We Tried And Ranked Every Wendy's Frosty Flavor

Well, friends, we're officially in the "future." How can I tell? Not by the fact that I'm constantly asking myself "Is this AI?" when I see a wild video, or that I can put on a headset and instantly be transported to a very realistic virtual reality. Rather, what really convinces me that we're living in futuristic times is a simple glance at Wendy's menu, where you'll find a whopping 14 ways to order your Frosty.

Remember when the only frozen dessert you could get at Wendy's was a chocolate Frosty? I sure do, and part of me misses the days when I wouldn't get decision fatigue just from choosing which dessert flavor I wanted. But alas, ubiquity is now the norm, and "more" is pretty much always synonymous with "better," especially when it comes to fast food chains. I doubt any consumers felt the need for a whopping 14 customizable Frosty choices (and that's not even counting the flavors you can get internationally), but since we have them, I suppose we should give them a shot. Wondering whether to stick with the classic chocolate or try a new concoction? I took the sugar hit for you and tried all 14 possible combinations, ranking them based on how each mix-in complemented its Frosty base flavor. Unfortunately, all had slightly melted after a five-minute trip in the car, but that's neither here nor there, and was not a factor in this ranking. 

Spoiler alert: You'll find the plain vanilla and chocolate flavors staunchly in the middle of this ranking, and that's because some of the mix-ins are detrimental to the Frosty. Of course, this is a personal take — if you're a fan of ultra-processed flavors of unnecessarily chunky Frostys, you may be a fan of some of my bottom choices. I, however, cannot endorse them, starting with the chain's strawberry vanilla Frosty Swirl.

Basically, this Frosty combines strawberry sauce into a vanilla Frosty. It's a simple, easy-to-grasp concept that should have been equally as easy to execute. Alas, the chain got the flavor all wrong, in my opinion; the strawberry tasted hopelessly artificial, and if I had finished this whole Frosty, I would have tried to avoid the strawberry swirl dispersed throughout. If you're not averse to fake-tasting strawberry, this could be the ideal summer treat. But personally, I think it wholly detracted from the really good vanilla base. 

Similar to my previous pick, the strawberry chocolate Frosty Swirl also underwhelmed me. Artificiality dominated, and rather than having the supposed depth and richness you usually get with chocolate and strawberry pairings, it instead tasted like an ultra-processed sugar overload. In short, I didn't like it, though I would call the chocolate version marginally better than the previous pick.

The only thing that gave this Frosty a leg up on the previous one was that the chocolate base did a better job at disguising the strawberry swirl than the vanilla flavor did. The strawberry was slightly less obvious here, and I could fool myself into thinking this was a plain chocolate Frosty with an ever-so-slight fruity twist. Overall, I don't think either of the strawberry twists are worth it; try them if you must, but you'd probably be better off getting a plain Frosty instead. 

Naturally, Wendy's Pop-Tarts strawberry chocolate Fusion follows its other saucy counterparts. This Frosty includes both the chocolate base and the strawberry sauce of the aforementioned offerings, but with the key addition of strawberry Pop-Tarts pieces. You'd think this was a recipe for success. After all, who doesn't love the nostalgic breakfast toaster pastry (which, as a matter of fact, sports its own line of ice cream bars)? Perhaps my palate has changed since my younger years, but I didn't like this Frosty at all.

The only reason the Pop-Tarts fusions rank higher than just the strawberry swirl Frostys is because they at least held some more interest with the Pop-Tarts pieces, and I can see some consumers (mostly kids, but still) really enjoying this one. While I personally wasn't a fan of the textures here — I actually found some Pop-Tarts chunks to be unpleasantly big — I can chalk that up to personal preference. The Pop-Tarts flavors were nostalgic enough to not be as unpleasant as the last choice, and I think this will find favor with some consumers. 

The Pop-Tarts strawberry vanilla Frosty Fusion is next on my list because, well, it's only marginally better than the chocolate version. I thought the Pop-Tarts pieces specifically worked better in the vanilla Frosty. They felt more like a complementary component than something fighting for attention, and I appreciate the overall mellower Frosty that resulted.

Still, I can't give the vanilla version a higher spot on my list for the same reasons I didn't love the chocolate version. I wasn't a huge fan of the Pop-Tarts pieces, even though they were more palatable here, and I (obviously) didn't like the strawberry sauce. Nevertheless, I wouldn't dissuade a strawberry Pop-Tarts super fan from trying this or the former — in fact, I may even recommend it to them. These flavors may not be for the average consumer, though. 

