Customers Agree, These Are The 7 Best Grocery Store Crab Cakes

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Before we dig into this topic, let's say it straight. Marylanders will probably tell you that the best grocery store crab cake does not exist. The best crab cake is the one you make yourself, and this was the recurring chorus we heard while looking into this. Now, we're not ones to quibble with the "fresh is always better" mantra. That said, anyone living in the Old Line State is blessed with an abundance of Chesapeake Bay blue crabs right on their doorstep. The rest of us are not so lucky, so we've got to make do with the store-bought kind when the itch hits.

We searched the most popular grocery stores in the United States for the few elusive brands that have obtained a solid seal of approval. Some even received a reluctant thumbs-up from Marylanders themselves, which is no mean feat. The bad news is that it's not a very long list. Still, it does include fan favorites Costco, Publix, and Aldi, among others.

Reviews of the Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes at Whole Foods start out strong on TikTok, with one customer calling them "a treat for seafood lovers ... worth every penny." Folks are just as complimentary elsewhere online, throwing around adjectives like amazing and delicious. Wondering about the crab-to-filler ratio? Customers confirm that each cake is mostly made up of actual crab, and there's very little breading around it. The price only adds up to approximately $8 per cake, making them a very affordable treat. They even receive a very favorable comparison to the original Maryland crab cakes.

If you need any more convincing, the description on the package will probably do the trick. These cakes are handmade, using sweet, premium crab meat that's caught in the wild. They're easy to prepare, and a few minutes in the oven will give you optimal fluff level. If you prefer a decadently crispy chew, you can also enjoy sautéed crab cakes in a nonstick pan.

Let's be real here, 63% of customers can't be wrong. That's right, the majority of customer ratings for Member's Mark Wild Caught Handmade Crab Cakes are 5-star. Given that the total number of reviews exceeds 4,500, we're talking very solid numbers here. The Sam's Club in-house collection is known for offering elevated and high-quality items, so these crab cakes fit in seamlessly with the brand's ethos. They're handmade from wild-caught crabs and panko bread, but the price is very low, at around $17 for six cakes. Not bad at all.

What makes these some of the best crab cakes you can find at grocery stores? According to customers, they tick all the boxes of an actual Maryland crab cake. They contain lots of crab and very little filler. "The best frozen ones I've had," says one customer on Facebook, with reviews elsewhere echoing these sentiments. One reviewer even claims they're even better than restaurant-level crab cakes, and that they're perfect for that dinner date when making an impression counts.

Before waxing lyrical about Aldi's Premium Crab Cakes, we'll just kick off with this quote from a happy Facebook user right here, who said, "As a Marylander I'm always a bit skeptical to try crab cakes that aren't local ... They were pretty darn good for what they were and an excellent value. Made for a quick and delicious meal. Recommend!" Now this is higher praise than any we can give, and many customers are in agreement. The one bone of contention is which variety is better, the Maryland or the Boardwalk Style. The latter does have many fans, with customers describing them as very good, moist, and meaty, with just enough filler to hold them together. Customers also love the Maryland version, which contains more protein and gets you closer to the recommended daily guidelines for protein.

There's an element of pragmatism to this enthusiasm, of course, with some people pointing out that the crab cakes offer excellent value to those who don't wish to pay the price of an actual Chesapeake Bay blue crab. The price is low enough for some customers to assume they'd be getting imitation crab, which only makes that first bite even sweeter. For the record, it's real crab, which is why so many love them.

Starting off with the good news, Phillips Maryland Style Crab Cakes are actually available from multiple grocery stores. Target and Walmart stock the regular-sized package for two, while Costco and Kroger stock the mini version with 36 servings, ideal for parties. No matter which chain you pick for your crab cake fix, we've got consensus among crab cake lovers. Some customers believe that Phillips offers the best frozen crab cakes you can buy, earning brownie points for being generous with the crab meat, even though they can't beat restaurant crab cakes. Even Marylanders agree that they're good enough to scratch the itch if the fresh ones aren't available. High praise indeed. Throw in a side salad, and you've got a whole meal.

Customers are enthusiastic across the internet, and the mini version even got the Generation Z equivalent of a thumbs-up. "They bussin' or mids tho", asked one customer on Reddit. The reply on was reassuring. "They're bussin' ... generously filled with crab meat unlike most others."

With a 4.5-star rating on the Sprouts official site, once again, we have a no-filler winner. Some reviewers even claim they're better than the ones served at most restaurants. Social media agrees with them, with glowing reviews. Some reviewers can't disguise their surprise at how good the cakes turn out to be. Others are even more complimentary, like one TikTok user, who says, "I can confidently say that their crab cakes are the best supermarket variety I've ever tried."

Sprouts Farmers Market regulars are unlikely to be surprised by the standard of these cakes, as the grocery chain prides itself on offering responsibly sourced food. It sources its crab meat from certified sustainable fisheries, and vendors go through a strict verification process. This guarantees 100% product traceability, which translates into better quality. This is reflected in their seafood products in general, including these meaty crab cakes.

These crab cakes leap into a decidedly more expensive price range at $10 for a box of four, but customers give them two thumbs up, with plenty heaping on praise and with words like awesome, tasty, and, our favorite — yummylicious.

Plenty of reviewers are eager to join the Publix fan club, with some  suggesting cooking them in butter and olive oil and saying that these crab cakes are their favorite thing at the store. They even get the "GOAT 10 out of 10" treatment in one TikTok video, while another reviewer, who usually makes them from scratch, scored them a solid nine out of 10. That's a very good showing, folks, considering that it's not easy to impress someone when their usual benchmark is genuinely homemade. Then again, these cakes are made with 100% real, hand-picked crab meat using a signature family recipe.

Costco makes it onto the list, not with its popular Kirkland brand but with these Rastelli's Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes. Costco reviewers have given them the green light with over 700 5-star reviews. Mind you, given the price — just shy of $200 for 20 cakes — these are strictly for those who really want to replicate the Maryland experience.

Now, before you roll your eyes at this bold price tag, hear us out. We are, after all, searching for the best grocery store crab cakes. These are handmade in the U.S. using real jumbo lump crab meat, which is considered one of the best types of meat for crab cakes. It comes at a high cost because there are only two pieces on each crab. The taste is sweet and the texture firm so, if you're after the real deal, this is as close as it gets. 

We found just under 1,000 glowing 4- and 5-star reviews on the Costco site, with customers deciding that the generous amount of crab in these cakes makes them worth the price. Rastelli's Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes are also available on Amazon, where one, as one happy customer puts it, it's "yummy seafood ... Some of the best crab cakes I've ever had."