14 Store-Bought Ketchup Brands, Ranked From Worst To Best

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Is there any condiment more versatile or beloved than ketchup? It's an integral part of nearly every McDonald's burger, providing a tomato sweetness in each bite. Or, it can be generously squeezed over the top of classic beef meatloaf to create a mouth-watering crust. But if you want the best eating experience, you need a high-quality ketchup that embodies all the sweet, savory, and tangy flavors you're looking for. How do you know which brands will provide that, and which will leave you disappointed?

Using my food industry background, I set out to answer this question. After grabbing all the ketchup flavors from every brand available in my local area, I judged each one primarily on taste and texture. Where there were flavor varieties I was unable to try personally, I relied on customer reviews. My methodology is at the end of this article. Now, let's find out how store-bought ketchup brands stacked up against one another.

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

Before I move into my review of this lowest-ranking option, I want to offer a disclosure about personal preference — to me, ketchup is meant to be mildly to moderately sweet, so I wasn't a fan of the unsweetened options. Although hesitant, I approached them with an open mind, only to find my initial wavering proved true. That said, Primal Kitchen offers one relevant product, which is its Organic and Unsweetened Ketchup.

Texturally, this ketchup was thin and watery, which I hated because I knew it would make bread watery. The tomato base flavor profile felt muted, and there wasn't much sweetness to counteract the overwhelming vinegar notes. These aspects combined to create a product that mostly tasted like thick vinegar. There's no way I'd ever buy this option again. 

G-Hughes Sugar Free Ketchup is the only option offered by the brand, so I formulated the brand's ranking based on taste. As you can probably tell, my opinion of it wasn't exactly great.

This was another ketchup with a disappointingly thin consistency, which felt more like a salad dressing than America's beloved condiment. Like the lowest-ranked option, this ketchup's tomato base was muted — in fact, it was so muted my taste buds picked up more vinegar punch and artificial sweeteners than tomato. Obviously, a ketchup that doesn't predominantly taste like tomato is a problem.

While I do appreciate how a sugar-free ketchup brand like G-Hughes might cater to certain people with dietary restrictions, it just doesn't hold up next to standard brands. Unless you have to limit your sugar intake, skip this and opt for any of the top three ketchup options.

True Made Foods only makes one ketchup product: Ketchup with Extra Veggies. According to the labeling, the "extra veggies" in the recipe include a combination of apples, carrot, and butternut squash. All ingredients I love individually. But, mixed into ketchup? Not so much.

Texturally, this product was okay. It was a bit thicker than my favorite options, which I prefer to watery. Still, it wasn't quite as smooth as I'd prefer, and the flavor profile was nothing like what I expected. It started with a base tomato like everything else, but there wasn't much sweetness, which I should have expected since it was labeled "no sugar." But this lack made the vinegary tang too strong, throwing off the balance. Beneath all of this was the earthy taste of vegetables, which does not taste like it belongs in ketchup.

I really wanted to like this ketchup brand, but I just couldn't get behind it, no matter how much I wanted to. You couldn't pay me to eat it again.

Wholesome Pantry is one of Shoprite's private labels. I tried its Organic Tomato Ketchup, which is the only product the brand offers. The one thing I'll give this ketchup is that it did have a robust tomato taste — unlike most of the other duller lower-ranking options. Unfortunately, this was overwhelmed by nauseating sweetness and moderate artificial notes. The latter were surprising since the ingredients list looked fairly wholesome, but their presence was undeniable. Finally, the texture was a bit thin and watery — and so, it would make foods like hamburger or hotdog buns watery.

I wouldn't buy this again. Even if you're looking for a budget-friendly option at Shoprite, there's a significantly better brand on this list you should choose instead.

There are a range of Great Value products I adore, like the brand's well-ranked packaged snacks, but all three ketchup options I tasted for this ranking were disappointing. This includes the Walmart private labels' Tomato Ketchup, Spicy Tomato Ketchup, and Tomato Ketchup Made With Sugar. Most notably, they had a texture so thin it was almost watery, and every one had unappealing mild to moderate artificial tones. The standard flavor's tomato felt muted and too sweet. This cloying taste was even more pronounced in the "made with sugar" variety. As for the Spicy Tomato Ketchup, the moderate kick of heat couldn't save an otherwise disheartening flavor profile.

I found it surprising that both the 50% Less Sodium and Sugar Tomato Ketchup and Organic Tomato Ketchup came highly rated on Walmart, which are the two products I was unable to try personally. I was going to place Great Value almost at the bottom based on my own experience, but bumped it up slightly due to the positive ratings from other customers.

Market Pantry is a Target private label — the first of two on this list. I tried the Market Pantry Tomato Ketchup, but there's also a 50% Less Sugar and Sodium Tomato Ketchup.

