22 Utz Chip Flavors, Ranked Worst To Best

With a history of over 100 years, Utz is a major player in the snack food market. Named after the founders, William and Salie Utz, the company initially sold potato chips. Now, Utz produces a variety of snacks beyond just chips, has brought other brands into its portfolio, and is distributed nationwide.

For this ranking, we focused on Utz's potato chips and tasted 22 different varieties, including classic, kettle, ridged, and wavy styles. Utz performed well in our salt and vinegar chips ranking and when we ranked the best chip brands, so diving into Utz's flavors made a lot of sense. Having lived on the east coast for over 20 years, I'm familiar with Utz, as it is well stocked in my supermarkets. I used my 15 years of test kitchen experience to evaluate each flavor and ranked the chips on overall taste, texture, and how the seasoning captured the intended flavor.

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

The unique, paper-style bag of Grandma Ut'z kettle-style chips stands out among the colored packaging and offers an old-fashioned vibe to match the name. The other thing that stands out is that these chips are fried in lard instead of oil, which is unique in this ranking.

Texturally, the chips are pleasant. They aren't overly thick and have a nice crunch without being hard. The flavor is what landed these at the bottom. Perhaps due to the lard, there is a heavy oil taste, an almost fishiness, and an off-putting bitterness. I'll eat almost any potato chips you put in front of me, but I couldn't get through more than a few of these.

Described as spicy and sweet, these chips are one of four different barbecue-flavored options in the ranking. The thicker cut of the kettle chips holds onto a good amount of seasoning, but that seasoning is why these fell to the bottom of the ranking.

Despite a lengthy ingredient list with a few surprises — including cream, cheddar, and blue cheese — the main thing you taste on these chips is sugar. Smoke and heat do build as you continue to eat them, but both are extremely mild and do not balance the overwhelming sweetness. The lack of a well-rounded barbecue flavor was impossible to overlook.

It's a good thing that sweet is in the title because these chips have a candy-like taste. The seasoning blend covers the chips with a soft orange color that could just as easily be cheese as it could barbecue, which didn't help this variety.

Initially, there is a heavy smoke flavor, but then it's just sweetness. It skips over any other barbecue elements that could have balanced the two tastes. These chips couldn't rank higher because the sweetness goes too far and makes them syrupy and cloying. The only reason they moved ahead of the Smokin' Sweet BBQ is due to the strong, smoky taste that lets you know these are a barbecue chip.

One of Utz's two salt and vinegar chips, this variety has a classic, thin, and delicate texture. There wasn't much of an aroma from the beige chips, and they didn't seem to have a noticeable coating. I remained optimistic for a puckering tang to come. Even though I personally prefer very sour salt and vinegar chips, I think they can still be successful with less acidity, as long as there is something there.

Sadly, these chips just fell flat. There was little discernible tang, and they weren't even that salty, failing on both aspects of the intended flavor. There were so many other varieties with bolder, more well-defined seasonings, so I could not rank these higher.

Carolina-style barbecue is a broad term, and the differences between North and South Carolina barbecue are extensive and specific. Utz took aspects from both states to season these chips with a blend of mustard, vinegar, and peppers. Even though these were pale in color, I was instantly hit with a waft of vinegar upon opening the bag, so I was expecting big flavor.

The taste was interesting but not what I expected. They were tangier than many of the other chips in this ranking, including Salt & Vinegar, which I appreciated — especially because of how sweet some of the other barbecue chips were. However, I wasn't able to pick up any mustard, spice from peppers, or smokiness despite smoke being in the ingredients. I couldn't make a connection to them being a barbecue chip, so they fell into the bottom third of the ranking.

Beyond the fact that these kettle-cooked salt and vinegar flavored chips are thicker than Utz's original variety, there are different ingredients, as well, including apple juice solids and malt vinegar. Malt vinegar is traditionally served with fish and chips and has a slightly sweet and not overwhelmingly astringent flavor.

Malt vinegar is the strongest flavor here, but much like the other salt and vinegar variety, these chips lack enough acidity to identify as a vinegar-flavored snack. It's a strange experience to be tasting vinegar without getting that pull at the back of your mouth from tang. Still, these have a solid crunch and live up to the expectation of malt vinegar, so they rank ahead of the other salt and vinegar chip. They just aren't balanced enough to hit the middle of the group.

This partnership between two brands was intriguing. Mike's Hot Honey is a spicy honey infused with chile peppers and has become popular to drizzle over everything from pepperoni pizza to ice cream.

