Serious bakers, we know you want the very best butter for your recipes. We tested the most popular brands to find it.
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The Very Best Butter Brands According to Our Test Kitchen Experts
When you take baking as seriously as our Test Kitchen team does, you inevitably start to get into the most minute details regarding ingredients. In our kitchens at Taste of Home HQ, it’s not uncommon to hear our pros debating the pros and cons of canned pumpkin or different techniques for making the flakiest biscuits.
One of the hottest topics in our Test Kitchen, though, is which brand makes the best butter.
Butter is the backbone of so many baking recipes, so using the most delicious brand is crucial for successful bakes. So what’s the very best? Our culinary team put nine brands to the test.
Butter keeps well in the fridge, but can you freeze butter?
What Our Test Kitchen Looks for in the Best Butter
Butter is an incredibly difficult ingredient to judge. With just two ingredients—cream and salt—it’s more challenging to decipher the subtle differences between brands. It all comes down to the proportion of salt to cream and the quality of the dairy itself. Of course, our Test Kitchen was up to the challenge. When searching for the best butter, our experts considered the following:
- Texture: Is the butter creamy and smooth? Does it spread well over bread?
- Flavor: Does the butter have the right level of salt? Is it too salty for salted butter? Are there any other qualities worth noting?
- Appearance: How does the butter look? Is it more yellow or white?
Our Test Kitchen-Preferred Butter Brands
In this deliciously rich test, four brands rose to the top. These butters are the crème de la crème.
Best Butter for Everyday: Land O Lakes Salted Butter
What brand does our Test Kitchen reach for time and time again? That’d be Land O Lakes. This iconic butter brand is the one you’ll find stocked in our Test Kitchen’s refrigerators, and this blind test only confirmed its place on our shopping list.
Sticks of this butter look creamy and pale—lighter in color than most brands but absolutely creamy with just a whisper of salt. Because of the lower salt content in this butter, it’s a great choice for baking. You’ll find that your recipes turn out as expected instead of overly seasoned.
On its own, Land O Lakes butter was perfectly satisfying. The dairy used in this butter gave it a luscious flavor and texture that would make it a welcome addition for every mashed potato recipe or on top of a steaming hot baked potato or a great base for flavored compound butter.
Since Land O Lakes is readily available anywhere you do your grocery shopping and works well in any application, our Test Kitchen had to call this the best everyday butter.
- Price:Â $3.89 per pound
- Price per ounce:Â $0.24
Best European-Style Butter: Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter
This blind taste test proved to our Test Kitchen that Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter is worth all the hype. With higher butterfat content than most mass-market butter brands, Kerrygold delivered big time on flavor and texture.
Before our testers even tasted this butter, they knew there was something different about it. Kerrygold has a buttercup yellow hue that looks tempting, like the kind of butter you can’t wait to spread over an English muffin or slice of banana bread. This distinctive hue is thanks to the grass the dairy cows enjoy.
And the cream from these grass-fed cows also contributes to Kerrygold’s distinct flavor. It’s incredibly rich with a pronounced flavor that had a few testers say they could taste the hills of Ireland. Paired with the right amount of salt and a delightfully spreadable texture, this was definitely the best butter for topping homemade bread.
Kerrygold was the priciest option in our test, but worth every penny for special treats.
- Price:Â $3.48 for an eight-ounce package
- Price per ounce:Â $0.44
Best Value Butter: Challenge Butter
If you’re a cost-conscious shopper or are baking big batches, you probably are looking for more budget-friendly options to add to your grocery cart. For a budget-friendly butter that still tastes delicious, our Test Kitchen recommends Challenge Butter.
This pale butter delivered a mellow, creamy flavor that satisfied our Test Kitchen panel. It also seemed to spread more smoothly than other options. Combined with that perfect hint of salt, Challenge Butter is a great choice for your pocketbook and for topping freshly baked dinner rolls.
- Price:Â $3.47 per pound
- Price per ounce:Â $0.22
Best Pasture-Raised Butter: Vital Farms Salted Butter
Vital Farms Pasture-Raised Butter is the butter brand to buy if your fridge is full of free-range and cage-free eggs. Vital Farms uses milk from family-owned dairy farms where cows are allowed to graze freely all year long.
And our testers could taste the difference. Our pros noted a subtle sweetness in this butter brand that often comes from grass-fed cows. Paired with the perfect level of salt, our Test Kitchen crew agreed that this was a terrific option for conscientious shoppers. Not to mention it would taste great melted over a stack of pancakes and maple syrup.
Also worth noting: Vital Farms boasts 85% butterfat while most American butter hovers around the 80% mark and European-style butter has about 82%. That little bit of extra fat provides a richer flavor and creamier texture.
- Price:Â $3.00 for an eight-ounce package
- Price per ounce:Â $0.38
What Our Butter Test Taught Us
Finding the best butter was no joke for our Test Kitchen! This blind tasting was incredibly challenging. Parsing out the differences between nine brands all made with the same ingredients required a fine-tuned palette and a lot of patience. Our team learned a few things during this test:
- You can find great butter at any price point:Â In this test both premium butter brands like Kerrygold and budget options like Challenge earned top marks. There are tasty options available whether you’re looking to save or splurge.
- Spend extra when it really counts:Â If you’re making a recipe where butter really is the star (think shortbread or biscuits), splashing out for a package of Kerrygold or Vital Farms is worth the expense. The fine differences in the flavor are most impactful in these recipes. You’ll also notice a top-of-the-line butter when using it as a spread on top of bread, rolls, waffles and other treats.
