9 Best Small Cigar Humidors That Save Space AND Hold Humidity

Last updated: 2024

When it comes to cigar humidors, bigger isn’t always better. In fact, there are several benefits to owning a small cigar humidor, from easier maintenance to more living space in your home. Most importantly, you can still keep a decent amount of sticks fresh if you’re using a small humidor.

Personally, I find the best small humidor to be the Mantello Cigar Humidor Royal Glass

It comes with a built-in analog hygrometer so that you can keep your eye on the humidification system levels inside and you can keep 25-50 cigars inside.

That said, that’s not the only small humidor you can use to store your cigar collection.

In this post, I’ll cover all the best humidors on the market so you can make a more sound decision. I’ve also included a small section on how to choose the best humidor based on all the important factors.

Picture of Sam H.
Sam H.

Cigar Enthusiast

Mantello Cigar Humidor Royal Glass

TOP CHOICE 

Mantello Cigar Humidor Royal Glass

  • Beautiful rosewood Spanish cedar finish
  • Built-in hygrometer
  • Airtight seal
 

The Mantello comes with a built-in analog hygrometer, so you can keep your eye on the humidity levels inside. For storage space, you can fit anywhere from 25-50 cigars inside. 

Cuban Crafters Cherrywood Humidor

  • Elegant Spanish cedar wood trim design
  • Compact and easy to store
  • Built-in humidifier and hygrometer

Xifei Acrylic Humidor Jar

Xifei Acrylic Humidor Jar
  • Vertical shape for easier storage
  • Comes with humidifier and hygrometer
Best Small Cigar Humidors

Mantello Cigar Humidor Royal Glass (Best Overall)

Mantello Cigar Humidor Royal Glass

Features

  • Beautiful rosewood Spanish cedar finish
  • Built-in hygrometer
  • Tempered glass lid for easy access
  • Airtight seal

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.6 x 4.3 inches
  • Type: Desktop humidor
  • Lining: Felt

The Mantello Cigar Humidor is one of the most beautiful glass top cigar humidors I’ve set my eyes on.

Everything from the handcrafted rosewood cedar wood finish to the elegant tempered glass lid make this one of the most stylish small wooden humidors for cigar collection and storage.

What’s more, the construction is outstanding.

The airtight seal prevents any of the moisture inside from escaping, so you can keep your stogies fresher than if you chose an inferior humidor.

The Mantello comes with a built-in analog hygrometer, so you can keep your eye on the humidity levels inside. For storage space, you can fit anywhere from 25-50 cigars inside. The cedar divider allows you to create a more organized storage environment for your cigar collection.

The cedar wood finish along with the gold plated hinges make this humidor stand out. It’s the right humidor if you’re looking for a great gift for a cigar loving friend or family member. Furthermore, the Mantello is quite affordable when compared to other small wooden humidors of this quality.

Cuban Crafters Cherrywood Humidor
(Best Value)

Features

  • Elegant Spanish cedar wood trim design
  • Compact and easy to store
  • Built-in humidifier and hygrometer

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 13.5 x 9.75 x 6.25 inches
  • Type: Desktop humidor
  • Lining: Spanish cedar

Full transparency, the Cuban Crafters Cherrywood Humidor isn’t the strongest option for small humidors.

The material could be more durable, and it doesn’t have a tight seal like some of the other humidors on this list.

With that in mind, it’s still a great starter humidor if you’re on a tight budget. If you’re just starting to grow your collection or don’t have any expensive sticks, you can learn the humidor basics using this one from Cuban Crafters.

Not to completely write it off, because it’s still quite reliable and will keep your aging  cigars fresh for a sufficient amount of time. Although, the internal humidifier and hygrometer definitely need work.

To solve this, you could add some external Boveda packs to increase the humidity levels. I’d also recommend investing in a digital hygrometer and applying it to the Cuban Crafters Cherrywood Humidor if you’re crafty enough.

