We Taste-Tested 7 Canned Cranberry Sauces To Find The Best One For Thanksgiving Dinner

When it comes to cranberry sauce, there’s no shortage of opinions. Some prefer canned while some prefer homemade. If canned is your sauce of choice, there's then the decision between jellied and whole berry. Then, what brand is the best?

We gathered our editors for a blind taste test to find out which canned cranberry sauce is the best and deserves a spot on your Thanksgiving table this year. We just may convince you to break tradition and add a new brand of cranberry sauce to your buggy this year.

How We Tested

We selected seven different cans of cranberry sauce from a variety of grocery store chains and online retailers. This included two cans from a few of the brands that have both a jellied and whole berry option.

Each of the seven sauces was plopped out of the can onto a plate so editors could taste them without seeing any of the packaging. During the blind taste test, editors ranked each cranberry on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest. They then selected an overall winner.

The Contenders

• Sweet Harvest (Aldi) Jellied Cranberry Sauce
• Sweet Harvest (Aldi) Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
• Ocean Spray Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
• Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce
• Publix Jellied Cranberry Sauce
• Publix Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
• Amazon Fresh Regular Jellied Cranberry Sauce
  

How Each Cranberry Sauce Scored

Sweet Harvest Jellied Cranberry Sauce

Sweet Harvest is Aldi’s store brand of cranberry sauce. A few editors liked the flavor of this cranberry sauce but were put off by the texture. The consensus was that it was too stiff, and a little grainy.

Sweet Harvest Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

Though this option from Aldi is considered a whole berry sauce, one editor noted “I like how this is a mix of whole berry and jellied”. It was more mashed and contained more liquid than the other whole berry contenders on the list. While some liked the texture, several editors found this one a little too sweet.

Ocean Spray Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

For those who enjoy a whole berry sauce, this one was loved for both its texture and flavor. One editor loved the freshness of this whole berry sauce, but noted that it seems more like preserves. Those who didn’t love this one said their preference is to not have the whole fruit pieces.

Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce

When removing the sauces from the can to prepare for the test, this one from Ocean Spray came out of the can much easier than the other brands. This option was definitely noted to be the most tart of the whole bunch, which was not a bad thing for some tasters. “I felt like it was nicely balanced with the right amount of tang,” said one editor.

Publix Jellied Cranberry Sauce

For editors who like their sauce without whole berries, this jellied option was loved for its texture. “I prefer this to a firmer one,” said one editor. Another noted that it was much more flavorful than other contenders.

Publix Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

This sauce was chosen as the overall favorite by one editor who said, “It has the best balance of tart and sweet flavor and I like the texture of the whole berries without being wet and soggy.” Another editor noted that this sauce was not too sweet which they liked, but they just don’t love the sauce because of the whole berries.

Amazon Fresh Regular Jellied Cranberry Sauce

No editors chose this option from Amazon as their favorite. Multiple editors noted that the texture was more like that of strawberry jam rather than cranberry sauce. Another repeated opinion was that it was overly sweet and lacked true cranberry flavor.

The Results

Since some (like me) prefer their cranberry sauce jellied, while some prefer a whole berry sauce, we saw it only made sense to choose a winner in each category. Plus, each of the winning cranberry sauces received the same number of first place votes.

Best Jellied: Publix Jellied Cranberry Sauce

When it came to the jellied cranberry sauces, Publix beat out the competition. This cranberry sauce was preferred over other jellied varieties for its texture, as others were noted as being too firm. “It tastes like the type I’ve used all my life at Thanksgiving," said one editor. “It’s the right texture, the right sweet and tart balance, just the right everything,” said another.

Best Whole Berry: Ocean Spray Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

For those who prefer a whole berry sauce, Ocean Spray was the clear winner. Not only did editors love it for the freshness, texture, and flavor, but several also noted that it was the most visually appealing of the bunch.