The Ultimate Ranking Of Popular Store-Bought Barbecue Sauces

Barbecue sauce is more than just a condiment — it's the soul of grilling, the secret weapon for pitmasters, and the flavor-packed finish to a perfectly cooked meal. From tangy to sweet, smoky to spicy, barbecue sauces are as diverse as the regions and traditions they represent. While the original version of barbecue sauce was closer to the vinegar-forward Carolina sauces, these days, thick, sweet Kansas City barbecue sauce is the most popular style.

But with so many options on the shelves, how do you know which one will deliver the most authentic, delicious taste? I rounded up some of the country's most popular store bought barbecue sauces and put them head-to-head to find out which sauces reign supreme. I considered flavor, texture, versatility, price, and regional authenticity to help you discover your new go-to favorite. Whether you're brushing it on ribs, slathering it on pulled pork, or dipping crispy chicken tenders, there's a sauce here that'll elevate your grilling game.

At first, I was surprised that 365 Original barbecue sauce came in at the bottom of the list. But, as somebody who's been shopping at Whole Foods Market for a long time, I've noticed that the quality of the store's products has taken a dive in the last few years. The ingredients that make up this sauce appear to be high quality (brown sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, organic white vinegar, no artificial preservatives), but apparently this does not translate to a more delicious flavor.

In fact, the sauce barely has any flavor at all, which is strange considering its near-perfect rich texture and the fact that you can see little bits of spices and flavoring suspended in the dark brown liquid. It just tastes like sugar with the slightest sour hint of vinegar, but little else is discernible. Despite being from Whole Foods, which is typically associated with high prices, the price point was near the middle of the pack. If you're trying to save money, though, there are better budget options.

Known for its strides in the category of processed cheese (Kraft singles, anyone?), Kraft is a powerhouse when it comes to affordable food products. And Kraft original barbecue sauce, the cheapest product on this list, certainly fits that bill. But what you save in money, you pay for with a cloying sweetness that dominates all the other flavors in this barbecue sauce.

The product is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, an ingredient isn't necessarily worse for you than sugar, but it is cheaper, which is why it's widely used in low-cost products. And my issue isn't with nature of this ingredient, but with the quantity. The more delicate flavors like hickory smoke and spices are lost in the corn syrup. Texture-wise, the sauce is a little on the thick side, with a smooth richness that's perfect for dipping or smothering sandwiches. Also, given the ubiquity of Kraft products at supermarkets, you can find this sauce almost anywhere.

Heinz is synonymous with sauce. The brand is perhaps best known for its ketchup, and since ketchup is often the base of barbecue sauce, it stands to reason that Heinz would be a powerhouse in the BBQ sauce game. Unfortunately, this couldn't be further from the truth. This sauce looked the part, with a deep brown color and a thick, rich texture. But it was all a ruse. It's not that the taste was horribly offensive, it's that it just wasn't there.

There was a hint of tomato flavor and the lightest touch of smokiness, but mostly this sauce was just there for show, and I don't need to decorate my food with barbecue sauce; I need to taste it. The sauce advertises itself as "thick and sweet" and perhaps the only flavor that really comes through is that of sugar. The only redeeming qualities of this sauce were that it's cheap and very easy to find at grocery stores. So if you're looking to sweeten your barbecue without substance, then go ahead and grab a bottle of Heinz. But if you want flavor, keep looking.

Most sauces on this list are manufactured by companies that make a wide array of food products, but KC Masterpiece specializes in barbecue sauce, which may lead you to believe that its product is superior. And while there are redeeming qualities about this sauce, it failed to wow me. It's sweet and smoky, but the more nuanced flavors that make a good barbecue sauce are just not there.

The KC Masterpiece website advertises an emphasis on "real" ingredients like sugar and apple cider vinegar, but this sauce was made with high fructose corn syrup and regular vinegar. Although the sauce is pretty sweet, a nice zing from the vinegar balances out the sugar and makes the sauce interesting enough. That said, I couldn't find anything special about this sauce. It's also pretty affordable and easy to find, so if you're in a pinch at the grocery store, it's better than some of the other sauces in its price range.

