16 Trader Joe's Snacks Ranked From Worst To Best

If it's snacks you're after, Trader Joe's is where it's at. The grocery store chain has a cult following, with passionate customers who swear by the store's bargain-priced bananas, ready-to-eat salads, and one-of-a-kind items that fill the frozen foods aisle. The brand is well-known for its affordable prices and transparency with ingredients, even publishing a list of unhealthy or controversial ingredients it has promised to keep out of its products.

Trader Joe's is also known for its robust collection of tasty, one-of-a-kind snacks that you can't find anywhere else, and many a customer can be found perusing the snack aisles for the greatest new treats to try or stocking up on favorites. And we can all agree, it's a sad day when Trader Joe's discontinues our favorite snacks – I'm looking at you, PB&J Milk Chocolate Bar. Here is a collection of popular snacks from Trader Joe's, ranked in order from worst to best. These were judged based on flavor, price, ingredients, and other factors that impact certain snacks individually (like excessive packaging, for example). Prices may vary.

Overnight oats are so convenient. Easy to make and easy to customize to your tastes, they're a no-brainer when it comes to cheap and fast meal prep. That's why you can skip Trader Joe's overnight oats. At $1.99 a cup, you're spending significantly more than you would to make them at home. And that's not the only bummer. Trader Joe's apple overnight oats also fall flat in the flavor and texture departments. While they did taste like apples, the oats were chalky and mushy (overnight oats will always be mushy, but these were extreme).

Instead, try making your own using whatever oats you have on hand (quick oats, rolled oats, and steel-cut oats are all great options). Add in your liquid of choice (milk, almond milk, and coconut being top choices) and your favorite yogurt. Greek yogurt is a great way to boost the protein content. Finally, add your mix-ins, such as chopped nuts, fresh, dried, or frozen fruit, and even protein powder or honey. You'll save money, they'll taste better, and it will only take a couple of minutes to prep them.

Most Trader Joe's customers are familiar with the brand's popular seasoning, Everything but the Bagel seasoning. Trader Joe's has taken its popular seasoning and added it to, well, everything. Unfortunately, the Everything but the Bagel Nut Duo with Almonds and Cashews doesn't quite pass muster, but it's not because they don't taste great — it's because the ingredients are a little misleading.

Everything but the Bagel seasoning includes sesame seeds, sea salt, minced garlic and onion, black sesame seeds, and poppy seeds. However, the seasoning for the nut duo only includes sesame seeds, salt, and poppy seeds — there's no garlic or onion to be found. So while they taste good (as salty almonds and cashews often do), they don't taste quite like the Everything but the Bagel seasoning we know and love. If it's nuts coated in your favorite Trader Joe's seasoning that you're after, you'd be better off roasting your own nuts at home and adding the seasoning to get them just the way you like them.

At first glance, Trader Joe's mini brie bites are perfection. Tiny little individual cups of brie? Bring on the convenience and cuteness (these would be adorable in the cheese section of your next charcuterie board). But upon closer inspection, they're lacking in several areas. For one thing, they cost $5.99 for five servings. For some context, you can get a wheel of brie with eight servings at Walmart for just $5.26.

At nearly $1.20 per serving, one would expect a higher quality brie than these. While these are creamy at first bite, the texture turns waxy and chunky. Trader Joe's also packages its mini brie bites in individual, single-use plastics. While we appreciate the convenience of being able to grab a quick bite of brie from the fridge without having to cut into a wheel of cheese, and we know these would look great on a charcuterie board, it's hard to justify all the packaging when you can get a higher-quality brie with more servings in an environmentally-friendly package at your local grocer.

If you're a ginger lover, you might swear by Trader Joe's candied ginger, which is a great deal at just $1.99 per pack. If you're ginger-neutral, though (or worse, don't like it at all), steer clear from these polarizing treats. Ginger is well-known for its health benefits and can relieve nausea and reduce bloating. But it also has an incredibly potent flavor, which is especially concentrated in these sinus-clearing, gummy-like candies.

Trader Joe's candied ginger is strong and spicy, and that's after the added sugar has been packed into each serving. The American Heart Association recommends between 6 and 9 teaspoons of added sugar a day, which would be 25 to 36 grams. Trader Joe's candied ginger has 16 grams of added sugar per ¼ cup serving, which is a significant amount for a handful of candies. For the benefits of ginger without the added sugar, grate some fresh ginger yourself and add it to soups and sauces, or even smoothies, for a zesty punch of flavor.

Trader Joe's Cocoa Almond Spread was great at first taste (what's not to love about a product that promises chocolate and nuts in a spreadable paste?), but the excitement quickly wore off. The texture of this spread wasn't quite right, and it left a waxy mouthfeel behind. It wasn't nearly as creamy or melty as expected, and while it looked like Nutella and scooped out of the jar like peanut butter, it didn't quite match the texture of either of those products).