It was shocking how deeply the bag smelled like honey. The tastes register, in order, sweet and then hot. I can't pick out a specific honey taste on the chips, and there is really no flavor to the heat. In a way, these chips are about the sensation as your tastebuds go back and forth between sugary and fiery. I had a hard time figuring out where these should land in the ranking. The lack of honey taste was a drawback, but they were sweet-hot, which was the intention. Ultimately, they found a place in the middle because I think there are people who will enjoy these and others who will find them lacking, like me.

There isn't much negative to say about Original Ripples , but there is also nothing particularly exciting. These are a true middle-of-the-pack chip. With narrow lines and shallow grooves, the pattern reminds me of a pair of corduroy pants. Even the thickness is unremarkable — they are thicker than the classic style but not as thick as kettle-cooked chips.

The salt to potato ratio is balanced. You taste potato, and they are well-seasoned but not intensely salty. These would do well alongside dip because they won't sog or break easily but they are delicate enough that you can easily chomp through a big mouthful. If you need a regular old chip for a party, you can't go wrong with these.

I personally feel that cheddar and sour cream–flavored potato chips are superior to sour cream and onion because the dairy connection between cheddar and sour cream gives them complementing creamy, sharp flavors. Utz was so close to nailing it with Cheddar & Sour Cream Ripples, but they didn't rank higher due to inconsistency.

The ripples held onto the seasoning well when they had enough coating to hold. Since they were unevenly covered, my chips ranged from bland to sharply cheddar-y and delicious. Utz has the right idea with the blend of tangy and savory flavors, but they just needed more of it so you get plenty of cheesy taste in every chip.

Onion and garlic are part of the seasoning blend on many different chips, but I don't usually see the two featured together as the main flavor. Without a contrasting taste like sour cream or cheddar, I was curious if these would be breath mint–inducing-ly potent.

Though the chips have a good amount of flavor, they are far from too strong. Onion dominates the garlic, making the latter hard to pick up on. And then, there is the sweetness. Like several other chips in this ranking, the seasoning tastes heavily sugared, and in this case, it detracts from what should be a thoroughly savory experience. If my eyes were closed, I would guess that these were a sweet onion chip. They still aren't bad, but Utz has more successful onion varieties in the ranking.

Sour cream and onion is a beloved potato chip flavor regardless of the brand because tangy sour cream and sharp onion pair together so well. It was the winning flavor in our ranking of Lay's potato chips, but Utz's offering didn't do quite as well.

Similar to the Cheddar & Sour Cream variety, the coating was poorly distributed, so some chips were on the bland side and others were bold and salty. The good news is that these do not tread into the same sweet territory as Onion & Garlic, so the onion flavor can take center stage. These were good. If they had double the seasoning and more even coverage, they would be great.

Utz's fourth barbecue chip in this tasting landed in the top half of the ranking for the classic look and flavor of the snack. The ripples are covered with a vibrant, deep orange seasoning, and although it was somewhat uneven, it was much better than some of the other varieties.

The ingredients include horseradish powder, tomato powder, and smoke flavor, but the cumulative effect was just a spiced, slightly hot, smoky chip that tastes exactly like what you expect from barbecue chips. Since these are not spicy or sweet, the seasoning felt balanced; it would be easy to chomp through a bag without even realizing it.

Salted potato chips are the little black dress of the snack food aisle. Classic, timeless, and versatile, Utz Original chips are a great representation of the ideal chip. Despite being thin and easily crushed in your mouth, they were not shattered in the bag. There were plenty of unbroken and large chips in my bag, which was a pleasant surprise.

With just potatoes, oil, and salt as ingredients it's important for those three aspects to work together and not overshadow each other. These chips were not heavily salted or saturated with oil, so you can taste the potato well — all in all, just a great snack.

The deep grooves and rolling hill design on Wavy Original are much more significant than the Ripples chip. With a thicker cut than Original or Ripples, these wavy chips are ideal for holding the heaviest toppings or dips, but they are still light and crisp. The combination of heartiness and lightness makes them practical and functional.

In addition to the waves making a fun design, they offer an interesting texture that's more complex than a salted potato chip. The balance between potato and salt is the same as the Original chips and is equally successful, but these inched ahead in the ranking for the added structure that enhanced the snacking experience.

You know this ranking can't be rigged or biased because I never expected to like these so much, but here we are, almost in the top third. I always wondered about the appeal of unsalted potato chips, assuming that they must be bland. Utz No Salt Added chips are made from just potatoes and oil, but they are anything but plain.

