Rao’s sauce can be divisive. It’s not cheap (though it used to cost around $9 a jar and now you can find it for $7) and that makes people angry. It’s just pasta sauce, after all. Is Rao’s sauce good? Is it $7 good? We’ve tried a few Rao’s pasta sauce flavors in the past and, I won’t bury the lead, we’ve loved them. But does that mean all Rao’s sauce flavors are that good? We grabbed 20 jars to find out.
Now, before we get to the ranking, let’s address the whole Rao’s-Campbell’s thing. A lot of folks are angry that Campbell’s is acquiring Sovos (which makes Rao’s). Some even think the sauces have already gone down hill. But here’s the thing…the deal isn’t even finalized. In fact, it’s been pushed to mid-2024. There’s been no change in Rao’s ownership yet. The sauces are still being made by Sovos and Sovos alone. So, any reports of a change in quality due to Campbell’s is pure conspiracy theory. Don’t believe it.
Who should you believe? Me and the rest of the Sporked tasting team! We tasted 20 different flavors of Rao’s sauce—including the new spicy Rao’s vodka sauce—and ranked them from worst to best. Here’s your guide to the best Rao’s sauce worth a splurge and which Rao’s sauce you should leave on the shelf.
- Rao’s Homestyle Italian Sausage & Mushroom
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I had high hopes for this Rao’s pasta sauce. I scooped a spoonful and saw huge chunks of Italian sausage and lots of mushroom slices. But then I took a bite. The sausage is seasoned with a strange herb flavor I can’t quite identify. It’s almost minty—like they meant to reach for the sage or oregano and grabbed the spearmint instead. Plus, the mushroom slices are unpleasantly squidgy.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Basil Pesto
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I love pesto. As a child, I happily ate pesto straight from the jar, and as an adult I slather any edible surface I can find with the salty, cheesy, herby sauce. I didn’t know Rao’s made pesto, so I was psyched to try it. Alas, once again, there seems to have been a mix-up with herb order. Instead of basil, Rao’s pesto tastes like it’s made with herbs you might find at a wiccan shop. It’s very strange. And it’s too salty, too.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Tomato Basil
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Here’s the rule of thumb with Rao’s pasta sauce: Steer clear of the herby varieties. While they at least grabbed the right herb for this jar of Rao’s sauce, they grabbed the dry stuff and far too much of it. The resulting flavor is soapy. It tastes a bit like something Mrs. Meyer’s would sell—lemon-basil hand soap. If you want a Rao’s spaghetti sauce to be basil-heavy, I suggest springing for a few actual, fresh basil leaves.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Rao’s Homemade Roasted Garlic
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I will happily eat a full bulb of roasted garlic. It’s one of my favorite flavors. But this Rao’s sauce doesn’t represent it very well. It tastes like the approximation of roasted garlic—like synthetic roasted garlic. It’s plastic-y and bitter.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Rao’s Homemade Sundried Tomato Pesto
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I don’t have a ton of experience with sundried tomato pesto, but we loved the Priano Rosso Pesto when we tried every Aldi pasta sauce. So, I thought this would be another hit. While it’s certainly better than the basil pesto, Rao’s red pesto is not tomatoey enough. It’s a bit nutty but it’s mostly just salty.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Roasted Garlic Alfredo
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Once again, the roasted garlic flavor comes across as fake in this garlicky version of Rao’s alfredo sauce. It tastes like butter and powdered garlic and it has a weird aftertaste. Don’t worry, there’s a better Rao’s alfredo available.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homestyle Bolognese
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Rao’s Bolognese is more about the texture of ground meat than the flavor. It’s hefty and there’s a lot of meat, but you can’t really taste the meat. It’s not bad; in fact, it’s the best store bought bolognese we found in a taste test. I’d happily eat a bowl of spaghetti topped with this sauce and a fistfull of parmesan. But it’s also nothing special. It’s not the best Rao’s sauce but it’s also not the worst.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Rao’s Homemade Pizza Arrabiata
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Rao’s makes a really good classic pizza sauce (it’s #8 on this list), but their spicy version isn’t as good. It’s not as sweet and concentrated as the traditional sauce, so it winds up tasting both bland and spicy. You’re better off adding some red pepper flakes to the standard Rao’s pizza sauce instead.
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Rao’s Homemade Vodka Sauce
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Rao’s vodka sauce is pretty good—it’s cheesy and sweet and very tomatoey. But when I think vodka sauce, I think creamy and luxe. I think of a rich, silky, pinkish red tomato sauce. And I didn’t get enough of that quality from this Rao’s spaghetti sauce. Luckily, they stepped it up with their new vodka sauce (#4 on this list).
