18 Cheerios Flavors, Ranked Worst To Best

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Scanning the cereal aisle, one thing is for sure: Cheerios has a lot of flavors. In much the same way that Oreos has branched out of the traditional black and white cookie, Cheerios has moved beyond honey nut and original. Now, there are even cereals with fruit and veggies in them, as well as others that have nuts and oats as part of your bowl. With such an overwhelming number of flavors, it can be time-consuming and expensive to try so many options. So, I did it for you.

To taste as many flavors as possible, Cheerios sent me a sampling of the protein flavors, and apple cinnamon Cheerios. I gathered boxes from my local grocery store and Amazon to round out the rest of the collection. Surprisingly, Amazon had some of the best prices for cereal. I sampled each Cheerios flavor over the course of several breakfasts (and often lunches). Before long, some favorites emerged, as well as others that were just not my taste. Here's my ranking of 18 Cheerios flavors, from worst to best.

As soon as I opened the box of Fruity Cheerios, I got the overwhelming smell of Froot Loops. Seriously: In a blind taste (and sniff) test, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. I think Froot Loops are a love it or hate it flavor, and while these aren't called Froot Loops, they certainly taste exactly like it. And, much like Froot Loops, each of the cereal bits seems to be the exact same flavor.

Of course, if you're a fan of this fruity cereal, this may be thrilling news. However, I can't count myself among this fandom, so these were rather disappointing to me. That said, the Cheerios were heart-shaped, presumably for a limited time, so while I didn't enjoy the flavor, the shape was adorable. 

Looking at this box, you're probably going to have more questions than answers. Tasting it, I was surprised to sense that it reminded me a great deal of baby food. Having gone through quite a few varieties of baby food to find my son's favorite, it's astonishing how many of the offerings try to mix fruit and veggies in an attempt to get as much nutritional value packed in as possible. These Cheerios seem to strive for the same effort.

Unfortunately, the flavor just wasn't there. They were enjoyable to eat, but they reminded me of bad-tasting health food. Not only that, but after a few bites, I started to notice a weird aftertaste. I went after my favorite flavor of Cheerios after these to try and get rid of that lingering flavor.

Tasting so many flavors of Cheerios, I'll admit I waited to try the original Cheerios until nearly last. Unfortunately, they were just as bland as I expected, and with such a variety of flavors, it really made me wonder why they're even part of the collection. Truly, the only thing I can imagine is that small children who are developing their sense of preference might enjoy them.

All told, they tasted like raw materials, compared to the other very interesting varieties of Cheerios you can find in the cereal aisle. I will admit that when my family stocked these when I was younger, I would enjoy them with a sprinkling of white sugar over the top, and that greatly improved them. So, if you're ever in a situation where plain Cheerios is all that exists, like in a hotel continental breakfast, grab some sugar and go to town.

I didn't expect the Very Berry Cheerios to be like Froot Loops, and they were certainly different, but I didn't find them to be one of the favorite offerings, even if I enjoy berries. As soon as I opened the box, I got a very strong, dried fruit flavor, almost like the kind of scent you get when you open up a cheaply made herbal fruit tea.

The box claimed the Cheerios were flavored with real fruit, and looking at the ingredients, it comes in the form of the powders: blueberry, strawberry, and cranberry. Flavor-wise, it did fit a fruity profile, but rather than being a vibrant, sweet, and juicy taste, I found it to be more medicinal than anything else. It was interesting to me that some of these cereals chose purées for their flavoring, while others, like this one, use powder.

When I was preparing for this article, I was surprised by how many flavors of Cheerios are out there. The Strawberry Banana Cheerios stood out to me, and reminded me very much of a smoothie, but it wasn't until I started eating a few spoonfuls that I realized this is just another version of very berry Cheerios. After all, bananas are actually berries.

At first, I didn't get much banana flavoring, but that did slowly start to build as I continued eating spoonfuls. Initially, the Cheerios simply tasted like a strawberry-flavored granola bar. These weren't my least favorite, but I need to be in a specific mood to enjoy them. However, I can imagine these being tasty when mixed in with other ingredients, possibly for a trail mix with other dried fruits.

After several tastings, I noticed the scent of the Cheerios was often indicative of flavor. It wouldn't always give it away, and it didn't always dictate whether it was enjoyable or not, but the smell of dry Cheerios gave me a much stronger indication of how the taste would go than I expected. So, when I opened this box of Strawberry Cheerios Protein, I was happily surprised to whiff a vibrant strawberry aroma.

