15 Store-Bought Pasta Sauce Brands, Ranked

Pasta sauce is a staple in any kitchen. It's a versatile cooking ingredient in the way that it's perfect for a quick pasta meal for one, as well as a fancy date night or feast for all your friends. Of course, there's nothing like freshly made-at-home pasta sauce. But some of these grocery store versions come pretty darn close. 

There are dozens of pasta sauces available at almost every grocery store across the country. With enough options to constitute having its own aisle, shopping for pasta sauce can be confusing at best and overwhelming at worst. I'm breaking down 15 pasta sauces, ranking them from worst to best ... to take the guess work out of your next trip for groceries.

I've taken into consideration everything from taste to texture to price point (of course, prices vary slightly depending on where you purchase) — sampling the most traditional, marinara-based pasta sauces I could find. I paired each of the 15 jars with simple buttered noodles to best exemplify the taste of the sauce itself. There's a wide array of sauces — some bad and some quite good. Mangia mangia!

They say never judge a book by its cover. But in the case of Hunt's Traditional canned Pasta Sauce, it might be safe to do just that. Expectations were low for Hunt's, the only canned pasta sauce among a sea of resealable bottles. At only $1.89, Hunt's was the cheapest pasta sauce per unit on the list — only 10 cents behind the slightly better Kroger store brand. You can likely find it for even cheaper at the Dollar Tree.

Here's what came first: An unpleasant liquidy sauce that poured out of the can — a watery mess without much texture or flavor. Hunt's is by far the most liquid of all the sauces in this ranking. The deep red color seemed unnatural when placed next to the others, and the sauce was noticeably missing anything that resembled chunks or ingredients other than simple tomato puree, water, and sugar.

Admittedly, the taste of Hunt's itself isn't the most offensive, but to reiterate: It certainly is the most watery. While some of the sauces in this ranking can be vastly improved by adding fresh veggies or other ingredients, Hunt's is too unappetizing to salvage. 

While Kroger's Traditional Pasta Sauce has a much better consistency than Hunt's, the flavor is by far the worst of all the sauces on our list. Generally, it doesn't necessarily taste like a pasta sauce should. The usual hearty tomato flavor is overpowered by a sourness that makes this jar hard to eat. 

Dried onions may be the culprit here, as Kroger's is the only pasta sauce with this ingredient listed. After the initial acidic bite, you're met with an unexpected bitterness that would frankly be much worse if it weren't for the copious amount of sugar in the jar. With 8 grams of sugar included, Kroger's pasta sauce has well above the average amount. 

There isn't much of a tomato flavor in this sauce at all, really, and the thick deep-red sauce is devoid of other flavorful ingredients or seasonings. Altogether, Kroger's Traditional Pasta Sauce is quite irredeemable — however, it's not a bad deal at $1.99 per jar. 

Barilla met my expectations because they were truthfully not very high to begin with. Both the taste and texture were unpleasant with Barilla's marinara, and I would go as far as to argue that this sauce should actually be tied with Kroger for second to last place. 

There is also a bizarre sourness to Barilla's sauce that had me wondering at this point if my taste buds were overwhelmed. Some samples of other sauces yet to be listed, though, assured me that Barilla simply made a gross marinara. It tastes more like a pizza sauce that you would get in one of the original Lunchables back in the 2000s — you know, part of the many foods that were discontinued. The consistency wasn't far off either. 

To its credit, you can spot tiny dark green speckles of dried basil within the watery, soupy mixture. None of it really clings to the noodles, though, which just come out a little wetter than they were before. At $4.19 per jar, you're much better off with literally any other on the shelf. 

Prego is, in my head, the original pasta sauce. It's one I grew up eating with my mom's spaghetti, elevated with some fresh vegetables like mushrooms, onions, and a ton of Italian seasoning. Nostalgia, though, can be disappointing. As was this pasta sauce when I revisited it for the first time in a long time for this taste test. 

Prego was by far the sweetest of all the pasta sauces and has the most sugar with a whopping 9 grams. Because of that, it has a distinct flavor that stands out from the rest of the jars. It's not necessarily unpleasant, but it isn't healthy by any means. Besides the sweet tomato flavor, there isn't much depth left to Prego. It closely resembles a tomato sauce you would find on a cheap frozen pizza. 

The exceptionally dark red sauce doesn't seem to contain many other seasonings — in fact, only 1% of this sauce contains salt, dried garlic, canola oil, and other spices. The ingredients that make up the other 99% are tomato puree, tomatoes in tomato juice, and sugar. At $3.39 per jar Prego (depending on where you shop) probably won't break the bank, but there are better options out there for the same price or even less. 

Private Selection is Kroger's elevated private label of fresh foods and ingredients. Kroger-owned stores like Ralphs, Dillons, Pay-Less, or Food 4 Less will carry Private Selection brand products like this mediocre marinara. Living up to it's standard, Private Selection's traditional tomato sauce is definitely an improvement from the pretty gross Kroger brand, but it still misses the mark. 

