12 of the Best Zaxby’s Sauces, Ranked

Zaxby’s is known for its fast-food fried chicken, but a closer look beneath the hood will reveal that Zax actually has something worth bragging about. With 13 sauces on offer for its chicken fingers and other specialties, there is definitely something special happening at Zaxby’s in the sauce department.

Not sure which one to grab for your chicken wings? Though I couldn’t get my hands on Insane Sauce (the hottest dipping sauce), here are the remaining 12 Zaxby’s sauces, ranked by taste and flavor. 

I am a sucker for sweet chili glaze. The stuff hits for me every time. Zaxby’s has cooked up a tasty one; sweet as honey, spicy enough to even it out, and threaded together by a healthy dose of sesame oil. Umami all around. There’s not a lot I wouldn’t dip into this. It’s the best Zaxby’s sauce by a mile.

Though I take issue with the suggestion that a sauce this mild might torch somebody’s tongue, I really like the flavor. This is just good hot sauce, no two ways about it. It’s piquant, spicy, and just sticky enough to cling to chicken and fries. If the Z-Man wanted to turn up the heat a little bit, I wouldn’t complain.

I fully did not expect the sauce ranking of a southern fried chicken chain to have two Asian-style sauces in the Top 3. Zaxby’s teriyaki sauce is actually really good; tangy, smoky, and sticky. Fast-food teriyaki sauce is highly inconsistent, but this is a strong recipe on Zaxby’s part.

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The name says it all. We’ve got ourselves a creamy, orange Buffalo sauce with a liberal amount of garlic. I like the extra kick quite a bit, and the thickness is perfect for sticking to whatever’s being dipped into it.

Related: All 9 Popeyes Sauces, Ranked From Best to Worst

Not a bad idea in theory, but in practice it doesn’t hit as hard as it should. This is probably an if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it situation, but combining hot honey and mustard is interesting. Or, on the other hand, a sweetened version of a hot Chinese mustard also sounds like a sauce I’d be into.

This is neither. It’s good, but I can’t help but shake the feeling that it should be great.

Related: I Ranked 8 McDonald’s Dipping Sauces — Including 2 Brand New Ones

Zax. My dude. You gotta stop building up the sauces to be these scary, spicy monsters. Nuclear? No chance. This is a tasty, definitely spicy sauce, but nuclear feels like a little much. This isn’t too different from Tabasco with a little bit of ground pepper.

It’s fine. Thick and smoky, sure, but you’ve got six much stronger options. Zaxby, that rat, is charging 25 cents per sauce, so make your selections count.

I considered that I’m being pranked. This really tastes like nothing. I was minutes away from grabbing a COVID test. This is some of the most bland honey mustard I’ve ever had in fast food, so if you’re a true fan of honey mustard, look elsewhere. There's probably a Bojangles nearby.

This is a great sauce for people that don’t like sauce. It’s the consistency and flavor profile of a vinegar-style pepper sauce, but there’s no heat. The ketchupy liquid is odd and empty without the heat. Dip your food in it if you’d like to strip away as much flavor as possible.

I'm a huge snob when it comes to ranch dressing. You really need to bring your A-game to impress me with ranch, and this is C-game at best. This ranch is very mild and far too watery. You’ll never get wings to stick to it, and I fear that if it were spread on a chicken sandwich it would just come pouring out of the bun.

When you’re slinging 12 sauces, you’re gonna have some high highs and some low lows. Yet through all of the sauce-making Zaxby's has put itself through, this is the one it wants to stamp its name on. The signature sauce, if you will.

Bad call, 'cause this one's a stinker. Zax Sauce is in the same vein as a classic special sauce or thousand island, but far more eggy and thick. Has it been mixed with ranch? Who's to say. There’s a fair amount of black pepper floating in there as well. Across the board, this isn’t for me.

It’s not like I’d call this sauce gross, but it’s mentally off-putting. It’s such a deep orange color that you think there must be tons of flavor packed in, but … there’s just nothing. Where is it? Where is the flavor? It’s really throwing me off. This is a waste of everybody’s time.