We Tried 11 Peanut Butters To Find the Best Brand

For many of us, peanut butter elicits distinct childhood memories of the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Many years ago, the only choices you had were smooth or crunchy peanut butter, but these days, the peanut butter aisle extends far beyond the choices for texture. Although there are many different brands, peanut butter falls into two categories: natural or regular. Natural peanut butter contains only peanuts and usually, salt. Regular peanut butter may contain additional ingredients, such as hydrogenated oils and sugar.

On top of that, there are also so many brands on the shelves of the peanut butter aisle. So we asked you to vote on your favorite peanut butter brand and we took the top 12 winners from our Community Choice Awards and put them to the test!

How We Tested

Since people are very loyal to their peanut butter brands, we tasted the peanut butters blind, a.k.a. without anyone knowing what brand they were tasting. We also went with trying the peanut butters plain on a spoon and doing our best to drink water between brands so we could get the full mouthfeel. Tasters judged based on flavor, texture, and spreadability.

Best Regular Peanut Butter: Jif Creamy

A spoonful of Jif Creamy peanut butter transported all the tasters immediately to childhood, despite only one saying this is the peanut butter they buy now. Because of the hydrogenated oils, the texture of this peanut butter was truly the smoothest and creamiest, and it spread incredibly easy on even the softest piece of bread. Compared to the other regular peanut butters, the Jif also tasted the most roasted, which resulted in a deeper nutty flavor.

Best Natural Crunchy Peanut Butter: Teddie Super Chunky Peanut Butter

Because I live in the Northeast where Teddie reigns peanut butter king, most of the tasters said Teddie was their pick before they tasted through all the brands. To the tasters' credit, Teddie was still the top pick when tasted blind. It's roasted peanutty taste, ample salt, and thick-but-not-too-thick texture scored high. With the most amount of chunks in the perfect chunk size, the Teddie Super Chunky is the best for the crunchy lovers.

Best Natural Creamy Peanut Butter: Kirkland Organic Creamy Peanut Butter

Along with being one of the most affordable, the Kirkland Signature Peanut Butter is also our favorite organic pick. It only contains peanuts and salt, though the oil separation was minimal, which is also a plus when needing to make a peanut butter sandwich quickly. Testers noted that the peanut flavor was prominent but not overwhelming, almost as if this is the Goldilocks of peanut butter.

Best Unsalted Peanut Butter: Justin's Peanut Butter

Other than the naturally-occurring sodium in peanuts, the Justin's Peanut Butter is the lowest sodium option coming in at just 25mg per each 2 tablespoon-serving. The texture is incredibly smooth and creamy thanks to a touch of palm oil, which also means this is a great no-stir option. Plus, this one is also available in small squeeze pouches, making this peanut butter the easiest to transport so you always have a little pack to squeeze onto an apple or banana for a healthy breakfast or snack on the go!