Over the years Lay’s has launched dozens of flavors, including a limited-edition Bacon Grilled Cheese in collaboration with fans, as well as international-inspired Tzatziki, Masala, and Honey Butter. While the brand always seems to have a new seasonal release up its sleeve, there are a lot of tried-and-true flavors you can find on shelves pretty much whenever you want. As huge fans, we decided to try and rank all the Lay’s we could find to see which one is the absolute best.
We assembled a group of six Lay’s enthusiasts and sampled our way through 12 different flavors (including original and wavy) as we debated and ranked each one. It was a heated afternoon of tasting and ranking, but the winner was unanimous and our absolutely favorite chip.
12. Chile Limón Flavored Chips
Going into the taste test, our group was incredibly excited to try the Lay’s Chile Limón Flavored Chips. One tester grew up adding tajín and lime to their Lay’s chips, and found that this chili-lime flavored version from the brand itself “had a strong sour flavor that was more akin to a tom yum than chilies and lime” It wasn’t bad by any means, but it didn’t dazzle our group.
Buy: Lay’s Chile Limón Flavored Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
11. Barbecue
Barbecue is a classic potato chip flavor, and although it gave our group major nostalgic vibes, Lay’s has released plenty more (and better) barbecue-flavored chips since this one first appeared back in the 1960s. Ali, our associate groceries editor, pointed out that there’s a clear “smoked paprika flavor shining through, but not much else.” (We hoped for more onion, sugar, and general barbecue seasoning.)
Buy: Lay’s Barbecue Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
10. Honey Barbecue
Speaking of more barbecue-flavored chips, our group of testers were split on this chip. Out of six testers, four found it to be entirely too sweet with “little to no notes of barbecue.” The others detected a bit of smokiness, and really leaned into the sweetness of it all. Ali compared it to a “dessert chip,” which isn’t what the majority of us reach for when we want a salty snack. Still, the two felt so strongly, we bumped it up a spot — ahead of the original barbecue.
Buy: Lay’s Honey Barbecue Flavored Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.5 ounces at Walmart
9. Wavy Hickory Barbecue
Lay’s Hickory Barbecue gave our group the same vibes and flavor profile as the O.G. barbecue flavor, but the wavy ridges made a noticeable texture difference that we were quite fond of. Ali said that side-by-side the flavors were near-identical, and the “extra crunch from the waves made it much tastier.” Texture wins here!
Buy: Lay’s Wavy Hickory Barbecue Flavored Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.5 ounces at Walmart
8. Classic
The nostalgia was strong with this one. “You can’t go wrong with the classic Lay’s,” said one of our testers (the rest of the group nodded in agreement). It’s salty, light, crunchy, and really tasty — and is a classic for a reason. For a while, it even remained in the number three spot. After some serious debating, though, it was clear that although the original is great the other flavors are more exciting.
Buy: Lay’s Classic Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 8 ounces at Walmart
7. Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue
Four out of six of the testers in this test are from the South (throughout Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia), so we were a bit hesitant going into this flavor (barbecue pride runs deep!). After the first bite, though, it was clear that this chip was not only delicious, but also the best barbecue flavor out of the group. There is a slight heat (it was unclear where it came from; the ingredient list just contains “Sweet Southern Heat BBQ Seasoning”), and a well-rounded barbecue flavor full of onions, paprika, vinegar, sugar, and tomatoes. We gladly finished off the bag at the beach that very day.
Buy: Lay’s Sweet Southern Heat Barbecue Flavored Chips, $2.49 for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
6. Dill Pickle
Dill pickle is having a major moment right now. The briny flavor surprisingly works in condiments, pizzas, drinks, and especially potato chips. After one bite, one tester audibly exclaimed, “YUM.” The salty dill-pickle flavor coats the golden chips delightfully. The only reason it didn’t land slightly higher in our final total was that a few testers found it to be a bit “too acidic.”
Buy: Lay’s Dill Pickle Flavored Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
5. Wavy Original
Wavy Original is exactly as it sounds: the classic potato chips, but with ridges. It’s got the same salty potato flavor with a texture that makes it far more supreme. It had “the most satisfying crunch” out of all of the chips we tried, according to one tester. Another wished we had a bowl of “spinach and artichoke dip” to go with this “sturdy, salty” chip. It’s classic … but better. Can’t go wrong!
Buy: Lay’s Wavy Original Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
4. Salt & Vinegar
This tangy, salty chip is “incredibly flavorful” yet “balanced” in its vinegar-to-salt ratio. It had a vinegary, savory punch that had us reaching back into the bag (despite 11 others nearby). It was “nostalgic” and “exciting” at the same time. The only thing that could make it better? If it was wavy (Lay’s are you listening?).
Buy: Lay’s Salt & Vinegar Flavored Chips, $2.49 for 7.75 ounces at Amazon
3. Cheddar & Sour Cream
“Cheesy,” “tangy,” and “really great” were a few of the ways our group described Lay’s Cheddar & Sour Cream Flavored Chips. It features both cheddar and blue cheese (which adds extra tang on top of the sour cream) and is really cheesy. Our fingers were covered with orange dust (in a good way). We also finished off the rest of this bag when the test was over, and mutually agreed that it was among the best.
Buy: Lay’s Cheddar & Sour Cream Flavored Chips, $5.29 (on sale) for 12.5 ounces at Instacart
2. All Dressed
We tried the Lay’s All Dressed Chips earlier this year, and it was so popular that the once Canadian-exclusive flavor is now part of Lay’s lineup in the United States. Ali, who was already a fan of this chip before, said that it’s “a flavor maximalist’s dream” (which she self-describes as) and the rest of the group could really taste each and every flavor — ketchup, barbecue sauce, sour cream and onion, and salt and vinegar — in this chip. It may sound like a lot, but it’s not overpowering and works together really well.
Buy: Lay’s All Dressed Flavored Chips, $2.50 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
1. Sour Cream and Onion
After a long (and joyous) afternoon of eating and comparing chips, the one, true winner was the Lay’s Sour Cream and Onion Flavored Chips. It’s coated with a sour cream flavor and speckles of parsley flakes (in addition to onion powder), and every single bite is an absolute treat. It’s nostalgic, salty, and savory, and was the one chip all six of us agreed deserved the top spot. We’re so confidently declaring it the best Lay’s flavor.
Buy: Lay’s Sour Cream and Onion Flavored Chips, $2.99 (on sale) for 7.75 ounces at Walmart
What’s your favorite Lay’s potato chip flavor? Tell us in the comments below.
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