Every Sauce From Arby's, Ranked Worst To Best

If you're a fan of tantalizing sauces and dips, you might want to head to your local Arby's. After all, you'll find at least a dozen varieties to explore, and most are free with your order. Personally, I'm a massive fan of sauces and love them whether they're thick, thin, sweet, os savory. In my opinion, sauces intended for dunking are fun, those designed for spreading enliven everything from sandwiches to burgers, and sauces meant for pouring let you control how much goes on your food.

Since I have a passion for savory solutions, I was innately curious about the selection at Arby's. To quell my curiosity, I popped over to my local store and asked for every sauce they had (oddly, nobody blinked an eye). And while I was expecting the ordinary sauce varieties — BBQ, ranch, and ketchup, for instance — I was surprised when the Arby's team member plopped 12 different sauces on the counter. But I was also excited, and ordered 12 batches of crinkle cut fries (for dipping, obviously) and left with a dozen sauces to investigate.

Truth be told, I adored most of what I tasted. There was a nice variety of flavors, and clearly something for every imaginable craving. Of course, I preferred some sauces over others, and have my reasons why. Here's my honest ranking of Arby's sauces from worst to best. 

Have you ever licked the saucepan after making an inexpensive batch of macaroni and cheese? I'm talking about the cheap mac and cheese that doesn't taste like actual cheese. Well, that was my first impression when I tasted Arby's cheddar cheese sauce. The gelatinous concoction had a weird consistency, and tasted highly processed. In fact, it tasted more like oil than real cheddar cheese, and I think I know why.

The first ingredient in Arby's cheddar cheese sauce is water, followed by canola oil. That made total sense to me, because canola oil was the flavor and mouthfeel I noticed first. Cheddar cheese is listed fourth (after modified corn starch), so I'm pleased to report that there's actual dairy in this sauce. Arby's lists the cheddar cheese ingredients as milk, cultures, salt, and enzymes, which any respectable cheese should have. I just wished it tasted like aged cheddar cheese. I did detect a hint of paprika, which was nice, but it wasn't enough to overpower the oily sensation happening in my mouth.

If you like cheddar cheese sauce on your sandwiches, by all means: Go for this. I'm sure it's fine when coupled with the Arby's chicken cordon bleu sandwich, or as a dip for the chain's potato cakes. But since this was also one of only two sauces that wasn't free, it ranks last among Arby's sauces.

I mentioned that I'm a tad obsessed with sauces of all kinds, and I should note honey mustard is one of my favorite condiments on earth. Sometimes I wonder if I actually want a sandwich, or just the honey mustard that comes with it. In my entire lifetime, I haven't met a honey mustard I didn't like ... until now, that is.

I was excited to try Arby's honey Dijon mustard because I envisioned a marriage of golden honey and tangy/mildly spicy Dijon mustard. Sadly, the condiment didn't taste like honey or mustard. I suppose since the ingredient list starts with soybean oil and water, there's little chance it will deliver an authentic honey mustard punch. Thankfully, ingredients three and four were honey and Dijon mustard, respectively, so perhaps other folks will like Arby's honey Dijon mustard more than me. It's likely not bad on the chain's ham and Swiss melt. Just note that the sandwich sauce also contains Calcium Disodium EDTA and Yellow 5, so if you're trying to avoid controversial food additives, you might want to skip this option.

I also didn't like the consistency of this honey mustard; it was weird, almost viscous. When I dunked in a fry, the mustard held its shape like gluey Jello. I don't prefer gooey honey mustard, so I ranked this version second to last. Thankfully, I liked most of the other sauces in this lineup, so there's plenty to choose from next time.

If you regularly order the Bronco Berry sauce from Arby's, would you please enlighten me as to why? What's its intended use? The jelly-like sauce has the consistency of cherry pie filling, just without the cherries, which kept it near the bottom.

The ingredient list for the sauce starts with high fructose corn syrup and water, which wasn't surprising to me considering how sweet it was. The label also lists bell pepper, vinegar, jalapeño pepper, and onion, so I was searching for those flavors when tasting. I did detect a little spice, and there was a subtle lingering heat on my tongue, but it wasn't exactly a flavorful experience. As I was sampling, I was trying to determine what Arby's menu item I would put it on, and I couldn't come up with anything.

The flavor wasn't necessarily bad, it was just underwhelming. For that reason, I ranked it here; I suppose I liked it better than the cheddar cheese and honey Dijon sandwich sauces, but that's about it. If you like condiments that are sweet, tangy, and reminiscent of mildly spicy berries, you might like the Bronco Berry sauce. If you decide to try it, I bet it's decent with the chicken tenders. For me, I'll choose a different sauce for dunking.

If you think I'm silly for including ketchup in this line-up, I'm not. Not all ketchup varieties are created equal — some taste metallic (especially ketchup from a foil packet), others are too sweet, and still others have a unpleasant, runny consistency. I'll be honest, I expected Arby's packet of ketchup to be lackluster; like something from a school cafeteria. I'm not sure why I thought that, but I did. Thankfully, I was pleasantly surprised.

