Gwynedd Stuart
The best lemon lime soda is bright and refreshing and, ideally, tastes like lemon and lime in equal measure. It should have a robust fizz that’s as zesty as its flavor. Basically, even though it’s not the most thrilling soda flavor, it shouldn’t be boring.
Until I wrote a short, benign review of Starry, which replaced Sierra Mist in stores back in 2023, I didn’t know how strongly people felt about lemon lime soda. I don’t drink a lot of it because, generally, if I’m drinking soda I want it to have a dose of caffeine along with all of the calories and sugar. I took on this search for the best lemon lime soda because I wanted to understand the fuss. After two separate taste tests, I do.
For our most recent taste test, I was joined by Sporked soda enthusiast Jordan Myrick. We tried Sprite, Starry, and 7UP, as well as all of their diet counterparts. We also tried some store brand lemon lime sodas as well as prebiotic lemon lime sodas. I have a hunch not everyone will agree with our list of the best lemon lime soda. But before you head to the comments to tell me to unalive myself, please remember we’re all in this together (“this” being “drinking things we buy at the grocery store”). Enjoy!
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- Olipop Lemon Lime
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If you’re looking for a prebiotic soda that tastes like regular lemon lime soda, you’re going to be disappointed. We tried three different brands of prebiotic and probiotic lemon lime sodas, and none of them nailed the flavor profile. That said, Olipop Lemon Lime is good even though it’s totally its own thing. It tastes more like lemon tea than it tastes like lemon lime soda, but, hey, if you buy into the gut health benefits of prebiotics, this just might be the best lemon lime soda for you.
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Jarritos Lime
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Even though this is a lime rather than a lemon lime soda, I think it deserves a shout out on this list of the best lemon lime sodas. Why? Because it tastes great and, hey, maybe some people don’t like lemon. This soda is incredibly refreshing and would be great as a mixer with tequila or mezcal. It’s a fun color and I love the shape of the two-liter bottle (we tried this out of the plastic bottle rather than the glass one). This is a citrus soda to drink with fish tacos by the beach in San Diego—and it’s made with cane sugar rather than high fructose corn syrup, which a lot of soda heads seem to be into.
Credit: Merc / Ralphs
- Bubble Up
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If you like a sweet lemon lime soda, Bubble Up might be the best lemon lime soda for you. First of all, this soda is cute. It has a cute logo and comes in old-timey glass bottles (incidentally, it’s manufactured by the same company that makes Dad’s Root Beer—one of the best root beers, according to us). It’s made with real cane sugar, which gives it a candy sweetness that might be overpowering for some people, but it makes up for that by having really small bubbles that sort of sizzle on your tongue when you take a sip. It’s good stuff.
Credit: Merc / Albertsons
- 7UP Zero Sugar
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Spoiler: 7UP is the best lemon lime soda, and its zero sugar counterpart is the best diet lemon lime soda we tried. Why? Of all the diets we tried—Starry, Sprite, etc.—7UP Zero Sugar tastes the least like artificial sweeteners. It’s drier and less saccharine than other diet sodas, which makes it really pleasant to drink. I’ll absolutely go to town on a diet Sprite, but I have to admit that 7UP Zero Sugar is the best lemon lime soda if you’re watching your sugar intake.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Starry
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Before you FREAK OUT about Starry making this list (in third place, no less), note that we did not taste Sierra Mist as part of our taste tests. I am not saying that Starry is better than Sierra Mist. I actually tasted Sierra Mist with Rhett & Link a while back, and preferred it to Starry. But Sierra Mist is dead and gone, and unless you can find some crusty ol’ six pack on eBay, you need to move on from it. Sorry! On its own merits, Starry is a good soda. It has a bold sweetness that helps amplify the lemon lime flavor, although lime is a much more prominent part of the flavor profile. Jordan decided Starry tastes like McDonald’s Sprite, aka the creme de la creme of fast-food sodas. It’s not the best lemon lime soda but it’s pretty darn good if you can get past your anti-Starry bias.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Sprite
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For me, it’s a real toss-up between Sprite and Starry, so they both get the same Spork score.Sprite doesn’t have as much flavor as Starry, but it does have that nice, refreshing bite. It’s crispy and I think that makes it good with food. It’s the best lemon lime soda to wash down a fatty fast food lunch.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- 7UP
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When it comes to the best lemon lime soda, I think 7UP tends to be left out of the conversation. That is bad and wrong. If you’re coming to lemon lime soda because you want something that tastes lemon-limey and is highly refreshing, I just don’t think you can do better than 7UP. It’s extremely crisp and has a lot of citrusy flavor. If you’re drinking lemon lime soda by itself rather than with food, I think this is the way to go. I also think 7UP makes the best mixer because the flavor makes more of an impression and can stand up to even a super-flavorful liquor like whiskey. It has a pleasant lime flavor that lingers on your palate and a burst of sweetness on the back, even though it’s drier than Sprite or Starry overall. And those are my thoughts on the best lemon lime sodas! Take them or leave them or call me an idiot in the comments!
