9 Strawberry Milk Brands Ranked Worst To Best

There's a core memory many of us have of that very first day at kindergarten when an extremely important decision needed to be made: choosing what to drink during snack time. All the kids in my class were given one out of four options: a carton of orange juice, plain milk, chocolate milk, or strawberry milk. It's a decision that, as a 5-year-old entering the beginning stages of academia, I knew not to take lightly. The moment I sipped my first carton of strawberry milk as an impressionable young student, I knew I would be hooked for life — or at least until I graduated kindergarten and moved onto other big-kid drinks like soda, Gatorade, and Capri-Sun. So, it's only fitting that I now have the esteemed honor of ranking different brands as a fastidious adult-aged critic.

Creamy, fruity, and with a pretty pink hue, strawberry milk is perfect for kids and kids at heart who crave a sweeter beverage with a more colorful personality than plain milk. As an ode to those bygone days, I taste-tested nine different brands of strawberry milk for a thorough review and ranked them from worst to best. As a side note, some of the brands ranked in line with Chowhound's review of different chocolate milk brands, which goes to show that certain brands are consistent in taste and quality across flavored milk products ... for better or for worse.

No, it's not technically real milk. Yes, it's the worst one on the list. And, no, none of you should be surprised by its low ranking. Yoo-hoo Strawberry Drink is a Frankensteinian concoction of over 20 ingredients, the longest list among its competitors. Akin to the differences between chocolate milk and chocolate drink, Yoo-hoo's Strawberry Drink does not include liquid milk. Instead, the main ingredient is water, followed by high fructose corn syrup and whey, then nonfat dry milk. The remaining ingredients include a mishmash of gums, oils, artificial flavors, artificial colors, and much more. So much more.

It's a sad interpretation of strawberry milk, albeit incredibly nostalgic for someone like me, who grew up drinking the brand's different products. I would compare its consistency to a loose, thin juice — nothing that even remotely resembles a milky texture. There's a powdery substance dispersed throughout that doesn't fully dissolve even after a thorough shaking. And, if you decide to let the glass sit for longer than a few minutes, that chalky substance collects and congeals slightly at the bottom.

And I can't complete this review without discussing the color. While all the other beverages offer a subtle array of pretty white, cream, and pink shades, Yoo-hoo marches to the beat of its own drum. The garishly deep magenta was an unexpected shock upon pouring it into the glass. Luckily, for those of you who still want to purchase it, you'll more than likely keep it hidden inside a single-serving box.

Compared to the smell and flavor of the other choices in this ranking, United Dairy's Strawberry Flavored Whole Milk utterly fails to land any higher than second-to-last place. Even after a micro-sip of this bizarre concoction, I immediately knew it would end up close to the bottom. It tasted and smelled eerily similar to a cheap, and most likely fake, white chocolate: The sweetness level was too cloying, the artificiality of the ingredients was too obvious, and the overall quality was too disappointing.

Other than the Yoo-hoo brand, United Dairy's strawberry milk is the only product in this lineup that contains high fructose corn syrup instead of sugar as the sweetener. Combined with mysteriously labeled natural and artificial flavors, it's no big wonder that the flavor was more off-putting than the majority of its competitors. And the use of three separate artificial colors (Red #3, Red #40, and Blue #1) seemed like overkill to achieve the perfect fake pink pigment.

As one of two organic options on this list, good2grow's Organic Strawberry Low-Fat Milk has a lot of good stuff going on, since USDA-certified organic food items, like dairy products, must meet strict livestock guidelines. Other than having no antibiotics or hormones, dairy cows must be raised on 100% organic feed products, must be out on pasture for the whole grazing season, and are required to have access to the outdoors for the entire year.

While it was surprising at first to see strawberry milk that was milky-white in color, if you're a parent searching for minimally processed beverages with no artificial colorings, good2grow is a worthwhile purchase. Sold in single-serving bottles, the detachable drinking spout features fun cartoon characters. Store-depending, you might find Sonic the Hedgehog, Bluey, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, or a small army of Disney characters. While the price is high for just one 8-ounce bottle, the plastic label can be removed, and the bottle and spout can be easily cleaned by hand for frequent reuse.

Even though the brand follows high organic standards and has adorable design features, it's not as focused on how the milk tastes. All the bells and whistles weren't enough to give it a better rating, since the milk didn't taste that great. The flavor was bland, muted, and murky, and the low-fat consistency (only 2.5 grams of fat per serving) was looser compared to the creamier, dreamier consistencies of brands with higher fat contents.

Even though Nesquick is a popular beverage with a powerful nostalgic draw, Nesquik's Strawberry Flavored Low-Fat Milk falls a little short compared to many of the other brands on this list. With one of the highest amounts of sugar per serving (38 grams in a 14-ounce bottle), the drink tastes excessively sweet. This wouldn't be such a big complaint if the strawberry flavor came through more, but the fruitiness was a little too light and subdued, obviously overwhelmed by the massive sugar content. And the minimal fruity flavor that is present tastes more artificial compared to many of the other drinks.

The drink's few redeeming qualities include its perfectly light pink color and its pleasantly smooth and homogenized consistency. While I'm certainly not the biggest fan of the various gels and gums on the ingredient list, I can overlook it, since all the drinks in this lineup include one or more thickening agents. We're dealing with a level playing field here, so my own opinion against the use of additives and stabilizers is a moot point. Drink up.

