From summer parties to the Super Bowl and every day in between, potato chips can be enjoyed year-round. They’re the ultimate snack or side dish while enjoying hot dogs, hamburgers or lobster rolls and are a dip's BFF. They're crispy and salty and pretty much perfect.The one thing that's not so great about potato chips? Figuring out what brand to buy. As you walk down the chip aisle, you’ll find sooooo many options. You're faced with a range of textures (smooth, wavy, kettle-cooked), flavors (plain, barbecue, sour cream and onion, and on and on) and brands. So many brands. With such an overwhelming snack selection, finding the best potato chip can be a tough task.I’m admittedly partial to Cape Cod potato chips (they’re the kind that my late grandfather always purchased for my sister and me, solely because he always scored a 2/$5 deal), but I was determined to find the very best potato chips for summer snacking—and beyond.To do just that, I assembled a trusted team of tasters and we snacked our way through 15 different brands of plain potato chips to find the best of the bunch. After crunching through the options (and crunching the numbers), we were able to crown a winner. Read on to find out which bags you should add to your grocery cart.Related:We Ranked 20 Different Lay's Flavors and the Winner is One You've Probably Never Tried?? SIGN UP to get delicious recipes, handy kitchen hacks & more in our daily Pop Kitchen newsletter. ??
The 15 potato chip contenders / Courtesy of Kelly VaughanKelly Vaughan
How I Tested These Potato Chips
To keep things fair, I conducted a blind taste test with my husband, parents, sister, and brother-in-law. My husband coordinated the taste test, serving the chips on separate numbered paper plates so that my family and I could taste each chip objectively. We each tasted a few chips and reserved our thoughts until everyone had a chance to form their own opinions. We cleansed our palates with plenty of cold water in between each test and made note of different factors, including texture, flavor, saltiness, greasiness and overall appearance. Once we established a tentative ranking, I went back and tasted some of the competitors side by side to confirm that they earned their spot on the list.
The winners’ circle included some expected players and a few surprising standouts. The best potato chips were crunchy and flavorful with just the right amount of salt and oil flavor. Those at the bottom of the list, on the other hand, lacked texture and flavor (or, in some cases, good flavor). Because this taste test was blind, we didn’t subtract points for price or accessibility, but I’m happy to share that our winner was also one of the least expensive. Related: We Baked Cookies With 13 Different Chocolate Chip Brands and The Winner Shocked Us
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15 Potato Chips, Ranked From Worst to Best
Light up the grill and grab a glass of cold lemonade as you get ready to snack your way through our best potato chip ranking.
15. Utz Original Potato Chips
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Utz potato chips have been around for more than 100 years, but unfortunately, we were underwhelmed by the chips’ flavor and texture. On the plate, these chips had a large, uniform shape and light- to medium-brown color that just wasn’t as appetizing as some others. Testers noted that these tasted like “salted styrofoam,” “wet construction paper” and “communion wafers.” Ouch! They lacked both flavor and crunch, which landed them at the bottom of this list. Related: All 29 Utz Potato Chip Flavors Ranked, From Worst to First
14. 365 by Whole Foods Organic Sea Salt Potato Chips
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We don’t judge books by their covers—or potato chips by how many dark shards are on the plate. This bag consisted of lots of tiny medallion-sized chip pieces that were quite dark and unappetizing. Still, we reserved our judgment until we finished tasting. Testers noted that these chips had “too much burnt oil flavor” and a “wet paper texture.” I thought they had a decent crunch initially, but that structure didn't hold up.
13. Siete Sea Salt Kettle Chips
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I was right in thinking that these chips were made with avocado oil because they had a pronounced vegetal flavor that I didn't find appealing. I enjoyed the texture and crunch of these chips, but they tasted like oil and lacked salt. One tester noted that these chips had a “dense crunch that felt hard to chew” and he could feel the grease settle in his stomach. Do with that what you will.Related: I Tried 14 Bottled Caesar Salad Dressings and the Winner Totally Surprised Me
12. Lay's Kettle Cooked Original Potato Chips
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If you like potato chips that taste vaguely of underripe banana peel, then you’ll like these crunchy kettle chips from arguably the most popular potato chip brand. Our testers noted how crunchy these chips were, but some considered them to be too crunchy. Flavorwise, they really missed the mark. “Bland at the beginning and funky at the end,” said one tester.