Up next we have the caramel chocolate Frosty Swirl, which is — you guessed it — caramel swirled into a chocolate Frosty. Shocking, I know. It was marginally better than the strawberry only because the caramel wasn't glaringly obvious in the concoction. However, that's also why it got a pretty low ranking on this list; I may have actually appreciated more caramel, and this Frosty didn't really seem to have much of a point.

I suspect I'd have found more of an affinity for this pairing if the company had used salted caramel sauce – the caramel probably would have stood out more and could have made for a more unique dessert offering. As it was, I was woefully unimpressed, though happy that I wasn't faced with the artificiality of the strawberry sauce and the chunkiness of Pop-Tarts pieces. If you're a fan of chocolate and caramel, you could certainly try this one, but don't have high expectations (or see if it's possible to get extra caramel sauce).

Naturally, the caramel vanilla Frosty Swirl follows its chocolate counterpart. You'll find that theme throughout the list — I tend to rank the vanilla and chocolate versions of each back-to-back, ordering them purely based on which base took its requisite flavoring better. As you'd expect, the caramel shone through in the vanilla Frosty more than the chocolate. Given that I liked (but definitely didn't love) the caramel sauce, this gave the vanilla version a leg up in my book.

Again, the Frosty was pretty nondescript — caramel flavors didn't announce themselves enough for my taste, and many bites felt like I was just eating a vanilla Frosty. Though I still could have used more caramel here, at least I got more than in the chocolate Frosty (and I appreciated the times I did hit on some caramel). But at the end of the day, this vanilla caramel Frosty didn't live up to my expectations, and I can't say it's worth the buy.

Here we are — we've reached the midpoint of this ranking, and it's time to mention the two classic flavors that deserve all the acclaim. I'll start with the vanilla Frosty. It's an unadulterated fast food staple, and I remember being excited when I heard this was an option at Wendy's. Vanilla has long been my preferred flavor of pretty much anything (boring, I know), so the release of the vanilla Frosty was an important day for me. Fortunately, the dessert still holds up today.

It's no more and no less than what you'd expect, and for that, I was grateful. Ultimately I couldn't rank it above some of the following picks — after all, it's still just "plain" vanilla — but I'll give it the middling ranking that it's due. The vanilla Frosty will always be there for you as a reliable treat to pick you up on a down day, and if you decide it needs some frills, you can always include your own fancy additions at home.

Of course, though vanilla may be my personal preference, I couldn't bear to rank it higher than the chocolate Frosty. After all, this is what everyone thinks of when they hear the word "Frosty" — the frozen chocolate treat has been around since 1969 (over half a century!) and is unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon. It's famous as being the perfect sweet dipper for your french fries or simply the ideal end to your meal, and hopefully will stay that way indefinitely.

That said, the chocolate Frosty still only gets spot number seven on this list, simply because I'd argue that the following Frosty concoctions actually bring some interest to the market. While nobody will ever tell you not to get a chocolate Frosty, perhaps it's time you branched out and tried something new, even just once. If you're feeling adventurous, use one of the following as your foray into the unknown — even if you don't love it, you will have expanded your horizons at least a little bit. 

The caramel crunch Frosty Fusion has what the simple caramel swirl Frosty lacks: a potent caramel essence. I liked the flavor combinations here, though in the chocolate Frosty I still found them a bit too nondescript. What made this an improvement on the last caramel flavor, though, was the inclusion of crunchy caramel bits. In addition to adding a fun textural component, they also added a stronger caramel flavor, which was very welcome.

I wouldn't call this Frosty stunning — that would be too much of an exaggeration for a treat that I really wasn't floored by. Nevertheless, I thought it was good, and it presented as a decent upgrade from the OG chocolate flavor we all know and love. If you want a fun twist to the chocolate Frosty that doesn't do too much to adulterate it, this could be a good pick for you. If you're looking for something super flavorful, though, stay tuned for my following picks. 

Surprise, surprise — the vanilla version of the caramel crunch Frosty Fusion is next. I put this above the chocolate version for much of the same reasons I ranked the two caramel swirl flavors in the order I did. Namely, I thought the vanilla and caramel flavors played better together. I am also not the biggest fan of chocolate and caramel together in general — occasionally it works for me, but generally just with a salted caramel, which this is not.

