10 Canned Green Beans, Ranked Worst To Best

If you checked your cupboard right now, we bet you'd find a lone can of green beans hiding in the wings, waiting to be called upon. Canned green beans are an underrated kitchen staple. And not only around the holidays when green bean casseroles are king, and when they get sauteed and dressed up in garlic. Green beans are a good-to-have item all year long; you have to know which cans to buy to get the most out of the stringy vegetable.

To help you avoid a game of green bean roulette, I recently tried 10 kinds of canned green beans so you don't have to. There are more options out there than one might think. From Del Monte to Libby's to store brands, plenty of players throw their beans in the ring and in multiple styles too, including French-style, Italian-style, whole green beans, and more. I picked up a hearty sampling and ranked them all based primarily on tenderness and texture, flavor, and ingredient add-ins.

So, the big question is: Which cans are worth stocking? We're popping the top on the green bean industry, and more specifically on 10 different cans, to find out.

If you've ever stepped foot in a grocery store canned vegetable aisle, you know the name Del Monte. The brand is quite dominant, and as such, it delivers several different kinds of green beans, including this curious can. It contains whole green beans, but the kicker is that they come pre-doused in a teriyaki flavor that promises to be sweet and savory. Now, normally, I'm all for ease in the kitchen, and a side that can easily go from can to plate in a few minutes is enticing. But unfortunately, the execution is not there.

The can doesn't really reveal exactly where the flavoring comes from, listing water, cane sugar, sea salt, and natural flavor as the ingredients. I can tell you, though, it doesn't taste like teriyaki. The main flavor I got was of pure, pungent ginger. It even made my nose tingle and left me with a bitter aftertaste. So, even though the beans themselves offer a decent texture, between firm and mushy, these quickly fell to my last place spot. You could just as easily buy unseasoned green beans and mix them with your own teriyaki sauce at home. It actually comes together quite easily with ingredients you probably already have in your cupboard, like soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic granules, and ginger (make sure not to overdo it on that last one).

Allens green beans come in the largest can of the bunch. I didn't even know canned vegetables came in cans this large (and this wasn't even the largest one I spotted at the store). It comes in at 38 ounces and is filled with Italian green beans — a flat and wide type that are also sometimes called Romano beans. To confuse you a little more, though, the can also calls them "Kentucky Wonder Style Flat Beans."

They don't come coated in Italian (or Kentucky) seasonings, but rather with a small sprinkling of salt. Even that is kept light, though. They hardly have any flavor at all, from salt or otherwise, and the texture is a separate problem. They're slightly slimy and don't hold their shape very well, so they appear from the can looking messy and mushy. I'm afraid that if you tried to add them to a recipe, they would disintegrate completely.

Adding a touch more salt to Allens green beans could liven them up enough to be edible. But with both the blandness and texture problems working against them, they surpass Del Monte's teriyaki can in the rankings.

Smart Way is Kroger's opening price point line of grocery staples, which launched in 2022. I've commented before on its boring white and yellow branding and haven't had much luck with its products in the past. So, I didn't have high hopes for these green beans, and they did, in fact, turn out to be more of the same, aka mediocre at best.

The normal 14.5-ounce can is stocked with standard cut green beans. These are probably the ones that you're most used to seeing come out of a can–with normal, pod-filled bean bodies, but with the ends cut off on each side. They have a dull, yellowed coloring to them, and the taste is pretty dull as well. The natural flavor of the beans themselves isn't that bright, and the little bit of added salt isn't doing much to help their case. Their texture is the only thing that gives them an edge against Allens green beans. They're perky and have a nice bite to them. Overall, Smart Way gets the job done, but you also get what you pay for. Don't set your expectations too high, and everything will be fine.

Kroger's generic store brand also has a few cans of green beans on its books. But it was this can of "extra green" green beans that caught my eye. They come out looking extremely, vibrantly green. This is certainly not a case of false advertising. They look more like frozen green beans than canned, and it honestly made me feel like something unnatural is going on here. It turns out that zinc chloride is used for color stabilization in the canning process. The chemical has been designated as safe for limited use in food by the FDA, but for anyone looking for a cleaner, unadulterated product, this wouldn't be for you.

Kroger's can fell in my rankings because of this add-in. By all other accounts, though, they're decent green beans. They're extra squeaky with a fresh kind of aura about them and plenty of juiciness. Plus, their bright coloring (problematic as it may be for some people) makes them more aesthetic than other green bean brands. If your main goal is to get a great magazine-worthy photo of your dinner spread, then these are the perfect pick.

What you see is what you get with Walmart's Great Value organic green beans. They're made without the use of artificial flavors or preservatives. That means added ingredients like the zinc chloride used in the previous Kroger can. Just water and sea salt are added, and the beans are also picked and packed the same day.

I haven't had great experiences with the GV organic brand before (its canned peas leave much to be desired). But these green beans actually have a pleasant taste. They keep their shape really well, even after being submerged in the juices, yet remain tender. I picked up on a hint of a metallic taste in the first few I tried. For the most part, though, they had a good natural flavor. Some even tasted more like green peas than green beans, which I didn't find to be an issue. They're decent, and their organic qualities, paired with a passable taste, elevate them above several other brands. They're nothing to get overly excited about.

Del Monte's fresh-cut green beans were a sight for sore eyes after the brand's teriyaki debacle. They're not marinated in any kind of off-putting sauces, water, and sea salt. They also come in a French style. This means that they are cut lengthwise into thin, worm-like strips, and after trying a few different green bean cut options, I have to say that this is one of my favorites. The fine slices allow for even more of the beans to come in contact with and soak up all of the brine. Sure, you sacrifice the pods and some of that snappy texture, but you end up with a better all-around flavor.

