14 Goldfish Cracker Flavors, Ranked Worst To Best

I don't care what anyone says — Goldfish crackers are some of the absolute best snacks on the planet. Tiny, crunchy, and piercingly salty, it's all too easy to finish a bag in a single sitting. They're an absolute lunchbox staple, but they're classic and subtle enough to be as appealing to adults as they are to kids. But if you ask me, you shouldn't just default to the cheddar bag every time you have a craving for Goldfish. There are so many other flavors to discover from the brand, some far more delicious than the standard, and some considerably less so.

If you're wondering where to start on your Goldfish journey, you've come to the right place. I've taste-tested 14 different Goldfish cracker varieties to let you know which are worth working into your snack routine and which definitely aren't. The main criterion for this ranking was flavor, although size also played a role when applicable. You may not agree with me on every point, but hopefully these descriptions will help you better select a Goldfish bag you'll love the next time you're doing your snack shopping. Now, let's dive in.

I don't know what possessed the Goldfish cracker team to engineer this abomination of a snack, but it's absolutely not what I'm looking for when I have a craving for Goldfish. As the name suggests, these Cinnamon Roll Grahams aren't typical Goldfish crackers. Rather, they're sweet graham crackers roughly formed into fish-shaped morsels. Saltiness, the main element that makes Goldfish appealing to me, is ostensibly missing. Instead, upon taking a bite of one of these, you're assaulted with an intense sweetness that lets you know you've gone astray in your snacking endeavors.

These graham crackers do, in fact, taste like a cinnamon roll, but in the worst possible way. They taste more like that artificial, ultra-processed, plastic-wrapped cinnamon roll you'd find in a gas station rather than the hot, fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon roll you might enjoy on a holiday morning. Take more than a bite or two and you'll find that the flavor is persistent, cloying, and overall far too sweet. If you want graham crackers, there are better brands out there for you to try, and if you want Goldfish, you'll find that these are a far cry from the savory snack you know and love.

Just because one of the sweeter Goldfish cracker flavors isn't exactly delicious doesn't mean that they'll all be unappealing, right? Well, when it comes to the Strawberry Shortcake Grahams, you're likely to be just as disappointed. These graham crackers are also way, way too sweet for a cracker, and to make matters worse, their texture is a bit sandy. If you were expecting a different snack entirely, they may not be so bad, but compared to savory Goldfish crackers, these grahams are absolutely a let down.

Admittedly, strawberry shortcake is a bit better than the cinnamon roll variety, probably because it's just not as intense. That being said, there's still a super pronounced strawberry flavor in these, which tastes unnatural and unpleasant. You'll still get that cloying sweetness, although it's not quite as strong here. Still, even though it's a step up from the cinnamon roll variety, this is not a snack I'll ever be snagging from the grocery store again.

One of the main appeals of Goldfish is that the crackers are so, so small. The fact that I can snack on so many individual crackers at once is all part of the thrill. Therefore, making those crackers bigger doesn't make them more appealing. That's evidenced by the brand's Mega Bites line, and the Mega Bites Cheddar Jalapeño flavor is especially egregious. These crackers are far too big to offer the tiny, salty, snackable experience you get with traditional Goldfish, but they're too small to function like a normal cracker would. You can't really pile any toppings into them, but you can't easily grab a handful of them, either. So what's the point?

Flavor-wise, these crackers also fall short. I love anything jalapeño-flavored, so I expected great things from these. But they're somehow chalky, and their jalapeño notes don't shine through at all. Rather, it's the cheddar that comes to the fore, just not in the way you'd expect from the brand's classic cheddar cracker. Overall, these larger Goldfish crackers simply aren't worth your time.

Mega Bites Sharp Cheddar Goldfish crackers are a step up from the previously mentioned Cheddar Jalapeño flavor, but only just. These have the same size problem as their sister snack: too big to be easily snackable, too small to function as an actual cracker. Instead, you're left with a weird in-between size that serves very few snacking purposes.

However, these taste a bit better than the last. There's still that strange chalkiness here for some reason, but the more-pronounced cheddar flavor seems to hide it better. I wouldn't say it actually tastes like real sharp cheddar, per se, and it's still a far cry from Cheddar Goldfish, but it's at least tolerable. Still, this isn't a snack you need to try if you're looking for the absolute best Goldfish crackers on store shelves. Unless you specifically dislike the small size of standard Goldfish, this product just seems gimmicky and pointless for all true Goldfish lovers.