Arby's ketchup tasted like good quality ketchup. It wasn't cloyingly sweet or overly vinegar-y. In fact, there was a nice balance of sweetness and tang, with plenty of tomato flavor shining through. The ingredient list states that Arby's ketchup is made with red ripe tomato concentrate, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, salt, spice, onion powder, and natural flavoring. Seems like a straightforward ingredient list to me, and it's apparent when you taste the product.

The consistency was ideal (not too thick and not runny), the tomatoes were tangy and sweet, and the subtle hint of onion was a bonus. I tried the ketchup with a bunch of crinkle cut fries, but I imagine it's awesome with Arby's onion rings and deluxe burgers. I ranked Arby's ketchup here because, well, it's ketchup, and there were many other sauces I liked more.

When I first tasted Arby's Buffalo dipping sauce, I thought it tasted like ketchup spiked with hot sauce. And since I liked the chain's ketchup, that wasn't entirely bad. According to the label, the sauce includes cayenne pepper, water, soybean oil, natural cheese flavor, cream and garlic. There's also calcium disodium EDTA, so, as mentioned above, avoid this sauce if you're dodging food additives.

In terms of flavor, I didn't detect the cheese or cream nuances, and that was fine by me; I'm not certain why those ingredients are added anyway. I did detect the cayenne pepper and garlic. In fact, I liked the lingering heat the cayenne pepper provided on my tastebuds. And the garlic added depth and complexity.

In terms of consistency, the sauce was thick enough to use as a dip, and thin enough to pour over any of Arby's sandwiches. Arby's found the liquidity sweet spot with this one. Next time, I'll enjoy this sauce with Arby's buttermilk crispy chicken, or the buttermilk Buffalo chicken when I want a Buffalo sauce explosion. I ranked Arby's Buffalo sauce eighth simply because its applications are more limited than the winners in the category.

Next time you're grabbing a burger at Arby's, get the burger sauce and pile it on top. In fact, you might want to ask for two (they're complimentary after all). The sauce is thick and rich, and delivers the ideal marriage of ketchup and mayonnaise. It's tangy and sweet, and partners nicely with savory, salty foods like burgers and fries.

I don't typically order thousand island-type sauces like this one (remember my infatuation with honey mustard?). But this is a sauce I'll be getting again. It was delightfully creamy, studded with pickle relish, and balanced sweetness and acidity.

And back to that pickle relish — it was divine. There were enough diced pickles in the sauce to be detectable, but not overpowering. I enjoyed Arby's burger sauce with my fries, but I'm confident it would be especially fabulous on a juicy burger or corned beef reuben. With all this gushing, why did I rank Arby's burger sauce in the bottom half of the pack? Because I preferred the top six sauces more.

When I opened my little cup of Arby's marinara sauce, I thought the sauce resembled ketchup. For that reason, I thought it would taste like ketchup — and I'm happy to report it did not. Yes, there were definitive notes of tomato, but the sauce was savory and herby, too. The ingredient list states that the first two ingredients in Arby's marinara sauce are water and concentrated crushed tomatoes, and that was apparent when I took my first taste.

The sauce was warm and cozy (it wasn't actually warm in temperature, but in vibes) and there was a nice marriage of sweetness and tang. Arby's marinara sauce is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, and like it or not, the sweetness of the corn syrup balanced the acidity of the tomatoes. I also detected notes of onion, garlic, and a few Italian spices, like oregano and basil. I can't be certain oregano and basil are added since the label lists "spices", but this tasted like a sauce for pasta.

I'm reasonably confident Arby's marinara sauce would be amazing with the chain's mozzarella sticks, onion rings, and pizza slider. I ranked Arby's marinara sauce in the top six because it's a worthy sauce, especially if you're craving Italian flavors. It's not higher simply because I enjoyed those options more.

At first glance, I was surprised by the thickness of Arby's ranch sauce. The sauce has the consistency of a thick dip, not thin like salad dressing. In my opinion, that makes this sauce an excellent option for a variety of applications, from a sandwich spread, to dip for chicken tenders, to topping for Arby's farmhouse chopped salad. In terms of flavor, this ranch was mildly herby with nuances of zingy garlic. The ingredient list starts with soybean oil, but after that, you'll find sour cream, buttermilk, vinegar, egg yolks, chives, onion, garlic, and parsley. That's quite the medley. The buttermilk, sour cream, and vinegar add refreshing tangy notes, and the egg yolks add creamy richness. 

I also thoroughly enjoyed the fragrant chives, onion, and parsley — they helped provide an authentic ranch dip experience. As mentioned, I envision pairing this dip with fried chicken and salad, but I'm certain it would be awesome on Arby's roast turkey and bacon wrap (the wrap comes with ranch, but there's always room for more). I ranked Arby's ranch dipping sauce in the top five because it belongs on a list you can count with one hand. 

