02 Cabinet Locks & Kitchen Safety Best picks
Best drawer locks for babyproofing: a drawer gets yanked, so the lock has to be screwed
A cabinet door gets pulled. A drawer gets yanked, repeatedly, with the child's whole weight. The locks that survive it are the ones with screws, and the strap that does not care.
- By
- Mike M.
- Updated
- Method
- How we choose
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Quick picks
The short answer
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  Roving Cove Magnetic Cabinet Drawer Lock (8 locks, 2 ring keys) Screws in the box, a ring key that lets one hand unlock and pull a drawer at once, and a 1.5-inch reach through a drawer front. | Best drawer lock | 7.1 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
| 02 |  Wappa Baby Child Safety Strap Locks (4 pack) Adjustable 4.5 to 7.5 inches with a double-lock switch; visible, but it fits any drawer front. | Best strap for drawers | 7.1 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
| 03 |  Safety 1st Secure-to-Explore Adhesive Locks (12 pack) Template-aligned exterior latch with an unlock mode; adhesive only. | Best no-screw drawer latch | 6.7 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
| 04 | Vmaisi Magnetic Cabinet Locks 12 Pack (12 locks, 2 keys) Twelve locks with tape and screws; use the screws on drawers. | Best value magnetic with screws | 6.6 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
| 05 | Safety 1st Spring-Loaded Cabinet & Drawer Latch (10 pack) Ten latches, screwed inside; the drawer opens an inch and stops. | Best screw-in spring latch | 6.5 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
| 06 | Prince Lionheart Spring-Loaded Drawer & Cabinet Latches (10 pack) Same screw-in latch, parks out of the way between children. | Best flip-down spring latch | 6.5 / 10 | Check price on Amazon |
#ad · Prices are set by Amazon and change often, so we don't print them. Scores are ours, compiled from published standards statements, manuals and specs against this page's job, not lab tests. Photos are stock. Tap a row for the full write-up.
Why drawers are harder than doors
A toddler pulls a cabinet door with one hand and, when it does not open, moves on. A drawer has a handle at exactly pulling height, it slides, and the first inch of movement is a reward. So a drawer gets yanked, with both hands and a lean, many times a day. Adhesive that holds a door latch for a year peels off a drawer front in a month, because the load is a straight pull against the tape rather than a shear across it. That is the whole reason this page exists separately from best cabinet locks for babyproofing.
Screws, tape, or neither
Screws. The magnetic sets from Roving Cove, Vmaisi, Perma and Baby Proof Me all include screws; on a drawer, use them, on both the latch and the striker plate. The spring latches from Safety 1st and Prince Lionheart are screw-only by design and cost a fraction of a magnetic set. Tape. Safety 1st's adhesive exterior latch and every strap lock rely on it; on a drawer, clean the surface with alcohol, press hard, and give it the 24 hours Baby Proof Me publishes for its own tape before the first pull. Neither. Slide locks need two handles side by side, which drawers rarely have; they are a door product. The type-by-type explainer is cabinet lock types explained.
How we ranked these
Bulk weighting, with install truth re-scored for drawers where a maker includes screws and says to use them. Roving Cove leads on the ring key and the named 3M tape plus screws; Wappa's strap ties it on the strength of the double lock and the price; the spring latches score highest on value and lowest on reversibility, because a screw hole in a drawer box is forever. Full rubric on how we choose; the magnetic-only comparison is best magnetic cabinet locks.
In detail
Every pick, in full
01
Stock photoBest drawer lock
Roving Cove Magnetic Cabinet Drawer Lock (8 locks, 2 ring keys)
Prevents
Screws in the box, a ring key that lets one hand unlock and pull a drawer at once, and a 1.5-inch reach through a drawer front.
- Standards status
- No standard stated on the Roving Cove product page
- Installation truth
- Roving Cove's two-step starter-tape system is for placement; the strength is the red 3M tape or the screws. The ring key is the usability win: one hand unlocks and pulls at the same time.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 3
- Installation truth (15%)
- 9
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 8
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 9
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 7
- Value (20%)
- 7
What it gets right
- Published adhesive grade and magnet strength
- Ring key for one-handed use
- Screw option in the box
- Deactivate button
What it doesn't
- Not for metal cabinets
- Eight locks is a mid-size pack
- No standards statement
Skip it if…
…your cabinets are metal; the manufacturer says no.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Roving Cove Magnetic Cabinet Drawer Lock (8 locks, 2 ring keys)
02
Stock photoBest strap for drawers
Wappa Baby Child Safety Strap Locks (4 pack)
Prevents
Adjustable 4.5 to 7.5 inches with a double-lock switch; visible, but it fits any drawer front.
- Standards status
- No standard stated on the Wappa Baby product page
- Installation truth
- The double lock is optional and off by default. Turn it on: a plain push-button strap is the first latch most toddlers learn.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 3
- Installation truth (15%)
- 7
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 8
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 8
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 9
- Value (20%)
- 9
What it gets right
- Double-lock option
- Long adjustment range
- Rotating base for odd angles
- Cheap
What it doesn't
- Visible strap
- Adhesive only
- No standards statement
Skip it if…
…the surface is stainless steel with a brushed texture; the pads need a flat sealed face.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Wappa Baby Child Safety Strap Locks (4 pack)
03
Stock photoBest no-screw drawer latch
Safety 1st Secure-to-Explore Adhesive Locks (12 pack)
Prevents
Template-aligned exterior latch with an unlock mode; adhesive only.