The taste of this Private Selection pasta sauce isn't bad, though it is certainly on the too-sweet side with 8 grams of sugar. What sinks this pasta sauce down the list is the same thing that leaves the noodles sinking to the bottom of the bowl: the sauce's thinness. Behind the canned Hunt's, this was by far the most watery of all the 15 sauces sampled. The rather basic tomato flavor wasn't enough to make up for the consistency, which leaves this jar feeling more like a mild salsa then a marinara pasta sauce. Even the price tag of $3.50 might not be worth it. 

Bertolli's Traditional Marinara kicks up the flavor a notch or two from our previous sauces, but still the flavor isn't quite right. The tomato plays a backseat role in this sauce, letting other ingredients like garlic, basil, and parsley become the stars of the show. The unique flavor profile would work nicely for, perhaps, a pizza sauce with lots of other ingredients stacked on top. As a simple pasta sauce poured over noodles, however, Bertolli's Traditional Marinara certainly isn't the most appetizing. 

The sauce itself is not incredibly thick, but it does contain visible chunks of onion, basil, and other bits that give Bertolli its vegetable-like flavor. Bertolli is also one of the few brands that list citric acid as an ingredient. A thin watery layer sits at the top of the sauce, not fully enveloping the noodles like you would hope for. This jar costs around $3.79 and works in a pinch, but isn't going to be your best bet. 

Ragú Old World Style Traditional Sauce is a pretty basic marinara-style pasta sauce. It has a sweet flavor with a nice garlicky aftertaste that is unassuming and expected of any jarred pasta sauce. It's not bad, but it's not great either. 

Despite Ragú's claim that a half cup serving of this sauce contains 40% of your suggested daily vegetable intake, it's by far one of the least healthy on our list with 7 grams of sugar and a whopping 460 milligrams of sodium. The sauce is a much lighter shade of red than most of its competitors and doesn't seem to contain any visible bits of basil or onion. There are tiny minced pieces of dried garlic that give the sauce some flavor. The texture is velvety rather than chunky, which is pleasant but lacks depth. 

Ragú is a steal at only $2.79, and is the prime example of a "just okay" sauce that can become great with a few additions. Throwing in some extra tomatoes, mushrooms, or onions would vastly improve this sauce — but on its own, Ragú Old World Style Traditional Sauce doesn't stick out among the rest.

Classico is probably the pasta sauce that I eat the most, largely due to it's price point and availability at nearly any large grocery store. For only $3.99, Classico Traditional Sweet Basil has a robust flavor that is close to the quality of more expensive brands. It's a decent, mid-range pasta sauce that sits fittingly at the halfway point in my ranking. 

Though not the thickest, this pasta sauce contains nice bits of diced tomato and basil that give it some heftiness. It's very sweet due to the titular basil as well as the 8 grams of sugar. The sweetness lingers long after your bite, and results in a sauce that tastes great with pasta but is unfortunately rather one note. 

Owned by Kraft-Heinz, Classico offers a large variety of flavored sauces outside of their traditional sweet basil. Try the caramelized onion and roasted garlic or the four cheese pasta sauce for something a little less sweet. 

When you think Stella Rosa, you probably think about the cheap wines on the bottom shelf of any liquor store. So imagine my surprise when I not only found out they sell pasta sauce, but they sell the most expensive pasta sauce at the grocery store for $10.50 per jar. That's close to the cost of a Stella Rosa bottle of wine. 

Still, I was only slightly impressed with Stella Rosa's Arrabbiata pasta sauce, which uses Italian tomatoes as the base of its bright sauce. It has a vinegary, acidic taste that most likely comes from the citric acid listed in the ingredients. It has only a slight heat in the aftertaste, but it's not a super satisfying flavor compared to the other spicy sauces on the list.

The sauce itself is also more watery than thick, but does have chunks of tomato and onion. Stella Rosa Arrabbiata Sauce would make it higher on the list if it wasn't overpriced. At the end of the day, you can find a better tasting brand for less money. 

Mezzetta is a California brand probably better well known for their pickled peppers than their pasta sauce. They also make hot sauces that probably pair perfectly with a great California burrito. And apparently Mezzetta makes a great quality pasta sauce, filled with fresh ingredients and a lot of flavor. 

The Mezzetta brand pasta sauces — like the Tomato Basil — use California plum tomatoes and a list of fresh ingredients like fresh onions, fresh garlic, fresh basil. You can certainly tell when you open the jar, which is filled with a satisfyingly chunky sauce. It's basil forward, elevating the flavor with a refreshing sweetness. But with only 5 grams of sugar, the sweetness isn't overpowering. 