I understand the premise behind making stronger-flavored Goldfish crackers, but I still think it's misguided. To me, Goldfish are largely appealing because they do have a somewhat subtle taste to them. Yes, a touch of seasoning is nice, but I choose to eat Goldfish over other snacks because of their airy, crunchy texture, their intense saltiness, and that subtle hint of flavor that makes them more interesting. I don't need them to be as action-packed as other snacks, and in fact, a profile that's too intense can kind of be a turn off when I'm just trying to enjoy my mindless snacking time.

That's exactly the problem I have with the Flavor Blasted Xtra Cheddar Goldfish. They're essentially just a super-powered version of the standard cheddar, but with an off-putting saltiness that's a bit too intense for my taste. There's nothing that makes this flavor more interesting — rather, it's just more pronounced in the worst way. And to make matters worse, these crackers are dusted with all that extra seasoning, which makes this snack messier than its other counterparts. If you prefer a bolder taste, then these crackers may be worth checking out. Otherwise, you might want to stick to more standard Goldfish varieties.

Sometimes, it seems like brands will try to convince us that a product is healthier than it actually is by saying it's made with whole grains and making it a little darker and less colorful than the original product. It seems like that's what's going on with Cheddar Baked with Whole Grain Goldfish crackers. I'm not an expert, but I doubt that these crackers are substantially healthier than others on this list. So, the fact that they look less appetizing and that their texture is slightly more cardboard-adjacent than the popular cheddar flavor doesn't really compel me to buy them.

Of course, if you really care about getting more whole grains into your diet, then these might just be the right Goldfish for you. They don't taste substantially different from the regular cheddar flavor, despite their slight difference in texture, so you shouldn't be too disappointed in them if you usually buy the regular. Otherwise, though, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy these instead of the standard Goldfish.

Parmesan is arguably one of the best cheeses in the world, so it would follow that Goldfish's Parmesan crackers would be the most delicious of the bunch, right? But, unfortunately, these crackers are not coated in a dusting of real Parmesan, so they're not as delicious as you might expect. They're certainly not bad, but they just don't have that much taste to them. In fact, they seem to be less flavorful than the original, which is about as plain as they come. I hoped that there would be some hint of umami here, but it's sorely lacking. Even the saltiness seems a bit toned-down, although there is a hint of cheesiness that keeps these crackers from being too bland.

Although Parmesan Goldfish don't rank the highest on this list, they taste fine, and they may even be a good option for you if you prefer milder flavors. They're ultimately like a lighter version of the beloved cheddar variety, so if you find those to be too bold, you can give these a try instead.

Pretzel Goldfish don't really seem like Goldfish crackers at all. In fact, are they even crackers? They don't have any special tasting notes, so they're ultimately just pretzels formed into the shape of little fish. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, if you love pretzels. In fact, they're pretty good on the pretzel front if you don't mind the difference in shape. They have a buttery flavor to them, and they're not too dry. The one downside to these pretzels, though, is the fact that they're not quite as salty as I would like them to be. (But as I'm someone who likes really, really salty food, they may be fine for the part of the population that eats less salt on a daily basis.)

If this were a ranking of pretzels, Pretzel Goldfish would probably rank higher on the list than these do. But since they're outside the realm of what most would generally consider crackers, they earn a spot right in the middle of the ranking.

If you're the kind of person who loves anything in miniature, then Baby Cheddar Goldfish are exactly what you're looking for in a snack. Flavor-wise, they're identical to the standard cheddar Goldfish crackers the brand offers, just in a smaller size. That makes them more of a novelty than anything else. I think these would be a particularly good addition to a homemade snack mix because of their small size, or they could be a good option for little kids with smaller hands.

That being said, I do think that these are a bit less appetizing than their full-size counterparts. You need to eat a few of them to elicit the same crunchy texture you would get from a normal Goldfish cracker. That's not the end of the world, of course, and these will definitely do the trick if you're craving standard cheddar Goldfish. But unless the regular variety was out of stock at my local grocery store, I probably wouldn't go out of my way to buy these instead.

