ice pack immediately or for food transport, just seal some cubes in a bag. For some reason, the ice seems to melt much more slowly in a vacuum bag, and you can even reuse it.So, my advice is go ahead and try it. If you're not running a home meat packing business I'll bet it will be a good fit for any average family. Read the instructions - an hour of pre-freezing before sealing prevents the vacuum from sucking out juices and is essential when packing sauces and liquids. Doing this I have not even had to clean the sump tray even once. And besides quantity of use, I'm certain aspiration of contents into the vacuum pump is the primary reason the units fail.

This is a handy device that can be used with a sous vide or to store fresh/frozen foods.It works well. It's compact and the cord hides in the bottom of the unit.With the roll film, you have to make your own bags by cutting off the size you want and sealing one end first. Then you vac and seal the other end once filled with your food. That's okay with me because ready made bags seem expensive.

My wife is on her third iteration of this product. The FoodSaver is an item that works as advertised and allows one to freeze things for an extended periods of time without freezer burn. My only reservation is that they seem to be very fragile and only work for a year or so before they go on the fritz. Of course, we use ours numerous times at least once a week, so maybe the expectation is that one will not use it this often? Nice product but they seem to be manufactured with planned obsolescence in mind.

Much better than my old one. Very easy to use. Takes universal bags with no problem. I an very satisfied with this model. I have big gardens and I freeze lots of fruits, berries & veggies. So far, this has been an awesome machine for everything including bread & meats.

Works great so far, only wish I would have spent more money and bought a sealing system that you could stop it when you wanted to.

This is a smaller version of another FoodSaver I have. My other unit has a bag cutter that is very nice. Have to cut rolls with scissors if you buy this smaller unit. If space is not a big issue, buy the bigger one. Can't comment on all the attachments as I never use them. Just the wife and I at home now. We work long hours which leaves little time for lunch preparation. Another problem, shopping at Costco with just 2 people often turns into an exercise in futility when it comes to food. Takes a little discipline, but I think this sealer saves time and definitely money in the long run. Especially if you buy the generic brand bags that work just fine. We buy the family packs of meat etc and make them up all at one time. Package them in serving size bags and freeze. 2 weeks worth of lunches for about an hours worth of work. Also use this to freeze portion size fruit mixes for smoothies. Same song. buy it bulk and package it up. ready when you are. We waste very little food anymore. No more freezer burn. I could go on and on. A little obsessed i suppose. I only have one complaint with this unit which doesnt seem to be an issue with the bigger unit; after sealing about 6 bags in a row, you have to let it cool down for a couple of minutes. Seems to lose some of the suction. Cools down and its fine.

I recently got a sous vide cooker (the Anova Precision) and started by submerging ziplocs in water to seal. While that works, it's a little tricky sometimes and well, it's hard to do in preheated water. Also, if you want to prepare your sous vide bags in advance and freeze them, you really want more of the air out of the bag. So I decided to get this sealer on a friend's recommendation.First of all, it does vacuum and seal quite well. I have used it to seal pork chops, hanger steaks, rib eyes, filet mignon and even salmon. It comes with quart and gallon bags to try, as well as a small roll of "make your own" bags. I find the bags are a little quicker, but the roll works well too. It's good to have the two sizes -- hanger steaks want a gallon, a salmon steak wants a quart.For salmon, you don't want to let it suck until it's done -- there's no "gentle" mode on this model. This is especially true if you add olive oil into the bag. You don't want it getting sucked into the machine. However, the trick is that you can cancel the vacuum early by tapping the button again to turn it off, then hit seal manually to finish it. With this manual approach, I found that this can also be effective in not squishing salmon, one of the things you always hear as a drawback to these machines. With attention, you can get great results.Why 4 and not 5? It's a little fiddly to store. There's a loose piece that goes in the vacuum slot, but you can't store it clamped shut (per manual to avoid ruining the gasket). That means when you try to store it in a shelf or drawer somewhere the top flips open and the insert falls out on the floor and it's just a hassle. With a little better design of how to keep the pieces neatly together without destroying it, I would give them 5 stars. Regardless of this small hassle, I recommend this item. Even if you don't sous vide, you can make your bulk meats from Costco last in the freeze much longer by vacuum sealing before you freeze!

I really loved this model. However, it only lasted 2 years. It pulls the air out but will not seal automatically. I have friends who purchased the same model and only lasted 1 year. As this is one of the less expensive ones, if you don't mind buying a new one every 1-2 years, this is the model for you. As I use it quite frequently, I'm looking at a more reliable model.