11. Kettle Brand Sea Salt Kettle Potato Chips
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The flavor and texture of these chips didn't match their appearance. The plate was filled with tons of small, broken pieces that were on the thin side; those that were whole were thin and small-to-medium-sized. Nothing about them screamed "kettle cooked." They had a good crunch and texture, but were under-salted and lacked flavor. One tester noted that they were “too heavy and too greasy,” which is part of what caused them to land near the bottom of our list.
10. Miss Vickie’s Kettle Cooked Sea Salt Potato Chips
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Overall, our testers enjoyed how crunchy these chips were, but found them to be bitter and extremely salty. One tester noted that they tasted like “eating fried oil and salt.” (If you’re thinking, "Isn’t that what potato chips are?" then you’d be right. But trust me when I say that you don’t want your chips to taste like it.) They did have the signature folded appearance of kettle chips with plenty of texture, but the flavor ultimately missed the mark for us.Related: All Dot's Pretzels Flavors—Ranked Best to Worst
9. Good & Gather Kettle Cooked Sea Salt Potato Chips
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Target’s Good & Gather brand impressed us with their crunch, but not much else. “Classic kettle cooked situation,” one tester said. Another noted that they were “foldy and salty in a good way.” Like many of its competitors, however, we were disappointed by the flavor, which tasted slightly like dirty fryer oil and created an overall greasy bite.
8. Humble Organic Original Potato Chips
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I wasn’t intending to test this brand, but I threw it in my cart on a whim while shopping at Whole Foods. I know I said that I wasn’t judging based on accessibility or price, but I do think it’s important to note that this was both the smallest and most expensive bag that we tried—and, unfortunately, we didn't think that it was worth the money. These chips were more of a Lay’s-style chip but, as one tester noted, they were “forgettable.” They had a bitter, slightly starchy flavor that we didn’t love, but the crunch of the thin chips was nice.
7. Clancy’s Original Potato Chips
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Aldi’s answer to the classic potato chip is “traditionally beautiful,” as one tester noted. However, they got mixed reviews from the wider group. While most of us were pleased by their appearance and thinness, we had differing opinions on the salt level. I found them to be way too salty, while another tester called them “salty in the way you want them to be.” Another tester was disappointed by the “burnt flavor” and noted that it “dissolved instantly” in her mouth. “They looked like they’d be better than they were,” said another, which seems to accurately summarize our feelings about this one.Related: Aldi Shoppers Are Sharing Their Go-To Items, and Our Grocery List Just Got a Lot Longer
6. Wise Golden Original Potato Chips
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Were these the best potato chips we tested? No, but they were super snackable and very satisfying. I noted that they tasted like a knockoff, generic-brand Lay’s potato chip, but I enjoyed their crunch and flavor. One tester said that they were “oilier than they needed to be” but their texture and flavor was enjoyable enough to earn their spot in the top half of the ranking.
5. Deep River Snacks Original Sea Salt Kettle Cooked Potato Chips
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I’d be happy to receive these kettle chips with a deli sandwich. Although they didn’t blow me away, they were very solid, thanks to their crunch and texture. Another tester noted that they tasted “fairly light” with a “clean oil flavor.” I did feel that they were a little bland and could have benefited from another sprinkle of salt. Still, I would buy these again (and not just because they’re a local Connecticut product).
4. Boulder Canyon Thin & Crispy Potato Chip
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This is a very good dupe for Lay’s—to the point where there was a lot of debate among testers about whether or not they were Lay’s. These chips are lightly hued and very thin, which gives way to a solid, crisp texture. They were a little more paper-y than I would have liked and a couple of testers complained about how greasy they were. That said, I’d enjoy these with a hot buttered lobster roll or a juicy cheeseburger all summer long.Related: I Tried 12 Canned Biscuits and the Winner Won by a Landslide
3. Cape Cod Original Kettle Cooked Potato Chips
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If you want a classic, super crunchy, uber-flavorful kettle cooked chip, look no further than Cape Cod. There’s a reason why this brand is so iconic. Nearly all of the testers correctly identified these as Cape Cod chips during the blind taste test, due to the numerous folded chips, oily flavor and superior crunch. One tester called them “fun to eat” and another said that these are how they want kettle chips to taste. I promise I’m not biased—they were clearly the best kettle cooked chips that we tasted.
2. Lay’s Classic Potato Chip
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Our runner-up pick for the best potato chips needs no introduction. Based on their light yellow color and signature shape, most of our testers accurately identified these as Lay’s. We remarked on their thin texture and crunch, their well-balanced salt level and their satisfying flavor. These are the kind of chips that you can keep going back to—and we will.
1. Trader Joe’s Ode to the Classic Potato Chip
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