7 Dunkin' Flavor Swirls, Ranked From Worst To Best

There are no shortage of ways to customize your next Dunkin' beverage order. Not only can you add different milks or espresso, but you can also select from an array of flavor swirls. For those unfamiliar with Dunkin's menu and terminology, it classifies sweetened flavored syrups, including classics like caramel, butter pecan, and French vanilla, and many of its seasonal offerings, as flavor swirls. The brand touts these swirls as being "sweet, creamy, and indulgent." Don't confuse these swirls with flavor shots (though it's admittedly confusing). The flavor shots are unsweetened and don't contain sugar, whereas swirls are more like coffee syrups.

I tried some of Dunkin's most popular sweetened flavor swirls and ranked them from worst to best. Since their textures were remarkably similar, my ranking came down to taste and strength of their flavor. If you're interested in trying the swirls for yourself, they can be found under the "sweetened flavor" tab if you're ordering via the Dunkin' app.

Unsurprisingly, Dunkin's brown sugar syrup flavor swirl tasted, well, sugary. Unfortunately, it didn't have the depth of flavor that brown sugar has. Instead, it just tasted like white sugar. The key difference between brown and white sugar is that the former contains molasses. I don't know if Dunkin' used very little molasses or omitted it completely, but, in a blind test, I would have thought this drink was cold brew and simple syrup mixed together.

Since I didn't taste a discernible difference between the brown sugar syrup and plain sugar, you might think I wouldn't recommend this, and you would be right. I also assumed that because the sugar was in a liquidized syrup form, I wouldn't get the unpleasant, sandy texture from the crystalized sugar and cold drink. But, I was wrong. The grittiness of the cold brew was magnified by the crunch of the sugar crystals, earning this the worst spot on this list.

I'm sad to say that Dunkin's French vanilla flavor swirl is a let down. This familiar, Francofied friend had potential, as I am a vanilla super-fan. The delicious flecks of a vanilla bean (which I like to call "black gold"), plucked from a gorgeous vanilla orchid make a flavor that has unfairly been rendered to mean tasteless and boring into something absolutely ambrosial. That is not the case here. This drink unfortunately falls into the bland category, which, like the brown sugar syrup flavor swirl, didn't pack much of a flavor punch. There was no discernible flavor beyond plain sugar, which made it lose major points — especially from a vanilla aficionado like myself.

French vanilla isn't really a stand-alone flavor outside of ice cream, and it's a shame that the brand used it only to add sweetness, rather than also adding any aromatic benefits. Is it offensive? No. But could it be improved upon? Yes.

A drizzle of good caramel sauce on ice cream is heavenly. But, I mostly just encountered sweetness with Dunkin's caramel flavor swirl. That's not to say that the caramel flavor wasn't present. It was — and boldly so — it's just that the added sugar distracted from it.

Caramel is made with white sugar, butter, and cream, among other things. If you add brown sugar, you'll get butterscotch. I was surprised that this drink tasted more like the latter, especially since I could barely taste the molasses undertones with the brown sugar flavor swirl.

A more butterscotch-like flavor isn't an issue per se. The other problem I found was that the thin viscosity of the syrup left my taste buds and brain a little confused. I would've liked to taste more butter and less sugar, but the strong caramel taste bumped this contender up.

The butter pecan flavor swirl, like the caramel, was a let-down. It has the same issue as the lower ranking flavor swirls: It's not flavorful enough. The butter flavor was lacking, and I only tasted a slight nuttiness.

Blame Harry Potter, but I was sort of expecting this flavor swirl to be a nuttier version of Butterbeer. It lacked the coziness and autumnal vibes that butter pecan usually offers. It's also a flavor typically reserved for ice cream, so I was expecting more of an indulgent drink. 

The bottled butter pecan iced coffee drink has been touted as one of Dunkin's best. So, it might be better to buy this flavor at the grocery store instead of at your local Dunkin' café. 

I was surprised when I looked at my notes and saw that the three chocolate flavor swirls made the top of the list. Unlike the other two boldly-flavored chocolatey swirls, the toasted white chocolate has a more mild taste. It's a bit too mild, and its flavor doesn't stand up to the cold brew. I didn't really get any toasty flavor from it, either. If you're looking for a subtle swirl that doesn't overpower the drink, it's fine. This flavor swirl is a solid choice if you want a little less of a dessert-like coffee (though, it still will taste like a treat) or if your local Dunkin' is out of my top-ranked pick. 

There are rumors swirling (pun intended) on social media that this toasty flavor is being phased-out like it was in 2021. But since it has a forgettable taste, it probably won't be mourned too heavily by Dunkin' fans.

The Dunkin' mocha flavor swirl is tasty, but it pales in comparison to my top-ranked choice. Both the mocha and my favorite swirl have a great depth of flavor that makes them great challengers to the strong and somewhat gritty texture of Dunkin's cold brew. Though, I didn't think this flavor was as good as my No. 1 choice.

I've been questioning my stance on mocha for quite a while now, and it seems to me that one of three things is happening — either my tastes have dramatically changed, the mocha itself has changed, or I've just encountered bad mochas in the past. Whatever the case, the chocolate taste of this swirl transforms a regular cup of coffee to a liquid dessert. It's a solid choice for a little treat. 

Dunkin's lava cake flavor swirl tops this list because it is simply delicious. It has a similar decadence of its competitor, Starbucks' beloved Frappuccino, without being over the top. What sets it apart from the other flavor swirls is that it has a rich, chocolatey taste and a vanilla, almost marshmallow-like creaminess. The syrup's multi-dimensional layers stand up well to the cold brew. It rides the edge of it almost being too much of a good thing — threatening to completely mask the taste of the coffee — but it pulls back at the last second.

The only way Dunkin' could improve this swirl is by combining it with the fan (and this author's) favorite marshmallow cold foam. You could also order the drink without milk and add Dunkin's s'mores creamer. It would take an already amazing drink and make it perfect.

To keep as many variables in check as possible, I ordered each drink as a small cold brew with the same amount of flavor swirl and two whole milks. I didn't sample all of them on the same day, but when I did order more than one drink, I treated it like a wine tasting and drank the lighter options first. The weather was on the chilly side, so I wasn't concerned about the drinks melting, but I did sample them in-store before the ice had a chance to dilute the drink. 

I made sure to take a sip of each drink at least three times, because, as the iconic matriarch of Gilmore Girls, Emily Gilmore, says, "When you're tasting anything, the first taste acclimates the palate, the second establishes the foundation, and the third is to make your decision." After three sips, I felt confident that I had properly gotten the tasting notes from each drink, though I did finish some of the coffees. Once I had sipped them, I considered their overall taste, as well as the strength of the flavor, before I ranked them from worst to best.