The sealant ring on my unit broke pretty fast, and the replacement rings you can buy didn't really create as good a vacuum seal, so I end up using this unit with my hand pressing down on the lid just to get a good seal. That's not an enjoyable way to to this device. It's still unquestionably great because a vacuum packer is a fantastic thing to have in the kitchen, but at least for me this thing is "okay, might recommend, might recommend getting a different, better one depending on price"

The accessory vacuum tube fitting splits and leaks with only occasional and gentle use. Very small plastic component, would be inexpensive and easy to replace if it were available. As it was, I had to return my unit for replacement; the fitting on the second unit soon cracked as well. I gave up trying to use the accessories (which were an important feature for me on selecting this unit).Otherwise the unit works fine.

If you plan to use this for sous vide - DON'T. While it is great for day to day use, I have found I have double seal anything I need to really be fully airtight.It is also often difficult to get it to properly vacuum and can be very temperamental about the bag, etc. You may want to consider something slightly better quality if these are concerns.

Very frustrated. The unit worked great to vacuum seal 25 pounds of blueberries in quart bags. Two weeks later I go to use it to vacuum seal fresh fish I caught on a fishing trip to the bay and found the vacuum no longer functioning. Ended up just sealing the bag prior to freezing the fish.The unit is now being returned to Amazon and they will ship the same model for replacement. Amazon return process is so far smooth and easy.Prior to deciding to purchase this model I reviewed the various reviews on Amazon and decided the pros out weigh the cons. When the unit does work it performs an outstanding job, now lets see if the replacement V2244 works longer than 1 month!

I've been using a food saver for years and it's been very reliable. I was replacing it with this unit because it was having trouble completing the cycle, and the gaskets were very expensive to replace so I decided it was time to get a new one. I ordered this one because it was the cheapest and did not realize that it did not have a built in bag cutter. I like to use the rolls because I find they are more economical since I can cut the bags to fit. Not having a cutter was a deal breaker for me, so I returned this one and upgraded to a more feature rich model.

I bought the low end model of food saver because my intention was to use it about once a week to use with an Anova sous vide cooker in place of zip lock bags, not for long term freezer storage. This model barely suffices for that purpose. About half of the times I have food in pouches ready to seal and the unit pops open for no apparent reason, and will only stay locked if I hold the lock in position. The seal on the bags fails about 1 in 5 times. When it does seal, there is usually at least some air left in the finished bag. I have had the unit less than a year, and already the labels on the buttons have worn off.

Requires too long a time between uses, after you vacuum seal one or two bags it requires a rest or it won't work. Takes an awful long time to do two weeks worth of groceries, a lot of waiting.

What a disappointment! Over priced - under performing product. Yes it seals - however, sometimes I have to do it twice because it misses a spot or two and makes the seal useless. Does it remove all of the air out ? Yes- BUT- not for long!. A few minutes later the bag has air in it again rendering it useless, since any air in it will allow freezer burn. Since we waited to use it until last week and our date to return it was 4/19/16, we are stuck with a door stop, instead of a sealing system. We are giving it 2 stars instead of 1 star since it does seal the bag - BUT - it does not remove the air as it should. AGAIN - DISAPPOINTMENT. GO ELSEWHERE FOR A SEALING SYSTEM.Note: nobody gave me a product in return for my unbiased review.......if they had it would still be a disappointment .

Last month, I would have given this a glowing review. However, my experience since then has led me to drop a couple of stars off.When I first bought this, I knew exactly what I was getting and was not disappointed in the least. So far, I've used it to vacuum seal and freeze fish about every two weeks. It's been wonderful to buy up numerous fish fillets, freeze them then whenever I want, I'll put a bag in the refrigerator to thaw, drop it in boiling water for a few minutes and voila! Season and serve in less that ten minutes. Way faster that baking and it leaves the fish flaky, moist and... dang. Getting hungry now.Anyway, the last time I used it, I noticed that there was water getting into the bag while cooking but I really didn't give it much thought. You know, like, no big... just a failed seal. Except that it happened to each bag from that batch.Today, it wouldn't even vacuum unless I pressed down on the lid. Even then, it didn't evacuate all the air although the seal at least appears to have formed properly.I've owned this for less than six months, I've checked and cleaned the gaskets and in fact I kept the cardboard insert that it came packed with in order to keep the gaskets from touching. There are no broken parts, the latches on both sides are engaged and I hold the bag so there is no weight pulling on the unit during operation.Quality control can be good, bad or anywhere in between. Mechanical and electrical things can and do fail... no denying that, which is what leaves me on the fence. I need to decide wether or not to replace it with the same model or kick it up a notch to the next level or even to give Seal-a-Meal a shot. They're both made by Sunbeam and the Seal-a-Meal entry level machine is half the price of this one. I suppose at the forty dollar price point, the Seal-a-Meal FSSMSL0160-000 Vacuum Sealer wouldn't hurt the wallet as much if it were to be a disappointment as well.