Although the standard option seemed appropriately thick, I found that the tomato base and water in the formula separated when left on a plate for a short time. The flavor profile was way too sweet for my preferences, and lacked any real depth. I caught faint hints of tang, but it was mostly just overwhelming sweetness.

Although the Market Pantry 50% Less Sugar and Sodium Tomato Ketchup came highly rated on Target, there were a few concerning reviews that felt aligned with my experiences with the standard option. For example, the most recent review mentioned how the ketchup sprayed everywhere when they tried to open the bottle, while another one discussed a weird texture. Since these repeated comments sounded like my own experience, I gave them a bit more weight than I normally would, and only bumped Market Pantry up slightly from where I was originally going to put it.

Good and Gather is another Target private label, and while this was slightly better than its Market Pantry counterpart, it still left me disappointed. I tried the Good and Gather Simple Blend Ketchup and Organic Ketchup, which are the only options I found the brand offering during my research.

The recipes for both ketchup blends were similar in many ways. Texturally, these were a bit watery, with the tomato separating from the water. The tomato bases were overwhelmed by a cloying flavor that left me feeling nauseous. The two ketchups differed, as the Organic Ketchup had a slightly more robust and balanced tang, whereas the Simple Blend's vinegar content felt harsh. I wouldn't go out of my way to buy this again. If this was my only choice, I'd rather go without ketchup.

Aldi has two private label brands that offer ketchup, and Burman's is the first of those. As you can guess, it's also the lower-ranked of the two. I tasted Burman's Tomato Ketchup, the brand's only offering. 

While better than the brands littering the bottom of this list, Burman's rendition of this popular condiment isn't good. It was too watery, but that could have been overlooked if the flavor profile was more complex. As it stands, the robust ketchup base was fine, but the sweetness was a bit too strong. There was a vinegary kick which was slightly too acidic. Faint artificial tones rounded out an otherwise unappealing product. 

I wouldn't buy or eat it again — unless it was the only option available and whatever I was eating really needed ketchup. Even if you're looking for a great Aldi private label product, you'll want to skip this because there's a better option available. 

While I'd recommend countless products from the private label retailer, I haven't been overly thrilled with Aldi's condiment selection — and this Simply Nature option rounds out those offers, with a single Organic Tomato Ketchup. 

To be clear, this Simply Nature ketchup wasn't bad. In fact, this is the part of the list where we clearly go from "bad" products to "good" ones. The flavor profile veers slightly toward too sweet, but this is easily overlooked when it's balanced by the strong tomato base. There are mild tangy notes, but this is as complex as the taste gets. Texturally, this was a little thinner than I prefer, but it's still thick enough to work nicely everywhere you'd typically use ketchup.

While I wouldn't go out of my way to purchase this ketchup, I might grab it if I was already at Aldi and needed something in a pinch. Either way, I'd definitely use this again if it was offered to me.

If you've followed my writing, you know I have a love-hate relationship with Bowl and Basket. But I have to admit the brand hits more than it misses when it comes to condiments. Not only did I think its ketchups were the best private label option in this ranking, but I also really enjoyed its store-bought grape jelly and store-bought mustards. I tried the Bowl and Basket Tomato Ketchup, Simply Tomato Ketchup, and Spicy Tomato Ketchup. Outside of special limited edition options with different packaging, these are the only offerings I could find from Shoprite's private label.

Honestly, I couldn't tell much of a difference between the Bowl and Basket Tomato Ketchup and Simply Tomato Ketchup options, except the sweetness was a little more natural in the latter. Otherwise, they both featured a robust tomato base accented by a moderate sweetness and mild tang, with the faintest hint of warmth. The Spicy Tomato Ketchup had a mild kick of heat that built to moderate as you continued eating it, which was nice. Texturally, all three options were a little less thick than my favorite brands, but I wouldn't call them runny.

Bowl and Basket is your best choice if looking for a budget-friendly private label ketchup brand. Although it's not my favorite, I wouldn't hesitate to use any of the products I sampled.

Hunt's was one of the few ketchup brands I'd used before this ranking. I tested the original Hunt's Tomato Ketchup and 100% Natural Tomato Ketchup varieties, which are the only options the brand offers.

The Hunt's Original Ketchup has a tomato-forward flavor, although it's not quite as fresh or pronounced as higher-ranking brands. This is punctuated by a moderate vinegar-esque tang and the faintest warm spices. The 100% Natural Tomato Ketchup was similar, except it had a cleaner taste with a less dominant tang. While not bad, the flavor profile isn't as complex as some better options. The textures of both ketchups were perfectly smooth, thick, and rich.

Hunt's is a good ketchup brand, but I wouldn't call it "great." While I would definitely use its ketchups again if that was what was available to me, I wouldn't go out of my way to purchase them. If you have a choice, opt for one of the top three ketchup brands.

