We taste-tested 16 brands of tomato soup you’re likely to find at your local supermarket. To find the very best ones, we sampled each without knowing which was which. Our winner is Rao’s Creamy Tomato Soup, though we also crowned three runners-up.
Whenever I want a simple, comforting meal, I make grilled cheese and tomato soup. It’s a timeless combination, and one that always satisfies my family. As easy as it is to make tomato soup—and as much as I love making it from scratch so I can smell it simmering away on the stovetop—there are many nights when I am simply too tired or busy to cook a whole pot of soup, which is when I reach for the store-bought stuff. (Yes, even food editors need a break from cooking sometimes!) The question is: Which brand is worth buying?
To find the best tomato soup, our editors taste-tested 16 widely available brands across three main styles: classic, creamy, and tomato-basil. Because tomato soup comes in so many variations—some smooth and dairy-free, others rich and creamy, and still others infused with basil—we grouped and evaluated each style separately. Tasters sampled the soups plain (no grilled cheese, crackers, or bread) and in random order, without knowing which brand they were tasting. After tallying scores, we crowned one overall winner and named three runners-up.
The Criteria
Though the criteria for each kind of soup differ slightly, our editors all agree that good tomato soup should have the natural sweetness, savoriness, and acidity of tomatoes. It must be balanced: It should not be excessively sweet, salty, or tangy. It should be thick but pourable, and though some chunks are welcome, they should not make up most of the soup. It should not taste like ketchup, tomato paste, or the container it came in, be it a carton, a can, or a plastic tub.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Overall Winner
Rao’s Creamy Tomato Soup
This soup was our favorite, not just among creamy soups but among all the soups we tasted. Our associate editorial director, Megan, liked this soup so much that she said she’d even eat it outside of the context of a taste test. “Good mix of creamy and chunky,” she noted. “Good sweetness but with dimensional tomato flavor.” Our visuals editor, Jessie, thought it was “a good tomato soup with texture,” and appreciated its acidity and bits of tomatoes. Though it was a bit too chunky for our associate culinary editor, Laila, and our associate visuals editor, Amanda, they both enjoyed its flavor. Like Megan, Laila said she would happily eat it outside of work. It’s worth noting that Rao’s also topped our pasta sauce taste test—the brand knows its way around a tomato!
Runners-Up
Another Great Creamy Tomato Soup: Whole Foods Tomato Parmesan Soup
“Big tomato flavor!” Amanda exclaimed. Jessie thought it was a “nice savory tomato soup,” and though Megan found it slightly bitter, she enjoyed the “good combo of small chunks and creamy parts.” This option is ideal for those who like their soups chunky: “It almost feels like it wasn’t blended enough,” noted Laila, while Amanda described its texture as “bordering on pasta sauce,” which she didn’t hate.
Our Favorite Classic Tomato Soup: Progresso Hearty Tomato
Our tasters thought this was a straightforward classic tomato soup: chunky and tomato-forward, with a balanced sweetness, though it had a metallic aftertaste that no one particularly cared for. Megan found it too sweet and pasta sauce–like, but Laila and Amanda both enjoyed its brightness and rich texture.
Our Favorite Tomato and Basil Soup: Progresso Tomato Basil Soup
In general, our tasters were not fans of the tomato and basil soup options: They found them slightly too bitter and acidic. Progresso’s Tomato Basil Soup scored the highest among the three we tasted; it is smooth with medium body and has what Laila described as a “roasted tomato flavor with a subtle smokiness.” Our editors would have preferred this to be just a touch saltier, though that’s easily fixable at home with an additional pinch of salt.
The Contenders
Creamy Tomato Soup
- Amy’s Cream of Tomato
- Campbell’s Tomato Bisque
- Good & Gather Creamy Tomato Bisque With Parmesan
- Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup
- Pacific Foods Creamy Tomato Soup
- Panera Creamy Tomato Soup
- Rao’s Creamy Tomato Soup
- Whole Foods Market Tomato Parmesan Soup
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Classic Tomato Soup
- Amy’s Chunky Tomato Bisque
- Bowl & Basket Condensed Tomato Soup
- Campbell’s Tomato Soup
- Progresso Hearty Tomato Soup
- Stop & Shop Condensed Tomato Soup
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Tomato Basil Soup
- Imagine Organic Tomato Basil Creamy Soup
- Progresso Tomato Basil Soup
- Rao’s Tomato Basil Soup
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
Key Takeaways and Conclusion
Canned, jarred, and prepared tomato soups are made with tomatoes—crushed, puréed, and/or paste—as well as water and aromatics, such as celery, carrots, onion, and garlic. They also contain salt, sugar, and thickeners like flour or cornstarch. Creamy tomato soups may include milk, cream, and/or cheese, and tomato and basil soups are often seasoned with both basil and oregano. Many of the brands we sampled contain preservatives, flavor enhancers, and stabilizers, such as soy lecithin, calcium chloride, citric acid, and ascorbic acid. Citric and ascorbic acid are often used as preservatives and flavor enhancers, but can give products a sour flavor.
Our winning tomato soup comes from Rao’s, the only brand that has Italian tomatoes on the ingredient list. It is also the only brand that uses balsamic vinegar in its soup. Of the brands we tasted, it has one of the shortest ingredient lists, containing only Italian tomatoes, water, cream, milk, celery, carrots, onions, tomato purée, a small amount of sugar, olive oil, salt, garlic, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, and spices.
Generally, our editors preferred creamy tomato soups, which they deemed the most balanced of the bunch. Our tasters found that the addition of dairy, in the form of heavy cream, milk, or cheese, helped round out the sweetness and acidity of the tomatoes. Our editors felt that the classic tomato soups were often far too acidic or bland and lacked the full-bodied richness of their creamy counterparts. As for tomato and basil soups—they came across as bitter and had the unpleasant aftertaste of old, wilted herbs. Though we shared our top picks for each category above, we’d still recommend opting for creamy tomato soup whenever possible, as they strike the perfect balance of sweet, savory, and tangy—and are the ones we’d happily reach for in a pinch.
Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez
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.