Nonetheless, this small cigar humidor is an excellent value for money. You can start with this one and gradually work your way up to a more high-quality solution for storing aging cigars later on.

Xifei Acrylic Humidor Jar
(Best Acrylic Humidor)

Xifei Acrylic Humidor Jar

Features

  • Reliable Spanish cedar interior sheet for retaining humidity levels
  • Durable acrylic construction
  • Vertical shape for easier storage
  • Comes with humidifier and hygrometer

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 8.15 x 5.43 x 5.28 inches
  • Type: Jar
  • Lining: Acrylic

These humidors have become increasingly popular for their design and durability.

This small humidor from Xifei is an excellent display of all the best traits you’d expect from a humidor of this variety.

For starters, its jar shape allows for easier storage when trying to fit this humidor jar in your home or office..

Moreover, these humidors are relatively low maintenance compared to those made completely from Spanish cedar or other woods. The transparent design allows you to view all your cigars, so you can notice any discrepancies without opening the lid.

In terms of storage space, you can fit about 15-20 cigars comfortably inside.

I’d say that’s plenty of space if you’re new or you don’t plan on growing a large cigar collection.

What I like most about this humidor jar is that it comes with an external hygrometer. You also get a handy humidifier stick that you place directly inside to ensure optimal living conditions for your sticks.

Meanwhile, the thin Spanish cedar interior sheet allows for even more moisture retention. You can even age your cigars inside this humidor jar, making it a suitable long-term storage environment.

Furthermore, it makes an excellent gift for cigar lovers. If you or a friend already has a humidor at home, they can use the Xifei for the office.

Craftsman's Bench Passport Humidor (Best Travel Humidor)

Craftsman's Bench Passport Humidor

Features

  • Durable aluminum casing for added protection
  • Compact storage environment for travel
  • Built-in humidifier
  • Reliable airtight seal

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 5.4 x 2.5 x 8.7 inches
  • Type: Travel humidor
  • Lining: Foam

Do you love taking a few cigars with you on the road? If so, then you have to check out this travel humidor from Craftsman’s Bench.

The Passport Humidor is the best compact humidor for travel, due to its durable design and beautiful silver finish.

This compact travel humidor also comes with its own humidifier. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a built-in hygrometer. However, you can always use a digital hygrometer to ensure the humidification system levels are suitable.

You can hold roughly 4 normal sized cigars inside, which is perfect for short business trips or family getaways. The aluminum material is extremely lightweight, which can be convenient if you’re carrying this in your luggage or backpack.

Furthermore, the Passport Humidor comes with a reliable airtight seal that will guarantee your cigars are always at the right temperature and humidity.

When it comes to travel humidors, you really can’t go wrong with this compact durable case by Craftsman’s Bench. It’s one of the most reliable small humidors for storing stogies that I’ve seen, and I just love the clean metal design.

Case Elegance Desktop Digital Cherry Humidor (Best Desktop Humidor)

CASE ELEGANCE Handcrafted Cherry Finish Cedar Humidor

Features

  • Spanish Cedar lining and inlay
  • Attractive rich cherry finish
  • Built-in digital hygrometer and humidifier
  • Extra room for accessory storage

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 9 x 2.2 x 8.5 inches
  • Type: Desktop humidor
  • Lining: Spanish cedar

Out of all the humidors I’ve looked at, the Case Elegance Desktop Digital Cherry Humidor seems to have the most intriguing design.

After all, Case Elegance is known for producing extremely high-quality cigar humidors with beautiful wood finishes. This particular desktop humidor stands out due to its minimalist design and outstanding features.

The rich classic cherry finish is incredibly easy on the eyes. Moreover, the traditional Spanish cedar inlay does a fantastic job of retaining moisture so your cigars can age perfectly.

Unlike other wood humidors, this one comes with an exceptionally accurate digital hygrometer. It can pinpoint the exact humidity levels inside your humidor, so you no longer need to guess whether your cigars are in an optimum storage environment.

