Forget Oreos, Trader Joe's Has A Tasty Copycat For Less

There are some iconic snacks that have been around for so long that it's hard to imagine a time without them. With velvety creme interiors surrounded by crunchy chocolate wafers, Oreo cookies are certainly one of them. This iconic brand has graced American pantries for over 100 years, and while there's no recipe out there exactly like it, some brands have produced similar cookie snacks over the years, and the results are pretty delicious.

If you find yourself picking up your weekly groceries at Trader Joe's, you won't be able to find Oreo cookies on the shelves. However, Trader Joe's has a lot of popular snacks that are close substitutes to name-brand picks — and sometimes they're even better than the original. 

For all fans of crunchy, creamy cookies, Trader Joe's version of Oreo cookies is its Chocolate Vanilla Creme Joe-Joe's. Much like Oreos, this snack features a whipped creme vanilla bean filling sandwiched between two chocolate cookies made with cocoa powder. But if you're curious about the fine print, here's more on how this beloved Trader Joe's snack stacks up against the big-name brand.

While the prices of Oreo cookies and Joe-Joe's cookies will vary per location, currently a 13.4-ounce package of Chocolate Vanilla Creme Joe-Joe's is selling for $2.99 at Trader Joe's, while a 13.29-ounce package of Oreos is sold for as low as $3.98 at Walmart, or $4.39 at Target. Looking beyond price to the nutritional side of these snacks, the suggested serving size of three Oreo cookies amounts to 160 calories, while two Joe-Joe's amounts to 120 calories. Still, the ingredients of these cookies are mostly similar, with each relying on unbleached enriched flour, sugar, palm oil, and cocoa powder processed with alkali as some of their main additions. 

Finally, each cookie brand offers a lot in terms of variety, with Joe-Joe's being sold in both a gluten-free version and a chocolate & peanut butter flavor, among others. Meanwhile, Oreo offers different flavors too, including mint, birthday cake, lemon, and java chip, to name just a few.

Oreos do beat Trader Joe's cookies in terms of accessibility since the many varieties of this beloved snack are available at multiple stores. But if you find yourself at a Trader Joe's, you can always pick up a classic box of Joe-Joe's for less.

By now we've all heard what people have to say about Oreos, so let's dig into what Trader Joe's customers think of Joe-Joe's. One Reddit user took to the web to canvas cookie fans directly, asking exactly how this snack stacked up against Oreos, and many people shared their thoughts. '"I prefer the cream filling in the [Joe-Joe's], but the cookie is far superior in the Oreos, IMO. I eat the gluten-free version," one customer said. Another fan honestly thought that the two snacks shouldn't be compared at all. "They're not like Oreos, the cream texture is less like paste and more like fudge and the cookie texture is more crispy/crunchy...I grew up on Joe-Joe's so I love 'em, but it's like the peanut butter cups– Reese's die-hards will not accept substitutes," they said.

Others were actively disappointed in the Joe-Joe's, especially following an apparent change in the recipe. "The cookie is thinner, the creme is too sweet, and there's less cream. I much prefer the old recipe," one customer claimed. Other shoppers echoed those sentiments.

Everyone has a different opinion on the Joe-Joe's. So, if you really want to know the difference, you may just have to try them for yourself to decide if a lower price point is worth a swap. Then, if you're hungry for more copycats, see how Trader Joe's chili lime chips compare to Takis.