I taste-tested five hot-cocoa mixes from different brands and compared the results.Abigail Abesamis for Insider
- To find the best store-bought hot cocoa, I tried prepackaged powders from five different brands.
- Ghirardelli's hot cocoa was the best — it was rich and chocolaty.
- The other prepackaged cocoa powders didn't offer both the same chocolate flavor and creamy texture.
On cold days, there's nothing better than putting on your warmest sweater and cozying up with a cup of hot cocoa. But with plenty of convenient options at the grocery store, it's hard to know which one to choose.
To pinpoint the best prepackaged powder, I tasted hot-cocoa mixes from five different brands: Ghirardelli, Hershey's, Land O'Lakes, Publix (store brand), and Swiss Miss.
To keep things consistent, I only bought standard mixes — not flavors like dark chocolate, marshmallow, or peppermint — and used a warm water base instead of a milk alternative.
Read on to find out how these hot cocoa mixes stacked up.