Justine Sterling
Jon Gutierrez
Jordan Myrick
The best hot chocolate mix is creamy, chocolatey, and ready in an instant. I mean, who has the time to warm milk in a pot and break out the whisk to make hot chocolate with actual cocoa powder, sugar, salt, vanilla, etc.? Some of us have children and cats and partners and needy potted plants. But even if you go with instant, who has the time to sort through all the different brands and flavors to find the perfect mix to warm your mug and your tum?
To keep your cocoa list current, the Sporked team ran a new, third taste test (oh, the horror!) to check out the latest hot cocoa mixes and find the best mix for hot chocolate out there. We used both hot water and milk to taste both versions of these hot chocolate mix brands. Here are our picks for the best hot chocolate mix on the market.
The following article contains affiliate links that may generate a small commission to us when you make a purchase through the link. Learn more about how we work with affiliates here.
- Land O Lakes Chocolate Supreme
-
We were absolutely reamed by Sporked readers for not trying Land O Lakes hot chocolate mix in the first round of our hot cocoa mix taste test. So we made sure to try it in a follow-up taste test. And not just one Land O Lakes hot chocolate mix, all of them. Every single flavor. We thought they were good! It’s not the best hot chocolate mix (sorry!), but we like it. This Chocolate Supreme version is our favorite of the bunch. When made with milk, it’s rich and decently chocolatey. Land O Lakes isn’t just a butter company, people! —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Great Value Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix
-
If hot cocoa isn’t a once-in-a-while treat for you but a regular, everyday beverage, then you should stock up on a few tubs of Walmart’s signature hot cocoa mix. It’s a solid, football game-style hot chocolate. (Those from the Northeast can sub “hockey game” in for “football game,” if that makes more sense.) It’s terrifically creamy, even without any milk or actual cream, and it is definitely sweet. You don’t get a ton of authentic chocolate flavor, but it’s cheap, there’s a lot of it, and it will scratch a hot cocoa itch, making it the best hot chocolate mix for daily consumption. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Great Value Candy Cane Hot Cocoa Mix
-
If you’re looking for a little extra holiday cheer in your mug, this Walmart hot chocolate mix gives you a tasty mint flavor that doesn’t overpower the chocolate, while also giving you nice, creamy consistency. And as it’s presented in a can instead of packets, you can decide just how much (or little) your portion is. Spoiler: We went with “a ton.” This is the best hot chocolate mix for the holiday season if plain chocolate just isn’t festive enough. — Jon Gutierrez
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Swiss Miss Indulgent Collection Dark Chocolate
-
This is the best hot chocolate mix to pick up if you want a more grown-up version of a childhood favorite, for sure. It’s dark and indulgent. It’s a little fancier—a little more upscale. It’s richer and feels like it’s really warming you up from the inside. It’s the type of hot chocolate you hold with both hands, just under your nose, breathing in the warm, sweet vapors before taking a sip. A cinematic hot chocolate. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Candy Shop Cocoa
-
If you’ve ever tried a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup and wished it was hot and liquidy, then this is the best mix for hot chocolate to make your dreams come true. It’s got a great, authentic-tasting peanut butter flavor, and the Hershey’s cocoa is strong enough to balance it out. The only downside is that the servings are kinda small, as they only make six ounces of drink per packet. Luckily, they give you eight packets per box. I went through the whole thing pretty quickly, almost as quickly as I can devour a pack of peanut butter cups. So, it’s definitely authentic! — Jon Gutierrez
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Good & Gather Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa Mix
-
Good & Gather, aka Target, Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa Mix is the best hot cocoa mix when it comes to unique flavors. Their salted caramel is so rich, salty, and decadent. It tastes like something you’d get at a local coffee shop. Good & Gather also sells hot chocolate mix flavors like double chocolate and peppermint, which are very good too. But for our money, this salted caramel hot chocolate is the way to go. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Trader Joe’s Organic Hot Cocoa Mix
-
Not only does Trader Joe’s cocoa have the best packaging but the beloved/cultish store also makes some of the best mix for hot chocolate. “It has a nice cocoa flavor,” said Sporked managing editor Gwynedd Stuart. “It’s sweet but not obnoxiously so.” It has a cocoa flavor that stays with you with a pleasantly bittersweet finish. It tastes like real chocolate and that makes it real good and nearly the best hot cocoa mix you can buy. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett
- Nestle Classic Rich Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix
-
There is no better hot cocoa mix out there than Nestle Classic Rich Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix. It is truly the best hot chocolate mix you can buy nationwide at the grocery store. It is so rich and creamy and chocolatey. Even when made with water, it tastes like it was made with whole milk. That makes it a great accessible and money-saving option. But it wouldn’t matter if you were the richest person in the world! This is still the best hot cocoa mix that we would recommend to you because it really is that good. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Fan Favorite
Best Value
Best Minty
Best Dark Chocolate
Best Peanut Butter
Best Flavored
Best Budget
Best of the Best
Other hot chocolate mixes we tried: Treat Life, Starbucks Classic, Swiss Miss Lucky Charms, Nestle, Select, Beaumont, Swiss Miss, 365 Organic Hot Cocoa, Beaumont, Good & Gather (all flavors), Land O Lakes (all flavors), Nestle, Numi Drinking Chocolate, Signature Select, Sprouts, Starbucks Classic, Swiss Miss (Lucky Charms, no sugar added, non-dairy, reduced calorie, regular and white chocolate), Treat Life, Kroger Dutch Hot Cocoa Mix Milk Chocolate
Danny Palumbo
Luke Field
