I Bought 15 Pints to Find the Best Cookie Dough Ice Cream

In our quest to find the best cookie dough ice cream, we scoured the freezer section of multiple grocery stores to pick up every brand we could find. Once our freezer was stocked to the brim, it was time to start scooping.

During the taste test, we considered several factors. First was the quality of the ice cream itself. We wanted it to taste as close as possible to the stuff you’d find at best ice cream shops! And, of course, we wanted every scoop to have plenty of cookie dough. Finally, we thought about value. Some were budget-friendly and big enough to serve a crowd for a low price. Others were more expensive, and we had to make sure every spoonful was worth the investment.

Here’s every tub we tested:

• Ben & Jerry’s
• Blue Bunny
• Blue Ribbon
• Favorite Day
• Food Club
• Great Value
• Graeter’s
• Häagen-Dazs
• Halo Top
• Jeni’s
• Kemp’s
• Nestle
• Oberweis
• Tillamook
• Turkey Hill

1
/
15

15. Blue Ribbon Classics Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

The first thing we noticed about Blue Ribbon’s 48-ounce tub of cookie dough ice cream was the fact that it wasn’t even called ice cream. Instead, it was referred to as a frozen dairy dessert. This made us pause to check the ingredient list, and it was very telling. The first ingredient was actually buttermilk, rather than cream, and we also noticed high-fructose corn syrup and other additives.

The first spoonful was unappealing. In addition, the cookie dough was sparse and uninteresting. The large tub sold for a very reasonable $2.50, making this dessert light on the wallet.

2
/
15

14. Food Club Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Flavored Light Ice Cream

This 48-ounce tub from Food Club is described as cookie dough-flavored light ice cream swirled with cookie dough morsels and chocolate flavored chips. The label states that it has 54% less fat and 23% fewer calories than regular ice cream. Ingredients included milk fat and nonfat milk, sugar, a lot of additives, and artificial flavor.

We found it difficult to call this cookie dough ice cream. The fluffy and unsubstantial ice cream was sparsely flecked with tiny bits of cookie dough and a few chocolate pieces. We had to dig around the tub to find enough to sample. At $2.89, the ice cream was not a huge investment, but it also didn’t have much of a payoff.

3
/
15

13. Great Value Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

Great Value is the house brand at Walmart, and the brand’s 16-ounce container was certainly a value at only $1.87. The first few ingredients were also promising: milk, cream, skim milk and sugar. Similar to the Blue Ribbon brand’s product, buttermilk is incorporated into the Great Value ice cream. Unfortunately, the label also indicated that this product contains bioengineered ingredients. The flavor was average, and the cookie dough chunks were not significant. All that to say it wasn’t our favorite.

4
/
15

12. Blue Bunny Super Chunky Cookie Dough

Blue Bunny sells a 46-ounce container of “frozen dairy dessert” rather than real ice cream. The label describes the product as a cookie dough frozen dairy dessert with cookie dough batter and cookie dough and chocolate flavored chunks. That description alone told us we shouldn’t expect real ice cream and that the chunks inside weren’t even real chocolate, but rather chocolate flavored bits. We only want the best chocolate chips dotting our ice cream!

The scoops from this tub were light and fluffy, with a ribbon of cookie dough batter as well as pieces of cookie dough. This was certainly an interesting twist that we didn’t see in any other of the options we sampled. It could have been quite delicious had the ingredients been of higher quality. Alas, this $3.99 container wasn’t worth the slightly higher price point.

5
/
15

11. Kemp’s Pillsbury Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

The smiling face of the Pillsbury Doughboy caught our eye when we picked up a 1-1/2-quart tub of Kemp’s ice cream. If you’re a fan of the Pillsbury refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough, this ice cream is for you. We could definitely taste that signature Pillsbury flavor in this product, we just wished there was more! Fudge chunks throughout made a surprisingly fun addition. At $4.39, this was more expensive than some of the other products, but it matched the quality.

6
/
15

10. Turkey Hill Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

The style of this product from Turkey Hill was a bit different from all the other ones we sampled. When we took the lid off this 1.44-quart container, we saw so many small slivers of chocolate that it almost looked like cookies and cream. Turkey Hill also boasts ice cream that is cookie dough flavored as well as having cookie dough chunks. While this sounded good in theory, we couldn’t really distinguish the flavor base of this ice cream from a classic vanilla ice cream.

As with others in this ranking, there weren’t nearly enough cookie dough chunks. At $3.69, this ice cream was a good value, and we liked the unique twists, we just wanted everything to be a little more substantial.

7
/
15

9. Halo Top Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Light Ice Cream

Halo Top is a light ice cream brand that tells you upfront how many calories are in the entire pint. For $3.99 and 490 calories per pint, this light ice cream states that, compared to leading ice creams, it has 74% less fat and 51% fewer calories. We were also intrigued because the label claimed that there would be “mix-ins in every bite” which is exactly what we were looking for in a cookie dough ice cream.