A lot of Goldfish's "Flavor Blasted" crackers simply aren't that good because they pack way, way too much flavor into every single bite, making them annoyingly salty when all you want is to cure your cracker cravings. But there's one exception: the Flavor Blasted Xtra Cheesy Pizza bag. Is it better than the regular pizza Goldfish? Admittedly, no. But it doesn't fall that far behind the other. There's a dusting of extra seasoning on these that really makes them pop, giving them a cheesy edge that takes them from standard cracker to bona fide indulgent snack. That extra dusting of flavor does make them messier, but it's worth it if you really want to enjoy a bold snack.

Although I think these Goldfish crackers taste amazing, they seem to be a departure from the subtlety I normally love about this brand. Whether this flavor is for you or not really depends on what you're looking for in your crackers. Do you want a light, salty snack on the side of your sandwich or a standalone cure for your munchies? Only opt for this variety if you fall into the latter category.

Are Cheddar Goldfish the original version of this classic snack? Maybe not, but they might as well be. This is the bag you're going to see pop up everywhere, and for a good reason: It's simple but delicious. It features an undeniably, overall generally cheesy appeal. That relatively neutral flavor, though, is what really makes them shine. They're flavored just enough to be enjoyed on their own, but they're subtle enough to provide a snacky backdrop for a sandwich, a bowl of soup, or any other entree you're eating.

Add in that pronounced saltiness and you have a classic snack that's hard to beat, whether you need something to hold you over until dinner or pack in your kids' lunchboxes. Either way, Cheddar Goldfish are an elite cracker. They don't come in at the very top of this ranking, since there are a handful of flavors that are even more delicious, but their ubiquity on the snack scene proves just how universally appealing they really are.

Pizza Goldfish are a gift from the cracker gods. When you open the bag, you'll immediately be hit with a fragrance that's downright unusual for a packaged snack. It actually smells like a pizza oven with all its cheesy, tomato-y complexity. Taking a bite of one of these crackers, you'll be blown away by how much it actually tastes like pizza. It doesn't have that salty, spiced pepperoni flavor but rather offers more of a toned-down, cheesy pizza note that likely gives it greater appeal to a wider variety of snackers.

These crackers are so delicious because they walk an incredibly thin line between pronounced, bold flavor and the type of subtlety you'd expect from a cracker. They're interesting enough to represent a marked step up from the cheddar variety, but they don't subvert the point of eating Goldfish crackers by introducing a tasting profile that feels foreign to the product's aims. For anyone who loves pizza-flavored anything, these crackers should absolutely be on your must-try list.

When you think of Goldfish crackers, you likely think of the cheddar version. That doesn't mean, though, that you should overlook the Original flavor altogether. If you ask me, this is actually among the best varieties of them all, largely because it doesn't try to be anything it's not. These crackers are surprisingly buttery without being too rich, with a pronounced saltiness that will burn your tongue in the best way if you eat too much of them. Since their flavor is so subdued, you can really focus on that saltiness and crunch, which is what's so appealing about Goldfish crackers in the first place.

Will these crackers be too bland for some? Absolutely. And if you're looking for something with a bolder, more intense profile, then there are plenty of other options for you to check out. But for the real Goldfish lovers out there, the subtlety and purity of these Original Goldfish crackers is hard to beat.

The only Goldfish cracker that could ever usurp the original is the Frank's RedHot flavor. I didn't believe it myself until I opened the bag and tasted these for the first time, but they really are absolutely delicious, particularly if you have a penchant for hot sauce. They taste shockingly like Frank's RedHot hot sauce, with that signature tang you know if you've tasted the sauce before. And the best part? These crackers are actually spicy. One of my greatest pet peeves in this life is when products claim to be spicy but barely deliver any heat, and that's not a problem with this bag of crackers at all. That heat is balanced, though, so unless you're opposed to spiciness altogether, you shouldn't have a problem with these.

The balance between that tangy heat and the buttery flavor you'd expect from Original Goldfish crackers makes these the most delicious variety in this lineup, and one I'll go back to again and again. Goldfish cracker and hot sauce lovers alike are sure to find nirvana in this bag of snacks.

I chose these Goldfish cracker flavors based on local availability and a desire to incorporate both sweet and savory varieties into the mix. They're ranked according to my flavor preferences, for the most part, but where relevant, I also considered size and texture of the crackers. I tried all of these crackers in one sitting, taking sips of water between tastes to ensure my palate was clean for each new taste.