Jordan Myrick
Danny Palumbo
Gwynedd Stuart
We have an important job here today and it’s to remind you how damn good a kitchen smells when you have cinnamon rolls in the oven. Our latest taste test took place at Sporked HQ, but, blindfolded, you truly could’ve mistaken it for a cozy bakery. In a snowy mountain town. In heaven.
This was our second cinnamon roll taste test (our first one was a few years ago), so we re-tasted things we tried the first time and added some new cinnamon rolls to the mix. And I gotta say, I’m pretty confident I found the best ever cinnamon rolls—particularly if a journey to a bakery in a snowy mountain town in heaven isn’t in the cards.
How we shopped for the cinnamon rolls for our taste tests
We looked for the best store bought cinnamon rolls in two categories: the best canned cinnamon rolls (Pillsbury cinnamon rolls and the like) and the best cinnamon rolls from a grocery store bakery (aka premade cinnamon rolls). Since we wanted to give all of these a fair shake, we heated the bakery cinnamon rolls to see how they’d hold up against fresh-from-the-oven cinnamon rolls. Canned cinnamon rolls are easy as hell to make, but sometimes you don’t even want to turn on the oven. We get it.
What we looked for in the best cinnamon rolls
Plenty of cinnamon goo: Cinnamon rolls should be gooey, not dry. We wanted PLENTY of that buttery, cinnamony sludge between their layers.
Plenty of icing (but not too much): We aren’t particular about icing—some people like classic icing, some people like cream cheese icing. We’re agnostic, so long as there’s enough of it, but not so much that the whole affair is too nauseatingly sweet.
Tender innards: Also the name of my melodic metal band! But for real, we looked for rolls that are nice and soft and a pleasure to pull apart. We want that Cinnabon effect at home, dammit.
Here are all the best cinnamon buns at the grocery store—including the best gluten free cinnamon rolls, so everyone can indulge in dough, icing, and cinnamon goo.
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- Katz Gluten Free Cinnamon Buns
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We’d tried these gluten free cinnamon rolls in a previous taste test and didn’t rank them. Maybe the recipe improved or maybe we’re becoming more accustomed to GF baked goods, but I think these are totally worth including on the list. They’re dinky, I will say. Teeny tiny. BUT they’re fast! They cook in 20 seconds in the microwave. The brand recommends finishing them in the air fryer, but I wasn’t compelled to do that. They’re denser than cinnamon rolls made with wheat flour, but I love the flour mix, tbh. It combines tapioca and rice and others, so the rolls have nice squish, almost like mochi. These come very well covered in icing, too. And there’s plenty of cinnamon flavor. Katz doesn’t nail everything, but these frozen cinnamon rolls are worth keeping around for fast holiday breakfasts that won’t give you tummy trubs. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Marketside Cinnamon Rolls
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These cinnamon rolls from Walmart’s bakery section are huge and absolutely drowning in icing. Eating one makes me want to use words like “journey,” “undertaking,” and “project.” If you aren’t in the mood to bake your own buns, these are the most straightforwardly indulgent of the cinnamon rolls on this list. Also, putting them in the microwave for a few seconds greatly enhances the texture, making them warm, gooey, and fluffy. Why bake cinnamon rolls when these exist? (Note: Don’t accidentally buy Marketside’s “drizzled” cinnamon rolls—they’re nowhere near as good!) —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Annie’s Organic Cinnamon Rolls
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My notes regarding these cinnamon rolls are filled with expletives. That’s how good they are. These have more pure spice flavor than a lot of other cinnamon rolls we tried. They don’t skimp on the spice, so I’d say they’re the best store bought cinnamon rolls if you like flavor-blasted food. We have another great organic option farther down on this list, but worth noting that these are also organic if that’s something you look for in your canned baked goods. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Pillsbury Orange Rolls
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These orange-frosted pastries are the best cinnamon rolls for a very specific need: a decadent, holiday breakfast. Puffy, sweet, and tender cinnamon rolls with orange icing are just so Christmasy. The orange flavor is floral, bright, mellow, and it complements the very indulgent cinnamon roll quite well. Pillsbury makes great products and I found these to be exquisitely comforting. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Cinnaroll Cream Cheese Frosted Cinnamon Rolls
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These premade cinnamon rolls—which you’ll find in a bunch of grocery store bakeries, including H-E-B, Albertsons, and Woodman’s—are meant to be reheated in the microwave, so you don’t get that super fresh, doughy, just-out-of-the-oven experience that you get from Pillsbury. But these are still quite tender and fluffy. The cream cheese frosting is a lovely touch—the flavor is slightly tart while still being quite rich. Cinnarolls hit the spot. They’re the best cinnamon rolls to buy if you only have the patience to microwave before you eat. —Danny Palumbo
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Pillsbury Original Cinnamon Rolls
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The best cinnamon rolls on this list are gigantic (our #1 faves rival Cinnabon in size), but sometimes you want something sweet and petite. That’s where Pillsbury’s original cinnamon rolls come in. They bake up soft and tender, and have a nice amount of cinnamon goo smeared on top, but they don’t quite have that pull-apart effect that you’ll find in some of the others on this list, including Pillsbury Grands. That said, these are the best canned cinnamon rolls if you’re making a big pan of cinnamon rolls for a family with adults and kids, and you don’t want tons of bisected buns left behind. I’d say one is perf for a kid but two or three will fill up a grownup just right. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Immaculate Baking Cinnamon Rolls
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If you like nice big Grands-style cinnamon rolls, BUT you want them to be organic, these are your jam. Don’t care that they’re organic, free of artificial flavors, hydrogenated oils, and preservatives? Well, I think these also have a bolder cinnamon flavor that a lot of people will like. They’re gooey and they’re fun to eat because they sort of unroll…or you can do what I do, and go straight for that nub in the center. Ooh! Another thing I liked about these: The icing comes in a packet so you can clip a corner with a pair of scissors and dispense it that way. Easier than and less messy than spreading it on with a knife, IMO. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Sprouts
- Pillsbury Grands! with Cinnabon Cinnamon and Original Icing
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These Pillsbury Grands cinnamon rolls—made with Cinnabon cinnamon!—are huge. The insides are soooo soft and fluffy. And while they might not be quite as big as Cinnabon rolls, one is a meal. The classic icing, which comes in a little cup, is lovely and it melts beautifully over the warm rolls, getting all up in their doughy crevices. We liked the cream cheese icing version, too, but it was a little more cloying—I’d personally stick with the classic, but it’s a matter of taste. The buns themselves are still great. The cinnamon goo isn’t quite as gooey as a Cinnabon, but it still rivals that messy mall experience. These are WAY better than most ready-to-bake baked goods. I can’t imagine homemade cinnamon rolls being better than these. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls
Best BIG Cinnamon Rolls
Best Cinnamon Flavor
Best for Christmas
Best No-Bake Cinnamon Rolls
Best Small Cinnamon Rolls
Best Organic Cinnamon Rolls
Best of the Best
Other cinnamon rolls we tried
Pillsbury Pumpkin Spice, Archer Farms, Bakery Fresh, Bake House Creations, Bristol Farms, Pillsbury Butter Cream, Rhodes, Pillsbury Original, Favorite Day No Bake, Great Value Cinnamon Rolls, Sprouts Mini Cinnamon Roll Bites, Bakery Fresh Mini Cinnamon Rolls, Marketside Drizzled Cinnamon Rolls
Jessica Block
Justine Sterling
