12 Canned Green Bean Brands Ranked From Worst To Best

From underrated store-bought soups to the best tinned meats, canned foods have a place in nearly every American home's pantry — I know they certainly do in mine. They offer convenience and affordability that makes my busiest nights a lot easier. Unfortunately, not every canned food is worth the purchase. In my home, we keep canned green beans well stocked because it's a quick-cooking vegetable that everyone will actually eat. Over the years, I've generally stuck to the same two or three brands, but I've always wanted to branch out and explore other options.

Luckily, I got the chance to do just that by comparing 12 canned green bean brands. Then, I ranked them from worst to best so you can skip the taste trials and grab the best options available on your local grocery store's shelves. I relied on my 15 years experience in the food industry, 10 years experience farming (including growing fresh produce), and a lifetime of eating copious amounts of green beans to judge the taste, smell, coloring, and appearance of each brand. I also considered price when making my assessments. You can find a full explanation of my methodology at the end of this article. Let's get into it.

The Hanover Cut Green Beans were only available in a bulk-sized can, even though I tried the various grocery stores in my area to find a smaller one, including Walmart, Target, Shoprite, and Acme, as well as Amazon. That's a little inconvenient since my family of four doesn't require such a large helping of green beans, but if they were good, I'd be willing to look past that. Unfortunately, these were the worst cut green beans from all 12 brands I tried.

Hanover's green beans had a strange plasticky texture that made a squeaking noise when I tried to eat them, which I found really off-putting. The taste profile was watery and bland, even after adding a little salt, and there were notes of something waxy that definitely didn't improve things. It's possible that heavy seasoning and lots of butter (or maybe a marinade) might make these palpable, but overall, I can't recommend them. Plus, the pricing was comparatively expensive, albeit not bad for the bulk sizing. The one positive thing I can say is that the coloring was a vibrant, healthy green that I found visually appealing

From the moment I opened the can of Great Value Cut Green Beans, I noticed a distinctly tinny smell. This is an issue with some canned foods that really puts me off eating them from the get-go, but I pushed on so I could give them a fair taste test. Unfortunately, the bad start foreshadowed the negative experience I received.

The initial texture of the green beans wasn't bad, but they began falling apart during cooking and became a little mushy. No fresh, earthy green bean taste came through when I tasted them, which was disappointing. Instead, there was a distinctly chemically artificial taste more reminiscent of plastic than vegetables. This chemical taste is something that permeates much of Great Value's product offerings, including some of the worst fruit snacks. Skip these cut greens in favor of name brand options if you're shopping at Walmart — trust me, your taste buds will thank you.

These cut green beans from Signature Select were easily available to me at one of my local grocery stores. But, my first impression wasn't a great one because when I opened the can, I was met with an odd, faintly plasticky smell. Thinking it might have been the can, I removed the green beans and smelled them again, but the faint, unpleasant scent still lingered. Visuals and smell are important to me when choosing something to eat, so this put me off.

The taste wasn't the most awful I've ever had, but I can't really recommend it, either. The green beans were very bland, with no definitive taste on their own. A sprinkle of salt didn't help bring the flavor forward, either, which was disappointing. The texture was waxy and a little mushy, but not so much that it made me gag. Would I eat them again? If they were served to me. Would I seek them out for purchase purposefully? Absolutely not.

This is the second Amazon Fresh food item I've tried and I'm really just not impressed with the brand overall so far. While I know it's not exactly the brand's fault, this can of green beans came pretty banged up — and the instant mashed potatoes I ordered before did, too. This is worth noting because you'd have to have these shipped to your home.

The shipping issue aside, these cut green beans did have a nice dark green coloring, but were kind of soggy with a waxy texture. Admittedly, the first few bites had a nice fresh taste to them, but most of the dish tasted watery with no real flavor to speak of. I added a little extra salt after my initial taste test, which helped mildly but not enough for me to call these "good."

On a positive note, the price was among the lowest on this list at just under a dollar. However, even at this low price, I can't recommend these. If you're on a tight budget, you'd likely be better off purchasing your local retailer's store brand instead — plus, then there's no shipping fees or wait times.

These cut green beans were my first experience with the Green Valley Organics brand, and I'm not totally sure how to feel. These weren't bad, but they also weren't necessarily good, either. The green beans were a little waxy and oddly chewy, with a very bland flavor — almost like it was the ghost of a green bean instead of the real deal. That being said, it wasn't terrible and there was no bad aftertaste. I added a little salt and a pat of butter after my initial taste test, and this did help bring the flavor forward just enough for me to finish my serving.

Overall, I would probably eat these again if they were conveniently available because they weren't awful, but I wouldn't purposefully seek them out. Plus, I had to order these online, so I can't say they were worth the added inconvenience of waiting a few days.

Bowl and Basket is a store brand at one of my local grocers, Shoprite. As far as canned green beans go, these aren't terrible, but they aren't exactly delicious, either. There was no definitive smell from either the freshly opened container or the beans once they were removed from the can, which was mildly disappointing. This translated to the taste test, where the green beans didn't have much flavor on their own. Texturally, these were a little chewy but didn't turn to mush during cooking, which was nice.

