I was a skeptical kid, so I grew up dunking them in my glass of milk. (Maybe I still do. Maybe I’m still skeptical. You decide.)
No matter how you consume them — whether you dip them in milk, pull them apart, lick the filling first or eat them whole — they’re tasty. So tasty, in fact, I assumed they were called “America’s favorite cookie.” My coworkers laughed and corrected me: the real slogan is “milk’s favorite cookie.” shrug
Like many name-brand products, Oreos face plenty of cheaper imitators.
But is it worth swapping the upscale, well-known cookie for a store-brand option to save money? Do generic sandwich cookies taste just as good, or does nothing beat the original?
I recruited a few Savinly Readers to help test that question.
The Ultimate Sandwich Cookie Face-Off
We adore Double Stuf Oreos, but to be fair we tested the classic Oreo.
The challengers? Store-brand takes on “Milk’s Favorite Cookie” from four common grocery stores: Walmart, Target, Aldi and Trader Joe’s.
To keep the tasting unbiased, testers were not allowed to inspect their cookies before the first bite.
1. Great Value – Walmart
Cost: $1.98
Cost per ounce: 12.8 cents
According to our four tasters, these weren’t awful.
Editorial intern Jacquelyn Pica and associate video producer Teyonna Edwards both said the cookies were “pretty good” — though Edwards could clearly tell it wasn’t an Oreo.
Editorial intern Matt Vandenburgh noted the filling tasted “generic.”
The biscuit had a noticeable crunch, and social media graphic designer Pareesa Khwaja — who kept calling herself a “cookie connoisseur” during the tasting — was vocal about the cream “not separating cleanly” when she pulled it apart.
“Separation is weak, the cream came off,” she said. “A good cookie would separate cleanly.”
Verdict: Mediocre
2. Market Pantry – Target
Cost: $1.97
Cost per ounce: 10.9 cents
What did we think of Target’s store-brand sandwich cookie?
Well, opinions were… mixed.
Edwards took one bite and seemed ready to gag.
“I’m not finishing that,” she said through a scrunched “ew” face.
Vandenburgh observed this cookie was thinner than the Walmart one, which he called “a little better, but not by much.”
Khwaja dunked it in milk, which appeared to improve her reaction.
“This tastes better with milk,” she told me. “I wouldn’t eat it without milk because it tastes gross.”
Her vigorous dunking concluded with milk in her hair. (We take our tastings very seriously.)
Pica complained about the paltry amount of cream. Isn’t that the whole point of a sandwich cookie? Come on, Target.
Verdict: Sketchy. Proceed with caution.
3. Oreo
Cost: $2.99
Cost per ounce: 20.9 cents
Most people recognized these as Oreos — except Khwaja. Let’s say she had a mini-identity crisis mid-chew.
“I don’t like this one. Do I not like Oreos? Was my whole life a lie?” she said, staring off-camera for a moment.
Edwards wasn’t “100% sure” it was an Oreo, but she finished the whole cookie. She only took small nibbles of the other samples.
Vandenburgh smiled at the cookie because he knew it was the real thing.
Pica said it tasted like “the real deal.”
Verdict: They’re Oreos. Obviously they’re good.
4. Aldi
Cost: $1.69
Cost per ounce: 10.6 cents
Edwards lamented the lack of sweetness in this cookie. “I need my daily sugar fix,” she said of the least expensive cookies in our lineup.
Vandenburgh took a bite and said, “Well, this is disappointing.”
After a few chews, Khwaja detected a “minty” aftertaste.
“IT’S ALL A LIE,” she declared, raising her voice. (And yes, she kept eating the cookie.)
Pica said it was “good,” but pointed out the floral patterns on the exterior were “weird.”
Verdict: One big minty deception.
5. Trader Joe’s
Cost: $2.99
Cost per ounce: 15 cents
A box of Joe Joe’s, Trader Joe’s sandwich-cookie offering, costs the same as a pack of Oreos, though Joe Joe’s is cheaper per ounce. So you might think it’s a bargain, but our tasters clearly disagreed.
Edwards took a single bite and immediately grabbed her milk.
“NO,” was all she said as she pushed the half-eaten cookie aside. “THIS IS GROSS. WHAT IS THAT FILLING?” Khwaja asked, snapping the cookie apart for close scrutiny.
Her take on this cookie’s origin story was bleak:
“This is the cookie your grandma keeps in the cupboard only for when you visit. And it sits there for years,” she explained while still eating it.
“Or it tastes like the biscuits you find at the back of your pantry that you know you shouldn’t eat, but you do because there’s nothing else. Or is that just my problem? It’s a desperation cookie, that’s what it is.”
Vandenburgh ranked it his second favorite, but he’s clearly the outlier.
Pica named it one of her favorites — but since she brought that box in, I’m discounting her opinion for obvious bias. This experiment wasn’t exactly perfect, okay?
Verdict: Don’t bother with these.
Oreos Vs. Store-Brand Sandwich Cookies: Final Thoughts
The takeaway is simple: You get what you pay for when you spend nearly $3 on Oreos.
If you opt for a store brand, be prepared for a cookie with a few oddities.
And don’t forget the milk!
