Tier list

Snacks Tier List: Every Classic Snack Ranked

By Rank Parade Team · Updated October 2, 2026 · 38 ranked

We put 38 of the biggest names in snacking into one giant tier list, from chip aisle royalty to the stuff that lives at the bottom of a lunchbox nobody wants to open. This covers chips, crackers, cookies, candy and a few weird outliers that don't fit anywhere else but demanded a seat at the table.

The order below comes from where fans and critics actually land when you read through forums, reviews and years of "best snacks" debates, with our own tiebreaker when the internet can't agree. Think we got one wrong? That's what the comments are for. Rank it yourself and see how close you get.

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SS Tier: The all-timers

Doritos

Nacho Cheese alone would carry most brands, but Doritos backs it up with Cool Ranch and a bag design everyone recognizes from across a party. It's the chip people actually fight over.

About Doritos

A flavored tortilla chip brand made by Frito-Lay, launched in the 1960s. Known for Nacho Cheese and Cool Ranch flavors.

Maker: Frito-Lay
Known for: Nacho Cheese, Cool Ranch

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Peanut butter and chocolate shouldn't need defending at this point. The ratio is perfect, the orange wrapper is instantly recognizable, and it wins 'best Halloween candy' polls more than anything else on this list.

About Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

A peanut butter filled chocolate cup candy made by Hershey's, one of the most popular candies in the US.

Maker: Hershey's

Oreo

The best selling cookie in the country for a reason. Twist it, dunk it, eat the middle first, there's no wrong way, and that flexibility is why it's untouchable.

About Oreo

A chocolate sandwich cookie with a creme filling, made by Nabisco. One of the best selling cookies in the world.

Maker: Nabisco

Cheetos

Crunchy or Puffs is a genuine household divide, but orange fingers are universal. Few snacks have this much personality packed into a bag of cheese dust.

About Cheetos

A cheese flavored puffed or crunchy corn snack made by Frito-Lay. Famous for leaving orange dust on fingers.

Maker: Frito-Lay
Varieties: Crunchy, Puffs, Flamin' Hot

M&M's — Photo: Chris Woodrich, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

M&M's

The candy shell that melts in your hand and not your hand is a slogan everyone still knows decades later. Peanut and plain both have loyal camps, which is a good sign a snack is doing something right.

About M&M's

Small candy coated chocolates made by Mars, known for their colorful shells and 'melts in your mouth' slogan.

Maker: Mars

AA Tier: Snack aisle royalty

Lay's

Classic salted potato chips, simple and endlessly reliable. It's the default chip at every cookout, and the rotating flavor contests keep it from ever feeling boring.

About Lay's

A potato chip brand owned by Frito-Lay, one of the best selling chip brands in the world.

Maker: Frito-Lay
Known for: Classic salted chips

Ruffles

The ridges exist for dip, and everyone knows it. Sour Cream and Onion Ruffles is the unofficial king of the chip-and-dip table.

About Ruffles

A ridged potato chip brand made by Frito-Lay, designed to hold up to dips.

Maker: Frito-Lay
Known for: Ridged texture for dipping

Pringles

The can is half the appeal. Uniform stacks, a satisfying pop when you open it, and an absurd number of flavors worldwide make this a snack-aisle institution.

About Pringles

Stackable potato based crisps sold in a distinctive cylindrical can, currently owned by Mars Inc.

Packaging: Cylindrical can

Snickers

Nougat, caramel, peanuts and chocolate in one bar, built for people who want a candy bar that also feels like a meal. The 'you're not you when you're hungry' campaign didn't hurt either.

About Snickers

A candy bar with nougat, caramel, peanuts and chocolate, made by Mars.

Maker: Mars

Kit Kat

The break is the whole experience. Wafer candy bars are a crowded field, but Kit Kat's snap and the endless international flavor variants keep it ahead of the pack.

About Kit Kat

A wafer bar covered in chocolate, made by Hershey's in the US and Nestle elsewhere, known for its 'break' snap.

Maker (US): Hershey's

Twix

Cookie bar versus caramel bar is a real debate in some households, which tells you how well both halves work. Left Twix, Right Twix is a bit, but the candy itself isn't a joke.

About Twix

A candy bar with a cookie base, caramel layer and chocolate coating, made by Mars.

Maker: Mars

Sour Patch Kids

Sour then sweet is one of the great candy taglines because it's actually true. The sour coating hits first, then it settles into something closer to a gumdrop.

About Sour Patch Kids

A sour then sweet gummy candy shaped like small kid figures, made by Mondelez.

Maker: Mondelez

Goldfish

The smiling cracker that raised a generation. Parents buy it because it's less messy than chips, kids eat it because it tastes good, everybody wins.

About Goldfish

A small fish shaped cracker made by Pepperidge Farm, popular with kids and marketed with the tagline 'the snack that smiles back.'

Maker: Pepperidge Farm

Skittles

Taste the rainbow is still one of the most quoted slogans in candy. The fruity flavors are distinct enough that people genuinely argue over which color is worst (sorry, green).

