Store-Bought Frozen French Fries, Ranked From Worst To Best

French fries are undeniably one of the greatest foods to ever grace the culinary world. They are crispy, salty, delicious — and, of course, they go great with countless meals. What’s not to love? Making french fries from scratch may not take gourmet skill, but the process is fairly involved if you want to get it just right. That’s where frozen fries come in. They aren’t quite like fresh ones straight from the fryer, but they sure hit the spot with minimal effort. Pop a batch in the air fryer and they get pretty close to the real thing, especially if you start with the best frozen french fries around.

If you’ve ever wondered which frozen fries are extra crispy or flavorful, or whether the expensive organic brands are really worth the price hike, look no further. As a french fry fanatic myself, I couldn’t be happier to tell you I bought, cooked, and tasted 13 major brands and styles to find out how they compare in a head-to-head competition. After sampling, I ranked the fries from worst to best based on flavor, texture (both inside and out), cost, and seasonings. I’ll get into my methodology a bit more at the end, but for now, let’s see how well the products performed so you can select the tastiest frozen fries possible moving forward.

I almost feel bad saying it, but Roots Organic Farm Fresh Crinkle Cut Fries are downright awful. Not only are they shamefully overpriced, but the flavor is seriously lacking. You may be thinking, well they are organic, so flavor is bound to be different, but the only way to describe them is bland. They definitely taste like healthy food, and I don’t know about you, but that’s not what french fries are about in my opinion. They also have a weird greyish hue to them, especially when placed side by side with other products. It’s unappealing, to say the least.

In addition to a lack of flavor and an odd color, Roots Organic Farm Fresh Crinkle Cut Fries come at an abominable price. A bag costs about $9.99 — that’s double and sometimes triple the price of other frozen french fries! Here’s the kicker, too, each bag is only 15 ounces, so only about half as big as other products. The one thing I will give Roots Organic Farm Fresh Crinkle Cut Fries props for is the cut of the fries. It’s got a good shape and size, so the ridges crisp up nicely. However, that’s not nearly enough to make me like them. Seriously, they aren’t worth your money. Sorry, but not sorry.

I had high hopes for Market Pantry Shoestring French Fries because I tend to like Target brand products. Unfortunately, it didn’t live up to my expectations. Really, they are just a bit meh. Are they bad? No. But they aren’t particularly good, either. If I had to sum them up in one word it would be bland. They need lots of salt, that’s for sure, and maybe some lemon juice (which does wonders for frozen fries), but I’m not sure that’s all it would take to make them worthy of a higher ranking. Unfortunately, the bag I got was also full of lots of small fries and broken pieces, so I’d say the quality and texture were lacking, too. The tiny fry chunks made it tricky to get a satisfying mouthfeel.

However, at just $3.19 a bag, Market Pantry Shoestring French Fries are the second cheapest product on this list, so that’s something. They also get pretty crispy thanks to their thin shoestring cut. Still, if budget isn’t your main priority, I recommend opting for something else. Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries and Ore-Ida Extra Crispy Fast Food Fries (both of which I’ll go into more detail about shortly) have a similar cut, and they are so much better. Trader Joe’s are cheaper, too.

I’ll admit, I’m not the biggest fan of steak fries in general, so it’s possible Ore-Ida Classic Steak Fries never stood a chance with me. Still, I think their 11th-place ranking is well-deserved. In general, steak fries are a bit too thick to crisp up the way I like, especially if you don’t get them fresh out of a deep fryer. So, it wasn’t a shock that those were my complaints about the frozen ones. Even after baking for much longer than other french fry products, the centers were still incredibly soft and I was missing any semblance of crunch.

In addition to a less-than-desirable texture and an extra long cooking time, the flavor of Ore-Ida’s Classic Steak Fries was just okay. They would definitely benefit from a sprinkle of salt. Even so, it’s hard to salt the entire potato when the center is so thick. The larger size does make these fries great for picking up tons of sauce, though, and they aren’t priced badly either. A bag costs about $4.69, and they go on sale a lot. If you love steak fries, you might really like Ore-Ida’s frozen rendition, but for me, they simply didn’t measure up to all the other fantastic options coming up.

Arby’s is kind of polarizing when it comes to fast food options. Some people like it and others can’t stand it. Regardless of where you fall on the matter, the brand’s curly fries are arguably the best thing the restaurant has to offer. That’s probably why they are one of three Arby’s products you can buy in grocery stores. However, when compared to all the other frozen fry options I sampled, they only managed to score a tenth-place ranking.

