10 Store-Bought French Dressings, Ranked Worst To Best

Although the original French dressing was a simple combination of oil, vinegar, and limited spices, it means something entirely different in modern America. Order French dressing in an American restaurant today and you'll receive something that's creamy and orange-ish, with a medium thickness — the appearance places it into a large category alongside the likes of Catalina, Russian, and Thousand Island dressings. 

If you're a big fan of the brightly colored sweet stuff, there are numerous options available in most grocery stores so you can enjoy it in your home. But not all store-bought French dressings are created equal. Which will make your basic leafy green or steakhouse wedge salad really shine, and which will make you want to dump your whole bowl?

As someone who regularly keeps French dressing in my home, I wondered this question, too. Thankfully, I was given the chance to answer it by tasting 10 store-bought French dressings and reporting my findings back here by ranking them from worst to best. I used my food industry background and other relevant experiences to assess each dressing primarily on taste and texture. You can learn more about my methodology at the end of this article, if you're interested. Now, are you ready to discover which French dressing most deserves to grace your shopping cart? Let's get into it.

Bowl & Basket is Shoprite's private label brand, and it's one I have a love-hate relationship with because its product quality is like a roller coaster. For example, its store-bought grape jelly left me pleasantly surprised, but its milk chocolate bar tasted heavily artificial, leaving me disappointed. And there tend to be more downs than ups — a trend this French dressing unfortunately continued.

Although this Creamy French Dressing had the sweet and tangy flavor profile I was looking for, at least to some degree, the tangy vinegar pulled ahead of the sweet tomato enough to make this feel unbalanced. I did detect faint garlicky tones and the faintest earthiness, but these largely disappear behind a heavy artificial taste. These artificial notes weren't quite chemical-like, but were definitely chemical-adjacent. Texturally, this was smooth but a little too oily, with a heavier thickness than I would have preferred.

Bowl & Basket's creamy dressing carries a common allergen warning for dairy, which is something to be aware of when most other options are dairy-free. Every 2 tablespoons contain 140 calories, 13 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, and 6 grams of sugar. I wouldn't purchase this again, nor could I be tempted to use it in the future. I recommend either making your own French dressing at home or opting for one of the top three store-bought options on this list.

I've heard some people say "Western" is a dressing type all its own rather than a subset of French. For this reason, I debated including this option in my ranking, but based on it being labeled as French dressing by the brand on Amazon and Target, I ultimately decided to include it. Unfortunately, my taste buds wished I hadn't because it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience.

The one thing this dressing had going for it (that the Bowl & Basket option didn't) was its tomato-forward flavor profile. While still unbalanced, I felt a lean toward the sweet tomato rather than the tangy vinegar was more in line with what I'd expect from this dressing type. Although there weren't any artificial notes here (which was nice), there also weren't any layered flavors, so it felt very one-dimensional. Texturally, it was smooth and creamy, but it felt just a little too oily.

Two tablespoons of this dressing contain 170 calories, 12 grams of fat, 250 milligrams of sodium, and 12 grams of sugar. It's tied for the highest amount of sugar, so it's one of the least suitable for those who need to watch their intake. I wouldn't buy this again, and I couldn't be tempted to use it if someone else offered it to me.

My experience with Great Value has been similar to that of Bowl & Basket, although the up-and-down quality roller coaster hasn't been quite so dramatic. Although I've had some truly terrible experiences (like its store-bought hot dog chili that looked and smelled like dog food), it's also the brand behind some must-have foods that cost less than $5. It's a shame that Great Value didn't pull through with this French dressing.

From the moment this dressing touched my tongue, I detected only overwhelming sweetness with heavy artificial notes. Typically, this combination would leave a product in last place, but I decided to pull this one ahead because of what I tasted once those initial notes faded — a nice balance of sweet tomato and sharp vinegar bite was interspersed with hints of garlic and a faint earthiness. A rich, creamy texture came with the medium mouthfeel I was looking for, devoid of any excess oiliness. If it hadn't been for that initial nauseating artificial sweetness, this would have ranked much higher.

This dressing has an allergen warning for milk. If you eat 2 tablespoons of this creamy dressing, you'll receive 140 calories, 13 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, and 6 grams of sugar. As great as the taste becomes, I wouldn't buy or eat this again because of that strong initial taste alone.

