Let’s be frank, not all hot dogs are created equal.

By 

Tadhg Hylier Stevens

Published on June 30, 2024

Frankly, there’s never a bad time for a hot dog. And that means that you should keep a few packs in stock that can be thrown on the grates or roasted around a campfire at a moment’s notice. Even if you don’t have a way to cook up a few franks outdoors, you can still enjoy a charred brat by using your oven’s broiler or air fryer, as long as you monitor the hot dog’s progress carefully.

Before you start cooking up a dog or two, you’ll want to decide which brand to reach for. To help you figure out which brand most deserves your buck, we tested 11 varieties of hot dogs, all of which are available online or in stores. Here are our rankings from best to worst.

What We Looked for When Ranking Hot Dogs 

Taste: Flavor is top priority in our search for the perfect frank. For this test, we considered how much actual meat flavor was in each dog compared to just salt taste; we also made sure to point out different varieties of hot dogs so that those who prefer beef to pork (or turkey to either) can find their best bites.

Price: Hot dogs aren’t just a summer staple; they’re a year-round grocery list favorite. On top of that, they’re famously made from inexpensive meat cuts, so they shouldn’t cost more than a few dollars. Most of the hot dogs we tested cost $4 or less, and one brand cost less than $0.50 for a pack of eight.

Texture: For this test, we were looking for which franks would have the best texture when either grilled or broiled. By and large, most of the brands we tested plumped up well and didn’t split while cooking. Most also achieved a pleasantly crisp exterior; we’ll point out the few that didn’t.

Additional Features: As mentioned above, some hot dogs can suffer from an abundance of salt flavor. That’s because some contain more than just a bit of salt. In addition to noting the protein-heavy hitters on this list, we also pointed out which brands contained a notable amount of sodium. Some brands we tested contained less than 300 milligrams of sodium per hot dog, but a few packed in nearly half a day’s recommended serving in just one frank.

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