And I realized something as I ate: It wasn't a true strawberry flavor I was getting, but rather a sense that the cereal tasted like Special K with strawberries. To the credit of these Cheerios, strawberry and apple purée are both listed under the ingredients. To put this simply: The Strawberry Cheerios Protein were okay; they weren't great.

By and large, the oat crunch cereals were my favorite of the Cheerios varieties. The Oat Crunch Chocolate, surprisingly, was my least favorite of them. Typically, I enjoy chocolate flavors, but I also tend to be picky about my chocolate. In this case, the chocolate of the cereal had a basic flavor. With a more interesting, deeper chocolate, I can imagine this being a tastier cereal.

It's always interesting to see how a cereal responds to milk, and predictably, this Cheerios flavor created something that looked like chocolate milk in my bowl. I'm a fan of chocolate milk, but the flavor left behind wasn't as tasty as I wanted. While the oat crunch flavors were better than many of the others, this definitely didn't hold up to the other flavors quite as strongly. In general, I put it in the middle of the pack because I enjoyed the crunch of the cereal — and the oats certainly helped the chocolate along, but other flavors were far better.

Apple Jacks were another cereal I frequently enjoyed as a kid, and I remember them being strongly flavored like cinnamon and a warm apple dessert. While the Apple Cinnamon Cheerios do have some similarities to this taste profile, I found them to be more mild than I hoped.

Since some of the other Cheerios flavors are so strong, I'd like to taste the same boldness with these apple cinnamon Cheerios. If they could taste something closer to a cinnamon apple pie, for example, that would be fantastic. That said, for someone who wants an enjoyable Cheerio, but likes the flavor to be a little more subtle, this might be a nice middle of the road flavor.

Of the group of Cheerios, the Maple Cinnamon Hearty Nut Medley was the first one that I tried. I was drawn in by all of the ingredients, and I thought the texture would be awesome. While there was some great initial crunch to this one — with such a variety of nuts — it weirdly got soggy very quickly.

The flavoring itself was enjoyable, but even more maple-y than I expected. I wanted more nut flavor to help balance all that maple, but it was one of the overwhelming aspects. It's more of a maple syrup flavored cereal than anything else. The texture from all the nuts is nice, but it doesn't do a good enough job of compensating for the sogginess that arrived faster than I expected.

If you were to take all of the marshmallows out of Lucky Charms cereal, and instead integrate that sweet flavor onto the Cheerio itself, you would end up with something like the Frosted Cheerios. They smell like they should have a ton of marshmallows inside, but, of course, they do not. 

Rather than having colorful marshmallows, this is a bowl of Cheerios in a white coating that is supposed to create something like a frosted effect. I appreciate the flavor because it reminds me of Lucky Charms, but the lack of marshmallows — with that similar flavor in there — is super jarring. It made the Cheerios flavor somewhat confusing. I liked the sweetness here, and didn't find it overwhelming, but it did feel like this variety was going through something of an identity crisis.

While there are plenty of Cheerios flavors I didn't enjoy, there are quite a few I loved. From here on forward, you'll find the best tasting options in the Cheerios section of the infamous cereal aisle. Honestly, you're not going wrong with any of them; it'll just depend on your preferences and how sweet you enjoy cereal. For instance, I have a big sweet tooth, so while I enjoyed Honey Nut Cheerios, and the slight sweetness they had, I wish it was more substantial.

Aside from the bland and boring original Cheerios, to me the Honey Nut Cheerios has always been the most basic flavor of the bunch. For a more substantial cereal in a similar, but elevated, flavor profile, check out Cheerios Oat Crunch Oats 'N Honey.

While the chocolate oat Cheerios were less than enjoyable, these Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheerios are much better. They didn't taste anything like a Reese's peanut butter cup, as the flavors might suggest, but they were still good. I liked these as a dry snack, but they tasted perfectly fine with milk too.

Interestingly, though cereal is obviously more of a morning meal, I find that these chocolate peanut butter Cheerios make a nice lunch. The combination of the two flavors is sweet and salty in all the ways you want them to be. I should note that these are my son's favorite cereal, so I can vouch for them being kid-approved.

