We Tested 9 Chip Dip Brands: These Are the Ones Worth Dunking Into
Updated: Mar. 01, 2024
Don't dunk your favorite chip into just any onion dip! Our Test Kitchen sorted through the many chip dip brands to find the very best in this blind taste test.
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So Many Chip Dip Brands: Which Is Best?
For many of us, it just wouldn’t be a party or a Sunday catching the game without plenty of snacks. Chicken wings, charcuterie boards and snack mixes are all welcome, but there’s no beating one classic combo: chips and dip! So which of the many chip dip brands at the supermarket is best? Our culinary team had to find out in a taste test.
Testing Chip Dip Brands
Sure, you can dunk your chip into all sorts of dips from guacamole to hummus to million-dollar dip, but there’s one that reigns supreme: onion dip. This dip is essentially a combination of sour cream and onion—whether that’s roasted or powdered. Occasionally garlic and herbs get stirred in as well.
For this taste test, our team gathered up all the onion-filled chip dip brands they could find—nine in all. Each was tested and judged in three categories:
- Appearance: While the base of this dip is sour cream, our team wanted to find brands that looked like they had a little something going on. Flecks of onion and herbs are a bonus.
- Texture: The texture of a good chip dip should be smooth and creamy. It shouldn’t be so thick that it breaks your chip.
- Flavor: French onion dip should taste like the perfect blend of sour cream, onion and salt. It’s that simple!
Check out our Test Kitchen-Preferred dips!
Best Crowd-Pleasing French Onion Dip
Prairie Farms French Onion Dip
When you’re stocking the snack table for your next soiree, grab a tub of Prairie Farms French Onion Dip.
Why is it the best chip dip for the party? “It has a very balanced onion and herb flavor with the right amount of salt,” explains Josh Rink in the Test Kitchen. This, along with the super creamy consistency that won’t break your chips, makes it a dip that everyone can get behind.
And you may even want to add an extra tub to your cart. The Test Kitchen’s Catherine Ward says Prairie Farms French onion dip would be a great addition to a baked potato—no extra butter needed!
Best Onion-Forward Chip Dip
Heluva Good! French Onion Dip
With French onion dip, some folks are looking for more cream than onion. Others, though, want that tangy onion flavor to pair with some salty chips. If the latter sounds like you, add Heluva Good! French Onion Dip to your grocery list.
“I see bits, I see pieces, I taste rich, oniony flavor that’s robust and tangy,” says Sarah Farmer, the head of the Taste of Home Test Kitchen.
Sarah’s description nails what makes this dip a heck of a good one. With plenty of minced onions and bits of chives, this dip delivers on that aromatic flavor so many of us crave with a bag of chips. To top it all off, it’s a darn good looking dip: bright white with all the good stuff swirled throughout.
Best Onion-Meets-Ranch Dip
Great Value French Onion Dip
Can’t decide between ranch and French onion for your next dip? With Walmart’s Great Value French Onion Dip, you don’t have to.
Walmart’s twist on chip dip has the sour cream and onion flavor we all look for in our chip dip brands but the added tang and parsley that you’ll often find in a ranch dipping sauce. The texture is smooth and has just the right consistency for scooping up with a good ruffled potato chip.
While it’s not the most traditional take on a classic dip, it earned universal praise from our Test Kitchen for its versatility. “This is a wonderful mix of chip dip and ranch,” explains Sarah. “I’d use it for chips or for dunking fresh veggies.”
Best Ultra-Thick Dip
Good & Gather Classic Onion Dip
Sometimes you just crave a hearty dip—even one that could double as a spread for your next sammie. If that’s what you’re in the mood for, head to Target for their Good & Gather Classic Onion Dip.
This dip is thick, but that’s because it’s made with cream cheese in addition to sour cream. Target’s twist on French onion dip is also loaded with plenty of caramelized onions and a hint of soy sauce which give it a wonderful umami flavor, according to Josh.
“For sure chips are going to chip in this dip,” says Sarah. “But it’s worth it for the taste!”
Check Out More Test Kitchen-Preferred Products
Our Test Kitchen is constantly testing food, kitchen gadgets and cleaning gear looking for brands that deserve the right to be called Test Kitchen-Preferred.
If you want to fill your pantry and fridge with the best products, check out these tests:
Originally Published: January 13, 2023