Based on my research, Whataburger offers three ketchup varieties: the Whataburger Spicy Ketchup with Jalapeno, Spicy Ketchup with Cholula, and Fancy Ketchup. I tried the first variety. Although I'm originally from Florida, I've never eaten at a Whataburger, so I wasn't familiar with its ketchup. After this? I'm very interested in eating at one so I can see if the actual food holds up to its condiments.

The Spicy Ketchup was thicker than I expected, but not so much that it felt overwhelming. A bright, tangy tomato flavor profile paired with a robust sweetness that was balanced by a moderate spicy kick and mild salty notes. The Whataburger Fancy Ketchup came highly rated online — in fact, it had a high star rating on Walmart with hundreds of glowing reviews. One Walmart reviewer said, "I like this ketchup. I've used it on fries and burgers, and it's delicious. It has a good tangy flavor with no aftertaste." The Spicy Ketchup with Cholula also came highly rated, with another Walmart customer who said, "It's seriously the perfect balance of flavor and heat. It's not too mild, not overpowering, just right." 

I think Whataburger is an excellent ketchup brand, and if you're a fan of spicy ketchups, go for it. The only reason this brand didn't rank higher is that I preferred the cleaner taste and wider catalog of the top two options.

Smash Kitchen offers two distinct ketchup flavors, including a Classic Tomato Ketchup and a Hot Honey Ketchup. I was lucky enough to try both of them, so I didn't have to rely on outside reviews for this brand.

Both Smash Kitchen ketchups featured a thick, smooth consistency that came out of the bottles nicely — it wasn't hard to squeeze, but it wasn't watery. I also really liked the brand's cleaner ingredients and clear labeling. The Classic Tomato Ketchup had a base layer reminiscent of freshly picked tomatoes. Over this was layered a bright tang and faint notes of warm spice. The Hot Honey Ketchup took the classic's base flavor profile and made it sweeter with a moderate kick of spice. This bold flavor profile does wonders to level up a humble French fry, while the classic is my son's new favorite dip for his homemade chicken fingers.

It was nearly a tie for first place, but my option pulled ahead simply because it offered significantly more flavors. Smash Kitchen is an excellent store-bought ketchup brand with a quality that rivals my top choice. 

Heinz has a surprisingly large portfolio of different ketchups. I was able to try its original Heinz Tomato Ketchup, alongside its No Salt Added, Zero Sugar Added, Organic, Simply All Natural Ingredients, Pickle, and Simply Spicy options. There are also Chipotle, Jalapeño, and Habanero Ketchups, as well as a Tomato Ketchup With A Blend of Veggies.

All the Heinz ketchups I tried were quite good and had the thick but smooth texture I look for in a good ketchup. While I wasn't the biggest fan of the No Salt Added and Zero Sugar Added options, they were good for what they were — even better, they were devoid of the heavy artificial notes of similar products. The Organic and Simply All Natural Ingredients options tasted identical to me, featuring clean, sweet, and tangy flavor profiles. The Simply Spicy option was similar, except it also featured a moderate kick of heat. The Heinz Pickle Flavored Ketchup was my favorite, combining the natural flavors of ketchup with a sharp sourness of pickles.

The Heinz Chipotle Tomato Ketchup, Veggie Blend, and Heinz Jalapeño Ketchup varieties came highly rated online. One Walmart customer said of the Habanero Ketchup, "I am a very spicy girl, and the taste of this new ketchup is divine. I will buy again." Another customer from Walmart said, "The habanero adds a bright, spicy punch that builds without completely overpowering the tomato base." All this positive online feedback made me secure in naming Heinz the best store-bought ketchup brand. Regardless of your taste preferences or dietary restrictions, Heinz has a solid option for you.

I found store-bought ketchup brands to include in this list through two different methods. First, some brands sent me editorial samples. Second, I purchased ketchups at my local Shoprite, Walmart, Aldi, and Target in the Vineland, New Jersey, area.

I tasted each individual ketchup one after another by squirting some onto a spoon, and then eating it as-is to get the clearest picture of each flavor's taste and texture. I was looking for a thick, smooth ketchup with a robust tomato base accented by some variation of sweet, salty, warm, and earthy tones. Of course, I took into consideration the individual flavors (pickle, spicy, hot honey, etc.), and what those should bring above the standard ketchup base. For any ketchups I was unable to try personally, I relied on customer reviews found through reliable sources to help me craft an opinion of the brand as a whole. Brands were considered based on all their relevant products.

I felt confident ranking these ketchup brands thanks to more than 15 years in the food industry and significant use of ketchup in my own home for more than three decades. Prior work creating articles for Daily Meal also contributed to my confidence. This includes similar articles, such as my rankings of store-bought chili brands for hot dogs and store-bought queso dips. Although personal preference played a role in this list, I aimed to be as unbiased about product quality as possible.