Is Coke Really the Best Cola? I Tried More Than 15 Colas to Find Out

Is Coke the best cola? Really? You might be a diehard Coke devotee, but you can’t say for certain that Coke is the best cola until you’ve done what I’ve done. I tried over 15 different cola brands and compared them to Coke in order to find the true best cola available. Who says what I do isn’t important?

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What we looked for in the best cola: 

• Crispy bubbles. We want bubbles that zip along your tongue and create the illusion of acidity. Not too big, but also not too small. This isn’t Champagne, after all. 
• Real sweetness. Cola should have some serious sweetness. Even the driest cola that made it onto our ranking is still pretty darn sweet. 
• Depth of flavor. While the truly complex, botanical-heavy colas didn’t make it onto our list, we wanted cola that didn’t just taste like bubbly sugar. There should be some caramelly heft and a certain je ne sais quoi. 

In the end, we did manage to find a cola that I think is actually better than Coke. But we also found a few other gems along the way. Here’s our ranking of the best cola you can buy. 

Best Cola Brands, Ranked

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Best Pepsi

Pepsi

Walmart

If you came from a Pepsi household, you’ve probably experienced a decent amount of derision over your life. Coke people treat Pepsi like it’s a pariah. But is it really that bad? No! Pepsi is a darn good cola. Is it as good as Coke? No. It’s not. But it’s still good and if you are actually the type to always squeeze lemon into your Coke then you might actually be a Pepsi person. Because Pepsi tastes a lot like Coke just with a more citric acid-y flavor.

Rating:

7.5/10

Sporks

Best Dry Cola

Mole Cola

Pinocchio’s Pantry

This Italian cola is sophisticated, almost dry, and it comes in one sexy ass bottle. I mean, va-va-voom. It’s a work of art. And, seriously, it tastes great, too. The bubbles are super crispy and stay tingling on your tongue long after you take a sip. If you’re looking for a Coke alternative that’s a little more dinner party-friendly, this is the best cola to buy. It would also be awesome in a Fernet and Coke.

Rating:

8/10

Sporks

Best Cherry-ish Cola

Spiffy

Orca

The first of two Orca-distributed colas on this list, Spiffy comes in an almost sickeningly quaint retro bottle featuring a little freckled boy who could be my drag king alter ego. The label announces that it’s a “swell cola drink” and it really is—though it doesn’t taste like any other cola on this list. It tastes like an artisanal cherry cola. It tastes like you poured good maraschino cherry syrup into a Coke. If you’re looking for something to take your ice cream floats to the next level, this is the best cola for the job.

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks

Best Store Brand Cola

Signature Select Cola

Instacart

After our latest cola taste test, we conducted a blind taste test to compare this Albertsons brand cola to Coca-Cola. And…drum roll…it was extremely clear which soda was Coke and which was the imposter. Bit of a letdown, I know. But if you didn’t have a Coke in front of you, I’m not sure you’d immediately be able to tell that Signature Select Cola wasn’t Coke. It has less bite than Coke—essentially a less Coke-y Coke. And it’s really good. Price-wise, it’s a steal. At my local Albertsons-owned store, you can get a 2L bottle for $2, while a 2L bottle of Coke will run you $3.99. It’s half the cost of Coke and nearly as good. Definitely the best cola to buy for parties.

Rating:

9/10

Sporks

Best of the Best You Can Find Anywhere

Coca-Cola

Walmart

If you’re craving Coke, nothing will truly satisfy you other than a real Coke. And when I say real Coke, I mean Coke made with high fructose corn syrup. Not cane sugar. People claim to like the cane sugar Coke better, but it just doesn’t have the oomph that Coke made with HFCS has. It’s crispy and zippy and sweet and just acidic enough to balance out the sweetness. Coca-Cola is definitely the best cola that’s widely available, but there is one more rare cola that we think outdoes Coke.

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

Best of the Best

Nichol Kola

Orca

I swear, I’m not trolling you. Nichol Kola (distributed by Orca) is like Cokier Coke. It’s sweeter than Coke but it still has that crispy bite. Back in the day, my local pharmacy had a machine that would dispense cola into a paper cup. It would mix carbonated water and syrup together. And it kind of tasted like this. Nichol Kola tastes like how I imagine Coke used to taste before it was so, so, so mass produced. This is a special treat cola. And, for my money, it’s the best cola I tasted in our taste test.

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

Other cola brands we tried:

Boylan’s, Zevia, Poppi, Virgil’s, Olipop, Coca-Cola (bottled), Fentimans. Sam’s Club, Mexican Coke, Big K Cola, Pepsi Real Sugar, Kosher Coca-Cola, Triple Cola, Liquid Death, Mr. Cola