Although these cut green beans aren't super flavorful on their own, they might be a good addition to a soup or stew — in fact, the light taste might be ideal for a spruced-up green bean casserole. Personally, I won't be buying these again because there are better brands, but if you prefer a very light flavor profile to your vegetables, you might like these just fine.

O Organics is a store brand available from Acme. Although I've tried many items from its other store brand (Signature Select), I haven't tried many O Organics products, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Thankfully, my experiences with the brand have been positive thus far — including with these green beans.

While there wasn't a strong scent when I opened the can, I did catch a light, pleasant grassy smell. During cooking, the green beans held their shape well and the cuts were nicely sized. But, the best part was the fresh, crisp taste predominately featuring earthy tones with mild sweet and grassy notes. Oh, and the ingredients list was particularly wholesome, featuring only green beans, sea salt, and water. If you live in one of the states with Acme, I highly recommend picking these up.

Good and Gather is Target's store brand, so it should be widely available and accessible for most people. Admittedly, I don't have a lot of experience with this brand, but my encounters have been mostly positive thus far — and thankfully, this taste test ended up being a positive experience, too.

These green beans are very tasty, with a mild but satisfying grassy taste. Light sweet notes come through and are enhanced by the butter I added after my initial taste test — the creamy butter was the perfect addition to this flavor profile. Plus, the green beans held their shape well during cooking and maintained a pleasantly solid texture. A light earthy scent was noticeable upon opening, but it strengthened during cooking and made my kitchen smell mouth-watering. I can confidently recommend these and would not hesitate to grab them again next time I'm at the store.

The interesting thing about these 365 Whole Foods Market organic cut green beans is that the sweet notes present in other options aren't really here — but that's not necessarily a bad thing. These green beans had a deep earthy flavor profile that was refreshing and delicious on its own, without any additions outside a sprinkle of salt. Of course, for a full disclosure, I add a sprinkle of salt to all my vegetables, whether they're fresh, canned, or frozen.

Although the beans didn't have much of a scent in the can, they had a light earthy smell after being cooked that felt perfectly balanced. The cuts were perfect and so was the texture. My singular complaint is that there were quite a few stems I had to pull out before cooking. But, since the green beans were so delicious, I didn't mind too much, and would purchase them again regardless.

Del Monte is a brand that's been around for a while, and one of the few on this list I'm familiar with from my childhood — and my initial taste test proved to me why it has withstood the test of time. Opening the can released a fresh, earthy scent I found appealing and promising. During cooking, the green beans softened slightly but overall remained firm so they offered a nice, crisp texture when you bit into them.

Unlike lower-ranked brands on this list, there was no waxy or artificial taste. Instead, there was a strong, earthy green bean flavor paired with the slightest sweet notes. Despite them not being my favorite canned green bean, I would definitely buy these again in a heartbeat. 

My singular complaint was that I felt I didn't receive quite as many green beans as I expected based on the size of the can. However, this could be a personal misconception or bias and it wasn't enough that I felt the ranking should be affected.

Green Giant has, in my experience, always been an overall reliable brand and it deserves the second spot on this ranking list. In fact, it was a very close call between Green Giant and the top brand chosen. The decision was so challenging to make that I eventually chose a winner based on price — since Green Giant Cut Green Beans are a few cents more expensive, they took second place instead of first.

That being said, these green beans have all the winning qualities you could want in a canned vegetable. The flavor profile is perfectly balanced, with a fresh, grassy taste complimented by lightly sweet tones. Texturally, these are firm and hold their shape well during cooking with zero signs of mushiness. Plus, they have none of the waxiness apparent in the lower-ranking green bean brands. If our top choice isn't available in stores near you, I feel confident suggesting Green Giant as a solid runner-up.

When opening this can of green beans, I was greeted with a fresh produce smell that was light but noticeable. From the first bite, they had a wholesome earthy green bean taste laced with light sweet notes. The texture was soft enough that there wasn't significant resistance when biting, but firm enough that it didn't feel like I was eating baby food.

Libby's Cut Green Beans are everything you want in a canned green bean. This is a brand I can remember even from my childhood, so I was already familiar with it and knew I liked it, but wasn't sure how it would stack up when compared side-by-side with other brands. However, now I can definitely say these are the best canned green beans and should become a mainstay in your home's pantry. For an easy weeknight meal, dump a can of these into your favorite easy beef stew recipe for a meal upgrade, or serve them beside oven-baked chicken.

To determine the best canned green bean brands, I relied on my experience in the food industry and growing my own fresh produce, as well as a lifetime of eating green beans because they're one of my favorite vegetables. Each brand was judged based predominantly on the taste profile, according to my preferences and experience. I also considered the smell (if there was one of note), coloring, overall presentation, and pricing when ranking each item.

Each canned green bean brand was prepared in the exact same way to keep things fair, and this is also why I only chose cut green bean options over other varieties. They were heated up according to the instructions and seasoned with just a sprinkle of salt. Salt was added because this is how I like to eat my green beans, so I believed my judgments wouldn't be fair without it. Brands were chosen based on their availability in my area or online and were purchased from Amazon, Walmart, Target, Shoprite, and Acme. Brands purchased from Amazon were limited to those priced at what I could reasonably expect to pay at a local retailer.