Best tomato ketchup: Heinz vs supermarket own labels

Tomato ketchup is a much-loved staple for many, but do you need to splash out on big-brand versions to get the tastiest tomato tang?

To find out, we asked a panel of 72 people to blind-taste and rate eight supermarket own-label ketchups, including Aldi, Asda and Tesco, alongside Heinz and Hellmann's. 

Heinz stood out and is a worthy Best Buy, but we also uncovered a tasty supermarket ketchup that was rated just as highly but is significantly cheaper. 

Keep reading to see our full results, and find out how the ketchups compare on salt and sugar content.

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Best tomato ketchup

Asda and Heinz were crowned joint winners of our taste test, both receiving high praise from our tomato ketchup lovers. 

Asda is also our Great Value pick, as it's one of the cheapest bottles around.

Best Buy and Great Value: Asda Classic Tomato Ketchup – 77%

£1 for 550g (18p per 100g)

According to our tasters, this budget-friendly ketchup from Asda is just as good as Heinz, despite being a fraction of the price. It's less than a third of the price of Heinz at 18p per 100g, compared to 65p for 100g – it's brilliant value for money.

It was a big hit overall, scoring top marks across the board, with most finding it had well-balanced tanginess, sweetness and strength of flavour.

It also contains less salt and sugar than Heinz ketchup.

Available from Asda.

Best Buy: Heinz Tomato Ketchup – 77%

£3 for 460g (65p per 100g)

Heinz Tomato Ketchup proved it's a classic for a reason, achieving the top overall score in our taste test alongside Asda.

Not only was it one of the most appealing-looking ketchups, our tasters also rated it highly for texture and flavour: more than two thirds were satisfied with its tanginess and sweetness.

At £3 a bottle, it's the most expensive ketchup we tested, so it's worth keeping an eye out for supermarket deals and stocking up if you see it on special offer.

Heinz ketchup contains more salt and sugar per 100g than most of the others we tested. A reduced-salt version is also available, though we didn't test this.

Available from Asda, Co-op, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.

Waitrose Essential Tomato Ketchup – 75%

95p for 470g (20p per 100g)

Waitrose ketchup also impressed our tasters, and was just behind our Best Buys in the rankings.

It scored well for flavour and was one of the best-rated ketchups for texture – most tasters found the thickness just right.

Although not quite in the same league as Heinz and Asda tomato ketchup, Waitrose's own label is still a solid choice if you're after a tasty supermarket alternative.

Available from Waitrose.

Aldi Bramwells Tomato Ketchup – 73%

89p for 550g (16p per 100g)

Aldi's ketchup is another cheap option worth considering, and it has the lowest sugar content per 100g.

Our tasters thought it had a great texture, and many agreed that the thickness was spot-on.

However, not everyone liked the taste – only around half of our ketchup lovers were satisfied with the sweetness and strength of flavour.

Available in-store at Aldi.

Looking for more summer food and drink recommendations? See our pick of the best olive oil, the best pork sausages and the best alcohol-free beer

How other tomato ketchups compare

Most of the other supermarket ketchups scored similarly, although M&S fell some way behind. Hellmann's ketchup was fairly average, despite being one of the most expensive we tested.

• Co-op Tomato Ketchup – 72%. Scored reasonably well overall, but nearly a third of our tasters thought it was too tangy. £1.25 for 550g (23p per 100g). Available from Co-op.
• Sainsbury's Tomato Ketchup – 71%. Good tanginess and sweetness, but the texture was less appealing compared to others. 90p for 460g (20p per 100g). Available from Sainsbury's.
• Tesco Tomato Ketchup – 71%. Good appearance and texture, but the flavour didn't impress. £1 for 555g (18p per 100g). Available from Tesco.
• Hellmann's Tomato Ketchup – 70%. Twice the price of many supermarket own labels, but our tasters thought it lacked both texture and flavour. £2.15 for 473g (45p per 100g). Available from Asda, Morrisons and Tesco.
• Lidl Batts Tomato Ketchup – 68%. Our tasters weren't particularly impressed by the flavour of Lidl's cheap ketchup. 89p for 560g (16p per 100g). Available in-store at Lidl.
• M&S Tomato Ketchup – 61%. This was the least-liked ketchup overall, with some tasters finding it too thick, dark and tangy. £1 for 495g (20p per 100g). Available from Ocado and in-store at M&S.

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How we tested tomato ketchup

All the tomato ketchups were blind-tasted and rated by a panel of 72 people in July 2025 at our specialist test lab.

We recruited a panel who regularly buy and eat tomato ketchup. The group broadly represented the demographic profile of adults in the UK (age range, gender split and more). 

The taste test was blind, so our testers didn’t know which brand they were trying. They tasted the ketchups in a fully rotated order to avoid any bias. Each tester had a private tasting booth, so they couldn’t discuss what they were tasting or be influenced by others.

The tasters rated the flavour, aroma, appearance and texture of each ketchup, and told us what they liked and disliked. 

The overall score was based on:

• 50% flavour
• 20% appearance
• 15% texture
• 15% aroma

These weightings are based on what people ranked as the most important attributes when tasting tomato ketchup. 

All our results are checked and analysed by our in-house statistical team for accuracy.

Find out more about our editorial independence policy and see behind the scenes of our taste tests to understand more about how we work

Is tomato ketchup healthy?

You might not think a dollop of ketchup can't do too much harm, but it’s worth keeping an eye on sugar and salt levels. 

Each 15g serving of Heinz ketchup (slightly less than a teaspoon) contains 3.4g of sugar, so you may want to watch how much you put on your chips. Along with M&S ketchup, Heinz's gets a red traffic light rating for sugar content. M&S has by far the highest sugar content at 35.6g of sugar per 100g (5.3g per 15g) – nearly double the amount of some others we tested.

Heinz and Hellmann's ketchup are also both high in salt, containing 1.8g per 100g. The supermarket own labels we tested all had lower salt levels compared to these big brands.

Where to buy reduced-sugar and salt ketchup

If you're watching your salt or sugar intake, you may want to consider buying a ketchup that reduces those ingredients. We only included standard versions in our taste test to ensure products were comparable, but we've rounded up some supermarket options below:

• Asda 50% Less Sugar & Salt Tomato Ketchup – £1 for 530g (19p per 100g). Available from Asda.
• Heinz 50% Less Salt & Sugar Tomato Ketchup – £3 for 435g (69p per 100g). Available from Asda, Morrisons, Ocado, Tesco and Waitrose.
• M&S Tomato Ketchup Reduced Sugar – £1 for 495g (20p per 100g). Available from Ocado and in-store at M&S.
• Sainsbury's Reduced Sugar & Salt Tomato Ketchup – 90p for 445g (20p per 100g). Available from Sainsbury's.
• Tesco Reduced Sugar & Salt Ketchup – £1 for 530g (19p per 100g). Available from Tesco.
• Waitrose Essential Reduced Sugar & Salt Ketchup – 95p for 445g (21p per 100g). Available from Waitrose.

Best cheap supermarket food and drink – we reveal the cheaper own labels that beat the big brands in our blind taste tests

Price and availability checked: July 2025