We sampled seven chocolate chip cookies from in-store bakeries to find our absolute favorite.
The Best Grocery Store Chocolate Chip Cookies, According to a Professional Baker
Published on Jun. 13, 2025
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7. Trader Joe’s
Trader Joe’s offers plenty of treats that people are obsessed with, so we had high hopes for the cookies. Priced at $4.99 per dozen, we thought the chocolate chunk cookies would make our list of TJ’s faves. However, that’s not the case. Of all the cookies, these lacked serious flavor. The first thing every tester mentioned was how bland they were compared to the other cookies. The taste of the chocolate was meh, and there also wasn’t enough of it. That said, Trader Joe’s chocolate chip cookies made up points for having a soft and chewy texture with perfectly crisp edges.
Bottom Line: Skip the chocolate chip cookies at Trader Joe’s the next time you’re shopping. Instead, save room in your shopping cart for our favorite frozen food items from Trader Joe’s.
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6. Fresh Thyme
Fresh Thyme had two bakery chocolate chip cookies available. While the thin and crispy chocolate chip cookies looked very similar to Tate’s Bake Shop, we went with the more classic offering since it was most like the other cookies in the test group. At $4.99, these cookies were priced in the middle of the pack. However, their taste and texture scored the lowest of the bunch. Our batch lacked any softness or chewiness, and the edges were rather crumbly due to the overall dryness of the cookie. Finally, the chocolate, while plentiful, was dry and crumbly and didn’t offer a lot of cocoa flavor.
Bottom Line: If you really crave chocolate chip cookies, this one will do, but know that there are far better chocolate chip cookies available at other retailers. This might even be a case to skip the bakery section and opt for store-bought chocolate chip cookies instead!
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5. Aldi
Aldi is a national grocery retailer with a loyal customer following who appreciates the brand’s commitment to low prices and value-driven offerings. The cookies are not baked fresh in-house, but at $3.89 per dozen, Aldi’s ‘Bake Shop’ chocolate chunk cookies were among the least expensive that we sampled. Overall, Aldi had the chewiest cookie offering and used a sweeter milk chocolate chip that our testers enjoyed. The flavor of the cookie dough had mixed reviews, though, with several testers noting a “mystery” flavor that they couldn’t quite place for better or worse.
Bottom Line: Aldi’s Bake Shop chocolate chunk cookies are not the best chocolate chip cookie we’ve ever had, but they’re not the worst either.
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4. Walmart
Walmart has several chocolate chip cookie offerings in its bakery section. We tested the basic ‘Freshness Guaranteed’ chocolate chip cookies, priced at $3.47 per dozen, since they were most similar to the other brands tested. Our first impression of these cookies was that they were very sugar-forward. Both the chocolate and the dough tasted more like white sugar than cocoa or cookie. In fact, all testers noted a sugary graininess present, almost like the butter and sugar were not creamed the right way. That graininess outshone the soft, chewy texture of the cookie.
Bottom Line: If you like your chocolate chip cookies extra sweet, then head to your local Walmart for a cookie treat.
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3. Kroger
The in-store bakery cookies from Kroger consistently tested near the top among our taste testers. Kroger’s cookies have a sweeter cookie base with a hint of salt that makes them well-balanced. Texturally, this brand had nice crisp edges and soft middle, but lacked any of that oh-so-desirable chewy factor that we were seeking. As for chocolate, the overall flavor of the chocolate chips was among the best we sampled. However, we wanted more of them. Most of the cookies in our package only had a few minuscule chocolate chips each, which left the chocolate chip-to-cookie ratio feeling lackluster.
Bottom Line: At $3.49 per dozen, Kroger’s in-store chocolate chip cookies are a crowd-pleaser, and they’re the most affordable choice. Here are more ways to save at Kroger.
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2. Target
Tied for the top spot is Target’s ‘Favorite Day’ chocolate chip cookies. Sold in a 16-pack, which averages to a price of $5.60 per dozen, these were also some of the most expensive cookies tested. The cookies tasted super fresh even though Target doesn’t bake them onsite. Target cookies had the best texture of any cookie we bit into: soft, with a subtle chew and perfectly crisp edges. The dough was also the best of the bunch with notes of butter and vanilla.
Bottom Line: If you don’t have time to make homemade chocolate chip cookies, these might just be the next best thing. FYI: Target’s Favorite Day cookie dough ice cream is also one of our top-ranked brands.
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1. Costco
Not only does Costco have one of the best grocery store cakes, but its chocolate chip cookies also consistently topped our testers’ lists. The smell of these cookies brought us back to grandma’s house with their strong vanilla aroma. The overall flavor was also very vanilla forward with notes present in both the cookie itself and the chocolate.
Speaking of chocolate, of all the cookies tested, the chocolate chips in Costco’s cookies really stood out as the best. The chips were smooth, creamy and full of rich cocoa flavor. And there were a ton of them in each cookie. At $5.89 per dozen (sold in packs of 24 cookies), they may be pricey, but we feel their quality makes it worth the price tag.
Bottom Line: If you need enough cookies to serve a crowd and don’t have time to bake your own, Costco chocolate chunk cookies are the answer. Between the cakes and cookies, I’d say that makes a Costco membership worth it!