Primal Kitchen is a brand of sauces and dressings that's part of a growing trend toward the consumption of "real food," meaning food without artificial sweeteners and preservatives that's been minimally processed. From an ethical and nutritional standpoint, this is a mission I can get behind, and Primal Kitchen BBQ sauce delivered a flavor to match its respectable values. But there's a caveat: This sauce is unsweetened, so it's not like some of the other thick, sweet, ketchup-forward sauces you may be used to.

The flavor is well balanced, with a strong tomato taste balanced out by a host of warming spices like cinnamon, coriander, and chipotle pepper. Garlic, onion, mustard, and black pepper give the sauce a welcome intensity and a dash of apple cider vinegar adds a lightly astringent quality. If you're avoiding sugar for any reason, this is definitely the barbecue sauce for you. But somebody who's used to that sweet, balanced flavor of a traditional Kansas City BBQ sauce may not be impressed. Primal Kitchen BBQ sauce is easy to find at grocery stores across the country, including Whole Foods, but it's also a tad pricier than most sauces on the list.

If you've made it this far down the list, you've probably learned that I'm not a huge fan of overly sweet bottled barbecue sauce. And this is the major sin committed by Sweet Baby Ray's. This charming looking bottle packs a whopping 17 grams of sugar per serving. That said, I recognize that there are people out there who like a super sugary barbecue sauce and, if that's you, then I'd recommend Sweet Baby Ray's.

Behind the wall of high fructose corn syrup, there's a well-balanced combination of spices and a gentle kick provided by distilled vinegar. The texture is just thick enough to be dip-able or slather on a puled pork sandwich. This sauce is also cheap, and I found it at almost every grocery store I visited, so it's a reliable pick. For me, it's still way too sweet, but if you like a sugary barbecue, then it may be what you're looking for. The brand has a loyal following (Mark Zuckerberg and Sweet Baby Ray's have a bit of a romance happening), and it also makes a wide variety of different flavors that include smokier and spicier options.

Some people don't think of Target as a grocery store, but there are certain grocery items you should be buying at Target. Good & Gather's barbecue sauce is a sensible choice for a shopper looking for a barbecue sauce that isn't fancy but is made with quality ingredients and offered at a reasonable price point. The brand is sold exclusively at Target, so it's available across the country.

This sauce is sweetened with cane sugar instead of high fructose syrup, and it also has a hint of molasses, which gives it a slightly more complex caramel flavor. The sweetness is balanced out by a light zing of distilled vinegar and the tang of its tomato base. Texture-wise, it's thickened with acorn starch, so its hefty enough to be used as a dip. On the spectrum of sauces in this article, this one is a tad on the sweet side, but it's not cloying or syrupy. If you're looking for a solid organic BBQ sauce without the bells and whistles of some of the pricier options, this may be the one for you.

Organicville is (perhaps obviously) known for its extensive offering of fully organic products that can be found in condiment aisles in many major grocery stores. The brand's BBQ sauce bottle is stamped with all the health food buzz words and phrases (organic, non-GMO, gluten-free), which means a lot to some people. But I'm here for taste. And this sauce was a decent contender, but I certainly wasn't wowed.

It's the only sauce on the list sweetened with agave, which is advertised proudly on the front of the bottle despite the fact that agave is not significantly better for you than sugar. And it doesn't make a difference in terms of taste, although the addition of molasses gives this sauce a nice, rich, slightly burnt caramel flavor. The sweetness is notable but not overwhelming, and it jives well with the mix of spices, which includes a gentle kick of cayenne and the slight sourness of vinegar. The biggest issue is the there is too much cumin, which overpowers some of the more delicate flavors in the sauce. I don't think I'd buy this sauce again, especially since it's one of the costlier options on the list.

Stubb's is the only Texas barbecue sauce on the list and, although it's a close cousin of the dark, sweet, thick Kansas City style sauces that dominate the barbecue sauce market, it's got a flavor all its own. The first thing you notice about Stubb's is the color, which is a burnt red as opposed to the dark tamarind color of most of the sauces on this list. It also has considerable less sugar, which leaves room for the careful mixture of spices to really shine.

Stubb's also has a more tomato-forward flavor, making it a bit more acidic than your average BBQ sauce. This is great for fatty, heavy meats like brisket and ribs. The texture is a bit thinner than average, so it may not be as good for dipping, but it's ideal for tossing pulled pork or smothering chicken. In terms of price, Stubb's is a bit above average, but you can taste the difference in quality. The brand also makes a sweeter flavor, a spicier flavor, and one that's flavored with Dr. Pepper.