I bought this thinking it would be a decent tool for sous vide cooking and it was the top rated item at the time in vacuum sealers. It's honestly not that great for the price I paid for it which was $80. I suppose it's fine for a starter sealer but over half the time I've used it it fails to seal or vacuum correctly. Air would still get trapped inside and the sealing would sometimes be off causing little leaks. I've had some successes with it but am overall pretty disappointed. They're also trying to sell off their accessory packs and bags off at $10+ and I just don't think I can recommend this and that at those prices. Once this thing breaks or becomes unusable and I'm guessing it might be pretty soon in a few months or so according to the other reviews on here, I'll be looking to replace it with another one that's definitely not this. I might look into the other FoodSaver ones they have but hopefully I can find a better one for around the same price range because this did not impress all that well. Pros: Single button solution for vacuum/seal and regular seal, includes a roll of bags for you to use, and works if you're lucky.

Had several different models over the past ten years. I've noticed the quality has declined ever since. My first trusty Foodsaver lasted about six years through heavy usage. I have a large garden and I buy quite a bit in bulk as I have a large freezer. This one lasted about 3 weeks out of the gate. The vacuuming is weak and the seal non existent.As of late it used to take almost two years before the thing up and died, regardless of changing out gaskets.I hear they have a "heavy duty" one for about twice the price when you call the company. I have to ask, why bother offering the lesser quality one then?

UPDATE: Well, I used it one time and now have taken it out to use again and it won't work. When I press the vacuum and seal button, it vacums and won't ever stop. Just keeps running and running. Have tried it now with 3 bags from different boxes (and yes the bags are their brand). So disappointing.The directions aren't super clear but after a bit it can be figured out. I like the way it seals most things, but some items it just doesn't do a good job with. Anything that can be squished (like bread type things or muffins, etc.) won't work well and if the meat doesn't lay flat it doesn't seem to get all of the air out. That being said, I'm still glad I purchased it because it does work nicely with most things, and once you know how to use it properly it's pretty quick and easy!

I only used this a few times. Have not used for a while. Tried to vacuum a container and it will not work. Waste of my money. I have had one for several years. Was wanting to replace it. Now this one will not make it even a year and is not working now. I guess I have had it to long to get a refund, because I do not see any way to return it through Amazon!!!

I have had mine now for approximately 3 years..and am now looking for a different brand. My complaint with this one is the same complaint I had with the last one. It vacuums when it feels like it and that's only occasionally. I do all of the steps, wash, clean, switch the foam strips around and then it might work. I want something that works everytime I need it! I want something easier to use and figure out. I'm done with this brand, there has to be something better out there. I agree when it works its awesome, the food keeps, no freezer burn at all, and it extends the life of my frozen food. But, its to difficult to get it to that point!

really poor quality and only creates a vacuum about 1 out of every 4 tries. It turns out if there is any moisture present at the end of the bag, it will not create a vacuum. It's almost impossible to get a piece of raw meat or fish in the bag without some moisture present. Doesn't seem to help if you dry the ends of the bag (inside and out) . Works ok for dried foods.

I would have given this 5 stars if my review was only based on my first two uses of the product. The first two times I used the product it worked perfectly and kept my food sealed great! Unfortunately, my third try the product did not work at all. I plugged it in and pressed the button as I had before when it worked and nothing happened. I would like to have my product replaced as I think it is ridiculous that it stopped working after only using it 3 times. Unfortunately by the third time I used it, it was past the time I could return it, but how was I to know it would work fine the first two times and then stop working for no reason. really disappointed, wasted a lot of money.

I gave the FoodSaver as a gift. We pugged it in to use it and it didn't work! I can;t return it because I bought it over 30 days agao. I'm feeling ripped off by Amazon and FoodSaver!DO NOT BUY!