My Arby's cup of au jus was poured from the spigot of a large coffee urn — one of those big stainless steel contraptions you see at the community center on pot luck day. It was steamy and warm and I couldn't wait to sample it. I mean, Arby's is known for its roast beef, so the au jus accompaniment, or the pan drippings from cooking a roast, must be delicious, right? Correct, that was my experience. This au jus was brothy and savory, and had a deep beef flavor. To my surprise, it wasn't overly salty — which is often the case with broths of all types. 

I also enjoyed the nuances of onion and garlic, two aromatics that transformed the beef stock into a full-bodied dipping sauce. I also detected a hint of smokiness, which turns out, comes from the addition of natural smoke flavor (according to the ingredient list). I loved the au jus on my fries, so I'm positive it's spectacular when served with Arby's roast beef sandwiches and its classic French dip with Swiss.

Additionally, the Arby's au jus wasn't free, but I found the price to be incredibly reasonable for the volume I received. In fact, I ranked Arby's au jus fourth for one reason: I liked the top three sauces better (and can visualize more uses for them). 

With a name like Arby's sauce, I expected this entry to reign supreme. And for the most part, it did, which is why it made the top three. I would describe Arby's sauce as a commingling of barbecue sauce and ketchup. It's got the consistency and smokiness of BBQ sauce, coupled with a subtle sweetness from tomatoes. I also detected onion, garlic, warming spices (perhaps cloves), and black pepper. Plus, thanks to the addition of vinegar, the sauce is bright and tangy, which added another layer of complexity. Each drop is full-bodied and robust.

I adored Arby's sauce on my fries, but I imagined several other uses for the eatery's signature sauce. Since the sauce is hardy and savory, it can easily stand up to some of the more flavorful dishes on the Arby's menu, from the classic roast beef offerings, to the burgers and sandwiches with steak, turkey, and chicken. I kept licking my fingers when sampling this sauce. It's delightfully addictive, and wildly versatile. Since you can use this delectable sauce on practically everything, I gave it the bronze.

Meet your runner up – Arby's horsey sauce. Truth is, I didn't know why this sauce was called "horsey" until I tasted it — and holy horseradish. It was kind of fun to go in blind and unsuspecting, not realizing I was about to get slammed with a flavor punch. I adore horseradish (it's second place after honey mustard on my favorites list), so I was smitten from the start. In fact, I was surprised the first two ingredients were soybean oil and water because I clearly tasted the horseradish and mustard right out of the gate.

Both fiery elements (horseradish powder and mustard flour) are infused into a creamy vinegar base that's sweetened with corn syrup and enriched with egg yolks. The sauce is thick, velvety, and undeniably delicious. And since it's creamy (not studded with pungent bits of horseradish root), you can squeeze this sauce onto practically anything at Arby's.

If you like your meals with a little kick, I encourage you to try this spicy sauce. I suggest adding it to Arby's roast beef sandwiches, and any of the turkey and cheese sliders, sandwiches, and wraps. As much as I cherished this horseradish sauce, one offering won my heart more.

I'm thrilled to announce the winner in this ranking: Arby's hickory smoked BBQ sauce. I like a good barbecue sauce, and this is one of the best I've tasted. The sauce was thick and clingy, so it clung to my fries with ease. And thanks to the hardy consistency, it makes a suitable sandwich spread or dip for chicken tenders, curly fries, potato cakes, and more.

Arby's hickory smoked BBQ sauce was the darling of this list, and was superior when compared to the other 11 options. The sauce was aromatic, savory, smoky, and perfectly sweet. All the elements worked well together and were balanced, meaning one flavor component didn't overpower any other. The ingredient list starts with high fructose corn syrup (not my favorite option, but I can live with it), and is followed by a blend of tomato paste, spices, celery seeds, natural hickory smoke flavor, onion, and garlic. I appreciated the distinct notes of ground black pepper; it tasted like the peppercorns were freshly ground.

I have visions of spooning this sauce over Arby's buttermilk crispy chicken, the steak and bacon melt, the King's Hawaiian ham slider, and many other things. I'm confident it will shine wherever I choose to use it. Thanks to its great hickory flavor, thick consistency, and endless versatility, I awarded this sauce first place.

For this ranking, I sampled every available sauce at my local Arby's. I tasted each one on a spoon, and then on a crinkle cut fry. To rank them, I judged each sauce based on flavor, consistency, and versatility. If the sauce was tasty, multi-layered, and suitable for a wide variety of applications, it ranked higher. Ten of the 12 sauces were complimentary with my fries purchase, so there was no real reason to factor in price.

All of these Arby's sauces were tasty. In fact, it was hard to number those between four and nine; the top three were my favorites, while I could live without the bottom three. Still, I'm certain there are Bronco Berry fans out there, as some folks likely prefer a savory, jelly-like sauce with their jalapeño bites. 

As it turns out, all my favorites were the classic (and iconic) Arby's sauces. It's clear those sauces are cherished for a reason. Additionally, I hadn't been to an Arby's in over a decade before this review, which was better in my opinion. After all, I walked into the chain with a fresh perspective. After sampling a dozen Arby's sauces, I became the chain's newest fan, and won't wait that long before my next visit.