Keep an open mind when you're tasting Bachan's Japanese barbecue sauce. While this sauce certainly isn't your thick, sweet, tomato-based Kansas City barbecue sauce, it still hits many of the same nuanced notes as a traditional barbecue sauce with different ingredients. The first ingredient in Bachan's is soy sauce, and its salty, funky, umami flavor is the first thing you taste, followed by the sweetness of sugar, the tang of mirin, and the peppery, intense taste of ginger.

Bachan's is thinner than your average barbecue sauce, so it's not ideal for dipping, but its salty complexity is perfect for marinating meats. It's also great for seasoning stir fries and adding to salad dressing. Bachan's also comes in other flavors like yuzu citrus, sweet honey, and hot and spicy, which are variations on the original recipe. This sauce is more expensive than most of the sauces on this list, but it's also significantly more concentrated, and a bottle of Bachan's goes a long way. If you're looking to shake your barbecue up with some new barbecue sauce flavors, this is the sauce for you.

Trader Joe's is known to sell products at the intersection of quality and value, and its organic Kansas City style barbecue sauce is no exception. This sauce is true to its Kansas City name, delivering a perfectly balanced taste of barbecue that is sweet, thick, and bursting with a harmonious blend of spices. The sauce is tomato based, so it's tangy and acidic and has a stronger ketchup-y flavor than most sauces.

To balance out the presence of sweet tomato, this sauce contains both distilled vinegar and lemon juice concentrate, lending it a strong, complex, and acidic tang. The consistency is thick enough to be used as a dip and thin enough to spread over a rack of ribs. It also happens to be one of the more affordable sauces on the list, so if you live near a Trader Joe's and you're not trying to shell out on a pricy barbecue sauce, this is a no-brainer.

With a name like Bone Suckin' Sauce, this barbecue sauce grabbed my attention right away in the grocery store. And with its perfect balance of tomato-forward sweetness, acidic zing, and savory spices, it kept my attention. The first thing I noticed about this sauce is that it's redder than most of the sauces on the list, which skew dark brown. And this reflects the strong flavor of ketchup that forms the sauce's culinary backbone. The other thing I noticed is that this sauce is chunky for a barbecue sauce, and you can feel the bits of onion and garlic in your mouth. It also includes Worcestershire sauce, which gives it a uniquely deep umami flavor.

The caveat? This is one of the pricier sauces on the list. If you want to splurge on a quality barbecue sauce, this one hits all the classic notes you'd find in a mainstream sauce and is executed perfectly.

Topping off the list is Lillie Q's Carolina barbecue sauce. The first thing you need to know is that this is a western North Carolina style sauce, which means it's got a stronger vinegar flavor than most sauces at the grocery store, which are typically Kansas City style. What I loved about Lillie Q's was the complexity of its flavor. Mustard gives the sauce a uniquely earthy, spicy tang, and lime juice and tamarind give the sauce a deliciously balanced mix of sweet and sour. That said, Lillie Q's isn't as thick and sugary as most barbecue sauces, so if you like a super sweet sauce, it may not be for you.

The acidity of this sauce makes it a perfect companion to the fattiness of pork or brisket. It's thinner than most sauces, but it's thick enough to coat a rack of ribs or smother a pile of pulled pork. Lillie Q's is pricier than most sauces, but it also has a stronger flavor than many of the cheaper sauces, so the bottle lasts longer. Lillie Q's is available at grocery stores across the country, so if you find a bottle of it and you've got a hankering for barbecue, I recommend it wholeheartedly.

For this tasting, popular sauces were selected that are widely available in the United States. I selected an array of sauces from the super sweet to the sugar free and from thick, molasses rich Kansas City style sauces to vinegar-based Carolina ones.

When it came to ranking, flavor was the most important factor. I looked for sauces that struck a good balance between sweet and tangy. Texture was also critical, as a great sauce needs the right consistency. I assessed whether the sauces were smooth or chunky, too thin to coat effectively, or so thick they could overwhelm a piece of meat. Versatility came next. Could the sauce be used not just for grilling but also as a dip, marinade, or glaze? Next, I factored in value, weighing the quality of the sauce against its price to ensure our rankings considered accessibility and affordability. Finally, I assessed whether each sauce was true to its regional flavors.