Del Monte also happens to do a really good job with them. As a leader in the canned veggie industry, I figured it would — I think the teriyaki beans were a fluke. The brand's French-style beans have the right texture and flavor with enough salt to taste, yet not go overboard. The can also tout its brag-worthy qualities: non-GMO, no preservatives, and grown in the U.S.A. And honestly, these would make for a toothsome green bean casserole. Conveniently, Del Monte gives you the recipe right on the label, complete with Campbell's cream of mushroom, milk, soy sauce, pepper, and French's crispy fried onions — a casserole built by heavy-hitting food brands.

I could hardly tell the difference between Del Monte's green beans and this can from Walmart's Great Value brand. They copy the same French style, so Walmart's are also sliced thin. The two do have slightly different looks, with the Great Value rendition coming in a bit darker and with smaller strips — both long ways and width-wise. As for the taste, though, they're nearly identical.

Walmart adds a touch of normal salt rather than sea salt, but its beans taste just as flavorful, juicy, and balanced as Del Monte's. So, their respective placements in the taste test came down to price, the ultimate tiebreaker. As you can see, Great Value lived up to its name and won out in this department. Its can is a teensy bit smaller at 14.25 ounces instead of 14.5, but its cost is still 75 cents cheaper than Del Monte's. It rang up at $0.76 while Del Monte came in at $1.25.

In all honesty, either is a fine choice. But if you have the opportunity to save a buck (or 50 cents) and get essentially the same product, why wouldn't you?

The green beans from Glory Foods really turn on the Southern charm. The company focuses on down-home cookin' and all of its canned veggies come fully seasoned with a comfort food flair. This particular batch of green beans is slow-simmered with onions, garlic, and spices in a savory broth. You should also know that brown sugar, natural smoke flavor, and bacon fat are also thrown in. Now, if that doesn't sound like a Southern recipe, I don't know what does.

The result is green beans just like my great-grandma used to make. They have a strong onion flavor and a pronounced smokiness, plus you know that bacon fat is working overtime to create an even richer, more savory flavor. The brown sugar sweetness doesn't come out as much, but each bite left me with a spicy tingle at the back of my throat. Something I attributed to the generic "spice" noted on the ingredient list. With nostalgia and a soul-warming taste on their side, the Glory Foods green beans were easily some of my favorites. I was happy they came in such a large 29-ounce can. There was one other pre-seasoned pick I liked even more, as well as a fresh pick that you simply can't go wrong with.

We have another can of French-style green beans, and Libby's does it best. If you want pure, fresh-tasting green beans free from any kind of seasonings or flavors, these are the ones to go with. The brand also has a few other options in its arsenal if French-cut isn't your preference. Choose from cut green beans, whole green beans, Italian cut green beans, or even green beans with no salt or sugar added. I have a sneaky feeling that any you pick is going to have that same Libby's stamp of quality.

As for the French style, the julienned slices look pretty much the same as the Great Value variation, in a deeper green color and skinny pieces. They're delicate and extra tender, plus they have a fresh taste with the faintest bit of natural sweetness — although there's no sugar added and a hint of sea salt. Not to mention they're non-GMO, U.S.A.-grown, and are made without the use of preservatives. At a price under $1 per can, they're also affordable. It seems that Libby's has learned a thing or two since its 1869 foundation. These beans are something to brag about and are one of my favorite picks, beaten out only by a batch with an unfair advantage.

These beans may have an Italian cut, meaning they come in a flattened shape, but they also have a Southern twang. The Margaret Holmes brand shares in Glory Foods' seasoned green bean style, which makes sense considering both names fall under the same McCall Farms umbrella, and Allens actually belongs to this family as well. Margaret's recipe is a bit different, though, and it tastes that much better — better than Glory Foods and even better than Libby's garden-fresh can.

Some ingredients include bacon fat, dehydrated onion, sugar, spices, and hickory smoke flavor. You get a similar level of smokiness as you had in the Glory Foods products. But you get even more notes of umami — perhaps thanks to the addition of monosodium glutamate — and that subtle sweetness that was missing. The beans are well-balanced and have a great texture to match that offers a soft bite with plenty of juice.

Sure, Margaret Holmes green beans may not be the healthiest of picks. But they're good for the soul and the easiest side dish for any meal. And if you're still looking for a bit more flavor, you can make the spicy green beans with onions recipe outlined on the can by throwing in red pepper flakes, vegetable oil, one onion, and apple cider vinegar.

For this taste test, I only had to make two grocery store stops to gather 10 green bean brands. A quick trip to Walmart and Kroger was all it took to complete the haul. Once I got everything home, I dumped each can into a bowl and warmed them quickly in the microwave to make sure I was getting all the natural flavors — and, let's be honest, no one wants to eat cold or lukewarm green beans.

From there, I began ranking them based first and foremost on taste and texture. With canned veggies, there's a fine line between soft and tender versus mushy and disintegrating. I looked for beans that fell into that first bucket and still maintained some degree of body and firmness. For taste, I evaluated the beans' natural flavor before anything else. I looked for juiciness, freshness, and a hint of saltiness. Any seasonings or sauces layered on top were either seen as a delicious bonus or a detriment to the entire can — like Del Monte's teriyaki green beans.

I also noted secondary factors, like whether the beans were organic or non-GMO, and considered price point in some cases. But overall, my rankings remained centered on taste and texture.