- Standards status
- No certification stated on the product page; Safety 1st's magnetic sets carry the JPMA statement, this one does not
- Installation truth
- Peel-and-stick to the cabinet face, so it is visible and it depends entirely on the finish. Clean with alcohol first; the template fixes alignment, not adhesion.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 4
- Installation truth (15%)
- 7
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 7
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 8
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 9
- Value (20%)
- 7
What it gets right
- Template
- Unlock mode
- No screws, so it comes off a rental
- Fits doors, drawers and appliances
What it doesn't
- Visible on the cabinet face
- Adhesive is the whole product
- No certification stated
Skip it if…
…your cabinet fronts are textured, unfinished or waxed; adhesive latches need a smooth sealed surface.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Safety 1st Secure-to-Explore Adhesive Locks (12 pack)
04
Stock photoBest value magnetic with screws
Vmaisi Magnetic Cabinet Locks 12 Pack (12 locks, 2 keys)
Prevents
Twelve locks with tape and screws; use the screws on drawers.
- Standards status
- No standard stated on the Vmaisi product page
- Installation truth
- Ships with screws as well as tape. Use the screws on drawers: a drawer front takes a yank in a way a cabinet door does not.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 3
- Installation truth (15%)
- 7
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 7
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 8
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 7
- Value (20%)
- 8
What it gets right
- Screws in the box
- Two keys
- Good per-lock price
- Larger packs to 36
What it doesn't
- Any magnet opens it, including fridge magnets a toddler can reach
- No standards statement
- No lock indicator
Skip it if…
…you keep magnetic toys or fridge magnets within a toddler's reach; the lock's weakness is on the manufacturer's page.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Vmaisi Magnetic Cabinet Locks 12 Pack (12 locks, 2 keys)
05
Stock photoBest screw-in spring latch
Safety 1st Spring-Loaded Cabinet & Drawer Latch (10 pack)
Prevents
Ten latches, screwed inside; the drawer opens an inch and stops.
- Standards status
- No certification stated; Safety 1st describes its own comparative pull-force testing on the product page
- Installation truth
- Screws into the cabinet frame and the door, so it is not for a rental and not for a face-frame you cannot drill. The inch-wide gap the door opens to is a finger-pinch point for some hands.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 4
- Installation truth (15%)
- 7
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 7
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 5
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 3
- Value (20%)
- 10
What it gets right
- Ten latches for about the price of lunch
- No adhesive to fail
- Hidden inside
What it doesn't
- Screws
- Door opens an inch before it stops
- Two-handed to open: pull and press
Skip it if…
…you rent, or your cabinet frame is too thin for a screw.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Safety 1st Spring-Loaded Cabinet & Drawer Latch (10 pack)
06
Stock photoBest flip-down spring latch
Prince Lionheart Spring-Loaded Drawer & Cabinet Latches (10 pack)
Prevents
Same screw-in latch, parks out of the way between children.
- Standards status
- Conforms to safety regulations, as stated by Prince Lionheart (no standard named)
- Installation truth
- Screw install, same as any internal latch. The flip-down feature is the reason to pick it over the Safety 1st: it stays in the cabinet through the years the house is not childproofed.
Published specs (tap for source)
- Standards & certification (20%)
- 4
- Installation truth (15%)
- 7
- Toddler resistance (25%)
- 7
- Adult one-hand use (15%)
- 5
- Damage & reversibility (5%)
- 3
- Value (20%)
- 10
What it gets right
- Flip-down parking position
- Hidden
- Cheap
What it doesn't
- Screws
- Inch gap on opening
- Standard not named
Skip it if…
…you rent or cannot drill the frame.
#ad · Price set by Amazon · Affiliate disclosure for the link to Prince Lionheart Spring-Loaded Drawer & Cabinet Latches (10 pack)
Which drawers to lock
The knife drawer first, then any drawer with scissors, skewers, matches, medicine, batteries or plastic bags. The junk drawer, which has all of those. The drawer under the oven, if it holds anything heavy. Then stop: a drawer of dish towels can be the one the child is allowed to empty, and giving them one is the cheapest lock in the kitchen. The room in full is in babyproofing the kitchen.
Who should skip all of these
How we chose
Units we claim to have tested: 0
Everyone in this category says they tested it. We didn't, and we say so. Every pick is scored from the brand's published specs, width and size charts, warranty terms and cited research, against the problem this page is about. The sources are listed at the bottom of the page.
Scores are editorial judgments from that published data, not lab results. Nobody pays for placement, and a missing spec is scored neutral, never guessed. The full rubric is on How We Choose.
- Standards & certification
- 20%
- Installation truth
- 15%
- Toddler resistance
- 25%
- Adult one-hand use
- 15%
- Damage & reversibility
- 5%
- Value
- 20%
The weights this page used for its scores.
FAQ
Questions people ask
Do magnetic locks work on drawers?
What is the best drawer lock without drilling?
Do spring latches damage drawers?
Keep going
Related guides and picks
Update log
What changed
- First published.
Receipts
Sources
- 01ASTM International: F3492-21 Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Child Safety Locks and Latches for Cabinet Doors and Drawers (accessed Sep 21, 2026)
- 02Poison Control (poison.org): National poisoning statistics, 2024 data (accessed Sep 21, 2026)
- 03CPSC publication: Childproofing Your Home, 12 Safety Devices to Protect Your Children (accessed Sep 21, 2026)
We don't lab-test gates, locks or anchors, and we don't pretend to. Specs, standards statements and install requirements come from the manufacturer's own pages and manuals (or a named retailer's listing where the brand doesn't publish them); injury data and standards come from the CPSC, ASTM, NEC via ESFI and the AAP, linked above. Prices are set by Amazon and change often, so we don't print them. Where a figure isn't published, we say so. Read the full method.