About Skittles

Fruit flavored chewy candy in a variety of colors, made by Mars, known for the 'taste the rainbow' slogan.

Maker: Mars

BB Tier: Reliable favorites

Cheez-It

A sturdy, cheesy cracker with a cult following, especially the Extra Toasty version. It doesn't have the crossover fame of Goldfish but it might be the better straight cheese cracker.

About Cheez-It

A small square cheese flavored cracker made by Sunshine, now owned by Kellanov

Known for: Baked-in cheese flavor

Chips Ahoy!

A solid everyday chocolate chip cookie, though it lives a little in the shadow of homemade versions. The Chewy line is a smart move for people who think the original is too crunchy.

About Chips Ahoy!

A chocolate chip cookie brand made by Nabisco, sold in original, chewy and other variants.

Maker: Nabisco

Starburst

Chewy, juicy, and a little jaw-tiring by the end of the pack. The original fruit mix is strong, but let's be honest, everyone's digging for the pink and red ones first.

About Starburst

A chewy fruit flavored candy, made by Mars (formerly Wrigley).

Maker: Mars

Ritz Crackers

Buttery, simple, and the default base for a dozen homemade snack hacks involving peanut butter or cheese. Nobody loves Ritz the most, but almost nobody dislikes it either.

About Ritz Crackers

A round buttery cracker made by Nabisco, often used as a base for other snacks.

Maker: Nabisco

Fritos

Pure corn and oil, no apology. It's less versatile than other chips on its own, but as the base of a Frito pie or chili bowl it becomes something special.

About Fritos

A corn chip brand made by Frito-Lay, one of the oldest snack brands in the Frito-Lay lineup.

Maker: Frito-Lay
Main ingredient: Corn

Rice Krispies Treats

Marshmallow and cereal, impossible to mess up, mildly impossible to get excited about once you're past age twelve. Still, the packaged bars are a lunchbox staple for good reason.

About Rice Krispies Treats

A marshmallow and rice cereal bar based on the classic homemade treat, sold packaged by Kellogg's.

Maker: Kellogg's

Smartfood

White cheddar popcorn that punches way above its weight for a snack that's technically just popcorn. The orange dust rivals Cheetos for staining power.

About Smartfood

A white cheddar flavored popcorn brand owned by Frito-Lay.

Maker: Frito-Lay

Chex Mix

A bag that's really three or four different snacks pretending to be one. Everyone has a strategy for picking out the pretzels and rye chips first.

About Chex Mix

A snack mix of Chex cereal, pretzels, crackers and other pieces, made by General Mills.

Maker: General Mills

Nutter Butter

Peanut shaped, peanut butter filled, and weirdly underrated next to Oreo. The crunch is drier than most cookies, which is either a feature or a flaw depending who you ask.

About Nutter Butter

A peanut shaped sandwich cookie with peanut butter filling, made by Nabisco.

Maker: Nabisco

Twizzlers

The strawberry twists are a movie theater staple, mostly because they're the one candy that doesn't melt in your pocket. Divisive against Red Vines, but Twizzlers wins on name recognition.

About Twizzlers

A licorice-style twisted candy made by Hershey's, popular as a movie theater snack.

Maker: Hershey's

Pop-Tarts

Toaster pastry royalty, especially Frosted Strawberry. Eaten cold straight from the box is a controversial but extremely common method.

About Pop-Tarts

A toaster pastry brand made by Kellogg's, filled with fruit or other flavors and often frosted.

Maker: Kellogg's

Funyuns

Onion flavored rings that smell stronger than they taste, in the best way. A genuinely weird snack concept that somehow became a shelf staple.

About Funyuns

An onion flavored corn snack ring made by Frito-Lay.

Maker: Frito-Lay

CC Tier: Fine, but not fighting for it

Combos

Pretzel shell, cheese filling, built for vending machines and road trips. It does one job fine, but nobody's rearranging their snack drawer to get to it first.

About Combos

A pretzel or cracker shell snack filled with cheese or other fillings, made by Mars.

Maker: Mars

Slim Jim

A gas station classic that's more about the chew and the spice than any real nutritional case. Great for a car ride, less great the next day.

About Slim Jim

A dried, seasoned meat stick snack, popular as a convenience store item.

Category: Meat snack

Teddy Grahams

Cute shape, mild flavor, mostly aimed at kids who haven't developed strong snack opinions yet. The cinnamon ones are the only flavor really worth seeking out.

About Teddy Grahams

Small bear shaped graham cracker snacks made by Nabisco, aimed primarily at kids.

Maker: Nabisco

Nilla Wafers

Fine on their own, better in banana pudding, which is really the cookie's whole reason for existing at this point.

About Nilla Wafers

A vanilla flavored wafer cookie made by Nabisco, commonly used in banana pudding recipes.

Maker: Nabisco

Bugles

Corn chips shaped like tiny party hats, mostly beloved for the novelty of putting one on every fingertip. The flavor is thinner than Fritos or Doritos.

