The 16 Best Store-Bought Cake Mixes, Ranked Worst To First

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Nothing tops a homemade cake, but you don't always have the time to make one. And, truth be told, homemade cakes can be complicated — not everyone's baking skills are up to the task just yet. Boxed cake mixes are an excellent way for new bakers to get a feel for the process and practice their cake-making skills.

Though dozens of options are available, not all boxed cake mixes are created equal. And while your boxed cake may not turn out like a homemade version, great strides have been made in recent years to make boxed mixes more impressive. Even some old-school brands have upped their game, making mixes for cakes that taste like they could have been made from scratch.

The only problem with the abundance of available varieties is that you might not know which box to buy. This is a problem because some are available at grocery stores, while others can only be found online. Fortunately, we're here to help — we've got plenty of cake mix options, along with tips to help you decide which one best suits your purposes.

Professional baker and author of Baking with Blondie tested three different white cakes and gave her feedback. Kroger's wicked white scored high marks on color, but the finished product had air pockets and a less-than-desirable crumb. She also noted that it cooked faster than the other varieties she tested. This could prove problematic for new bakers since oven temperatures vary widely, and it could be easier to burn.

The cakes were a bit concave on the top when she removed them from the oven, but they were larger and denser than the other options. She complimented them on their looks from the outside but found large air pockets in the cake rounds once she cut into them. And she wasn't as impressed with the flavor. She commented that this one was overly sweet and tasted artificial. It was moist but had a pancake-like flavor that turned her off.

A review on Insider that compared three brands of boxed cake mixes found the Betty Crocker devil's food cake mix to be lackluster. It was moist but not exceptionally flavorful. Author and reviewer Alana Al-Hatlani reported that the cake this mix produced "was very moist and has a nice crumb and soft texture throughout, but it was by far the least chocolaty of the bunch." She thought the flavor was watered down.

Reviewers on Influenster and Amazon disagreed with the analysis. Most were big fans of this cake mix. One reviewer, however, agreed that "it could be more chocolaty," and another commented that "this cake is spongy, airy, and has a delicious chocolate flavor, but is not as moist as a homemade chocolate sponge" (via Influenster). On Amazon, one reviewer rated Betty Crocker cake mix five stars and pointed out that you could "cook it in your instant pot!" But another noted "a weird chemical taste" and gave it only two stars (via Amazon).

According to The Chalkboard Mag, the Sweet Laurel brand was born out of a personal quest for grain-free desserts she could eat. Unsurprisingly, she found others with similar dietary restrictions and needs, which led to her opening a grain-free bakery in Los Angeles. Her recipes became hits, and she created a box mix that you can use to make her chocolate cake at home.

On their website, Sweet Laurel states that their recipes are grain, dairy, refined-sugar free, all-natural, and paleo. And reviewers on the website found the chocolate cake delicious and liked that it was made with clean, all-natural ingredients. One reviewer commented, "I'm so glad there's finally a cake mix out there with only clean ingredients" (via Sweet Laurel).

Because these are made with almond flour, they may not be as shelf-stable as traditional varieties. And while they have options to make their mixes vegan, it often requires bakers to purchase many additional ingredients, sometimes at great expense.

The reviews for Pamela's gluten-free cake mix were impressive. One Amazon reviewer even questioned whether the mix was truly gluten-free because it tasted so good. She said she and her children, who can't eat gluten, "bought a case we love it so much." But some people found it disappointing.

One reviewer thought the vanilla cake flavor was fine as a starter mix but said she "had to add a lot to make the flavor okay" (via Amazon). Other reviewers also found the flavor bland; one noted that it dried out quickly after being baked.

The chocolate cake flavor was also highly rated on the company's website. According to one reviewer, this is "the best chocolate cake mix around, dense, fudgy, and moist" (via Pamela's). And many who didn't have to eat gluten-free products said they liked this as much, if not more, than the alternatives they were more familiar with.

There aren't many gluten-free boxed cake mixes that were rated high. There's just something a little off about gluten-free mixes if you're used to eating cakes made with flour. And ingredients like almond flour can go bad if they sit on a shelf for too long. Bob's Red Mill was an exception, but it still didn't rate as high as traditional mixes.

The vanilla cake mix seemed to be a hit or miss, with all the reviewers either loving or hating it. On the Bob's Red Mill site, one reviewer reported, "After 15 years gluten-free, happy to find the perfect vanilla cake for our celebrations or just a sunny day!" But a different reviewer said they prefer gluten-free mixes made with rice flour because while the texture of this cake was great, due to "the overwhelming amount of potato flour, it smells and tastes like instant potato mash."

You've probably seen Annie's Organic in the pasta aisle of your local grocery store, where you can find their boxed macaroni and cheese. They aim to create products from natural ingredients that are good for you and to be socially conscious by working with farmers and others along the supply chain for their products.

The same goes for their cake mix, which is one of the things people like most about it. One reviewer at Walmart raved, "This cake is fabulous . . . not too sweet either. Made with good ingredients you've heard of and can pronounce." But a few people complained about the flavor, commenting that it was artificial or chemical. One Amazon reviewer was disappointed that the company no longer uses organic flavors in its products. They complained: "Annie's is skimping on organic flavoring and using 'natural flavors'", and the cake mix's flavor has suffered.

King Arthur makes a variety of cake mixes, and while their flavors tend to be more traditional — yellow, white, chocolate — they also offer keto and gluten-free versions. Most of the 300+ reviews on the company's website were five stars, including the gluten-free products. The gluten-free chocolate cake has a 4.8 out of 5-star rating, which one reviewer called "Soft, fluffy, delightful. A very quality cake" (per King Arthur).

The lemon buttermilk version didn't fare as well, earning only 4.3 stars. One reviewer complained, "It was easy to make, but disappointing in the end" (per King Arthur), commenting it had little to no lemon flavor and that the glaze was more like syrup. Most of King Arthur's reviews raved about this cake mix's delicate crumb, moistness, and flavor. But a few dissenters found the finished product drier and heavier than they'd have liked. And several found the coconut flavor in the keto versions overpowering and unpleasant.

Ghirardelli's boxed mix takes the cake. It comes in dark and double chocolate. It was more expensive than other brands available at grocery stores (though not as expensive as The Caker), but everyone agreed the flavor was worth the extra cost. A review of the dark chocolate flavor on The Influenster site commented, "It's very moist and has very decadent chocolate, which is hard to find." Some even commented they choose to make this boxed cake mix instead of baking one from scratch.

An Amazon reviewer called it "absolutely the richest, easiest chocolate cake I have ever made." And a Walmart reviewer explained, "This is the best cake you will ever eat! It contains shredded rich dark chocolate which after baking is moist and dark." It only makes one 9-inch cake, so you'll need two boxes for a layer cake, but it still gives you the best flavor for the price.