Speaking of humidity levels, the Case Elegance Desktop Digital Cherry Humidor comes with a handy humidification system jar.

This compact component will add proper air and moisture circulation so you can keep your cigars fresh all year long. Combine that with the Spanish cedar lining, and you’ve got everything you’d expect from desktop humidors.

For storage space, you can fit roughly 25 cigars inside. If you want to store large quantities of cigars, I’d recommend checking out some of the large humidors from Case Elegance. The brand is well-known for its reliable products and elegant designs.

Prestige Import Group Chateau Small Humidor (Best for Beginners)

Prestige Import Group Chateau Small Cigar Humidor with Humidifier

Features

  • Oversized humidifier included
  • Dependable locking hinges
  • Elegant Spanish cedar woodwork

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 10 x 9 x 2.5 inches
  • Type: Desktop humidor
  • Lining: Spanish cedar

Storing cigar isn’t always easy, especially if you’re new to cigars. That’s why the Prestige Import Group Chateau is an excellent starting cigar humidor for you to learn the ropes.

It’s relatively low maintenance and offers enough interior real estate to store your cigars without hassle. With this humidor, you can fit up to 20 cigars depending on ring gauge and length.

Prestige Import Group is a household name in the humidor industry, known for building durable yet affordable humidors of all sizes. This particular humidor is tightly sealed and will maintain both the temperature and humidity levels you’ll need for optimum storage.

Moreover, it comes with instructions on exactly how to season and maintain your humidor to help get you start. All of these elements make it the right humidor for newbies.

That said, you can also choose the Chateau if you’re a cigar pro looking for a regular humidor to use as a backup. It’s affordable, and easier to manage than most small humidors on the market.

Inside you get a Spanish cedar lining that does an outstanding job of retaining the right relative humidity. The internal locking hinges give you additional protection, and help create the tight seal you need to maintain an optimum temperature for your stogies.

The only downside is that it doesn’t come with a hygrometer baked inside. You’ll need to get an external digital hygrometer if you want the most accurate readings.

Bald Eagle Handmade Humidor (Best Interior)

Features

  • Cedar lining for an optimum storage environment
  • Durable design for long-term use
  • Attractive walnut trim
  • Movable divider board for better organization

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.7 x 2.7 inches
  • Type: Desktop
  • Lining: Cedar

The handmade Bald Eagle Humidor has some of the most immaculate detail I’ve seen in a while.

You can tell the manufacturers put a lot of passion and focus into their work when crafting this small humidor. You can store about 25 cigars depending on their ring gauge, which is plenty if you have a small collection or you’re a beginner.

The cedar lining looks amazing with the walnut finish. You can see all the different color streaks, which adds to the handmade feel the Bald Eagle provides. It’s one of the best humidors of this size, and I’d recommend it for just about any cigar smoker.

Coming with an onboard hygrometer and humidifier, this cigar humidor has everything for storing cigars in the right conditions.

However, some people report that the built-in hygrometer can be a little inaccurate. In that case, you might need to invest in an external digital hygrometer for a more accurate reading.

Nonetheless, the Bald Eagle is quite reliable and will suit all your storage needs. The glass top allows you to view all your stogies, adding to the aesthetics of this compact cigar humidor.

Capri Desktop (Best for Larger Storage Needs)

capri desktop

Features

  • Cedar wood lining
  • Beautiful built-in glass hygrometer
  • Large storage capacity of 25-50 cigars
  • Engravable name plate

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 8.75 x 10.5 x 4.5 inches
  • Type: Desktop
  • Lining: Cedar

If you plan on growing a somewhat big collection but don’t want to invest in a large humidor, then the Capri Desktop is an excellent alternative.

This cigar humidor can hold anywhere from 25-50 cigars depending on ring gauge and length, which should be a suitable storage environment for a growing stash.

The Capri comes with two models – one with an analog hygrometer and one with a digital hygrometer. You can choose from either brown or black colored wood to match your home’s decor. The design of the Capri is suitable for most homes and looks amazing if stored in a wine cabinet.

