In an ideal world, we’d spend the whole day traipsing around the house while our homemade tomato sauce simmers on the stove for a whopping 12 hours. In reality, we’re lucky if we have 30 seconds to crack open a jar of pasta sauce and dump it atop some spaghetti. In the event of the latter, you’ll want to use a quality sauce that offers from-scratch flavor—minus the work. To save you the trial and error, we tested dozens of offerings from popular brands to bring you our list of the best store-bought pasta sauce to use on busy weeknights. Whether you’re a marinara loyalist, Alfredo stan or pesto devotee, our top picks are sure to have something that fits your taste and budget.
The Best Store-Bought Pasta Sauce You Can Buy at the Grocery Store in 2023, According to Our Taste Test
From pesto to arrabbiata
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Published Dec 7, 2023
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Dasha Burobina for PureWow
The Best Store-Bought Pasta Sauce of 2023, at a Glance
1
Best Store-Bought Tomato-Basil Sauce
Carbone Tomato Basil Sauce
read more
2
Best Store-Bought Marinara Sauce
Lidia’s Marinara Sauce
read more
3
Best Store-Bought Vodka Sauce
Bertolli Vodka Sauce
read more
4
Best Store-Bought Alfredo Sauce
Rao’s Homemade Alfredo Sauce
read more
5
Best Store-Bought Pesto
Prego Basil Pesto
read more
How We Chose the Best Store-Bought Pasta Sauce
We tried all the store-bought pasta sauces warm, both solo and on pasta. Before we dive into our favorites, here’s how we determined the best store-bought pasta sauce for every palate:
- Value: Is the pasta sauce worth what it costs given the ingredients and taste?
- Quality: Is the pasta sauce made with authentic ingredients? Is it full of fillers, preservatives or gums?
- Flavor: Does the pasta sauce taste good? Does it taste like its package claims it does?
- Saucability: Is the pasta sauce thick enough to cling to pasta? Is it excessively thin or runny?
- Mouthfeel: If it's vodka or Alfredo sauce, is it rich and creamy? If it's pesto or tomato sauce, is it substantial and robust? Does it have any strange qualities, like grittiness?
Read on for the seven best store-bought pasta sauces, according to our taste test.
Best Store-Bought Tomato-Basil Sauce
What We Like
- rustic texture and flavor
- solid sauceability
- herbaceous
What We Don't Like
- expensive
- a bit runny
Carbone
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 20/20
- Flavor: 19/20
- Sauceability: 18/20
- Mouthfeel: 17/20
TOTAL: 92/100
Ever wondered what the difference is between marinara and tomato sauces? The former is brighter, thinner and boasts a fresher tomato taste, while the latter is typically thicker and creamier. Carbone's iteration delivers with large pieces of basil throughout. Its herbaceous aroma and zesty, robust flavor is exactly what you seek, whether you need a dip for mozz sticks or a pizza base. It is marinara, but we still found the sauce a tad runny. Nevertheless, it held to the noodles pretty well.
Best Store-Bought Marinara Sauce
What We Like
- fresh, bright flavor
- homemade feel and taste
What We Don't Like
- expensive
- a bit runny
Lidia's
- Value: 17/20
- Quality: 20/20
- Flavor: 19/20
- Sauceability: 18/20
- Mouthfeel: 18/20
TOTAL: 92/100
OK, our grandma was a native New Yorker who didn’t know how to boil water, but someone’s grandma probably makes a sauce just like this. Celebrity chef Lidia Bastianich has bottled her famous sauce recipe, and she doesn’t skimp on the high-quality ingredients. We're talking Italian plum tomatoes (you'll find fleshy bits and seeds in every bite) that make the sauce bright and pleasantly acidic. It could be thicker, but it sticks to pasta pretty well. It’s notably garlicky, so you might want to have some gum on hand.
Best Store-Bought Vodka Sauce
What We Like
- kid-friendly, cheesy flavor
- rich, creamy texture
- affordable
What We Don't Like
- a bit one-note
Bertolli
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 18/20
- Flavor: 17/20
- Sauceability: 19/20
- Mouthfeel: 19/20
TOTAL: 91/100
You know the drool-worthy type of penne vodka you used to scarf down at every sweet 16 party? This Bertolli sauce tastes just like that, with its very cheesy, kid-friendly flavor profile. Its creamy, thick consistency helps it hang onto pasta with ease, while its reasonable price will earn it a permanent spot on your grocery list. Our one critique is that it's a bit one-note, but that's nothing a few shakes of dried herbs or crushed red pepper flakes can't fix.