Craving comfort food in a hurry? Grab a box! We snagged seven to find the best boxed mac and cheese.
Use Our Test Kitchen-Preferred Butters in These Desserts
Butter Pecan CheesecakeFall always makes me yearn for this pecan cheesecake, but it’s delicious in any season. You’ll want to put it on your list of favorite holiday desserts. —Laura Sylvester, Mechanicsville, Virginia
Kentucky Butter CakeLook no further than Kentucky butter cake for a fluffy, buttery cake with an excellent crumb and a vanilla-almond butter sauce that permeates every bite.
Shortbread CookiesThis shortbread cookie recipe is an easy one to memorize and yields simple, buttery treats to enjoy with coffee, alongside tea or after a big dinner that didn't leave much room for dessert.
Italian Butter CookiesButtery soft with a sweet chocolate tip, these Italian butter cookies are a surefire way to impress your guests. Make them ahead of time (they freeze exceptionally well), or fresh in just a few hours; either way, you'll have a simple yet tasty treat to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Gooey Butter CakeA friend gave me a quick version of this gooey butter cake recipe using a cake mix, but I prefer baking from scratch, so I came up with my own. My family can't get enough! The middle will sink a little; this is normal. This dessert is delicious served warm or cold. —Cheri Foster, Vail, Arizona
Browned Butter Spice CookiesIf you like spice cake, you’ll love this recipe! Browned butter, dark chocolate and a splash of rum produce an unconventional spice cookie that’s guaranteed to please. —Kristin Kenney, Newport Beach, California
Buttery Coconut BarsMy coconut bars are an American version of a Filipino coconut cake called bibingka. These are a crispier, sweeter take on the Christmas tradition I grew up with. —Denise Nyland, Panama City, Florida
Butter Pecan FudgeThis butter pecan fudge recipe is one you'll return to again and again. It is delicious and relatively easy to make.
Maple Butter TwistsMy stepmother gave me the recipe for a delicious yeast coffee cake shaped into pretty rings. When I make it for friends, they always ask for seconds. —June Gilliland, Hope, Indiana
Lemon & Rosemary Butter CookiesCooling lemon and aromatic rosemary make these butter cookies stand out at the holidays. I use them to punch up the cookie trays for potlucks or as gifts.—Elizabeth Hokanson, Arborg, Manitoba
Red Apple Butter BarsFall means apple-picking time, and we love using the fresh fruit to bake up these bars. The streusel on top makes them even better. —Nancy Foust, Stoneboro, Pennsylvania
Frosted Butter Rum Brickle BitesThe rum, real butter and toffee bits made these cookies my husband’s new favorite. If you’d like them less sweet, skip the frosting and sprinkle the cookies with confectioners’ sugar while still warm. —Cindy Nerat, Menominee, Michigan
Coconut Italian Cream CakeI’d never tasted an Italian cream cake before moving to Colorado. Now I bake for people in the area, and this beauty is one of the most requested. —Ann Bush, Colorado City, Colorado
Lemon Butter CookiesThese tender cutout cookies have a slight lemon flavor that makes them stand out from the rest. They're very easy to roll out compared to other sugar cookies I've worked with. I know you'll enjoy them as much as we do. —Judy McCreight, Springfield, Illinois
Butter Pecan Cookie Bars with Penuche DrizzleI have made these Butter Pecan Cookie Bars for many, many years. They are rich, chewy, nutty and buttery—all the good stuff. They freeze well, that is, if they last long enough. A little drizzle of old-fashioned penuche icing takes them over the top. —Kallee Krong-McCreery, Escondido, California
Contest-Winning Butter Pecan Ice CreamThis rich buttery ice cream sure beats store-bought versions. And with its pretty color and plentiful pecan crunch, it's nice enough to serve guests at a summer party.
-Jenny White
Glen, Mississippi
Key Lime Butter CookiesI love limes so much that if a recipe calls for lemons I almost always use limes instead. With their pretty green color, these are perfect for Christmas—you can also make them as sandwich cookies and use lime curd for the filling.—Deirdre Cox, Kansas City, Missouri
Buttermilk Cake with Caramel IcingThis fabulous cake and caramel frosting are so tender, it melts in your mouth. It's been a family favorite since the '70s and it goes over really well at church potluck meals. —Anna Jean Allen, West Liberty, Kentucky
Rainbow Butter CookiesOur family can't get through the holidays without these fun, colorful cookies. They come out of my oven by the dozens! —Lanette Tate, Sandy, Utah
Palmier CookiesSeriously impressive palmier cookies need only two ingredients. Break out that box of premade puff pastry and your bag of granulated sugar to create these buttery, flakey French pastries.
Aunt Rose’s Fantastic Butter ToffeeElevate your homemade candy game with this easy butter toffee recipe—wonderful for gifting, sharing or indulging in a sweet, crunchy treat.
Buttermilk Pound CakeThis buttermilk pound cake has a superior texture that is equally moist, tender and light. The recipe is your new go-to for serving with fruit or tea, or on its own as a snack.
Butter Pecan CakeThis irresistible butter pecan cake features multiple layers, plenty of toasted buttery pecan crunch and a thick layer of buttercream frosting. In a word, it's delicious. Serve with a scoop of vanilla or maple ice cream to complement this decadent southern dessert.
