We Taste-Tested 7 Graham Crackers—Here Are Our Favorites

Graham crackers have been a mainstay of the American pantry since 1829, when Sylvester Graham, a Presbyterian minister, came up with the eponymous whole wheat cracker. The original crackers were without fat, sugar, and salt, and the cardboard-like concoction was meant to discourage immoral thoughts—and very, very different from the sweetened graham crackers we know and love today, luckily for us. They are essential in s’mores and, when crumbled and tossed with butter, make excellent crusts for cheesecakes and dessert bars. They also make a great snack (one that our ultramarathoning editor, Rochelle, swears by for carbo-loading). But not all graham crackers are made the same. 

To find the very best graham crackers, we tasted seven different brands you’re likely to find online or at your local supermarket. We sampled each without knowing which graham cracker was which, and after our editors tasted their way through seven different crackers, we tabulated the results and crowned an overall winner we’d be happy to bring to our own campfires, plus one other worthy contender.

The Criteria

A good graham cracker should have a hint of earthiness from whole wheat flour; it should taste relatively wholesome, without reminding you of sawdust or cardboard. It should be nicely crisp and sturdy, but not so tough that it’s difficult to break easily with your teeth. There should be a subtle sweetness; notes of honey, molasses, or vanilla are welcome, but should not be overpowering. Graham crackers should be just thick enough to sandwich a s’more, but not so thick that they’re impossible to bite into.

The Contenders

• 365 Organic Honey Graham Crackers
• Annie’s Organic Graham Crackers
• Bowl and Basket Sugar Honey Graham Crackers
• Favorite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers
• Honey Maid Graham Crackers
• Nabisco Grahams Original
• Wegman’s Honey Graham Crackers

Overall Winner

Nabisco Grahams Original

Our editorial director, Daniel, thought these tasted “classic,” and described them as “airy and crisp.” Similarly, our associate editorial director, Megan, thought these had a “solid graham cracker texture” and were “nicely crispy.”  Our senior social media editor, Kelli, detected a “hint of warming spices,” which likely came from the molasses. Though Megan found them slightly bland, she appreciated that they weren’t too sweet. “It’s fine! It needs marshmallows and chocolate,” she wrote. But then again, don’t all graham crackers?

Runner Up

Favorite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers

Our editors enjoyed the honeyed notes of these crackers; Daniel once again thought these tasted “classic.” Though Kelli enjoyed the flavor of these crackers, she found them a bit too crumbly: “I took a bite and the whole cracker disintegrated onto my shirt.” Other tasters, however, liked their crispiness.

In Conclusion

With the exception of one brand, which tasted stale and had a burnt aftertaste, most of the graham crackers we tried were pretty good. Our winner, Nabisco Classic Grahams, was the only brand we tried that did not contain honey; the crackers are instead sweetened with both sugar and molasses. All other brands contained sugar and honey and/or molasses.

Because graham crackers are usually a vessel or an accompaniment for other sweets—either as a crust or a vehicle for s’mores—the quality of the cracker you use may not be as important as the quality of the ingredients you pair with them, such as your pie filling or chocolate and marshmallows for s’mores. If you’re planning on cooking or baking with graham crackers, you’re likely to be satisfied with whichever brand you choose. If you plan on eating the crackers on their own, though, you might want a more flavorful cracker to snack on, like our winners, Nabisco Classic Grahams and Favorite Day Honey Flavored Graham Crackers.

Our Testing Methodology

All taste tests are conducted with brands completely hidden and without discussion. Tasters taste samples in random order. For example, taster A may taste sample one first, while taster B will taste sample six first. This is to prevent palate fatigue from unfairly giving any one sample an advantage. Tasters are asked to fill out tasting sheets ranking the samples for various criteria. All data is tabulated and results are calculated with no editorial input in order to give us the most impartial representation possible.