Arby’s Frozen Seasoned Curly Fries do in fact taste a lot like the ones you get from one of the company’s fast food restaurants, so it’s not the flavor that set this product back. After all, the peppery seasoning is pretty tasty. The texture was okay, too. They are definitely better than the products I’ve already mentioned. Even so, the bag contained only a few true curly fries. The rest was just small semi-circles — kind of like when you get them from Arby’s, in truth. I guess you could pull out all the actual curly fries and have one super satisfying pile of spirals, but then what? You have to suffer through the rejects after that, which just so happens to be the majority of the bag? No, thank you. Plus, a bag will set you back by as much as $6.49 when not on sale, so they are relatively pricey.

Alexia Organic Yukon Select Sea Salt Fries are where my list takes a serious turn for the better — hooray! As the name suggests, they are made with Yukon Gold potatoes, and the flavor and quality definitely shine through in the final product. When I first took a bite I instantly noticed how fresh the taste was, especially compared to all of the other frozen fries I sampled. Even if you don’t know, you can taste that they are high-quality fries. They also benefit from a touch of salt which further enhances flavor. I think they could use a bit more, but that’s easily done.

Alexia Fries are both soft and crunchy — just how I like them to be — so the texture hits the spot. However, a small 15-ounce bag costs a whopping $5.99. If they weren’t so expensive, I may have awarded them a higher ranking, but alas, organic products don’t come cheap and they got knocked back a few positions as a result. Even so, I feel like they embody what Roots (ranked last place) wanted to achieve but simply couldn’t pull off regarding texture and quality. Plus, they come at about half the price of Roots, so yeah, way better.

Generally speaking, I’m not the biggest fan of fast food fries, but even I can admit that Ore-Ida Extra Crispy Fast Food French Fries are something special. As the name suggests, they are in fact extra crispy and they truly have a classic fast food fry flavor, so much so that I was rather surprised. I’m a bit nervous to investigate where that comes from exactly, but I guess I don’t care because they are pretty darn tasty. They’re not quite as good as the fries I gave a better ranking to, but they are a strong contender.

Another reason to love Ore-Ida Extra Crispy Fast Food French Fries lies in how easy they are to cook to perfection. They only take about half as long to crisp up compared with other options on this list and you won’t believe how well they turn out without a deep fryer. Ore-Ida fries are reasonably priced, too. At around $4.69 a bag, they aren’t the cheapest, but they aren’t what I’d call expensive, either.

Trader Joe’s has done it again with its Handsome Cut Fries. Somehow the company keeps managing to bring consumers outstanding products at exceptionally low prices, and these fries are just one more example of that. As the lowest-priced frozen fries on my list (a bag costs just $2.99), I wasn’t too sure how they would measure up. Lucky us, they did not disappoint.

Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries have a fresh, natural flavor that instantly drew me in. They are kind of like Alexia’s fries, but not quite as rich in flavor. Still, their low cost gave them a slight boost. Overall, it’s hard to argue against Trader Joe’s Fries. They are a no-frill fry, they crisp up nicely, and they are well executed, so giving them a solid middle-place ranking seemed appropriate. They may need a bit more salt, but they certainly put other grocery store generic brands to shame. If you want flavor and quality for an exceptionally low price, Trader Joe’s Handsome Cut Fries tick all the boxes.

Ore-Ida Crispy Waffle Fries are an excellent middle-of-the-road waffle fry. For a frozen product, they get pretty crispy, and that is essential with this style of fry. After all, you don’t want an oversized soggy potato chip, right? In addition to a nice crispy texture, Ore-Ida’s Waffle Fries taste pretty good. They may not be as flavorful as beer-battered or seasoned fries, but that’s to be expected.

Ideally, I’d take advantage of the shape and expansive surface area by loading up these waffle fries with flavorful toppings or sauces, like green or red chili and cheese. They would also be great for a french fry bar. Even by themselves, I still found them to be pretty good quality overall. They are reasonably priced as well. Most Ore-Ida fries cost about $4.69, so not bad at all. This is not the first time I’ve had these fries and after comparing them to other options on this list, I can confidently say it won’t be the last.

McCain Craft Beer Battered Fries are tasty fries by any standards. They pack way more flavor into every bite than any of the fries that ranked lower. Arby’s is close, but the beer batter on these fries is top-notch. They give the fries an almost buttery taste and it leads to an ultra crispy finish that anyone could love. I would eat these fries without any sauce, no questions asked. At about $4.79 a bag, they also fall firmly in the middle of the price range, so they aren’t too expensive to put in your usual rotation. Plus, you can often find them on sale for $3.99.