As someone always trying to find more protein to put in my diet, I was excited to see the protein Cheerios. Typically, I expect breakfasts that have protein in them to sustain me a little longer in my day. However, I didn't find any of the protein Cheerios kept my hunger at bay throughout the morning anymore than typical Cheerios. So, while all the flavors were enjoyable — and I liked the texture on these somewhat better than a few of the others — if you're going for protein Cheerios to keep you fuller, don't expect them to do that. 

Flavor-wise, the Cinnamon Cheerios Protein had a very bright taste, and they smelled like cinnamon — though mildly. I also found the flavor wasn't bold like a cinnamon stick, but a more toned-down taste of cinnamon.

I will freely admit that cookies and cream foods are always a draw for me. Unfortunately, I'm frequently disappointed, finding that a company doesn't give enough cookies or cream, and the mix isn't quite right. However, the Cookies & Crème Cheerios Protein are quite the opposite.

You've seen by now that chocolate isn't always one of my favorite options, but when mixed with something like a creamy Cheerio, it works very well. Chocolate that has to stand all on its own quality, especially in cereal, doesn't always result in an enjoyable spoonful. However, the combo factor here worked well, and the balance was perfect. Somehow, Cheerios achieved a blend of creamy and crunchy and chocolatey all in one bite.

Anthony Bourdain may have hated the pumpkin spice food trend, but every fall, I look forward to the coming pumpkin spice wave of flavored foods. Some are absolute hits while others fail miserably. Even still, most of the foods tend to disappear by the time winter season begins. So, in the middle of spring, I was surprised to see that pumpkin spice Cheerios, though limited, were available for purchase. I eagerly purchased a box, looking forward to a dose of pumpkin delight in the middle of spring — and make no mistake, these delivered.

The flavor was a nice pumpkin pie sort of taste, but completely different than a typical pumpkin spice latte, for instance. The flavor was light, and the seasoning was too, offering pumpkin as the primary flavor with only a little spice to help your brain register that it's supposed to be pumpkin spice. So good! 

Although Honey Nut Cheerios are enjoyable — even though they're basic — the Cheerios Oat Crunch Oats 'N Honey is the type of cereal that honey nut oats wish they could be. Simply put, the Honey Nut Cheerios walked, so Cheerios Oat Crunch Oats 'N Honey could run.

Oats 'N Honey had a very similar flavor profile, but the texture and all-encompassing taste of these was better. With the oats, there are much more enjoyable bites, and it feels like a more substantive spoonful. The flavoring on them has a light sweetener, and there's also something of a toasted element that I wasn't expecting to taste, but definitely enjoyed. If you love Honey Nut Cheerios, you must try these.

My brother-in-law is obsessed with Cheerios Oat Crunch Cinnamon. He enjoys it every morning and keeps several boxes on hand, just in case it's hard to come by. After trying a spoonful, I understand why. The cereal is perfectly flavored with cinnamon — and just the right amount of it. It's not spicy or overpowering. It's perfection.

Like the other oat crunch cereals, the texture here is phenomenal, and with all the different oats and specks of cinnamon, it has a very nice aesthetic. Although I liked another flavor of the Cheerios oat crunch even more, the difference between them is more subtle than I expected.

Around Christmas time, when my family gets together to make Christmas cookies, the one that is always on our to-do list is a Scandinavian almond bar. It's an old recipe from my dad's yellowing Betty Crocker cookie book, but it's a must-make every year. The almond oat crunch is reminiscent of these, and the flavor screams all the joys of Christmas to me. I truly believe my taste for almond-flavored items began with these cookie bars. In other words, I absolutely love the Cheerios Oat Crunch Almond cereal.

It's perhaps the highest praise I can give that they remind me of a cookie like this, but I can think of no better comparison. The cereal even had sliced almonds like our cookies do. With the oat crunch element, the texture is spot on, and there's nothing I would change about the cereal. To give you an idea of just how much I enjoyed this one, even while I have so many boxes of different varieties of Cheerios hanging around after this tasting, when we ran out of the Oat Crunch Almond, I picked up more at the store. I officially have a new favorite cereal, and I'll definitely be taking a page out of my brother-in-law's book and buying extra boxes.

I sampled each flavor of Cheerios over several days. I ranked the cereal based on how tasty the Cheerios were and how enjoyable the texture was. 

The very best Cheerios had great flavor with texture that contended well with milk.