Best tomato ketchup: Heinz vs supermarket own labels

Tomato ketchup is a much-loved staple for many dishes, 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 60 ketchup fans to blind-taste and rate seven supermarket own-label ketchups alongside Heinz and Hellmann's. 

One cheap supermarket own-label came top, getting our Best Buy and Great Value recommendations.

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

Best tomato ketchup

Heinz was pipped to the post by Waitrose in our ketchup contest.

Not only did Waitrose impress on taste, but it was also one of the cheapest on test (and less than a third of the price of Heinz).

Best Buy and Great Value: Waitrose Essential Tomato Ketchup

Price: 90p for 470g (19p per 100g)

Score: 77%

Looking for a budget-friendly alternative to Heinz? According to our tasters, this ketchup from Waitrose tastes just as good, despite costing a fraction of the price.

It scored highly, with the majority finding it had a well-balanced tanginess, sweetness and strength of flavour. 

It was also one of the most appealing-looking ketchups, with 82% rating the colour spot on.

Waitrose ketchup is a Great Value pick if you're looking to save without compromising on taste. Plus, it contains less salt and sugar than Heinz.

Available from Waitrose.

Co-op On the Side Tomato Ketchup

Price: £1.25 for 550g (23p per 100g)

Score: 76%

Co-op ketchup also impressed our tasters, and was just behind our Best Buy in the rankings.

Not only did it look the part, with a lovely thickness and enticing colour, but it was also one of the best-rated for flavour.

While it's slightly pricier than other supermarket own-labels, Co-op is still a solid choice if you're after a tasty supermarket ketchup.

Available from Co-op.

Heinz Tomato Ketchup

Price: £3 for 460g (65p per 100g)

Score: 76%

The big brand proved a strong contender, finishing in joint-second place alongside Co-op. 

It scored high marks for appearance, aroma and flavour. It didn't quite match up to the top-scorer in all areas, though, with a third of tasters finding the texture too thin.

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 offer.

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

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

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

How other tomato ketchups compare

Most other supermarket ketchups scored similarly, but not all were on par with the top-scorers. Morrisons finished last, losing marks for its disappointing flavour. 

• Asda Classic Tomato Ketchup, 74% A good all-rounder and worth considering if you're after a decent bottle of ketchup. £1.13 for 550g (21p per 100g). Available from Asda.
• Hellmann's Tomato Ketchup, 72% It scored well overall, although some found it too tangy. Hellmann's is roughly double the price of supermarket own-labels. £2.15 for 473g (45p per 100g). Available from Ocado and Tesco.
• Tesco Tomato Ketchup, 72% Rated highly for texture, but the flavour didn't match up to higher scorers. £1.15 for 555g (21p per 100g). Available from Tesco.
• Marks & Spencer Tomato Ketchup, 68% The flavour was OK, but 43% found the texture too thick. It also contains more sugar than other ketchups. 95p for 495g (19p per 100g). Available from Ocado and M&S (in-store only).
• Sainsbury's Tomato Ketchup, 68% Not quite on par with other ketchups. Fell behind on aroma and flavour. 95p for 460g (21p per 100g). Available from Sainsbury's.
• Morrisons Tomato Ketchup, 63% The worst-rated on flavour. Some found it too tangy and not sweet enough. 95p for 450g (21p per 100g). Available from Morrisons.
  

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Full results from our tomato ketchup taste test 

Is tomato ketchup healthy?

You might not think a dollop of ketchup could do much harm, but it’s worth keeping an eye on the amount of sugar and salt it contains.

M&S has by far the highest sugar content at 35.6g per 100g – nearly double the amount of some others we tested. Heinz and Hellmann's ketchup are both high in salt, containing 1.8g per 100g. The supermarket own-label products we tested all had lower salt levels than these big brands.

Which? nutrition expert Shefalee Loth said: 

'The recommended portion size of ketchup is around one tablespoon, and this will contain around a tenth of your maximum recommended daily intake of free sugar. But lots of people use much more than this, so bear this in mind when you're thinking about the amount of sugar you're consuming. 

On the other hand, ketchup is low in fat and is a good source of lycopene, an antioxidant. The lycopene in ketchup and other cooked and concentrated tomatoes is more bioavailable than that found in raw, fresh tomatoes.'

Where to buy reduced-sugar and salt ketchup:

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

• Asda 50% Less Sugar & Salt Tomato Ketchup £1.15 for 530g (21p per 100g). Available from Asda.
• Heinz 50% Less Salt & Sugar Tomato Ketchup £3 for 435g (69p per 100g). Available from Asda, Morrisons, Ocado and Waitrose.
• M&S Tomato Ketchup Reduced Sugar 95p for 495g (19p per 100g). Available from Ocado and in-store at M&S.
• Morrisons Reduced Salt & Sugar Tomato Ketchup 90p for 440g (21p per 100g). Available from Morrisons.
• Sainsbury's Reduced Sugar & Salt Tomato Ketchup 95p for 445g (21p per 100g). Available from Sainsbury's.
• Tesco Reduced Sugar & Salt Ketchup £1.15 for 530g (22p per 100g). Available from Tesco.
• Waitrose Essential Reduced Sugar & Salt Ketchup 90p for 445g (20p per 100g). Available from Waitrose.

How we tested tomato ketchup

All the tomato ketchups were blind-tasted and rated by a panel of 60 people in July 2026 at our specialist test lab.

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

The taste test was conducted 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
• 20% aroma
• 10% texture

These weightings are based on the attributes people ranked as most important when tasting tomato ketchup. All our results are checked and analysed by our in-house statistical team.

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

Price and availability correct as of August 2026.