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Sensitive Marinara
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Rao’s sensitive marinara (marinara sauce made without onion or garlic) came in at the top of our best sensitive marinara ranking. It’s super tomatoey and just olive oily enough. It’s definitely the best Rao’s sauce if your tummy could use a break.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Rao’s Homemade Roasted Red Pepper
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If you’re dreaming of a roasted red pepper Rao’s spaghetti sauce rather than a tomato Rao’s spaghetti sauce, this one hits the roasted red pepper on the head, real hard. It is much, much heavier on the red pepper than it is on the tomato. In fact, you can barely taste the tomato. It’s sweet and it tastes like roasted red pepper. It’s a bit one note for me and I don’t love roasted red pepper to begin with, but it would definitely be a great condiment for a Spanish tortilla or maybe in a shakshuka.
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Rao’s Homemade Arrabbiata
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It’s bright and spicy—but there’s a better spicy Rao’s tomato sauce on this list (peep #4 if you’re curious). Up against other spicy jarred tomato sauces, this one is pretty good. But the tomato base isn’t as rich as it could be. It’s tomatoes. It’s spice. And that’s about it.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Caramelized Onion
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Here’s where we get into some of the best Rao’s sauce you can buy. If you cannot get enough caramelized onions and you do not have time to caramelize pounds and pounds of them (seriously, who does?) then this Rao’s pasta sauce is your dream come true. It doesn’t just taste like caramelized onions—it’s packed full of delectable little caramelized onion bits. My only critique is that it’s really sweet, so you’ll need a good, salty cheese to balance things out.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Pizza
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Rao’s pizza sauce tastes like a classic pizza sauce. It’s sweet and rich and packed with lots of oregano. And, in true Rao’s form, it does have a bit of an oily finish to give it a rich, silky texture. You can make a really good pizza at home with this Rao’s tomato sauce, but it’s also good for dipping mozz sticks.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Mushroom & Bell Pepper
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If you want a super chunky Rao’s pasta sauce that practically eats like a side dish, skip the sausage and mushroom and stick with the mushroom and bell pepper. There are big chunks of pepper and meaty slices of mushroom. And there’s even a surprising hit of heat—so, consider yourself warned. This is the best Rao’s sauce to fill out a meal.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Four Cheese Alfredo
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Why didn’t this Rao’s alfredo sauce make our list of the best alfredo sauce? Because we didn’t try it. But it definitely deserves a spot on that list. It’s very creamy and very cheesy. It tastes like real dairy. It tastes homemade. If you’re in the mood for alfredo, this Rao’s sauce will scratch that buttery itch.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Vodka Arrabiata
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This is the Rao’s vodka sauce to buy. It’s creamier and richer than the standard vodka sauce. And then that creamy richness is followed by some sharp heat. So you take another bite, for some luxe relief. But, there’s that spice again! Another bite. Another bite. Another bite. You get the best of both worlds with this Rao’s pasta sauce—spicy and creamy.
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Rao’s Homemade Fire Grilled Vegetable
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This is the hardest-to-find Rao’s sauce on this list, but it’s worth hunting it down. It has so much roasted veggie flavor. It tastes like fresh-roasted eggplant and pepper. It does not have the same salty savoriness as the classic Rao’s tomato sauce; it’s on the sweeter end of the spectrum. But the roasted veg gives it a homemade complexity that earns it a spot way up at the top of our best Rao’s sauce ranking. Use it on pasta or really go for it and pour it onto a sausage hoagie.
Credit: Liv Averett / Box N Case
- Rao’s Homemade Four Cheese
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This Rao’s pasta sauce isn’t lying. It’s made with four cheeses and you can taste all of them. It’s very, very cheesy—and it’s become a staple in my house of cheese-obsessed toddlers. It doesn’t have the same rich tomato flavor as the classic Rao’s marinara. It’s lighter and brighter but still extremely savory. And it made Sporked managing editor Gwynedd Stuart swear. “What the f****,” she said. “That’s so good.”
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Rao’s Homemade Marinara
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Look, we wanted to find some secret Rao’s sauce that was actually the best Rao’s sauce. But, after tasting 20 different Rao’s sauces, I can confidently say that the classic Rao’s tomato sauce cannot be topped. It’s extremely savory and extremely oily (you need oil to make a really good tomato sauce). It’s rich and luxurious and it coats your lips. It’s pure, concentrated tomato flavor. You cannot go wrong with Rao’s marinara. It continues to top our ranking of the best store bought marinara, and now it’s number one on this list, too.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
Sausage & Mushroom
Basil Pesto
Tomato Basil
Roasted Garlic
Sundried Tomato Pesto
Roasted Garlic Alfredo
Bolognese
Pizza Arrabiata
Vodka Sauce
Sensitive Marinara
Roasted Red Pepper
Arrabbiata
Caramelized Onion
Pizza
Mushroom & Bell Pepper
Four Cheese Alfredo
Vodka Arrabiata
Fire Grilled Vegetable
Four Cheese
Marinara