Best Store-Bought Alfredo Sauce
4. Rao’s Homemade Alfredo Sauce
What We Like
- creamy mouthfeel
- cheesy, authentic flavor
What We Don't Like
- expensive
- a bit thin
Rao's
- Value: 17/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Flavor: 19/20
- Sauceability: 18/20
- Mouthfeel: 18/20
TOTAL: 91/100
Rao's won our Alfredo sauce taste test. It exceeded our expectations with its rich mouthfeel and cheesy flavor. Cracked black pepper gave the sauce a homestyle touch. It was a tad thin, but still stuck to the pasta without running off. As for ingredients, it's made with light cream, Parmesan and Romano cheeses and butter, plus egg, xanthan gum and cornstarch for richness and thickening. It's a bit pricy, but if you’re looking for a jarred Alfredo sauce that tastes like you made it yourself, it won't disappoint.
Best Store-Bought Pesto
What We Like
- cheesy and herbaceous
- clings to pasta like a charm
What We Don't Like
- a bit too salty
Prego
- Value: 17/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Flavor: 17/20
- Sauceability: 20/20
- Mouthfeel: 18/20
TOTAL: 91/100
For the uninitiated (if that's you, get your hands on some pesto...like, right now), pesto is a paste that's traditionally made from olive oil, crushed garlic, pine nuts, fresh basil and hard cheese. This one is very cheesy and herbaceous with an optimal dose of vegetal earthiness. It separates a bit when heated, but clings beautifully to pasta. Some may find it a bit *too* salty, so feel free to thin it out with a touch of cream or pasta water to balance the flavor.
Best Spicy Store-Bought Pasta Sauce
6. Rao’s Homemade Arrabbiata Sauce
What We Like
- solid heat
- bright, acidic flavor
- rustic texture
What We Don't Like
- expensive
- a bit watery
Rao's
- Value: 18/20
- Quality: 20/20
- Flavor: 19/20
- Sauceability: 18/20
- Mouthfeel: 17/20
TOTAL: 92/100
Arrabbiata is a spicy Italian tomato sauce that's made with dried red chili peppers. This one from Rao's has a drool-worthy aroma, a precursor to the sauce's tame-but-noticeable tingly heat. Studded with hearty chunks of tomatoes, the vibrant sauce clings well to pasta, but we found it a touch watery for our taste. If you want to tame its spice, mix in a dollop of ricotta cheese (or alternatively, up the ante with a spoonful of Calabrian chili paste).
Best Cheesy Store-Bought Pasta Sauce
7. Good & Gather Three Cheese Sauce
What We Like
- affordable
- cheesy flavor
What We Don't Like
- a bit sweet
Good & Gather
- Value: 19/20
- Quality: 19/20
- Flavor: 18/20
- Sauceability: 18/20
- Mouthfeel: 18/20
TOTAL: 92/100
Picky kids don't stand a chance against this savory pasta topper that will stick to their favorite noodles with ease. It's a bit sweet (almost ketchupy, without being cloying) and offers scattered chunks of tomato in every scoop. It's not the freshest tasting pasta sauce of the bunch, but at $2 a pop, it's something cheese lovers will likely be able to overlook.
Honorable Mentions
We tested many more sauces and brands than those listed above. While the aforementioned store-bought pasta sauces are our favorites of the bunch, here are some honorable mentions, in alphabetical order:
- Bertolli Creamy Basil Alfredo Sauce
- Bertolli D’Italia Alfredo Sauce
- Bertolli Tomato & Basil Sauce
- Botticelli Alla Vodka Sauce
- Botticelli Spicy Vodka Sauce
- Botticelli Tomato & Basil Sauce
- Good & Gather Basil Pesto Sauce
- Lidia's Tuscan Pepper Arrabbiata Sauce
- Newman's Own Organic Marinara Sauce
- Newman's Own Tomato & Basil Sauce
- Prego Creamy Vodka Sauce
- Prego Homestyle Alfredo Sauce
- Primal Kitchen No Dairy Vodka Sauce
- Ragu Kettle Cooked Tomato Basil Sauce
- Williams Sonoma Creamy Vodka Sauce
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