Are Aldi’s Benton Fudge Cookies Better Than Girl Scouts’ Samoas? 

It’s not a bad day when you’re comparing cookies to cookies. Seriously, if you’ve done that one day in a year, it really raises the average of the entire calendar year. So please trust when I say I will take this comparison seriously. Benton’s is Aldi’s house brand cookie and historically, they’ve done a pretty good job making slightly more affordable imitations of brand-name cookies. Today, we’re comparing Benton’s Caramel Coconut Fudge Cookies to the fudgy, coconuty Samoas, of Girl Scouts of America fame.

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Yes, we’re pitting the nostalgic, wholesome Girl Scouts glow against bare-bones affordability. And there really are some savings in play here: Benton’s Caramel Coconut Fudge Cookies are $2.75 per box while Samoas clock in at $6-7. And since it’s 2026―aka Expensive O’Clock―we’d like to know if Benton’s makes a comparable, or even better, dupe. Let’s get into it.

Aldi ― Benton’s Caramel Coconut Fudge Cookies

Pros: Many people find Samoas too sweet and I’d say I lean in that direction, too. Benton’s is better here. They’re still very sweet―you can’t avoid the saccharine build-up with layers of coconut, caramel, and fudge, after all―but they also have a thicker cookie midsection. That distinction yields what I’d say is a much-needed shortbread-y break.

In fact, that slightly thicker cookie part is maybe the fundamental difference-maker between the two: you get a more assertive and interesting textural contrast against all the chewiness of caramel, coconut, and fudge and that brings you back for another bite (and maybe another after that). I’d say this cookie is a spot-on, if slightly improved, imitation for the real thing.

Cons: It’s funny because for cookies that have so many assertive top note flavors, they are oddly two-dimensional flavor-wise. It’s sweet plus sweet plus chewy-sweet, with a bit of brown sugar from the caramel and the tiniest (too timid) cocoa flavor in the fudge.

This one gets one spork higher than their OG Girl Scouts inspiration because of that thicker cookie part―and the price. While it’s a bit of a two-dimensional cookie, a cookie is a cookie. For the price, taste, and texture, Benton’s wins.

Girl Scouts Of America ― Samoas

Pros: Benton’s is such a good dupe that almost every pro we’ve mentioned before applies here to the original. There’s chewiness and mellow coconut sweetness with a bit of a size difference that goes to what we’ll call, cookie cost-effectiveness. These are a bit too cloying, though the cookie base is nicely plain and provides good textural contrast.

Cons: As I’m examining the flavor notes for anything standout, I just realize it’s almost impossible―not that they’re “muddled,” but almost that. The coconut, caramel, and fudge are just hugging each other too tight. And with less of that crumbly cookie contrast, eating them feels more like popping a crunchy Milk Dud than eating a well-articulated cookie.

In a nice way―again, one or two of these with a glass of cold milk is perfect. But because of the two-dimensionality, size, and cost, there’s a 50-50 chance I’d keep walking by the Girl Scout cookie stand. (Okay, no, I’d stop and buy Thin Mints and I always will.)