Vanilla ice cream is a favorite as America’s default frozen treat, only surpassed in popularity in our $13 billion dairy market. Its popularity is its creamy, sweet consistency and versatility, pairing beautifully with everything from warm apple pie to decadent sundaes. But vanilla is far from bland. Each brand provides unique nuances, ranging from deep creaminess to vivacious sweetness or light textures, so the quest for the ideal pint is thrilling but also daunting in the face of myriad freezer aisle choices.
To find the best mass-produced vanilla ice cream, we carried out a rigorously scientific, evidence-driven taste test. Following FDA definitions as our protocol, we narrowed our focus to “real ice cream” with real vanilla flavor, restricting our pool to brands nationally distributed. Ingredient labels were scrutinized, vanilla bean speck counts were balanced against extracts, and each entry was tasted in terms of taste, texture, and general appeal. Here’s what we discovered.
Breyers Natural Vanilla Ice Cream
This classic 1.5-quart tub glows with a lighter nutrition label, reduced in fat, calories, and carbs, for those who prefer something not quite so rich. Light, airy texture, filled with noticeable air pockets; this is easy to scoop directly from the freezer, creating airy ridges studded with minuscule specks of vanilla bean, evoking an artisanal quality but the label itself does not necessarily indicate beans. In the mouth, it gives off a robust vanilla flavor but is extremely sweet-heavy, with an icy, aerated texture that thins out its indulgence. Some testers found it too light, saying it was “too fluffy” and hardly felt like vanilla ice cream at all, just a simulation of the stuff.
Turkey Hill Original Vanilla Ice Cream
This ice cream has only 16 grams of sugar per serving, which puts it at the lowest sugar level of all regular brands, mixing sugar and corn syrup in the blend. Its radiant, squeaky-clean white color, although containing annatto and caramel, speaks of a clean but not richer profile than that of top-shelf brands.
Although the mouthfeel is pleasant and silky, the flavor of vanilla is a disappointment, tasting weak and insipid. Being without a robust vanilla flavor, it is not capable of standing on its own by itself, which indicates that a robust flavor is necessary to go with its pleasant mouthfeel.
Blue Bunny Soft Vanilla
Intended to duplicate soft-serve from a parlor ice cream, this “frozen dairy dessert” is eye-catching in its light, semi-melted consistency and double white tips that recall freshly made soft-serve. It scoops easily, winning over enthusiasts of that retro, melt-in-your-mouth sensation.
But the flavor is missing. Stabilizers and preservatives like coconut oil and gums make it creamy but the added artificial vanilla flavor hides the otherwise great texture that testers would enjoy a bit more natural flavor for.
Trader Joe’s French Vanilla Ice Cream
Made by the cult-grocery-store favorite, this ice cream utilizes sugared egg yolks for a custardy, French vanilla flavor base and natural vanilla to be used as it is. It is dense and hard, needing extra tempering to scoop, with a pristine white color to boot, even though it contains yolks, and no specks of vanilla bean in sight.
The vanilla taste explodes with telling force, heavy and intense but not icily nor aerially light. It is incredibly rich, though a few tasters felt this too loudly proclaimed vanilla, nearly aggressively so to their preference.
Alden’s Organic Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
This light, high-quality organic 1.5-quart Oregon-made tub offers a reduced-calorie, reduced-fat, and slightly reduced-sugar option. The tiny speckles of vanilla bean contribute to the beauty, and its light, airy texture readily produces smooth, rounded scoops.
The vanilla flavor strikes a balanced, earthy noteneither too bold nor too timidso it’s pleasant by itself but ideal with additions like hot fudge or pie. It’s a robust, upscale choice for those bypassing very rich desserts.
Nick’s Swedish Vanilj
This Swedish-style light ice cream contains a pleasantly low calorie count, no added sugars, and 7 grams of fiber per serving due to the complex combination of milk, whey, allulose, erythritol, and coconut oil. It melts into a beautifully scoopable texture with intermittent vanilla bean specks.
Tasters were delighted with its well-balanced, natural vanilla taste, unadulterated by chemical aftertaste commonly associated with sugar substitutes. Its creamy texture and perfectly sweetened taste make it a winner among health-conscious indulgence seekers.
