Disclosure: This is not a compensated or sponsored post. I was provided the product for review purposes only. All opinions expressed here are my own.

If you’re still transporting all your clothes from the dryer in a sack that wrinkles them, it’s time to move to a laundry basket.

A basket can store wet or dry clothes, dirty or clean, and will handle everything from holding the dirty clothes as they build up to transporting them to the washer and back. It’s also sturdy enough to carry a box of detergent along with your laundry, no problem.

The benefit of a basket versus a hamper or a bag is that it performs double duty: It stores dirty clothes for transport to the laundry room and carries the folded, clean clothes back. Ample ventilation and volume ensure that wet clothes and still-damp clean clothes don’t attract mold or mildew. We have some suggestions for hampers as well, but if you’re only getting one, the basket is all you need.

That having been said, a laundry basket can’t handle everything. If you need to move clothes one-handed or possibly down very narrow staircases, or if you walk or take public transit to your laundromat, a one-basket solution may not work—you might consider a laundry hamper or bag system.

Even though there are ecological reasons to avoid plastic, we chose plastic laundry baskets for several reasons.

Plastic won’t warp or disfigure from exposure to water and, unlike wicker, resists mold and mildew. Both plastic and wicker are lightweight and portable, but considering laundry is often damp, a hamper that won’t let your clothes breathe isn’t a good pick. I’ve had many workout clothes left in the bottom of canvas hampers develop mold but none that have been left in well-ventilated baskets. Some baskets or hampers are made by covering cardboard. If that cardboard inside gets wet the basket is ruined.

Plastic is very strong for its weight, making it easy to transport laundry up and down stairs or to and from a car. Loads of laundry can get heavy, especially when transporting wet clothes from a washer to a dryer. A lightweight basket or hamper makes moving laundry easier.

Sturdy, comfortable handles are also important with heavy loads of laundry. Many baskets use trim pieces on their handles that look nice, but create a weaker joint. Some also have ridges on the underside of the handles that add some security, but dig into your flesh. Multiple sets of handles to hold the basket lengthwise or widthwise are nice.

Look for a smooth finish that won’t snag clothes. Wicker baskets especially are prone to small breaks that can snag fabric. A smooth, flat finish will prevent your basket from damaging your clothing.

Ventilation is good for both wet, smelly workout clothes and clean, slightly damp clothes. Damp clothes buried in the bottom of a non-breathable hamper or basket are prone to developing mold. (I’ve had it happen.) A well-ventilated bag or basket can prevent this. It also works well for items that might not get totally dry in the dryer, such as jeans or towels.

A rectangular shape will hold clothes most efficiently once they’re folded. Shaped, hip-hugging baskets seem nice, but hold less volume and really aren’t any easier to carry. Most clothes fold into nice rectangles or squares, and the curve of hip-hugging baskets leads to items like pants not lying flat. They then take up more room and are likely to wrinkle. Square baskets hold as much dirty laundry as rectangular ones due to their greater depth, but are troublesome when trying to overload the basket. Round baskets and hampers don’t hold folded clothes well at all.

The Clorox™  Links Sort’n Fold Laundry Baskets & Hampers succeeds because of its simplicity and lack of outstanding weaknesses, which makes it stand out in the world of laundry baskets. It’s plastic, lightweight, easy to carry, durable and spacious enough for a whole load of laundry

Its stacking feature is a bonus that didn’t weigh into my selection, but it does make it easier to sort laundry if you’re managing a multi-person household with lots of lights, darks and towels all needing their own separate baskets.

The size proves to be a benefit when moving up and down narrow stairwells. If we define “good design” as the form factor most conducive to the task at hand, then this one is very well designed. The interior of the is smooth and won’t snag your laundry. It is well-ventilated, so wet, dirty clothes or damp clean clothes will both be able to dry out. The basket itself is a single piece of plastic, making it strong and durable. Many baskets have thinner plastic around the handles to allow for two-piece construction, which winds up weakening the joint. I was skeptical of the strength of the handles is a great start but the design is simple yet solid.

With all of that laundry, the basket now tipped the scales at 21.4 pounds. I then proceeded to abuse the handles as much as I could twisting and straining them to the best of my ability. I shook the basket violently. I tried to pull the handles out from the sides. I did everything I could to destroy them or cause them to pop out and failed.

Undeterred, I added 20 pounds of hand weights to the basket as well. even weighing more than 40 pounds, the  basket was still easy on the hands, though much heavier than any load of laundry will ever be. I repeated the same attempted destruction on the basket and the handles held up to the abuse. For further testing,

I love this basket so much. It is going to make my Spring Cleaning so much easier.