When it comes to things I take entirely too seriously—far more so than any rational person should—chocolate chip cookies is near the top of my list. It’s my go-to dessert, snack or keto-unfriendly breakfast, served alongside a half-gallon of cold brew. I’ve planned entire vacations around noteworthy bakeries; I’ve tested so many cookie recipes I dare say I’m getting close to Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000-hour rule of mastery (at least I hope). I understand this obsession is unhealthy, but it’s also put me in possession of a very particular set of skills that make me distinctly qualified for PureWow100’s latest test: store-bought chocolate chip cookie dough.
food
What’s the Best Store-Bought Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough? We Tested All Kinds to Find One for Every Palate
Published May 9, 2023
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Candace Davison
What Makes a Great Chocolate Chip Cookie?
Rating the flavor of a cookie comes down to a few key factors:
- Texture (crisp edges and a chewy center? Yes, please)
- Caramelization (If the dough tastes like a sugar cookie, it’s gotta go)
- The chocolate-chip-to-dough ratio (more is always better)
- The quality of the chocolate (gritty chocolate has no place here)
- The thickness of the cookie (stop the spread!)
While I’m all for baking chocolate chip cookies from scratch, sometimes you just need to cut yourself some slack and take a shortcut, courtesy of the grocery store’s refrigerated section. I’ve tried a ton of pre-made dough over the years—from mixes to tubes of dough to break-and-bake bars—but these nine have been the most noteworthy.
The Best Store-Bought Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, At A Glance:
Scroll down for in-depth reviews of each.
- Most Homemade-Tasting: Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
- Most Gourmet-Tasting Cookie Dough: Cravings by Chrissy Teigen The Perfect Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix
- Best Chewy Cookie: Pillsbury Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Best for Dunking: Great Value Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Best Caramelization: Home Dough Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Best Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough: Trader Joe’s Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Best Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: Toll House Chocolate Chip Lovers Cookie Dough
- Best Gluten-Free Option: Sweet Loren’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Best Vegan Option: Trader Joe’s Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
- Best Low-Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough: Sweet Loren’s Less Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Most Unexpected Riff on a Chocolate Chip Cookie: Milk Bar Cornflake Chip Marshmallow Cookies
How We Tested the Chocolate Chip Cookie Doughs & Mixes
CANDACE DAVISON
I baked at least five cookies from each brand, all on the same brand of nonstick baking sheets (making sure the sheets were room temperature between batches). I followed each package’s instructions exactly, letting the cookies cool for two minutes before placing them on wire racks, unless otherwise noted. From there, taste tests ensued, a gallon of milk was depleted and mild stomachaches were had by all.
The Best Store-Bought Chocolate Chip Cookie Doughs & Mixes
1. Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
Most Homemade-Tasting
- Value: 20/20
- Quality: 17/20
- Ease of Instructions: 17/20
- Taste: 18/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 16/20
TOTAL: 87/100
If you want to go the semi-homemade route—but net full-homemade flavor—Betty Crocker’s the way to go. You’ll need to provide your own egg and a stick of butter (and remember to leave them out long enough to bring them to room temp), but the results are worth it. The cookie is soft, a little buttery, with a stronger vanilla flavor and a decent number of chocolate chips. But, if you’re already putting in the effort to mix up a batch, you might as well toss an extra half cup of semisweet chips in there. Just saying.
Cravings/Candace Davison
2. Cravings by Chrissy Teigen The Perfect Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix
Most Gourmet-Tasting Cookie Dough
- Value: 19/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Ease of Instructions: 19/20
- Taste: 19/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 19/20
TOTAL: 95/100
It’s a bold claim to declare your cookie mix “perfect,” but dammit, Christine Teigen, these cookies come pretty freakin’ close. They require more effort than any other dough on this list—in addition to mixing in your own egg and butter, they need to be chilled for two hours before baking—but it’s so worth it. The dough is deeply caramelized and slightly salty, with ribbons of chocolate in every bite. Each cookie gets a slightly crinkled, chewy exterior like the famous pan-banging treats of 2020, yet they’re relatively gooey inside.
3. Pillsbury Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Best Chewy Cookie
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 18/20
- Ease of Instructions: 17/20
- Taste: 18/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 17/20
TOTAL: 88/100
Pillsbury jumped on the edible cookie dough train, and I’m not mad about it one bit. The latest iteration of its chocolate chip cookie dough is labeled “safe to eat raw,” and you better believe I dug in. Raw or baked, the dough tastes the same as it’s always been—a little heavier on the granulated sugar and vanilla flavor than, say, Toll House, but there’s no gritty texture or strange aftertaste that some safe-to-eat doughs have. If you like Entenmann’s soft-baked cookies, you’ll love these.
4. Great Value Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Best for Dunking
- Value: 19/20
- Quality: 17/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 17/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 17/20
TOTAL: 90/100
While many break-and-bake cookie doughs promise 12 to 16 cookies, Walmart’s in-house brand is an overachiever, bringing you 24. These were the smallest cookies of the bunch, but that doesn’t mean they were lacking in flavor. The dough had rich, caramel notes and was denser than some of the other brands—without tasting dry, either. It’s just the kind of hearty little cookie that’s ideal for dipping in your coffee or a cold glass of milk.