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
Best Prebiotic
Honorable Mention
Best Sweet
Best Diet Lemon Lime Soda
Best Newcomer
Best Bite
Best of the Best
Other lemon lime soda we tried: Twist Up, Twist Up Zero Sugar, Shasta Twist, Kroger Big K Lemon Lime, Poppi Lemon Lime, Sprite Zero Sugar, Starry Zero Sugar, Zevia Lemon Lime, Betty Buzz Lemon Lime, Evolution Lemon Lime Prebiotic and Probiotic Soda
Jessica Block
Jordan Myrick
Joe Rumrill
NICE LEMON LIME SODA was the best until Walgreens took it off the Shelf? 2nd best is 7up and the standard of course is Sprite! Nice had the Best Price, Now Sprite is trying to beat out 7up! When and if Sprite wins this war the the prices will sky rocket! All are the same except for the Price?
I am absolutely dumbfounded at putting Starry #3. We had it on a cruise shortly after it came out. It was horrible. Seriously, we thought maybe we got a bad can, so we tried it again the next day at a different place and it was just as undrinkable. We threw the nearly full can in the garbage.
I have NO Starry bias. That’s YOU guys. I like Starry.
I think you should add Pepsi max on your list there is no sugar in this soft drink but it tastes better than Coke Zero and other soft drinks
7up has been and will always be superior. Great list honestly
You must shut your mouth now. Turn off this website, Pepsi is the best lemon lime flavored soda. God, these people. My brother Soda Pisser told me to scold you.
I think Pepsi is the best lemon lime flavored soda, anything except that is lies and deceit, HOLD THE ICE
BEST OF THE BEST IS best with any handheld foodie HOLD THE ICE..
I thoroughly agree with this take. The best of the best is best a couple times a year, with some handheld foodies.
I agree with 7-Up as #1 for stateside purposes, but if you ever go to France or Spain, look for Schweppes Limon. It gives 7-Up a run for its money and would pass it (barely) on my list if it were available stateside.
I concur with the results of your test! While I like Sprite just fine (especially the McDonald’s version), I have always thought that 7-Up is crisper and less syrupy tasting. It’s always been Number One to me!
Anything other than sprite as number one is lies, deception, and deceit. And since you insisted… “You’re an idiot.”😑
I was saddened when Pepsi discontinued sierra mist.Here is why?Just about all sodas and lemon line sodas have high fructose corn syrup which gives sodas a dislike taste to me and high fructose corn syrup is not healthy. Off course sodas are high in sugar but sierra mist just has a fabulous taste to it.I hope sierra mist can come back.
I absolutely agree. 7UP is in a league of its own hands down.
Yeah, you left out the part where 7up and sprite now taste like froot loops gross
Yeah, you left out the part where 7up and sprite now taste like front loops gross
Love 7 up
Try Limca, an Indian, lemon-lime soda which puts more emphasis on the lime than lemon. It’s owned by Coca-Cola.
In all fairness, 7up is the original lemon lime soda. No surprise there sonce they’ve lasted so long as a standalone brand. That said, “Simple 7up” is the real 7up they sold before the 90s. The move across the board to corn syrup was bizarre, but the natural addiction to high fructose corn syrup quickly mellowed out complaints (other than Coke Classic).
For me, i get a numbing aftertaste from these drinks other than the zero sugar versions and Simple 7up (and Sierra Mist – i still have a can left). The zero sugar versions are more tart to make up for the lack of sugar and the replacement sweetener has a mouth drying effect, which is why many people don’t like them. The opposite of refreshing to say the least.
Anyways, it’s strange to see 7Up getting the rrspect it deserves in 2023. It’s not my favorite, but it deserves a spot in the soft drink pantheon.
Fun fact: Sprite Zero has been around much longer than Coke Zero.
I definitely agreed with the placement of Sprite Zero Sugar, which is the main type of soda I drink now a days. I also like Starry Zero but honestly can’t remember what 7up Zero tastes like (I know it wasn’t mentioned but I thought I would). I’d also be curious how a local Connecticut soda would fare in the competition, Foxon. It’s the standard soda at all the famous New Have pizza joints. Great article, I’m gonna have to give all of these a try in my own taste test!
Starry is sorry, Sierra Mist was far better. I found the best lemon lime since it’s been discontinued is Shasta. I don’t feel like spending $3 for a bottle of Bubble Up.
It’s a shame Fresca never makes these lists. It’s my favorite aside from 7Up. 🙂
Try diet Shasta grapefruit and you’ll never want Fresca again
I love Fresca and Shasta grapefruit…can’t find Shasta in NJ these days
It’s a sad statement that you have to ask people to not tell you “to kill yourself” over an opinion piece about pop. I don’t know what we’ve become, but the relative anonymity of the internet seems to be an accelerant to this fire. BTW, fun piece and really liked Bubble Up in the mix. I remember it as a kid and find it now here and there. Good stuff.