Compared to Grown In Idaho Hand Cut Style Fries (which earned a higher ranking for reasons I’ll get to shortly), McCain Craft Beer Battered Fries are much thinner, so they get even crispier. I still thought they weren’t quite as good, though, because I prefer a softer center to match the crispy exterior — gotta have it all, you know. Obviously, the upcoming frozen fry options also beat them out, but not by much.

I’ll be the first to admit that Kroger brand products are not the epitome of quality. They get the job done, but most of the time they don’t really excel. However, Kroger Seasoned Crispy Fries are a notable exception to that rule. Not only do they come at the low price of $3.69 a bag, but the seasoning is flavorful. I am partial to a well-seasoned fry in general, but a friend who helped me taste all of the fries on this list agrees that they are delicious and more than worthy of a fourth-place ranking.

Kroger Seasoned Crispy Fries are a lot like Checkers/Rally’s Fries, which are still to come. However, they don’t pack nearly as much flavor. Although, they still have way more flavor than many of the other products I ranked. They are also about twice as thick as Checkers Fries, so they don’t get nearly as crispy. Kroger’s offers a nice crunch when cooked appropriately, though. I’d say they are a fantastic budget pick when Checkers Fries aren’t on sale.

Coming in third place, which was no easy feat, is Ore-Ida’s Zesty Curly Seasoned French Fries. They boast a classic, seasoned curly fry flavor that is anything but bland. I’d even go so far as to say the taste is somewhat complex, at least for a frozen fry. The coating of seasoning also gives these fries a beautiful crunch. Of course, the spiral shape ensures a delicious mouthful with every bite, too — and that’s something I can easily get behind.

Compared to Arby’s fries, the only other curly fries on this list, Ore-Ida blows them out of the water. They are way more flavorful and the cut of the potatoes is far superior. Instead of the bag containing mostly small semicircles, you get lots of full-on spirals, and that’s what we all want. The only drawback to Ore-Ida’s Zesty Curly Seasoned French Fries is that they often cost a touch more than other Ore-Ida products. A bag will set you back around $4.99, but that’s only 30 cents more than other varieties, so overall, no complaints here. I’ll definitely be buying these again, probably on a regular basis.

Grown In Idaho Hand Cut Style Fries are pretty close to perfect when it comes to frozen fries. They are a beer-battered style fry — and the batter is crushing! Not only does it enhance the overall texture, but it adds a lot to the flavor as well. The Idaho potatoes taste amazing by themselves, but the batter takes them well beyond your basic Ore-Ida fry. The flavor is almost buttery, and when I took my first bite I thought, finally — a frozen fry that isn’t afraid of salt. Delish!

Back to texture, Grown In Idaho Hand Cut Style Fries are the ideal size and cut to ensure a good mouthfeel. They have tons of crunch and the centers stay deliciously soft. The only real drawback to these fries is the slightly elevated price: They cost $5.79 per bag. Still, it’s more than justified by the overall deliciousness and quality you get. Honestly, these fries almost took my first-place ranking, and a lot of people out there would probably give them the crown. However, I think the upcoming product has a slight edge, and I’ll explain why.

For me, Checkers/Rally’s Famous Seasoned Fries are fully worthy of the top spot on this list. If you’re looking for a flavor powerhouse, Checkers Fries are where it’s at — there’s no contest. I’m not exactly sure what seasonings are included because the label just says spices, but whatever they are, with every bite I found myself craving more. I might be a bit nostalgic because I grew up near a Checkers and the first bite sent me straight back to childhood summers, but no joke — these fries are absolutely delicious! The bag proudly proclaims that they are famous and there’s no argument from me on that point.

Checkers/Rally’s Famous Seasoned Fries also excel when it comes to texture. They are perfectly cut and sized so you get lots of crunch with the perfect amount of soft, pillowy center. There were also lots of extra long fries in the bag (something else I like), so you don’t have to sort through small reject pieces to get a really good bite. Depending on where you shop, Checkers/Rally’s Fries cost between $4.99 and $6.49, but they go on sale for $3.99 quite frequently. Even at the elevated price, these fries are worth every cent.

I personally cooked and tasted all the varieties of frozen french fries listed here. I’m not mad about it, either. Actually, it was super fun, and a very satisfying experience for the most part. During my taste-testing adventure, I made sure to cook each frozen fry product in the oven according to the packaging’s directions. After that, a friend and I tasted them all several times to make sure we knew exactly where they stood amongst the competition. Then, to determine ranking, I considered the seasoning, overall flavor (or, in some cases, the lack thereof), and the texture of each fry — both inside and out. Finally, I factored in the price, although I didn’t let that weigh too heavily on positioning. Together, these traits made determining the final ranking pretty clear. If I were you, I’d stick to the frozen fries placed at ninth and upward. That’s exactly what I’ll be doing going forward.