The best sugar cookies are more than just chocolate chip cookies minus the chocolate chips. They’re sweet and sugary, but they have nuance, too. Good sugar cookies have a little salt for balance. Sometimes, they even have a little bit of zesty citrus in the mix. They can be chewy, crunchy, frosted, or filled with sprinkles. Most importantly, they should remind you of what you’d set out for Santa on Christmas Eve. If you don’t celebrate Christmas, that’s okay. You’ll still like these store bought sugar cookies.
The last time we tasted and ranked sugar cookies, the best sugar cookies we tried were from the bakery at a small California chain of grocery stores, which we recognize isn’t helpful for people who live elsewhere. For our second sugar cookie taste test, we focused on national brands, as well bakery cookies from grocery chains with a national footprint. Even if you’re a chocolate chip cookie diehard like some folks on the Sporked team, we’re here to report that some store bought sugar cookies are really dang good! Here are all the best store bought sugar cookies—the best frosted sugar cookies, too.
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- Pepperidge Farm Ojai Lemon Sugar Cookies
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Pepperidge Farm does make plain sugar cookies (they’re called Zurich), but they’re basically impossible to find. Please, if you see Pepperidge Farm sugar cookies at your local grocery store, send them to us! Thanks! Anyway, these store bought sugar cookies are flavored, yes, but that makes them the best sugar cookies if you can’t get past the notion that sugar cookies are too plain. Pepperidge Farm Ojai cookies are very chewy and soft, but they don’t taste like preservatives. I swear, some soft baked/soft batch cookies taste like dang Play-Doh. These do not. They are nice, soft sugar cookies with a citrusy zing. Don’t get me wrong: These do not taste homemade, but I can guarantee that they do not taste like Doh. I would definitely buy these again, along with a box of the best Earl Grey tea to dunk them in. —Gwynedd Stuart
- Favorite Day Frosted Sugar Cookies
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Even the best frosted sugar cookies are controversial. Some people think they taste like weird sandy paste in your mouth. Some people (like me) agree, but also think that’s a good thing. These frosted sugar cookies from Target have such an interesting flavor and texture, almost like a forbidden food. They’re dense and coat the inside of your mouth in the most unusual way. And when it comes to weirdly delicious frosted sugar cookies, Target makes the best ones. They don’t taste chemically, like some of the other grocery store sugar cookies we tried. If you enjoy this genre of sugar cookie, you will love these! —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Merc / Target
- Eleni’s Pink Sugar
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If you like Tate’s (maker of our favorite chocolate chip cookies) and are as aghast as I am that they don’t have a regular ol’ sugar cookie, then give these store bought sugar cookies a shot. They’re crispy but light, and, like Tate’s, they taste very buttery. I love the pink sprinkles, because they contribute some additional crunchy texture and they look cute. I do think the butter tastes a little funky on the finish, but it’s not a deal breaker. What I like the most about these is that they actually have a touch of salt, which so many grocery store sugar cookies lack. These are the best sugar cookies for dunking. Eat one with your morning coffee as a little treat. —Gwynedd Stuart
- Amazon Fresh Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies
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In both of our sugar cookie taste tests, we tried a lot of very similar looking grocery store sugar cookies in clear plastic clamshell containers, but these Amazon Fresh cookies stood out for a few reasons. For one thing, they’re covered in a layer of sugar crystals—they’re literally sugar cookies, but somehow they aren’t obnoxiously sweet. Also, they were a touch underbaked, which gave them a slightly squishy center and nice chew throughout. My colleague Justine Sterling said she’d be happy to eat a whole cookie—which is saying a lot when you’re trying a dozen sugar cookies during a sugar cookie taste test. —Gwynedd Stuart
- Ralphs Bakery Fresh Goodness Sugar Cookies
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If you’re looking for a plain and simple sugar cookie, Kroger-owned grocery stores (here in Los Angeles, we have Ralphs) absolutely ace the classic sugar cookie. These are perfectly chewy and sweet. The sandy-chewy texture really sets these apart, even though they don’t have sprinkles. The next time you’re looking for the best sugar cookies, especially when it comes to texture, head to the bakery section at the Kroger-owned grocery store in your area. They’re pretty darn good. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Merc / Ralphs
- Albertsons Sugar Sprinkle Cookies
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As we previously mentioned, the best sugar cookies we found in our last taste test were from the bakery in a small California grocery chain, so we wanted to find something more accessible. When it comes to grocery store sugar cookies, bakery cookies are best, and if you happen to have an Albertsons-owned grocery store in your area (they’re in 34 states, currently), these sugar cookies are worth trying. These aren’t exactly bursting with flavor, but they’re just a littttttle bit citrusy, and it really livens up the overall flavor profile. They’re chewy but a little bit crumbly, too. I’d still consider them soft-baked cookies. They taste like an authentic baked good, which other store bought cookies tend to struggle with, especially the ones from the cookie aisle rather than the bakery. Plus, the sprinkles are lovely. They add texture, a little extra sweetness, and they look festive as all get out. At our store, they went with a pink, yellow, red, and purple color palette that’s very pleasing, but keep an eye out for seasonal colorways, too. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Merc / Instacart
Best Flavored Sugar Cookies
Best Frosted
Best Crunchy Sugar Cookies
Best Sugary
Best Classic
Best of the Best
Other Products We Tried: Sprouts Sugar Cookies, Kroger Frosted Sugar Cookies, Signature Select Frosted Sugar Cookies, Walmart Freshness Guaranteed Frosted Sugar Cookies, Walmart Freshness Guaranteed Sandwich Cookies, Walmart Freshness Guaranteed Sprinkled Sugar Cookies, Amazon Frosted Soft Cookies, Bakery Fresh Mini Sugar Cookies, Freshness Guaranteed Plain Sugar Cookies, Lazy Acres Sprinkle Sugar Cookies
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!