The best tomato ketchup: tried and tasted

Is Heinz really the best? We pit the classic brand against other supermarket ketchups to find out which one you should dip your chips in.

The tops of unbranded tomato ketchup bottles

By Saga Magazine | Published - 15 Apr 2026

1. Winner: M&S Tomato Ketchup

495g, £1

Excellent thick, rich viscosity and a wonderful deep red colour. The high tomato content gave a satisfying flavour.

Delicious – and at a tasty price too!

Rating: 9/10

2. Asda Classic Tomato Ketchup

550g, £1.05

A lovely thick, dark red ketchup with a perfectly smooth texture. The taste delivered excellent tomato undertones and a well-balanced profile of sweetness and acidity.

Overall, this was a good value, tasty everyday ketchup.

Rating: 8/10

3. Essential Waitrose Tomato Ketchup

470g, £1

A pleasing smooth consistency and a pale colour gave this a classic appearance.

The taste was well-balanced but had a slight lack of rich tomato flavour.

Rating: 8/10

4. Stokes Tomato Ketchup

300g, £3.30

With a hearty texture and visible pieces of finely chopped tomatoes, this was an indulgent ketchup. It had a homemade look and a rich tomato flavour.

Pricey but luscious.

Rating: 8/10

A chip being dunked in tomato ketchup — Getty

5. Heinz Tomato Ketchup

460g, £3

The staple British condiment is the benchmark for ketchup, but in our blind tasting we found it comparatively sweet and slightly sloppy in consistency.

However, the taste was well-balanced with a good depth of tomato flavour. Expensive compared to others.

Rating: 7/10

6. Sainsbury’s Tomato Ketchup

460g, 95p

Pleasantly dark and with a good texture, this looked and tasted appetising – not too sweet but with a subtle sharpness and a decent tomato flavour.

Palatable, but lacking a little in intensity.

Rating: 7/10

7. Tesco Tomato Ketchup

555g, £1.15

The colour and texture were good, but the flavour had a vinegary tang with little true tomato taste.

Although this reduced the sweetness, it gave it a sense of being low quality.

Rating: 6/10

8. Aldi Bramwells Tomato Ketchup

550g, 89p

This had a runny consistency and a flavour that lacked depth, with little full-bodied tomato richness.

The overriding taste was tangy, which dominated the palate. Disappointing.

Rating: 5/10

9. Co-Op ‘on the side’ Tomato Ketchup

550g, £0.89

A relatively pale ketchup which had a thin consistency which reflected in its overall flavour which was lacking in depth and tomato zest. Nothing to get excited about!