About Bugles

A corn snack shaped like small cone-shaped horns, made by General Mills.

Maker: General Mills

Gardetto's

The rye chips are genuinely great and carry the whole mix, but a lot of the bag is filler you pick around to get to them.

About Gardetto's

A snack mix brand known for its seasoned rye chips, made by General Mills.

Maker: General Mills

Nature Valley

A granola bar that announces itself by shattering into a dozen crumbs the second you open the wrapper. Tastes fine, but the mess-to-bite ratio is rough.

About Nature Valley

A granola bar brand made by General Mills, known for its crumbly oat-based texture.

Maker: General Mills

Fruit by the Foot

More about the gimmick of unrolling a foot of fruit tape than the flavor itself, which is thin and mostly sugar. Fun for a kid, forgettable for an adult.

About Fruit by the Foot

A long rolled fruit flavored snack made by General Mills (Betty Crocker), marketed mainly to kids.

Maker: General Mills

Fruit Roll-Ups

Similar story to Fruit by the Foot, just in sheet form. The flavor fades fast and it's really more candy than fruit despite the branding.

About Fruit Roll-Ups

A flat fruit flavored snack sheet made by General Mills (Betty Crocker), similar to Fruit by the Foot.

Maker: General Mills

DD Tier: Overrated or overpriced

Uncrustables

Convenient, sure, but you're paying a premium for someone else to cut the crust off a PB&J. The bread texture after freezing and thawing is divisive at best.

About Uncrustables

A pre-made, crustless peanut butter and jelly sandwich sold frozen, made by Smucker's.

Maker: Smucker's

Twinkies

Famous mostly for its shelf life and pop culture cameos rather than actually being a great dessert. The spongy cake and cream filling feels dated next to better snack cakes.

About Twinkies

A golden sponge cake with cream filling, made by Hostess, known for its long shelf life reputation.

Maker: Hostess

FF Tier: Nostalgia doing all the work

Lunchables

Cold processed meat, a few cracker squares, and a tiny slab of cheese for a price that makes no sense. Nostalgia carries this one hard, because the actual eating experience doesn't hold up.

About Lunchables

A packaged lunch kit with crackers, meat and cheese portions, made by Kraft Heinz (Oscar Mayer brand).

Maker: Kraft Heinz

How we ranked them

We looked at where fans and critics broadly agree, sales numbers, cultural staying power, and how often a snack comes up as someone's favorite versus someone's "fine I guess." When the research notes showed a real split (Doritos flavors, Twix versus Twizzlers versus Red Vines, Crunchy versus Puffs Cheetos) we picked the side the consensus leaned toward and said so. Taste, versatility, and whether a snack earns its hype all factored in, not just nostalgia.

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FAQ

What's the best snack on this list?

Doritos, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Oreo, Cheetos and M&M's take the S tier. All five have decades of sales and cultural staying power behind them, not just nostalgia.

Why is Lunchables ranked so low?

It gets points for nostalgia and convenience, but the actual food (a few cracker squares, processed meat, a tiny cheese slice) doesn't hold up compared to almost anything else on this list.

Is Cheetos Crunchy or Puffs in this ranking?

We're counting the whole Cheetos line together. Crunchy tends to edge out Puffs in most fan debates, but both ride on the same orange-dust fame.

Where do healthier snacks like Nature Valley rank?

Middle to lower tier. Nature Valley bars are fine but tend to crumble apart in the wrapper, which knocks them below the bigger crowd favorites.

Is this ranking based on taste alone?

Mostly taste, but also cultural impact, versatility and general consensus from fans and critics. A snack that's merely fine but beloved by everyone can outrank something tastier but more niche.

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Image credits

DoritosPhoto: Scott Ehardt, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
OreoPhoto: Evan-Amos, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
CheetosPhoto: Chris Woodrich, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
M&M'sPhoto: Chris Woodrich, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Lay'sPhoto: PepsiCo Inc., Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
RufflesPhoto: Ser Amantio di Nicolao, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
PringlesPhoto: Martti Palomaki, CC BY 2.5 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
SnickersPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Sour Patch KidsPhoto: osde8info, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
SkittlesPhoto: User PiccoloNamek on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Cheez-ItPhoto: Evan-Amos, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
StarburstPhoto: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Icestorm815, Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
Ritz CrackersPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
FritosPhoto: Mx. Granger, CC0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Rice Krispies TreatsPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
TwizzlersPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Pop-TartsPhoto: theimpulsivebuy, CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
FunyunsPhoto: jm3, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
Slim JimPhoto: Fend, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Nilla WafersPhoto: JeepersMedia, CC BY 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
Gardetto'sPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Nature ValleyPhoto: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source
Fruit by the FootPhoto: JeepersMedia, CC BY 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
Fruit Roll-UpsPhoto: JeepersMedia, CC BY 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
UncrustablesPhoto: theimpulsivebuy, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Openverse) · License · Source
TwinkiesPhoto: Mamiejeanjean, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons) · License · Source