When you click on a retailer link on our site, we may earn affiliate commission to help fund our not-for-profit mission.Find out more.
Best pork sausages: the brilliant budget supermarket bangers and top brands
Love a good traditional pork sausage - whether on the first BBQ of the season or as a quick and tasty dinner?
Our latest taste tests uncovered cheap and delicious bangers from Aldi that beat supermarket rivals, plus the best branded options to buy.
We asked a panel of consumers to blind-taste and rate pork sausages from 12 different brands, including Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury's and other supermarket options, plus branded versions such as Heck and The Black Farmer.
Aldi and The Black Farmer's offerings tied for the coveted top spot, with their tasty sausages impressing our panel of tasters.
Read on for the full results, including how your nearest supermarket sausages fared, and the best cheap sausages you can buy.
Tips for living well - get our free Food & Health newsletter: shop savvy, eat well, stay healthy
Best pork sausages
We think these are the best bangers for your buck.
Best Buy: Aldi Specially Selected 6 British Pork Sausages - 76%
Aldi's sausages show that great taste isn't a preserve of premium prices, as they were the cheapest sausages on test but still came joint-first overall.
These sausages scored a full five stars for both their strong and succulent pork flavour as well as the perfectly appetising colour.
At just £1.99 for a 400g pack, they truly are bargain bangers.
Available from Aldi
Best Buy: The Black Farmer 6 Premium Pork Sausages - 76%
Cornish-based The Black Farmer's sausages scored impressive marks across the board, tying for first place alongside Aldi and earning a Best Buy.
They may not be cheap, but these sausages held their own in terms of tastiness (for the second year in a row, we might add).
Around three quarters of tasters loved the strength of the pork flavour, while roughly 85% found the saltiness and colour spot on.
Available from Tesco, Sainsbury's,Ocado and direct from The Black Farmer
Best Buy food and drink- see our tops picks on everything from tomato ketchup to hot cross buns and more
Other pork sausages worth buying
These high-scorers weren't too far behind our winners:
Tesco Finest British Pork Sausages - 74%
Tesco's sausages narrowly missed the top spot, scoring well in most categories and most notably bagging five stars for their appealing colour.
While they scored well in terms of appearance and smell, scoring four stars for each, around four in 10 thought the seasoning wasn't quite perfect.
Available from Tesco
M&S Select Farms British 6 Pork Sausages - 72%
M&S sausages are another worthwhile contender. Much like our second and first-place bangers, M&S's versions impressed our tasters with their tasty appearance.
However, our panel thought the flavour was a little lacking, with around four in 10 reporting the seasoning as too weak.
They were the second-most expensive sausages we tested too, so if you're going to splash out, you might want to pick one of the top scorers instead.
Available from Ocado or M&S (in-store only).
Mid-scoring supermarket pork sausages
These are the brands who found themselves with more middling marks in our taste tests. They aren't bad, so if they are most convenient to buy for you, you shouldn't be too disappointed.
- Iceland 6 Luxury 100% British Pork Sausages - 71%. 85% liked how moist these sausages were, though the seasoning and overall flavour could be better. £2.25 for 340g (66p per 100g).
Available from Iceland - Sainsbury's Taste the Difference British Pork Sausages - 70%. Scored well for aroma and saltiness, but around 45% found the texture too coarse. £2.50 for 400g (63p per 100g).
Available from Sainsbury's - Asda Extra Special 6 Pork Sausages - 69%. Earned five stars for colour, but over half found the seasoning lacking. £2.75 for 400g (69p per 100g).
Available from Asda - Lidl Deluxe 6 Outdoor Bred British Pork Sausages - 68%. One of the cheapest brands we tested, however 55% thought the meat was too coarse. £1.99 for 400g (50p per 100g).
Available from Lidl - Co-op Irresistible 6 Pork Sausages - 68%. Scored two stars for appearance, but smell, flavour and texture were a more average three stars. £3 for 400g (75p per 100g).
Available from Co-op
Lower-scoring sausages from our taste tests
Our panel rated these as their least favourite sausages. Reasons for lower scores ranged from poorly balanced seasoning (too salty or too bland) to unappealing texture or appearance.
- Waitrose No.1 Free Range Pork Sausages - 63%.The most expensive sausages we reviewed. Our tasters found the herb and spice seasoning too weak. £3.50 for 400g (88p per 100g).
Available from Waitrose - Heck 6 97% Pork Sausages - 59%. The only brand to score one star for appearance, and over four in 10 tasters found them too salty. £3 for 400g (75p per 100g).
Available from Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Co-op, Waitrose and Ocado - Morrisons The Best Thick Pork Sausages - 57%. The only brand to score one star for both flavour and texture. Over half found them lacking in flavour. £2.75 for 400g.
Available from Morrisons
How healthy are pork sausages?
Sausages made with pork are classified as a red meat, and are great sources of protein, and vitamins and minerals like iron, zinc and B12.
However, they can contain high amounts of fat and saturated fat, the latter of which is linked to increased 'bad' cholesterol if consumed in excess.
Sausage meat is also considered a processed meat, meaning it has been preserved by methods such as salting, smoking or adding preservatives. According to the British Heart Foundation, consuming too much processed meat is linked to higher blood pressure.
To best enjoy your pork sausages, the NHS recommends including them as part of a balanced diet, and to cut down on extra fat when cooking, for example by grilling rather than pan-frying.
No matter how you like to cook your bangers, make sure you're using the best equipment. See our reviews on the best non-stick frying pans, best electric grills, best griddle pans and best BBQs.
Are pork sausages gluten-free?
These days, yes - most supermarket sausages are gluten-free. All the sausages we tested for 2022 were gluten-free. Typically they use plant proteins instead to help bind the ingredients.
However, it's not guaranteed that all sausages will be gluten-free. Some may still contain rusk or other wheat products, so always check the ingredients label before buying if this is something you require.
Catering for vegans or veggies? See our round-up of the best plant-based sausages
For many people, knowing that their meat is free range is very important. It ensures that the animal had a good life outdoors with plenty of space.
Most of the sausages we tested were either RSPCA-Assured, Red Tractor-Assured, free range or outdoor-bred. No information could be found for Tesco, Iceland or Black Farmer, and Heck's sausages were marked as a 'mix of outdoor and indoor bred'.
To check if your pork came from a free-range source, check the packaging for an assurance sticker. This may be a Red Tractor or RSPCA label.
Decoding food labels - see our guide to understanding welfare and sustainability labels.
How we tested pork sausages
We asked a panel of 69 taste testers to blind-taste pork sausages from 12 different brands.
They were asked to rate each sausage in terms of appearance, aroma, texture and taste with help from a questionnaire. They were also asked to share what they liked and didn't like about each sausage.
This test was conducted blind and in a randomised order, so participants didn't know which sausage they were trying.
Can I recycle the packaging from my pork sausages?
Recycling rules will differ depending on which sausages you buy.
As a general rule, any cardboard sleeves can easily be recycled.
Most pork sausages come in a plastic tray or container with a plastic film covering. Whether the film and/or tray can be recycled depends on the plastic used, and this information can usually be found somewhere on the packaging.
To find out more about recycling and which symbols to look for, see our guide on how to recycle.
*prices correct as of 12 April 2022