- We tried five brands of guacamole commonly found at the grocery store.
- The brands we tried were from Sabra, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Calavo, and Yucatan.
- If you’re wondering which one to grab for your at-home Cinco de Mayo celebration, Whole Foods was our clear winner thanks to its fresh taste, chunky texture, and bold seasoning.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Any snack lover would argue that a tortilla chip isn’t complete without guacamole.
In the interest of finding the guac most worthy of your chips, Insider sampled five different brands: Sabra, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Calavo, and Yucatan.
Prices for each guacamole brand will vary by the grocery store, so we compared the value of each one using Instacart, an online grocery delivery service, as well as checking prices listed online.
Here’s a breakdown of each store-bought guacamole, ranked from worst to best.
We bought all five guacamole brands at grocery stores in New York City.
The various tubs of guacamole cost between $3.59 and $7.14.
We paired the guac with multi-grain tortilla chips.
Insider's reporters decided to blindly taste each guacamole in an effort to remain unbiased by brand loyalty.
The group quickly came to a consensus that Yucatan had a suspiciously smooth texture and an oddly sour flavor.
"It's like they just blended lemon and avocado and said, 'this works,'" one of the taste-testers remarked.
Yucatan was completely lacking in texture - there were no veggies to speak of in the dip.
Plus, we couldn't make out any of the seasonings or spices typically used in guacamole, like cilantro and salt. It was so smooth one of the taste-testers said they thought it might have gelatin in it.
The 8-ounce tub cost $3.69.
We found the Calavo guacamole's flavor to be somewhat sweet and relatively garlicky, although the garlic didn't really taste like it was fresh.
We honestly didn't feel as strongly about Calavo. Despite being slightly more expensive at $4.99 for a 12-ounce container, it just wasn't anything that impressive to us. Instead, it was something "you would politely eat at a party," one of our co-workers said.
It was also the spiciest out of the five contenders.
Some thought the Sabra guacamole was somewhat bland and could have benefited from a little more spice.
Did Sabra's guacamole taste like it came from the grocery store? Yes, it did, but that doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing.
It had a little bit of texture to it, and it was fairly salty - although not so salty that it tasted bad.
It was also the cheapest of the four brands at just $3.59 for 8 ounces. For a cheap option, this brand was just OK.
Trader Joe's guacamole, unlike Calavo's, had a much fresher garlic taste.
Although its flavor was intense and tasty, it wasn't as textured as some of the other brands we sampled.
At $3.99 for 16 ounces, it was ideal for those who prefer a cheaper guac without veggie chunks.
Whole Foods' guacamole was a true step above the four other brands.
It was everything that guac is supposed to be: textured, refreshing, and well-seasoned.
"You can see the herbs in it like you're supposed to," one of my co-workers said. Another commented on its perfect blend of seasonings, which all complimented each other.
Whole Foods' guacamole, which costs $8.99 per pound or around $7.14 for the amount we purchased, tasted the most homemade, thanks to its chunky texture.
There was also a little hint of spice to it.
If there was one thing we all agreed on, it was that Whole Foods was the clear winner in this contest.
We recommend buying this one all for yourself or for your at-home Cinco de Mayo celebration.
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