If you shop at Acme Markets (like me) or other Albertsons-owned companies like Safeway, Jewel-Osco, Shaws, or Vons, you're likely already familiar with Signature Select. Although I didn't end up being a fan of their French dressing, Signature Select usually tends to be more reliable for me than lower-ranking private labels on this list. Of course, no brand can produce high-quality products 100% of the time.

A nicely balanced sweet and tangy flavor profile graced my taste buds here, which was really nice after all the unbalanced lower-ranking options. Texturally, this was smooth, but a bit thinner than I would have preferred. There was a little excess oiliness, but it wasn't enough to ruin my experience. A subtle savoriness with a small burst of fruitiness at the end was nice, but it was marred by faint artificial notes, which drastically brought Signature Select's French dressing down in this ranking.

Two tablespoons provide 80 calories, 6 grams of fat, 390 milligrams of sodium, and 6 grams of sugar. This has the highest sodium content at 17% of your daily needs, which is quite a bit more than the average amount on this list — people needing to watch their sodium content should use caution. Since this wasn't terrible, I might be tempted to use it again if someone offered it to me and there were no other options. But I definitely wouldn't go out of my way to buy it.

I'm a big fan of Ken's Steak House dressings overall, and this one specifically was an interesting rendition of French dressing. The idea had merit, and there isn't anything inherently wrong with the dressing — rather, I found the combination just strange enough that it left me grimacing after attempting to savor a full spoonful. But then most people won't be eating this by itself, either.

French dressing's hallmark sweet and tangy base was present from the beginning. Overall, it was nicely balanced, although it veered ever so slightly toward the taste of sweet tomato. This may have been because the tomato's natural sweetness was enhanced by the honey, which also provided the bright finishing burst of citrus. My biggest issue was that the citrus paired oddly with the underlying garlic and onion tones, which left me feeling flavor fatigue early on. A smooth, velvety texture held a medium mouthfeel, and the rich reddish color was aesthetically pleasing.

A 2-tablespoon serving of this dressing contains 140 calories, 12 grams of fat, 230 milligrams of sodium, and 9 grams of sugar. The flavor combination of this dressing may not be so fatiguing eaten over a salad, so I could probably be tempted to give that a try. However, there's no way I'd seek this out in the store.

Wish-Bone was one of two brands that offered multiple variations of French dressing, with the other being Ken's Steak House. I found it really interesting that the brand's sweet variation ranked higher than its creamy, since my preference generally leans heavily towards the latter.

This tomato-forward flavor profile was paired with a moderate vinegar tang, and a creamy richness that tasted similar to mayonnaise (although that descriptor isn't exactly right). Throughout this base profile were faint savory notes and a barely noticeable spiced undertone. A rich medium mouthfeel coated my mouth as I ate, promising to nicely coat greens when used in salads. If the secondary flavors had been a bit bolder, this would have ranked higher. Otherwise, I felt the tomato slightly overpowered the vinegar, which wasn't a big problem, per se, but was enough to knock this dressing down a few spots.

Per 2 tablespoons, you'll receive 120 calories, 11 grams of fat, 180 milligrams of sodium, and 4 grams of sugar. Not only is this a decent French dressing, but it also has the lowest amount of added sugars per serving. Although I wouldn't buy this again, I'd happily eat it if someone else offered it to me.

If you're specifically looking for a sweet French dressing, this is your best option. However, if you don't have a strong style preference or are looking for either a creamy or California-style French dressing, there are still better options ahead.

As you might imagine, this leaned a little sweeter than creamy French varieties, but it didn't feel unbalanced because it was artfully nuanced. At first, this dressing was sugary sweet to the point of being candy-like. This quickly faded into a balance of ketchup-like sweetness and a distinct vinegar tang, before ending with a savory, spiced finish. Texturally, this was a bit thinner than I usually prefer, but it was on par with what I expected from a sweet variation. My only complaint was that I would have liked the secondary flavor notes to be slightly stronger upfront. Honestly, the only reason this didn't rank higher is that I have a preference towards the taste and texture of creamy variations.