One thing I love about this cigar humidor is that there’s an engravable nameplate. You can either put your family name or add the name of a loved one if you’re giving this cigar humidor as a gift.

The kiln-dried cedar wood looks amazing in this piece. It’s as if you’re getting a high-quality custom-made cigar humidor without paying an arm and a leg for it. Furthermore, the compact design ensures that your new humidor doesn’t take up too much space in your home or office.

Megacra Cigar Humidor

MEGACRA Desktop Cigar Humidor

Features

  • Additional space for accessory storage
  • Resilient design
  • Built-in hygrometer and humidifier
  • Tight seal

Specifications

  • Dimensions: 25 x 7.87 x 3.15 inches
  • Type: Desktop
  • Lining: Cedar

If you’re in the market for a heavy-duty humidor that will last a lifetime, look no further than the Megacra Cigar Humidor.

When I say heavy-duty I mean it quite literally, as this beast of a humidor weighs a whopping 65 pounds. While some might take this as a disadvantage, I find that it adds more protection to your humidor and your cigars.

The Megacra offers a suitable storage capacity of about 50 cigars, and it can fit nicely on your desk without taking up too much room.

However, cigars with a large ring gauge won’t fit comfortably if you reach full capacity. In that case, you should probably only store around 25.

The built-in humidifier does an amazing job of keeping your cigars potent and fresh. Meanwhile, you can monitor the humidity levels via the hygrometer attached to the humidor’s lid.

Out of all the small humidors on this list, the Megacra is without a doubt the strongest. The lining is incredibly tough and won’t scratch easily. Needless to say, all your cigars will be nice and safe inside.

Are Small Humidors Suitable for a Growing Cigar Collection?

If you’re just starting out with your cigar stash, then you probably don’t need to invest in a regular humidor or a large cigar cabinet humidors. That’s where a small humidor can come in handy. You’ll have plenty of space for cigar storage, and can even add more to your collection over time.

Moreover, you need to fill your cigar humidor to at least 30% capacity for it to be effective. If there aren’t enough cigars, too much moisture will enter your stogies and make them saturated.

Some cigar aficionado also own a small humidor if they want to spread their collection out. Perhaps they have a small stash of expensive premium cigars they want to keep separate from their general stockpile. In that case, small cigar humidors or even a travel humidor could be useful.

Small humidors are also easier to store in your home or office because they don’t take up too much space. Let’s say you have a large humidor for your primary collection, but you want something smaller to store your favorite stogies or cigar accessories.

Desktop humidors are designed for this specific need. The best cigar humidors are ones that fit nicely in your living and keep your cigars as fresh as possible.

Furthermore, small cigar humidors, humidor jars, and travel humidors are a lot easier to maintain than large cigar cabinet humidors. Unless you’re a cigar shop or an enthusiastic aficionado, you don’t need to invest the time or money taking care of a massive storage environment.

 

Are There Any Disadvantages to Owning a Small Humidor?

Like any kind of product, small humidors certainly aren’t the best fit for everyone. For starters, many small humidors aren’t made with the same quality and durability in mind as larger cigar containers. Even a small cigar shop will likely opt for a cigar cabinet humidors because they are resilient and long-lasting.

With that in mind, small humidors tend to be far more affordable than larger ones. That’s one reason they are a fantastic option for beginners. If you don’t know exactly how to take care of a humidor, you don’t need to worry about damaging an expensive investment.

Make sure you know what to look for when choosing your small humidor though. For example, some wooden humidors can come with weak seals that will allow moisture to escape. A plastic travel humidor may not offer the same kind of moisture retention wooden cigar humidors do.

Check out the section below to learn how to select the best cigar humidors from the bunch next time you’re in the market for one.