Horizon Organic's Strawberry Low-Fat Milk is the only other organic option on the list, and rightfully ranked higher. Even though the ingredients and nutritional values are virtually the same as good2grow (both are made from low-fat milk with no artificial colors added), I was still able to discern a significant difference in the taste and quality. I actually found myself wanting to go back to this one as a palate cleanser between tasting other excessively sugary brands, and I figured out why: this one had the cleanest expression of strawberry milk. It's a light and refreshing beverage, and doesn't taste too murky or cloyingly sweet.

The reason I didn't rank it any higher is that, despite its pure and simple personality, it didn't have an impactful flavor. While it was a very refreshing option, and one that I really liked compared to the artificiality that was so obvious in some of the other brands, the classic strawberry-ness was lacking. It tasted the most like a plain low-fat milk, with subtle hints of flavor that left a disappointing void on your tongue. And, in this review, that is a serious negative. There were a few brands that were more memorable and far more "strawberry" than this one.

As a multi-decade native of the Steel City, I know Pittsburgh prides itself on its sports teams; we yinzers are voraciously loyal to the Steelers, Pirates, and Penguins. But we care about more than just footballs, baseballs, and pucks — two beloved food brands partnered to make some magic in the dairy aisles of many western PA stores. Schneider's Dairy works with over 40 family-owned Pennsylvania dairy farms, and they have a continued collaboration with local favorite Sarris Candies to sell a line of milk products with dessert inspirations.

The Strawberry Milkshake didn't disappoint. With a whopping 14 grams of fat (cream is the second ingredient) and 40 grams of sugar per serving, this isn't just inspired by a strawberry milkshake ... it IS a strawberry milkshake. It's rich, thick, and indulgent — very much a you-only-live-once kind of purchase. As a unique trait that sets this brand apart, the drink uses strawberry puree rather than relying only on natural/artificial flavors. A mix of sugar and seedless strawberry puree, this addition yields a fruity, berry-forward flavor.

But its strengths are also its downsides. The decadent richness of the beverage teeters on the side of being too extreme. I don't think many people would be able to enjoy a whole cup of this without calling it quits after a few dainty sips. Save this one for a special occasion when you want an over-the-top tasting experience. And maybe have your Pepto-Bismol tablets at the ready.

Easy to drink and easy to love, there is nothing to hate about fairlife's Strawberry 2% Reduced Fat Ultra-Filtered Milk. The pale pink color, the subtle sweetness, the creamy yet light consistency, and the restrained strawberry flavor all combine to create a sip-worthy delight that doesn't overwhelm the palate or appetite. Third place in the lineup is an honorable spot, considering how much I favored second and first place.

The reduced-fat milk offers a good compromise for a beverage that still has a decent fat content (this one has 8 grams per serving), but isn't excessively overindulgent. As explained on fairlife's website, the milk has a creamy consistency and balanced flavor due to the ultra-filtration process, which concentrates the protein and calcium while simultaneously reducing the sugar content. While a tasty choice, I have to confess that I missed a bit of sugar and strawberry flavor, but that craving was more than met by my top two choices.

If I were a kid and knew this brand existed, this is the one I would be begging my mom to buy for me all the time. But now I can go buy it for myself whenever I please, and I most definitely will when the need for a strawberry milk fix strikes hard. From the vibrant color to the bold strawberry flavor, Shamrock Farms has created a sweet and smashing success with this one.

It contains 43 grams of sugar per serving, which is an obscene amount compared to all the other brands. It definitely tasted sweet, but not unbearably sweet — not like sipping on a sugary and syrupy pink liquid. My best theory is that the sweetness level is gently pacified by the higher fat content of 8 grams per serving. Having more fat offers a better mouthfeel and a better balance with the sugar. Despite its stellar review, Shamrock Farms still uses artificial flavors and dyes, which is a personal negative that led to my ranking it in second place. There is still one more brand that captures the quintessential balance of fat, sugar, and flavor even more beautifully than Shamrock without relying on too many additional ingredients.

I've tested a range of strawberry milks, each with distinct characteristics. From a weird strawberry drink to a clean organic milk to an outrageous milkshake-inspired beverage, I succeeded in my mission to try a wide variety and make an informed decision on which one was the very best. After drinking all nine products, there was no doubt that Promised Land Dairy Very Berry Strawberry Whole Milk deserved the first-place spot. I would drink it as is, I would add this sweet strawberry milk to my smoothies, I would serve it to both kids and adults, I would use it in matcha lattes ... this one is my archetypal strawberry milk for all occasions.

Not as thin as a low-fat or a reduced-fat strawberry milk, and not as rich as a cream-laced dessert milk, Promised Land Dairy uses whole milk for a total fat content of 10 grams per serving. That fat content offered the best consistency among the group, as it was still creamy without being too overwhelming. While it still employs thickening agents, like all the other milks in this ranking, it has a comparatively small ingredient list and doesn't use artificial colors. And because it uses strawberry juice concentrate, not relying on natural flavors alone, the "very berry" fruit flavor is exactly as advertised. Strawberry milk doesn't have to be pink to be tasty. Once you break away from that assumption and try something that focuses on simpler ingredients instead of chasing a certain look, you'll be pleasantly surprised, too.

I limited my research exclusively to ready-made strawberry milk, and did not include products such as strawberry milk powder or syrup, where extra steps are required to make the milk. I also did not include other beverage styles such as kefir, protein shakes, or vegan and non-dairy products.

Every drink was judged on a combined list of color, smell, consistency, fat content, sugar content, and flavor. I also carefully analyzed the ingredients and nutrition facts to better determine if there were any clear differences among key factors such as the use of natural or artificial flavors or stabilizers/thickeners. The drinks were tasted cold, not room temperature, to more closely analyze the flavor at its best and as it would normally be consumed. Each drink was tested multiple times in the same type of clear glassware to yield an equal tasting experience with full visibility.