These Are the Best Frozen Tater Tots for the Air Fryer and Beyond

When you’re perusing the frozen foods section, it’s always an obvious move to grab a bag of frozen fries. Yet, how often are you grabbing frozen tater tots? Not nearly enough, is my guess. Tots are one of life’s greatest pleasures, and you should be adding them to the rotation more often. 

Whether you’re getting creative with loaded tots topped with cheese and other goodies or just crunchin’ them raw, which brand do you reach for? I tried five different frozen tater tot brands and ranked them to answer that very question.

Pro tip: The best tater tots are made in the air fryer. However, if you’re using an oven with tots on a baking sheet, leave every single one of these products in for at least two or three minutes longer than the directions say. You want them crispy and golden, so make sure they are spread in a single layer.

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This really isn’t much of a fair fight. Alexia is the only company I could find serving a frozen tot with this much flavor, making them the best frozen tater tots out there. This bag boasts roasted garlic, cracked black pepper, sour cream, and chives. I’m not going to pretend I could taste most of those things, but there is certainly a lot more depth of flavor in these tots than anything else I tried. 

The only issue, if I had to think of one, is that they aren’t exactly perfect for dipping. These are short little dudes, and chances are high that you’ll be getting whatever you dip them into on your fingers. Not the worst penance, but penance all the same.

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If you’re going to plaster the words “SUPER CRISPY” across the front of your packaging, you better be able to back it up. Lamb Weston is really doing it, because fresh out of the air fryer, these little nuggs were absolutely golden and perfect. They’re not lying; these are indeed super crispy tater tots, and some of the best store-bought tater tots I've had.

My only issue is that the flavor of the potato itself is lacking, especially when compared to Alexia’s flavor blast. Maybe hit these with a little salt and pepper before popping them into the fryer.

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This is a surprising showing from Harris Teeter, who usually drops the ball with its in-house products. Teeter’s tots — which, come on now, the perfect name was right there in front of you — have some legitimate potato flavor, almost like diner hash browns, fried into a nugget. I did not see Harris Teeter topping Whole Foods in this battle. 

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$5 from Whole Foods

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Though I did not expect it at all, Whole Foods crashed hard in this taste test. I usually find that the 365 brand has some quality behind it, but these “Tater Puffs” are pretty boring. Much lighter in color than any of the other tater tot brands I tried, I was surprised by how little flavor they contained. Leave these in at least five minutes longer than the bag claims — it takes a while for them to get crunchy.

Related: These Are the Best (and Worst) Frozen Chicken Nuggets 

$5 from Walmart

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There are a few things in the world that I assume every person enjoys. Unless you are Gregory Eddie, pizza and fried tater tots are among them. How bad is the worst tater tot? Probably not that bad. Ore-Ida’s classic tots are quite bland, despite the fact that they are labeled as “seasoned.” 

You’d need to dress them up with cheese and bacon to really bring any flavor out of them. With a cook time that’s a little longer than others and a flavor that's less exciting, there’s no reason to buy them over anything else. Though Ore-Ida’s tots are at the bottom of this list, it doesn’t mean they are bad. They could never be bad. They are, after all, tater tots.

Related: I Tried 8 Brands of Frozen French Fries — Here Are the Best