All the elements in this Frosty cooperated with each other, making for a fun (and yummy) dessert that I could treat myself to every now and then. Again, the caramel pieces were crunchy (but lightly, almost like cereal) and offered a nice burst of flavor. Obviously this wasn't my favorite Frosty on the list — it's only number five, after all — but if it sounds like your thing, you should definitely give it a shot. 

Only one non-fusion variety made it into the top half of my list, and that's the brownie batter Frosty Swirl. I really liked the vanilla version. I'd say there's a pretty big leap between this and the last — I have a bit of a hankering for this one now, whereas I don't think I'll be making a special trip out for any of the above anytime soon. But, come on, with brownie batter in the mix, how could I not adore this dessert?

The chocolate swirl was deep and rich, but perhaps my favorite part of this Frosty came as a surprise: its texture. It's surprisingly spot-on to what brownie batter is like texturally. I was expecting just a rich chocolate sauce, but nope. The thick, even slightly coarse texture lent a great mouthfeel to this Frosty, and the brownie batter itself tasted great to boot. Brownie fans shouldn't sleep on this one — though if you love chocolate on chocolate, you should probably go for my next pick.

The brownie batter chocolate Frosty Swirl was inarguably better than the vanilla version of the same — after all, if you need to satisfy a chocolate craving, why not go all out? If there's one surefire way to improve the classic chocolate Frosty, it's with more chocolate, and this certainly fits the bill. Similarly to my previous pick, I loved the brownie batter texture here, especially when contrasted with the smooth and velvety chocolate base. 

A large reason I prefer this to the vanilla version is because, surprisingly enough, it doesn't taste like a chocolate overload. The two different chocolates complement each other well — while the brownie batter swirls are rich and dark, the chocolate ice cream base is lighter. Together, they make for a well-balanced drink that doesn't feel overwhelming in the slightest. Of course, whichever you like will depend on your own palate, so follow your heart here — you won't go wrong with either. 

Lastly, we have a pairing that really serves up the best of both worlds — and by that, I really mean the best of every possible Frosty world out there. Oreo brownie twist vanilla Frosty Fusion is certainly a mouthful (both in name and flavor), but it's a phrase I won't hesitate to stumble over the next time I'm in a Wendy's drive-thru. Admittedly, I'm biased as a long-time adorer of cookies and cream ice cream, and the addition of brownie batter swirls into the mix made this treat *chef's kiss*.

Texturally and flavor-wise, this dessert hit every single mark. You get some textural interest from the Oreo pieces, but without the same unpleasantly chunky mouthfeel of the Pop-Tarts pieces in the lower-ranked Frosty. Meanwhile, brownie batter plays a dark foil against the Oreo cream flavors. All of the elements here work really, really well together, and it will be very hard to stay away from this Frosty in the future — though not as difficult as with my top pick.

Practice saying this in a mirror before your next Wendy's visit: Oreo brownie twist chocolate Frosty Fusion. It may only be a six-word phrase, but it's one that will instantly elevate whatever type of day you may be having. I actually found my greatest appreciation for the standard chocolate Frosty base in this concoction. It's a intermediary component, offering a seamless bridge between all the other flavors so they work together flawlessly.

No, the chocolate-on-chocolate combo isn't too exhaustive here — as with the chocolate brownie batter flavor, the varying uses of chocolate are harmoniously assembled here. You have the light, malty chocolate flavor from the Frosty base, the rich depth of the brownie batter, and an intermediary chocolate crunch from the Oreos. They're all impeccably balanced, especially if you're a chocolate fan. I hope you don't live close to a Wendy's — if you do, it may be hard to keep yourself from regularly visiting once you try this treat. 

I went to my local Wendy's and got one of each possible Frosty combination I could get for this review. I'm partial to the classic chocolate Frosty and generally don't appreciate frills unless they really add to a dessert, so it was a toss-up as to whether I would like any — fortunately, a few hit the mark. 

I judged each based on whether its mix-in added to the dessert as a whole. My lowest-ranked choices featured Frostys with accoutrements that detracted from the drink — for example, the strawberry was unpalatably fake, while I didn't really enjoy how chunky the Pop-Tarts were. My top-ranked choices (namely, each Oreo brownie twist concoction) were explosions of flavor that elevated the classic Frosty appropriately, and I'd be happy to see them as mainstays on the menu.