The jar itself promotes no added sugar or preservatives, but contains the highest amount of sodium with 510 milligrams. The sodium, of course, is used in place of other preservatives to make sure the fresh ingredients in the jar stay that way. For $6.99 per jar, the Mezzetta brand is definitely worth it. Amazon has it for $5.79. 

Yo Mama's tomato sauce was the one I was most excited to try, as I was previously unfamiliar with this smaller brand based out of Florida. They offer a creamy, yummy pasta sauce with more of a homemade feel than most of the others. 

The jar itself is adorned with the phrase "with love, yo mama" and claims to be made in small batches with no added sugar, preservatives, or gluten. The sauce is relatively low in sodium with only 190 milligrams, and is certainly low in sugar with only 3 grams, the least amount of sugar of any of the jars. 

Yo Mama's pasta sauce is more smooth than chunky, with small pieces of tomato and garlic in a rich and flavorful sauce. There's a grittiness to some bites, which gives an unpleasant texture to an otherwise great sauce.

Despite being a relatively smaller company compared to the rest, you can still find Yo Mama's pasta sauces and other products like salad dressing at large grocery stores across the United States. The Yo Mama's Vodka Tomato Sauce will cost around $7.99 at stores like Kroger and Stop & Shop. 

Here's where things start to get really good. The Botticelli Traditional Premium Pasta Sauce is one of the few imports from Italy readily found on most grocery store shelves. Utilizing Italian tomatoes from Parma, Botticelli has a taste and texture that make it feel homemade. 

The thickest pasta sauce on this list so far, Botticelli also boasts the darkest red coloring of all the pasta sauces sampled. Inside the deep red sauce are plenty of large chunks of onion, basil, and garlic. The added ingredients blend well together, but the sauce still has a strong tomatoey taste. Botticelli lets the tomatoes speak for themselves, and they (the tomatoes) are very articulate in this hearty sauce. It's a bit on the salty side, but it isn't too sweet despite the 8 grams of sugar.

This pasta sauce would pair well with Italian sausage, adding spiciness to the mix in this otherwise ready-to-eat jar. At $5.99, Botticelli isn't the cheapest selection at the grocery store, but it's always going to be a good one.  

Carbone Fine Foods Pasta Sauce originates from the famous Carbone restaurant in New York City, often frequented by celebrities ranging from Adele to Travis Scott. Though the restaurant is no stranger to controversy, the line of jarred pasta sauces was met with warm welcome when they first hit grocery store shelves in 2021 for around $7.99 per jar — Amazon has it for about $7.69.

Carbone's Arrabbiata pasta sauce has a great spicy smokiness to it that lingers in the back of your throat. Though not the thickest sauce, it contains a lot of rich flavor that blends nicely together. A fine layer of olive oil settles to the top of the sauce, suggesting that it's made with fresh and natural ingredients. Besides imported Italian tomatoes, Carbone's Arrabbiata pasta sauce is also made with onion, sea salt, garlic, red pepper flakes, and oregano. The tomato still shines through, making for a really great sauce for any pasta dish — fast or fancy. 

Rao's Homemade's reputation precedes it, as it's often lauded as the best pasta sauce out there. One of the most well-known restaurants in Los Angeles, Rao's sells their jarred pasta sauces across the United States at lots of grocery stores as well as online. 

Rao's Homemade Arrabbiata Spicy Marinara is definitely a great pasta sauce. It's perfectly thick and holds onto noodles in a way that the other more liquid sauces can't do. Large chunks of Italian peeled tomatoes peek through the sauce and give it a warm, hearty flavor profile with just the right amount of spiciness. The sauce is there to complement (and not overpower) the rest of your meal. 

At around $8.99, the price point for a jar of Rao's Homemade is certainly higher than average. Looking closer, though, a jar of Rao's weighs 32 ounces compared to the standard 24 ounce jars from most other brands. This means while you're paying slightly more, you're also getting an added 8 ounces of almost perfect pasta sauce. 

Frankly, this brand was on sale for buy one get one free so I gave them two chances to impress me. While the Tomato Basil came in fairly middle of the road, the Mezzetta Spicy Marinara really kicked it up a notch. 

What makes Mezzetta Spicy Marinara stand out among the rest is its unique spicy flavor, which left me coming back for more ... and more. This sauce utilizes "Italian plum tomatoes from Italy's San Marzano region," as stated on the jar. In addition to the imported tomatoes, Mezzetta also uses California plum tomatoes in the mix. The double dose of tomatoes makes for an extremely chunky, fresh jarred sauce that anyone might mistake for something homemade. Crushed chili pepper, black pepper, and spices give the spicy marinara a kick that elevates any meal. 

Besides being high in sodium, there really isn't a downside to this pasta sauce. If you're not fortunate enough to find it on BOGO, you'll pay around $6.99 for your new favorite jarred pasta sauce — Amazon has it for $6.69.