The best microwave popcorn is exceptionally buttery, and salty, and the kernels are sweet, earthy, and have a distinct toasted corn flavor. Fake butter is welcome, we almost prefer its taste, but the best microwavable popcorn comes at you hard with either fatty, salty flavors or a pure, natural taste. So what is the best microwave popcorn that absolutely popped off? Read on to find out.
We get hype for movie theater popcorn. “Where I’m from, when you go to the movie theater, you are there to watch Transformers 17: Age of the Quadrupeds, and walk out of it absolutely sick to your stomach from eating an entire tub of popcorn drowned in butter,” says Sporked contributor Danny Palumbo.“That’s the American way.”
But sometimes you want popcorn at home. What makes for the best microwave popcorn? Well, here’s what we looked for in this taste test: More than anything, we wanted the package to deliver on its promise. If it says “extra butter,” then we’re assuming there’s going to be a ton of butter. If it says “sea salt,” then we expect a seasoned bag of popcorn with a subtle, not iodized, salt taste. If it says “organic,” then we want fluffy, tasty kernels that don’t feel too dry. And if it says “movie theater” on it, well, we expect it to be the perfect alchemy of salt and butter.
When it comes to the best microwave popcorn, we either want something that’s organic, textured, and just a tad sweet, or something completely drenched in butter and salt. Here at Sporked, we want food to be healthy or we want it to kill us. “Anything in the middle sucks,” says senior staff writer Jordan Myrick.
So peep the list and find the best microwave popcorn brand for you.
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- Great Value Popcorn
It would be impossible to not include Great Value on this list. The price is nearly impossible to beat and at the end of the day, guess what? It’s microwaved popcorn. Can you taste butter? Check. Can you taste salt? Check. That’s all popcorn needs to be one of the best microwave popcorn brands on this list. Most microwaved popcorn will get the job done, and Great Value does just that at a great price. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
- Quinn Butter & Sea Salt Popcorn
If you like plain popcorn, Quinn is the best microwave popcorn for you. That said, the seasoning and the butter for this popcorn come in little packets on the side, so you’re really in the driver’s seat when it comes to dictating the amount of salt and butter here. We tried Quinn plain, and, man, it was really good. It has a clean and fresh corn flavor to it, and the kernels aren’t rubbery so they don’t get stuck in your teeth. It’s just fluffy and airy, making it highly snackable. There is something really gratifying about plain popcorn that allows you to savor each bite. It’s probably the more dignified way to eat, instead of shoveling loads of butter soaked, salt packed popcorn into your mouth like Jordan and I do. Quinn is tasty and simple. And hey, they have a ton of different flavors, too. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
- Jolly Time The Big Cheez
There’s no hiding the cheese, sorry, cheez in this microwave popcorn. The neon orange liquid seeps out of the seams when you take the bag out of the microwave. But don’t worry—shockingly, it’s not a bag of grease. It’s a bag of the best microwavable popcorn if you want a lot of flavor—but also want something more than just plain butter. It’s rich and cheesy, in a Cheetos sort of way. The popcorn is crispy. It’s fun. It’s different. It deserves a place in your pantry. And, according to Jordan, “It would go so well with an ice-cold co*ke.” — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Sprouts Organic Butter Popcorn
Sprouts’ microwave popcorn has a touch of smoke and an underlying sweet flavor that makes it very appealing. The subtle flavor here goes a long way, and it’s not overly dragged down by butter and salt, either. That makes it our pick for the best microwave popcorn for toppings. There’s enough flavor here to provide a solid base, but adding shredded cheddar or shaved parmesan would enhance things greatly. Look at Sprouts’ popcorn as if it was a good blank canvas on which to paint with your flavor brush. Wow. That was beautiful, Danny. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Instacart
- Market Pantry Butter Microwave Popcorn
The box shows popcorn floating along a river of butter, and so we expected a rich, buttery taste. This popcorn delivered. If you go to the movie theater and absolutely drown your popcorn in artificial butter from the pump, then this is the best microwavable popcorn for you. . Seriously, it’s heavy on butter flavor. This was the number one pick for Jordan, who claims they have a death wish by way of butter. Don’t we all want the last thing we see to be a river of butter? I know I do. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
- Jolly Time Ultimate Theater Style Popcorn
This is the best microwave popcorn if you’re craving that movie theater flavor at home. It has more butter than Pop Secret—you can see it. The inside of the bag is stained with yellow, artificial butter goodness. Each kernel is coated well with buttery flavor. You know how the last third of a movie theater tub of popcorn is no longer buttery? That’s not a problem with Jolly Time. It’s salted well, too, and overall just incredibly tasty. Jolly Time is a great brand name, to boot. Who doesn’t love having a jolly time? — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
- Whole Foods 365 Buttery Flavor Popcorn
Whole Foods makes great microwave popcorn. It stands out above the rest as far as texture is concerned. The light and airy puffs of popcorn make for a highly snackable experience. It’s so good that Pringles should loan their “Once you pop, you can’t stop” tagline to Whole Foods. Also, there’s a delightful corn-like aftertaste to each kernel that feels fresh and new if you’ve been eating nothing but movie theater style popcorn your whole life. The butter flavoring here doesn’t reek of artificial flavor, either; the popcorn isn’t stained yellow from additives. This is just a solid, natural popcorn that tastes great without being pretentious. We recommend it. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
- Cousin Willie’s Buttery Explosion
Who wouldn’t trust Cousin Willie to give you some of the best microwave popcorn? I’d also trust him to find me a spare truck part for a steal and know where to go to get a chicken for free (presumably his front porch). But back to the popcorn. The popped kernels are so light and crispy—they practically dissolve in your mouth leaving a buttery, salty sensation on your tongue. And there’s just a hint of sweetness, too, that balances out that intense saltiness. “It’s buttery without being greasy,” Jordan commented. It’s the best microwave popcorn for an indulgent evening—we’re talking a bottle of Chardonnay and a sharing-sized chocolate candy just for you and a ‘90s rom-com marathon. — Justine Sterling
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Pop Secret Movie Theater Butter
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my time working as a line cook, it’s this: Proper seasoning is the hardest thing to get right. You either have it, or you don’t. And Pop Secret has it. It has the perfect balance of salt and butter that we’re looking for in the best microwave butter popcorn. It mimics the alchemy of delicious movie theater popcorn. Sure, it’s artificial butter, but we love that and we think you do, too. The price is great, also. It’s popcorn; it shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg. — Danny Palumbo
Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon
Best Budget
Rating:
6/10
Sporks
Best Plain
Rating:
6/10
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Best Cheesy
Rating:
7.5/10
Sporks
Best with Cheese
Rating:
6.5/10
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Best Butter
Best Movie Theater Style
Rating:
8/10
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Best Fluffy
Rating:
8.5/10
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Best Indulgent
Rating:
8.5/10
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Best of the Best
Rating:
8.5/10
Sporks
Other microwave popcorn brands we tried: Kirkland, ACT II Butter Lovers, SkinnyPop Sea Salt, BOOMCHICKAPOP, Simple Truth Organic, Kroger, Signature Select, O Organics, Trader Joe’s
Rhett & Link’s Pick
Orville Redenbacher’s Butter Popcorn
“It is very light, it’s very crispy, and it has a good, solid taste,” Rhett commented on the classic Orville Redenbacher popcorn. Link jumped in, “I mean, I think this is great. There’s nothing to complain about. At 62 cents a bag, seems like a pretty good deal.” Both Rhett & Link made sure to mention that Orville Redenbacher died in a jacuzzi in 1995. It seemed to be a selling point for them. Anyway, pretty good popcorn, but it just missed our list.
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