5. Home Dough Chocolate Chip Cookies
Best Caramelization
- Value: 11/20
- Quality: 20/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 18/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 17/20
TOTAL: 86/100
If you're looking for a cookie you can pass off as a secret family recipe—when really, you're just plunking eight balls of preformed, frozen dough onto a baking sheet and letting the oven do the rest—this is it. Home Dough's cookies take you on a journey: slightly crispy edges give way to a chewy core, with rivers of caramelized brown sugar and chunks of rich chocolate chips. The brown sugar notes really stand out, though our one gripe is the price point—at $34 for 16 cookies, you kind of wish each cookie was a bit bigger. But when you factor in the flavor—and the organic ingredients, plus the cost of shipping frozen dough across the country—it makes sense.
CANDACE DAVISON
6. Trader Joe’s Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Best Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough
- Value: 19/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 18/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 17/20
TOTAL: 93/100
Admittedly, I went into this one with a bit of an eye-roll: Trader Joe’s fans tend to really love all things Trader Joe’s, so I wasn’t sure if these cookies could deliver on the hype. Spoiler: They did. These treats are darker and denser than your typical chocolate chip cookie, giving them a more gourmet-look, but they also have the sophisticated flavor profile to match. The dough itself is less sweet than its competitors, with a richer flavor, thanks to a combo of wheat flour, brown sugar and molasses, all balanced out with a hit of sea salt. And those chocolate chunks! It’s hard to wait for the two-minute cool time before digging in. (Note: Trader Joe's doesn't sell its products online, so you'll have to head to your nearest store to pick up a package.)
7. Toll House Chocolate Chip Lovers Cookie Dough
Best Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio
- Value: 20/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Ease of Instructions: 19/20
- Taste: 19/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 18/20
TOTAL: 95/100
How do you improve upon a classic? More chocolate, always. While I may not be totally satisfied until there’s a store-bought dough that piles on Gideon’s Bakehouse-caliber chocolate chips—as in, you can barely see the dough amid all of the cocoa—Toll House Chocolate Chip Lovers Cookie Dough comes pretty close to perfection. The treats are bigger than the classic break and bakes, but the dough is every bit as brown sugar-laced and pillowy.
8. Sweet Loren’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Best Gluten-Free Option
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 20/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 16/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 13/20
TOTAL: 87/100
Gluten-free cookie dough has a reputation for being gritty, mealy…and so dry it makes you reach for a glass of water the second you take a bite. Sweet Loren’s flips the table on those stereotypes with a cookie that’s hearty, yes, but far from sawdust-y. That’s all thanks to the brand’s g-free flour blend, a mix of potato starch and oat and tapioca flours. The ingredients are non-GMO, sustainably sourced and vegan, too. But even if you didn’t know any of those things, you’d be sold at first bite: These cookies have rich chocolate and caramel flavors, though they’re worth storing in an airtight container right away, as they tend to harden quickly. (P.S.—You can eat the dough unbaked, though admittedly, it has a sandy aftertaste.)
CANDACE DAVISON
9. Trader Joe’s Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
Best Vegan Option
- Value: 15/20
- Quality: 16/20
- Ease of Instructions: 15/20
- Taste: 15/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 16/20
TOTAL: 77/100
OK, Trader Joe’s, this is where you have room to grow. TJ’s Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix is the right blend of chewy-to-gooey, with a slight nuttiness thanks to the almond flour. It’s just…the cookie itself tends to be crumbly, and it’s almost like the chocolate melted into the dough—you don’t get those chunks of chocolate and that textural difference in each bite that you’d expect from the classic cookie. Still, being a mix rather than a dough, you can customize your experience a bit, adding chopped chocolate if you’d like, and gradually adding in tablespoons of non-dairy milk until the dough is your desired consistency. (One downside: You’ll need to make sure you have vegetable oil, non-dairy milk and vanilla extract on hand before baking.)
10. Sweet Loren’s Less Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Best Low-Sugar Cookie Dough
- Value: 17/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 15/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 13/20
TOTAL: 84/100
If you have a weakness for puffy cookies—like Entenmann’s soft-baked ones—you’ll savor this dough (which is also safe to eat raw!). There’s a slight chalkiness to this plant-based dough, which happens to be gluten-free, dairy-free and peanut/tree nut-free. It contains 40 percent less sugar than competitors’ cookies (roughly 6 grams per serving), and while we wished for more chocolate in every bite, that’d kinda defeat the low-sugar purpose. Still, the pillowy-ness of the cookies—and clean ingredient listing—won taste-testers over.
11. Milk Bar Cornflake Chip Marshmallow Cookies
Most Unexpected Riff on a Chocolate Chip Cookie
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 17/20
- Ease of Instructions: 20/20
- Taste: 16/20
- Chocolate-to-Dough Ratio: 17/20
TOTAL: 88/100
Leave it to Milk Bar’s Christina Tosi to unleash a fresh take on chocolate chip cookies to the grocery store aisle. These treats come out thin and crispy, like a Tate’s cookie, but the flavor is all their own: You get the sweetness and crunch of the cornbread, magnified by the marshmallow. Paired with the chocolate chips, it almost tastes like a s’mores cookie. You’ll definitely want a glass of milk on hand before digging in. Trust.
Please note: The original version of this story included Chip City's cookie bundle, which has since been discontinued. RIP.
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Candace Davison is PureWow’s VP of Editorial, overseeing food, home and related franchises, like the PureWow100 review series and the Happy Kid Awards. She’s covered all things lifestyle in her 10+ years of digital media experience, though she has a weakness for baking (she has *opinions* on stand mixers), DIY-ing and gadgets, all of which she shares on PureWow and her social media accounts.
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