We taste-tested 11 boxed mac and cheeses you’re likely to find at your local supermarket or online. To find the very best ones, we cooked each according to package directions, then sampled them without knowing which was which. Our winner is Cabot Seriously Sharp Macaroni and Cheese, but we also crowned one worthy runner-up.

Boxed mac and cheese may just be the best invention since sliced bread. It has been a staple in American diets—loved by kids, teenagers, and adults alike—for almost 100 years, ever since, according to the Chicago History Museum, Kraft launched the first-ever boxed mac and cheese in 1937.

While macaroni and cheese itself has deeper roots—today’s American version can be traced to a dish cooked in the late 1700s and early 1800s by chefs enslaved in Thomas Jefferson’s kitchens, including James Hemings, Peter Hemings, Edith Hern Fossett, and Frances Gillette Hern—the boxed revolution had to wait for science to catch up. It wasn’t until 1916, writes Jeffrey Miller for Smithsonian Magazine, that James L. Kraft (yep, that Kraft) patented a method for processing and pasteurizing cheese, preventing spoilage and enabling it to be sold nationwide in powder form—and stored for months in pantries across America.

When Kraft debuted the first-ever boxed mac and cheese in 1937, a box cost 19 cents. It became a hit during the Great Depression, as it was extremely cheap. One ration stamp, notes Miller, covered two boxes, allowing families to stretch their meals further. That hasn’t changed: Today, boxed mac and cheese still costs around $1, making it a very affordable meal.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

The Criteria

If you grew up in the US, eating boxed mac and cheese likely gives you a certain heartwarming nostalgia. As with many beloved foods, most people have thoughts on what makes the best mac and cheese. Some of our testers preferred a more artificial cheese flavor, similar to Velveeta, while others preferred the sharpness that can only come from real cheddar. Some had a soft spot for the thin, elbow-shaped pasta Kraft popularized, while others preferred shells, which, arguably, better cup the sauce. But you can find more than just elbows and shells in the dried goods section of the grocery store: You’ll see pasta shaped like curlicues, little rabbits, and even beloved cartoon characters like SpongeBob. For this test, we stuck to the original, most basic versions from each brand.

While there are many options, our ideal mac and cheese depends less on the pasta’s shape and more on its texture and flavor. Great mac and cheese should have a uniform, creamy sauce that’s neither gritty nor watery. It should have a balanced flavor of cheese (preferably cheddar), butter, and a light, sweet dairy note. Finally, the pasta should not be mushy or fall apart during boiling and should retain a slight chew.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Overall Winner

Cabot Seriously Sharp Classic Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese

This box was the clear favorite, as testers immediately noted a sharper cheese flavor in this macaroni compared to the competition. The flavor of the macaroni and cheese was a hit all around, with Amanda, our associate visuals director, noting, "This is what I want from my boxed mac and cheese." Laila, our associate culinary editor, agreed: "It’s the only good one, in my opinion,” she said, noting that she could "actually taste the cheese and not just butter." Meanwhile, associate editorial director Megan and visuals editor Jessie both praised its savory, cheesy flavor profile.

Laila loved that the sauce was "thick enough to coat the pasta" and "settled nicely into the nooks" of the shells, while Amanda noted it had the classic creaminess she wanted. The pasta itself also stood out, as it maintained its shape and bite better than other samples: Megan liked the "firmer shells," and Laila noted their "nice chew."

Runner-Up

Kraft Original Mac & Cheese

Kraft invented and popularized boxed mac and cheese, a staple in many of our taste testers’ childhoods, so it makes sense that it scored high marks for its nostalgia factor. Other than the 2015 replacement of dyes like Yellow 5 and 6 with natural dyes like annato and turmeric and a change in the types of preservatives used, their recipe hasn’t changed in years.

While the testers didn’t know which mac and cheese they were sampling, they all found comfort in its familiar flavor and texture. Amanda said, "It properly scratches the boxed mac and cheese itch," and "is exactly what I expect and want."

The flavor profile here was very different than our winner, Cabot. While Cabot stood out for its sharp cheddar notes, Kraft leans on a mild sweetness. Both Laila and Amanda detected sweetness in the sauce, while Jessie noted its “mild, slight butter flavor.” While it wasn’t as cheese-forward as the Cabot, Megan still found it cheesier than the other options we sampled. Our testers also found the sauce cohesive, and the elbows softer than the shells in other samples, which made them a favorite for those who preferred less chew.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

The Contenders

• Annie’s Classic Cheddar Mac and Cheese
• Bowl & Basket Original Macaroni and Cheese
• Cabot Seriously Sharp Macaroni and Cheese
• Cracker Barrel Macaroni and Cheese Dinner
• Good & Gather Organic Classic Elbow & Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese
• Kraft Original Mac & Cheese
• Manischewitz Mac & Cheese
• Market Pantry Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
• Stop & Shop Original Mac and Cheese Dinner
• Velveeta Shells & Cheese
• Wacky Mac Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Key Takeaways and Conclusion

Our winner and runner-up are very different. Our winner, Cabot, is a relative newcomer to the category, with its first boxed mac and cheese launching in 2021. It has shell-shaped pasta and a more intense cheese flavor than Kraft, our runner-up, which is a prime example of classic boxed mac and cheese with a mild cheesy flavor. Despite their differences, both have two things in common: the use of phosphate-based emulsifying salts and whey.

Overall, we preferred a creamy, cohesive sauce that clung to the pasta. Both Cabot and Kraft use phosphate-based emulsifying salts, including sodium phosphate, calcium phosphate, and disodium phosphate, to help the dried, powdered cheese become a cohesive, creamy sauce. Some organic or "clean label" brands rely more on cornstarch for body instead, which may be why testers described those sauces as "not very creamy" and "a little watery," since starch can thicken but doesn’t always keep melted cheese as smoothly emulsified without additional liquid (similar to how a béchamel sauce requires milk and a starchy, flour-based roux for classic cheese sauces).

Our testers also preferred a flavor profile that balanced savory, umami-rich cheese with gentle dairy sweetness from whey. Cabot lists "dried Vermont cheddar cheese" as the second ingredient, compared to a generic "cheese sauce mix" found in other brands, including Kraft. Cabot’s ingredient list also explicitly includes butter and dry buttermilk, which contribute a pleasant tang and rich mouthfeel. Meanwhile, Kraft relies on milkfat and milk protein concentrate for its cheesiness, which explains its milder flavor.

Another similarity our favorite brands share is a balance between savory and sweet, likely achieved through their use of whey. Whey is the liquid byproduct of cheesemaking—when milk is coagulated into curds, liquid whey is leftover. It’s high in lactose, which gives both sauces a subtle, milky sweetness.

Overall, Cabot came out on top, providing a punch of real, sharp cheddar, underlying sweetness, pasta that retained its chew, and a creamy sauce that evenly coated each shell.

Our Testing Methodology

All taste tests are conducted with brands completely hidden and without discussion. Tasters taste samples in random order. For example, taster A may taste sample one first, while taster B will taste sample six first. This is to prevent palate fatigue from unfairly giving any one sample an advantage. Tasters are asked to fill out tasting sheets, ranking the samples according to various criteria. All data is tabulated, and results are calculated with no editorial input to provide the most impartial representation of actual results possible.