🥤 Most People Will Go Their Entire Lives Without Ever Knowing Why Soda Cans Have a Small Tab Hole

It’s something you see all the time — you pop open a soda can, toss the tab aside (or maybe leave it dangling), take a sip, and never think twice about it again. But have you ever stopped to wonder: What’s that small hole in the tab actually for?

Surprisingly, most people go their entire lives without knowing the clever purpose behind this tiny design feature. But once you learn it, you’ll never look at a soda can the same way again.

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🧐 That Tiny Hole Isn’t Just for Looks

The small circular hole in the pull tab of a soda can might seem like a random design element, or maybe even just part of the mechanics that help open the can. And while it does serve a role in leveraging the seal open, it has another, often-overlooked purpose.

Ready for it?

👉 It’s designed to hold your straw in place.

Yes — really.

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🥤 The Hidden Straw Holder

If you've ever tried drinking soda through a straw straight from the can, you may have noticed that the straw floats up, spins around, or bobs annoyingly. That’s because the fizzy carbonation makes it buoyant.

Here’s where that little hole comes in handy:

1. Open the can as usual.

2. Rotate the pull tab around so that the hole is over the can’s opening.

3. Insert your straw through the hole.

4. Voilà! The straw stays put — no floating, no spinning, no mess.

It’s an elegantly simple solution that has been built into soda cans for decades — and yet very few people know about it.

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🤯 A Smart Design Hidden in Plain Sight

The soda can pull tab, known as a stay-on tab, was invented in the 1970s to reduce litter and injuries from sharp detached tabs. Since then, the design has barely changed — but that tiny hole was no accident. It’s a perfect example of smart, functional design that’s gone largely unnoticed.

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💡 Bonus Tip: It Works on Juice and Energy Drinks Too

This trick isn’t just for soda. It works on most canned drinks that use standard pull tabs — think energy drinks, iced coffee, sparkling water, and canned juices.

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🧠 Final Thoughts: It’s the Little Things

It’s amazing how something so small can make such a difference — and how we can use a product for years without discovering all its features.

So next time you crack open a can, try the straw trick for yourself. And when someone asks why you're threading a straw through the pull tab, you can smile and say:

“Most people go their whole lives without knowing this… but now you do.”