The flavor was pleasant, but that's likely because the first ingredient isn't almonds, or even cocoa — it's sugar. Almonds show up third on the ingredient list, behind sugar (17 added grams) and a vegetable oil blend that includes canola, palm, shea nut, and coconut oils. This really isn't a cocoa almond product so much as a sugar spread with some almonds and cocoa in it. If you want nuts, stick to Trader Joe's almond butter. If it's a sugary treat you're after, reach for Trader Joe's Speculoos Cookie Butter — it has less added sugar and a smoother texture than the cocoa almond spread.

Trader Joe's peanut butter and jelly snack, the PB&J Snack Duo, lives up to the name. This take on a traditional PB&J tastes like the original but comes in a unique, dippable format. However, these convenient (and kid-friendly) snacks are packed with sugar. Each snack has 20 grams of added sugar. For an adult, this can easily be managed and kept in line with a balanced diet. But if you're feeding little kids, take heed. Sugar is added to many of the foods we eat, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that children under the age of two should not have any added sugars in their diets – meaning this snack is better saved for big kids or grown-ups.

Another downside to these snacks is that they're really messy. The raspberry fruit dip is sticky and the peanut-butter-filled wafer sticks leave crumbs behind when they break, which takes away from the convenience of this snack.

Trader Joe's organic mini peanut butter sandwich crackers are a win, but have a surprising (and inconvenient) downside. These miniature peanut butter and cracker sandwiches have a powerfully pleasant peanut butter flavor and are made with rich, buttery crackers. They are extremely snack-able and are a great option for kids. We also appreciate that they're organic, and very affordable at just $3.29 a box.

Unfortunately, many of the crackers were broken in half, or into even smaller pieces, making this a messy snack to eat. This is especially true when you get to the bottom of the box and discover most of the crackers have been diminished to crumbs. When you're deciding which Trader Joe's items to buy and which to skip, you'll have to weigh several factors and personal preference before deciding on these. If you can manage the broken product, these are probably worth the purchase.

Trader Joe's little bag of pretzels is the perfect sweet snack, and the grocery store was right on the money when it named this product A Handful of Tiny Dark Chocolate Covered Pretzels. That's exactly what it is — a handful-sized baggie of deliciousness. It's so perfect, in fact, that taste-wise it should have been at the top of this list. The reason it sits in the center is because this snack has quite a bit of added sugar.

One bag (and you're going to want to eat the whole bag) contains 25 grams of added sugar. You can avoid some of that sugar by eating the recommended serving size, which is 10 pretzels, but we're pretty sure 10 pretzels aren't going to cut it. The pretzels are salty and crunchy, and the dark chocolate is rich and strong, while not being overpowering, and melts in your mouth. These are a "can't eat just one" (or 10) kind of snack, and it's a little misleading that such a small bag would contain 2½ servings.

Trader Joe's Organic Beef Jerky in the original flavor is a safe bet. Organic with no added preservatives, one bag costs $6.99. Trader Joe's promises that this minimally processed jerky is made with no preservatives, nitrites, or MSG. It's a gluten-free product with no artificial ingredients, making this a clean option for anyone looking for an easy, protein-heavy snack.

This beef jerky has a pleasant flavor and a nice, consistent texture between pieces. It's chewy and moist, but not tough like some beef jerky can be. If you want to try it before you buy it, you can even ask an employee for a sample. Trader Joe's has a robust "try before you buy" policy and will allow you to sample most of the products in the store. If the price feels steep, you can also try making your own beef jerky at home. All you need is your steak of choice and a food dehydrator to get started.

Trader Joe's crispy crunchy okra is the perfect snack to eat right from the bag. One whole bag of this super crunchy snack is 220 calories and contains 5 grams of protein and more than 30% of your daily recommended fiber. With just three ingredients and a snappy, satisfying crunch, these tasty little veggies are definitely snack-worthy, but there are many other creative ways you can put your dried okra to work for you.

The next time you're arranging a charcuterie board, be sure to add a bag of this crispy crunchy okra to the board. Not only will it pair well with dips, but it's also sure to be a conversation starter (it's not every day you get to eat your okra crunchy!). You can also serve it over a salad in place of croutons, or break it up into little pieces to sprinkle over a pasta dish or a casserole for a healthy and satisfyingly crunchy addition to your meal.

If you are looking to satisfy a potato chip craving while avoiding excess fat and sodium, grab yourself a bag of Trader Joe's Cassava Chips. With a great crunch and a hearty, earthy flavor, these chips are made with just three ingredients (cassava, sunflower oil, and sea salt) and are a great substitute for your typical potato chips.