 

How To Choose the Best Small Humidor for Your Cigar Collection

Knowing what to look for will increase your chances of choosing the best cigar humidor for your collection. Here are few factors to consider the next time you check out small humidors:

 

1. Make Sure it Has a Tight Seal

Small humidors are notorious for having bad seals, so you want to make sure yours is airtight before buying. Otherwise, the outside air will leak in and all the moisture will escape. If you’re buying your humidor in person, there are two main ways to check the seal:

  1. The Whoosh Sound. A humidor with an airtight seal will make a “whoosh” sound whenever you close the lid. Test the humidor out to see if you can hear this sound whenever you close the humidor. If not, it might be wise to look at some of the other small humidors they have available.
  2. The Dollar Bill Test. Another easy way to check the seal of a humidor is what’s commonly known as the dollar bill test. All you need to do is place a dollar bill (or a bill of any kind) halfway into the humidor and shut the lid. Next, gently pull on the bill to see if there’s any resistance. If the bill comes out without struggle, then chances are the seal isn’t reliable.
 

If you’re buying your humidor online, it will be a lot harder to test the seal. In that case, make sure to check the customer reviews to see what real people have to say about how tight the seal is.

 

2. Make Sure the Quality Is Good

It goes without saying that you want to choose a high-quality humidor. However, finding the best cigar humidors is far easier said than done.

You can start by looking at what kind of wood they use to make the container. Cedar wood is often the best, but it might also be made from mahogany. If it’s a travel humidor, opt for ones made from durable plastic or some kind of acrylic. These humidors are known for being strong and long-lasting.

 

3. Choose the Right Brand

Brand loyalty is big in the cigar community, and that’s because the top brands constantly put out high-quality products. The same goes for humidor manufacturers. If you’re shopping for humidors online, do a little research about the brand and learn about their values. It also doesn’t hurt to read what other cigar aficionado have to say about their products.

A good sign that a brand is reputable is the kind of customer service they provide. Having excellent customer service is often a byproduct of being a top-seller. You can also look into their story and why they consider themselves to be the best.

Some brands that are well-known for creating the best cigar humidors are:

  • Xifei
  • Prestige Import Group
  • Quality Importers
  • Case Elegance
  • Capri
 

4. Think About What You’ll Put Inside Your Humidor

Obviously your humidor will be for storing cigars. However, you’ll need to think in more detail about the kind of cigars you want to put inside. Most small humidors have a storage capacity of 10-50 cigars, but that depends on things like ring gauges and length.

Furthermore, you’ll need to consider what kind of accessories you own. Do you want to store your cigar cutters and lighters inside? What about the humidification system packs you’ll be using? These are the kinds of questions you need to ask yourself before choosing a humidor.

 

FAQs

 

What is a good small humidor?

As you can see from the list above, there are several good small humidors on the market. The best choice would solely depend on your personal preferences. You’ll have to consider the factors above to choose the best one possible. My personal top picks are the Boveda Acrylic Humidor, Capri Small Humidor, and the Xifei travel Humidor.

 

How much does a small humidor cost?

Small humidors can vary in price based on several factors, primarily brand, material, and storage capacity. In general, small humidors are more affordable than larger ones.

You can expect to pay anywhere from $20 to $200 depending on which brand you go with.

As a result, small humidors make excellent gifts if you’re looking to get something special for a cigar smoking loved one.

 

Can you use a cigar box as a humidor?

Cigar boxes are used by manufacturers to ensure their stogies stay fresh until they make it to the shops. Once there, shop owners will typically place the boxes or individual cigars inside their own humidor.

Typically, cigar boxes will keep cigars fresh for about 30 days. While you could use a cigar box for temporary storage, they aren’t ideal if you’re looking to keep your stogies fresh in the long-run.

 

Verdict

Given that there are so many reliable small humidors out there, creating this list was incredibly fun. However, it required a lot of research about all the special features each container provides its owner.

In conclusion, the Mantello Cigar Humidor is the best for generally all cigar lovers.

There are countless other small humidors that make the cut. Remember to keep in mind all the factors above before choosing your next humidor. Doing so will protect your prized cigar collection and give you an overall better smoking experience.