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Ice Cream
Praised for quality ingredients, this pint uses just five ingredientscream, skim milk, cane sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla extractto achieve a deep, creamy texture without air pockets. Its silky, white appearance relies on extract only, with no bean flecks.
Taste: unexpectedly very mild with very nice hints of vanilla. Again, somewhat subdued compared to more assertive rivals. The rich texture does make it an excellent foundation for milkshakes or decadent desserts, but it falls short of a vanilla kick some may look for.
Tillamook Old-Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream
From a brand known for its snappy cheddar, this tub-sized serving of family favorite promises an old-fashioned vanilla mixture with cream, egg yolks, and vanilla extract. The off-white color and even textureneither too thick nor too lightmake it easily scoopable.
The custard-flavored taste, boosted with egg yolks, is nice but somewhat lacking, with some testers detecting a weak artificial aftertaste. Its flexibility is on display in sundaes or served with brownies, making it a dependable, everyday choice.
Ben & Jerry’s Vanilla Ice Cream
Known for deep flavors, Ben & Jerry’s vanilla pint combines vanilla extract and real beans to produce a deep flavor that is augmented by cream, sugar, egg yolks, and carrageenan. Its clean white foundation, flecked with black vanilla beans, is adhesive and dense, requiring tempering to scoop.
The dense, creamy texture slowly dissolves, providing a balanced, floral vanilla taste with undertones of toastiness and even rum. While a few detected a faint aftertaste, its rich profile gives it a premium distinction, though richness might restrict pairing possibilities.
Van Leeuwen Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
This cult favorite scoop shop’s pint, now widely available in retailers such as Target and Walmart, features a yellowish color from egg yolks and plenty of vanilla bean specks. The thick, low-air texture produces substantial, indulgent scoops.
The assertive vanilla taste, complimented by a hint of sea salt, combines sweetness and heat in ideal harmony, which one judge hails as the “best of the bunch.” Its savory richness complements fruit or chocolate wonderfully, making it one of the highest ratings.
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Unlike its less intense cousin, this Häagen-Dazs variety employs actual vanilla beans for a sweeter, floral, honey flavor. Its rich, velvety texture and speckled finish guarantee a high-end experience.
However, in our blind taste test, it caught us off guard with an overabundance of sweetness, with some likening it to bubblegum or oatmeal instead of pure vanilla. For all its quality, the unbalanced taste let down those who were looking for an elegant vanilla flavor.
Whole Foods 365 Vanill
Whole Foods’ house brand employs eight ingredients, including cream, vanilla, and annatto for a strong, striking orange color that was objectionable to tasters, likening it to an egg yolk or Creamsicle. Soft and pliable, it is best for ice cream sandwiches.
The vanilla taste is a little artificial, with tasters calling it a good, but not great “knockoff,” or “dupe,” of higher-end brands. Not fantastic, it’s a reasonable option for desserts that feature two textures.
Favorite Day Vanilla Bean
Target’s store brand combines sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and vanilla bean specks in a 13-ingredient blend. Its pliable texture divides testerssome called it creamy, while others found it icy or fluffy.
The flavor surprises with a silky, slightly eggy taste that avoids artificial sweetness, achieving praise as an old-fashioned all-around. It pairs particularly well with fruit pies, so it’s a party-friendly, every-day player.
Edy’s Vanilla
The nine-ingredient recipe of this traditional brand includes sugar, corn syrup, and finely ground vanilla beans, but its 2.7-star rating is the opposite. Minuscule flecks of beans impart a real appearance, but the airy, marshmallow-like texture is too light.
Flavor perceptions are as wide and varied as possible: “Subtle but sweet,” “sickly and artificial,” with chalky or oily finish. Others enjoy its richness, milk-based, though it’s more palatable in floats than served alone as a single dessert.
The Last Scoop
Our blind tasting attests vanilla ice cream is anything but dull, with a mix of textures and tastes. Light and airy, heavy and decadent, each pint is unique. Trader Joe’s French Vanilla leads the pack with its decadent heaviness and burnished amber hue, followed very closely by Häagen-Dazs Vanilla for its uncompromising simplicity and Van Leeuwen Vanilla Bean for its concentrated, salty-sweetness. Turkey Hill Vanilla Bean also wins for appearance and reliability. For any sundae from yesteryear or any dessert celebration, the perfect pint of vanilla is ready to enhance any moment.