Cassava is a root vegetable that is high in Vitamin C and may aid in lowering inflammation in the gut. Trader Joe's sources its cassava from Peru and turns it into a delicious and crave-able chip that is sturdy enough for any dip you throw at it. Try it with guacamole or a spinach or artichoke dip, or use it to scoop up some queso. These cassava chips have a satisfyingly salty flavor but have only 90 milligrams of sodium per serving (the World Health Organization recommends a maximum of 2,000 milligrams per day, making this snack a desirable option if you're watching your sodium).

With just one ingredient (bananas), Trader Joe's unsweetened freeze-dried banana slices will never turn brown on you. One bite and you'll think they've surely been sweetened with sugar, but that's not the case. Trader Joe's claims that the bananas are especially sweet due to the variety of bananas that it uses. The bananas are only available in Thailand and are known for their unique sweet flavor.

This is a handy snack for adults and children alike, and one serving size is a generous half bag. And while you can't beat the price of a fresh banana, $2.99 is a very reasonable price to pay for a bag of versatile banana slices that won't go bad. If you're not eating them right out of the bag, add them to overnight oats or desserts, or use them to top your cereal in the morning. You can use them in a homemade trail mix recipe. While these were tasty, the next few were so unique that this classic couldn't top them.

Pickle lovers and potato chip people, rejoice! Trader Joe's has married your favorite flavors in one outstanding chip that meets all the right requirements (crispy, salty, and oh-so pickle-y) with its Chips in a Pickle dill pickle flavored potato chips. Pickles have been surfacing in a variety of snacks these recent years, from pickle popcorn to pickle popsicles. So it's no surprise that the enterprising snack developers at Trader Joe's put pickles to good use by pairing them with potato chips.

The pleasing smell of pickles hits you right when the bag is opened. These chips have a pickle-forward flavor with a pleasing tang of salt and vinegar. At just $2.99 a bag, you can't beat the price. Grab a bag of these to please the pickle people in your life and bring them to your next picnic, or serve them up on game day with a ranch dip at home. These would also complement any barbecued meat you make.

Sometimes you just need a sweet treat, and Trader Joe's dark chocolate dipped French butter cookies are exactly that. These cookies are glorious. The flaky butter cookies are thin and coated in an even layer of dark chocolate that melts in your mouth. They would be especially enjoyable served with a cup of hot coffee, but you'll find eating them on their own will certainly suffice.

The cookies are made in France, and Trader Joe's shares that 40% of the recipe is dark chocolate and 13% of the recipe is French butter, so you know you're about to bite into something that will please the tastebuds. Despite the rich amounts of cocoa and butter in the ingredients, the cookies come in at just 70 calories each. Keep these on hand for when you need to treat yourself or want to surprise and delight a friend with a sweet treat (or be the office favorite and leave them in the break room at work).

Mmmm, truffle. When combined with cheese and a little bit of crunch, this coveted fungus works its magic. Trader Joe's Fancy Cheese Crunchies in cheese and truffle flavor are a glorious little corn snack that will appeal to anyone who fancies truffles. Every bite of this gluten-free snack feels indulgent. The savory blend of cheddar and truffle flavors come together in an easy-to-eat chip that pairs perfectly with burgers, sandwiches, and soups, but this snack is also ready to eat right out of the bag.

The truffle flavor is on the mild side, and that is probably because the truffle comes from the black truffle-flavored salt. The cheese is a blend of Parmesan and cheddar. If you're uncertain about truffle flavor, this is a great intro to the rich and savory flavors truffle has to offer without feeling overwhelmed by it. Another bonus is the price. Truffle is notoriously expensive, but these snacks are just $3.99 per bag.

If you can't get enough of truffle, you won't want to pass up Trader Joe's roasted and salted truffle Marcona almonds. These savory nuts are rich with truffle flavor and perfectly salted. Marcona almonds are fat, round almonds that hail from Spain and are known for their sweet, buttery flavor and soft texture. Roasted with oil and seasoned with black truffle sea salt, these umami-forward almonds are $5.99 for a 6-ounce bag, which might seem expensive. However, Marcona almonds are more costly than almonds grown in the United States due to the costs associated with importing them, and truffle costs are always on the high side due to their rarity.

These almonds are nice to eat by the handful, but you can also use them to dress up a charcuterie board or serve them with a glass of wine. Be sure to grab some napkins. These nuts are coated in oil, which adds to the savory appeal but can make for messy eating. But the mess is totally worth it, landing these in first place.

We sampled all of these snacks from Trader Joe's. We looked for snacks that are available year-round, although they may vary from store to store.

Each snack was evaluated based on taste, ingredients, and price. Some were evaluated based on other factors, like packaging.