We quite liked the distinctive caramelized flavor of the ice cream itself, but found there weren’t exactly bits of cookie dough in every bite. That being said, this was our favorite of the light ice cream options.

8
/
15

8. Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough Ice Cream

This product caught our eye, because if anyone knows the ideal recipe for cookie dough, it’s the folks at Nestle Toll House. That also means we went in with high expectations for the quality of the chocolate chips as well as the cookie dough.

We loved the additional mini Nestle Toll House morsels scattered throughout the ice cream, but wished there were even more. When you’re recognized with having some of the best cookie dough, there’s no reason to hold back. Having made the iconic chocolate chip cookie recipe many times, we could definitely taste the flavor of that classic recipe in the bites of cookie dough, which was fantastic. At $4.39, this product was slightly more expensive than other options, but we feel the quality was worth it.

9
/
15

7. Tillamook Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

The ice cream from Tillamook was certainly unique among all the ones we tried. The carton states, “Tillamook ice cream is made with more cream than is legally required. Our ice cream is smooth, rich and extra creamy.” From the first scoop, we found this to be absolutely true. The ice cream was light and airy while also being extremely creamy.

It was super easy to scoop, and it was made with real ingredients and fewer additives than other products. But the cookie dough bits were definitely hiding in this carton. In fact, we had to really dig just to find some. For $5.99, this was a more premium price tag for a higher quality product. If you like your ice cream very, very creamy, this one from Tillamook is for you.

10
/
15

6. Favorite Day Cookie Dough Ice Cream

Favorite Day is one of the house brands at Target, and its cookie dough ice cream was a standout in comparison to other budget-friendly generic options. The 1-1/2-quart container is a fantastic value at $3.49.

Without making the leap into the much more expensive, super-premium ice cream market, this was our favorite. The flavor of the ice cream was on point and there were significant pieces of decadent cookie dough in every bite. As a bonus, there was a recipe for cookie dough ice cream bars right on the package. We’ll be sure to check out other varieties from Favorite Day, and this ice cream will likely end up in our Target carts on the regular from here on out.

11
/
15

5. Jeni’s Ice Cream Double Dough

It’s no surprise that the highest-ranked ice creams on our list might come with a higher price tag. That’s in part because they’re made with premium quality ingredients. The $8.49 pint from Jeni’s ice cream is no exception. The brand’s outstanding products are made with grass-grazed dairy products, and the difference is significant.

In addition to the pieces of cookie dough in the Jeni’s pint, the ice cream itself is designed to taste exactly like rich and buttery cookie dough. The brand tried to mimic the experience of enjoying fluffy dough made with creamed butter and brown sugar and lightly kissed with vanilla. It’s described as an ultra-creamy brown sugar custard with caramelized depth. There is no doubt this is an incredible product.

Our only qualm is that calling it “double dough” is slightly misleading. We tasted more of the caramelized aspect of the ice cream more than we did the cookie dough. If you’re looking for the most unique and richly flavored ice cream on our list, this is the way to go.

12
/
15

4. Häagen-Dazs Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

The name Häagen-Dazs has been synonymous with excellent ice cream for years. This 14-ounce container of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream retails for $4.39, which is significantly less than other premium products on the market.

We loved looking at the ingredient list and actually being able to pronounce everything on the carton. Cream, milk, sugar—just the good stuff here. The signature vanilla ice cream was just as delectable as we remembered, and the bits of soft and buttery cookie dough were plentiful. There were also chocolate chips mixed throughout. It’s described as a “cookie dough lover’s dream come true,” and we couldn’t agree more.

13
/
15

3. Oberweis Super Premium Cookie Dough Ice Cream

If you want the most bang for your buck, pick up a pint of Oberweis for $4.69. Since 1927, Oberweis has been making high-quality ice cream, and it shows no signs of stopping. Out of all the products we sampled, this was the best of the best when it came to the ice cream base. Of course, the cookie dough was top-notch as well.

We loved the bit of poetry on the back of the carton. It says, “Our cookie dough ice cream awakens childhood memories, as you savor sweet spoonfuls of delectable dough, drenched in our vanilla ice cream, taking you back to that indulgent moment when you last licked the spoon clean.” That perfectly summarizes our experience eating this ice cream. It was so good, it made it hard to rank these top three without giving them all the number one spot.

14
/
15

2. Ben and Jerry’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Ben and Jerry’s claims to have originated the concept of cookie dough ice cream. The brand says, “We knew we were on to something big when we made the world’s first batch of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream in 1984. Today the flavor still reigns among our all-time most popular concoctions.” We found that this pint from Ben and Jerry’s contained far and away the best cookie dough of the lot. The balls of perfect dough were huge and incorporated into every bite. There was no need to dig around for the yummy bits, because the cookie dough was front and center. If the most important factor in a scoop of cookie dough ice cream is the dough itself, look no further; Ben and Jerry’s is the way to go. Plus, at $4.49 per pint, the price was appropriate for the quality.