The 4 Best Boxed Brownie Mixes of 2025

Betty Crocker introduced the first boxed brownie mix to the market in 1954. In the decades that have followed, the brownie-mix section of the baking aisle has expanded as dozens of brands, varieties, and flavors duke it out for our attention. Here is how we chose which boxed brownie mixes to test.

National distribution: To determine the brownie mixes that we would test, we researched which brands are carried in national grocery chains like Walmart, Aldi, Whole Foods, Target, and Trader Joe’s. We also consulted editorial reviews of brownie mixes in publications such as Serious Eats and Bon Appetit. Wirecutter staffers also visited their local grocery stores to see which mixes were stocked and how much they cost. We prioritized testing brownie mixes that are easy to find when you’re shopping in person.

Original-flavor brownie mixes: Some brands offer slight variations on brownie mixes, and they can be hard to tell apart, such as Duncan Hine’s “Double Fudge,” “Chewy Fudge,” and “Dolly Parton’s Fabulously Double Fudge.” To narrow down the pool of these similarly branded products, we relied on availability and online popularity to help us decide which ones to test. We eliminated brownie mixes with special flavorings and add-ins, such as nuts, caramel, and toffee, so that we could focus on the best base brownie mix.

Gluten-free options: Supermarkets carry an increasing number of gluten-free options in the baking aisle, and an estimated 25% of Americans follow a gluten-free diet. So we decided to examine the expanding category of gluten-free boxed brownie mixes to find the best.

After applying this criteria, we landed on 15 conventional boxed brownie mixes and seven gluten-free mixes — mostly a mix of household names and supermarket brands. And we set a price cap of $10.

We prepared each brownie mix according to package instructions in the same 8-by-8-inch nonstick pans. (The two exceptions were Jiffy, which explicitly called for a loaf pan, and the 365 Whole Foods mixes, which called for 9-by-9-inch pans.)

When making the brownies, we paid close attention to the box instructions, looking for clarity and accuracy in the directions and the bake time.

We opted for standard preparations and skipped any optional additions, such as an extra egg for cakey texture. In cases where we were given the option to bake with butter or oil, we chose butter.

We sampled the brownies in a brand-concealed taste test, tasting them on the day they were baked and cooled to room temperature. We grouped the gluten-free mixes together so we could compare them against one another, and we offered whole milk and oat milk to sip with each round.

Our tasting panel included myself and the following Wirecutter editors and writers, who have kitchen and cooking expertise, as well as gluten-free baking knowledge: Marilyn Ong, Marguerite Preston, Gabriella Gershenson, Mace Dent Johnson, Abigail Bailey, and Ciara Murray Jordan.

When we were tasting the brownies, we evaluated them based on texture and flavor, looking for chewy edges, fudgy interiors, shiny-crackly tops, decent height, well-balanced sweetness, and real chocolate flavor. We also noted undesirable qualities, like powdery, gummy, dry, or crumbly textures, as well as off-putting flavors and aromas, such as fake vanilla or chemical leavening. Then they ranked their favorite brownie mixes from each round of tasting to determine the best ones.