Alongside the signature Utz delicate texture is a surprisingly deep potato flavor that reminds me of a long-cooked baked potato, when the skin crisps and the fluffy interior is buttery and concentrated. The oddest part of eating these is that because they are so full-flavored, they almost taste salted. It's some kind of mind-tastebud trick that I don't fully understand, but it leads to a delicious chip.

In the Northeast, where I live, this flavor of Utz is always well stocked. The chips are seasoned with Chesapeake Bay crab seasoning, imitating the flavors of a Chesapeake Bay–style crab feast. So, no, the chips are not intended to taste like crustaceans but the spices they are often cooked with. Chesapeake seasoning, like Old Bay, can have a variety of ingredients, but paprika, pepper (black and/or red), and celery seed are common, creating a mix that is salty, earthy, peppery, and bold.

These descriptors are exactly what the chip delivers with a punch of flavor. As you eat them, waves of spices ebb and flow with slight bitterness from paprika, a slow, peppery burn, and the unique taste of celery. The only reason that these don't rank higher is because they are on the border of being too salty even for me, who goes through boxes of kosher salt at an alarming rate.

With photos of sliced red chiles on the front of the bag, this variety promises a spicy chip, though they give off more of a smoky barbecue scent. The initial taste is similar to a sweet barbecue chip, and then, in a flash, the heat takes over. My mouth was walloped with spicy heat that lived up to the red-hot promise.

A mild sweetness and hints of garlic and onion offer some relief from the inferno dancing on your tongue, but it also lulls you into a false security of thinking that you can handle more. These are not for the timid, but they rank well for living up to their name.

In another flavor partnership, these wavy chips are seasoned with the flavors of french onion dip from the brand Heluva Good!. If you like onions, these are the chips for you.

Although the bag smells closer to powdered soup mix or bouillon, the taste is fresh and all onion. What makes them different from other onion-based chips in this ranking is that there isn't a tang from sour cream or added sweetness. All you really taste is deep, slightly caramelized onions and potatoes. I don't even love onion-flavored chips and I found myself going back for more and more and enjoying each one, so I knew that these should rank high.

The salt and pepper flavor of chip sometimes gets overlooked, though it took the top spot in our Cape Cod potato chip ranking because the tingling burn of black pepper pairs perfectly with salted potatoes.

A nice amount of black pepper covers the chips, so you can taste it but it doesn't become harsh. Other seasonings, including garlic, onion, and sugar, add extra depth and soften the pepper without taking over. For being simple, flavorful, and complex in taste at the same time, these ranked in the top five.

What makes these chips so fantastic is the blend of heat and seasoning that instantly screams jalapeño. The ingredients include jalapeño pepper and green bell pepper, so the have a vegetal quality that is fresh and spicy.

To keep the pepper taste and heat from becoming overwhelming, there are back notes of garlic, onion, and sugar, but they are just a supporting cast and do not detract from the star. The sturdy crunch is an added bonus to the big, popping flavor. It was a tough call where in the top three this should rank, but the two above it were just a touch better.

Ranch should be a more popular chip flavor. It's creamy, tangy, herby, and garlicky, which are all amazing flavors on a potato chip. Utz does ranch justice with this snack.

This second collaboration with Heluva Good! is even better than the French onion offering. The deep grooves of the wavy chips hold a hefty dusting of speckled green and red seasoning that looks just like the package. The chips first give off a bright hit of acidity and then move into the salty, garlicky-onion taste of ranch that we all know and love. This variety captures the experience of dipping a chip into ranch with the convenience of having it all in one. They are utterly delicious, and I wanted to devour the whole bag.

Between their vinegar and the dill flavors, these chips scream pickle in the best possible way. In addition to nailing the herb and tang of a good pickle, these chips have a whisper of garlic and somehow manage to taste a little creamy, as well.

These aren't just regular pickle-flavored chips — fried pickles and the blend of seasonings capture that difference through the crisp potato base, making them unique from other pickle-flavored snacks I have tried. And, I have tried many. I could find no faults with these chips, even down to the choice of the ripple shape for the perfect crunch, and that is what made these the top-ranking chip.

Tasting 22 chip varieties isn't exactly something you can pound through in an hour, so to determine the ranking, I tasted over a few days, ensuring that each flavor was sampled at least twice. I assessed the overall flavor and texture as well as how well the name of the chip matched what was inside in the bag. Though I have personal snack preferences, I used my experience as a chef and test kitchen professional to remove personal bias and judge the chips on their own merits.