Skip the dozens of clips. One good latch is all you need.

The best lunch boxes for small kids are the ones with a single, large latch or a magnetic snap—occupational therapists recommend skipping the multi-clip containers.

Little kids don’t have the hand strength or patience for four tiny plastic buckles. The whole point of an “easy-open” lunch box is independence: the child should be able to get into it without asking an adult for help. That’s why OTs point to designs with one wide clasp or a magnet. The LunchBots wire latch works. PlanetBox uses a magnet. Yumbox snaps shut with a single flip. All of those beat the little sliding tabs you find on cheaper bento boxes.

You’re also looking at the right food containers, not the insulated bag. The bag’s zipper is rarely the problem. The container lid is where kids get stuck. So if you’re shopping, ignore the cute prints and look at how many latches it takes to open. One is good. Zero is better.

If a three-year-old can open it at lunchtime, that’s the one.