The Difference Between Trader Joe's Product Hall Of Fame And The Customer Choice Awards

Choosing the best Trader Joe's product out there can feel like an impossible task. The chain boasts 13 expert-approved wines, a grain blend approved by Molly Yeh of "Girl Meets Farm" fame, and a mini dessert that celebrity chef Ted Allen can't get enough of. But if you want to see which items are beloved by Trader Joe's shoppers above all others, an easy way to find consistent favorites is to check out the chain's Customer Choice Awards — or its Product Hall of Fame. But what's the difference between these two?

Trader Joe's has been listing products and tallying votes for its Customer Choice Awards since 2009. These are important awards to keep an eye on, as the company is known to release fresh items annually. And yet, if you really want the cream of the crop of the chain's products, you'll want to check out the Product Hall of Fame inductees. This section honors items that have either won a Customer Choice Award multiple times or won in multiple categories (or both). The Hall of Fame was only created in 2023, but so far, all of its members have won awards at least five times in their categories. Spoiler alert: There are only five of them as of 2024.

The survey for determining which items will win next year's Trader Joe's Customer Choice Awards is typically available online for shoppers to vote at the end of the calendar year, and the results are announced at the beginning of the following year. For example, the winners for the 15th Customer Choice Awards were posted on January 22, 2024. Interestingly enough, the Hall of Fame inductees (which were posted on January 2, 2023) weren't listed as options in the 2023-24 survey, as Trader Joe's wanted to make room for new items to shine.

So which items have received the esteemed honor of being inducted into the hallowed hall? Surprising absolutely no one, the Mandarin Orange Chicken (aka the Asian-inspired meal from Trader Joe's we love adding to our cart) is first on the list. You'll also see the Peanut Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets, Unexpected Cheddar, Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, and Soy Chorizo. Eliminating these products from the Customer Choice Awards made room for the ever-mouthwatering Chili & Lime Flavored Rolled Corn Tortilla Chips to claim No. 1 overall in 2024. Somewhat surprisingly, plain old bananas nabbed the top spot in the produce department for the fifth time, meaning they're next to make the transition into the Product Hall of Fame.