A 2-tablespoon serving of this sweet French dressing contains 160 calories, 12 grams of fat, 250 milligrams of sodium, and 12 grams of sugar. This is tied for the highest amount of included sugars, making it one of the least suitable for anyone needing to watch their sugar intake. I might buy this again, but I'll probably stick to my top one or two options whenever possible. However, I'd definitely eat this again without hesitation if it was offered.

Before I even tasted this Kraft Creamy French Dressing, the bottle gave me hope this would at least be decent. For starters, this has a beautiful, vibrant orange color with obvious speckles of spice or seasoning. Then the labeling says this recipe contains zero artificial flavors or MSG. And thankfully, those hopes were largely fulfilled.

The sweet and tangy flavor profile here had very strong sugary notes upfront that faded to let the vinegary punch take center stage. As this faded, muted savory notes and a defined spiced undertone came forward — my only complaint was that these final flavors were somewhat muddled instead of standing on their own, and they could have been slightly bolder. But there was still a nicely complex flavor profile in this rich, medium-thickness dressing.

Two tablespoons of this Kraft dressing contain 130 calories, 12 grams of total fat, 250 milligrams of sodium, and 6 grams of sugar. Since my second-place choice is a store-specific option, I would definitely buy this Kraft dressing if my top option weren't available in most stores.

It was a near-tie for first place, but ultimately, I decided this Tuscan Garden California Style French Dressing was a little less nuanced with a slightly less balanced flavor profile than the top option. That being said, if you're an Aldi shopper, this is definitely worth grabbing on your next trip.

This had a tangy vinegar kick upfront that quickly merged into a sweet ketchup-like tomato. A mildly herbed undertone came next, which was quickly followed by a combination of an almost smoky flavor that made this taste barbecue-adjacent. Although the texture was thinner than most of the other dressings on this list, it really worked here and didn't feel too runny at all. If you're looking for a French salad dressing that could double as a barbecue sauce, this is an excellent choice. If you're not a fan of barbecue, though, this probably isn't going to be your thing.

A 2-tablespoon serving provides 80 calories, 5 grams of total fat, 340 milligrams of sodium, and 8 grams of total sugars. I'll definitely be buying this when I do my Aldi shopping trips, although I'll opt for my top choice whenever I shop elsewhere. If this is the best French dressing available to you, your eating experience isn't going to suffer in the least.

It was a near tie for the top two spots, but Ken's Steak House Creamy French Dressing pulled slightly ahead of Tuscan Garden to claim first place. Primarily because it had a slightly more nuanced flavor profile, with a slightly better balance.

The intricate flavor profile in this dressing started with a faintly fruity apple cider punch that quickly melded into a sweet tomato — this tasted more like fresh fruit instead of ketchup, which is one way this dressing really stood apart. As the sweet and tangy base began to fade, I was hit with varying mild savory notes. Garlic was foremost, offering some zest to the finish. This was quickly followed by fainter notes of onion and mustard, alongside what might have been fresh herbs. Texturally, this was perfectly smooth and creamy, with a medium mouthfeel that veered toward heavy without crossing that line.

A 2-tablespoon serving of this French dressing has 130 calories, 12 grams of total fat, 180 milligrams of sodium, and 5 grams of sugar. I will definitely be purchasing this as my new go-to French dressing moving forward, and highly recommend you grab yourself a bottle as well. Once you taste it for yourself, you'll have zero doubts as to why Ken's Steak House earned the title of best store-bought French dressing.

I chose French dressings for inclusion in this ranking based on their availability to me near Vineland, New Jersey, and tried each French dressing on its own, from a spoon, one after another, with a palate-cleansing drink between. Taste and texture were the primary things I judged each dressing on — I was looking for a medium-thickness dressing with some variation of a sweet, bright, and tangy base profile. Bonus points were given if the dressing had any faint savory, earthy, or spiced tones. Although I included nutritional information in each section, I didn't consider it for ranking purposes. Instead, it's included to help those with dietary needs or preferences make the most informed purchasing decisions.

To make my judgements, I primarily relied on a food industry background of more than 15 years, along with plenty of experience with French dressings. Previous work for Daily Meal also contributed, including similar dressing-based articles like my ranking of store-bought Italian dressings and my ranking of store-bought ranch dressings. Although personal preference played a role in this ranking, I aimed to be as unbiased as possible about product quality.