The One Diet Pepsi Copycat We'd Definitely Repurchase

Diehard "fridge cig" fans know that nothing hits like a Diet Coke. But, if Diet Pepsi's more your style, then we've found just the affordable swap your weekly grocery bill has been craving. Tasting Table taste-tested five diet colas other than Coke and Pepsi, and in the ranking, Diet Big K left competitor colas flat. Big K is Kroger's private label brand, and the Kroger website promises "the perfect classic diet cola flavor" from its soda. Given its ranking, our taste tester can absolutely concur.

Diet Big K totally hits the mark as well as Diet Pepsi — not to be confused with Diet Coke. Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi famously offer unique taste profiles, with the former being crisp and a tad citrus-flavored and the latter leaning sweeter and bolder with subtle caramel tones. Diet Big K trods firmly in Pepsi territory. As our taste-tester noted in their ranking, "I was impressed by the immense amount of carbonation this had ... There was also an accompanying sweetness and spiciness to it that brought it to a higher level in taste." 

All in all, Kroger's Diet Big K clocks in like "a thinner version of Diet Pepsi" with a bold, true cola taste and overall satisfying mouthfeel that trumped the other offerings. To Diet Pepsi fans who are already browsing Kroger for knockout store-brand sushi or better-than-Costco rotisserie chicken, you may want to start lingering in the Big K aisle.

The infamous Coke vs. Pepsi debate is largely a matter of personal preference and brand loyalty. But judging by the trove of online fan reviews, it looks like Big K has accrued some pretty fierce brand loyalty of its own. One Reddit thread asked, "Is it just me, or does Kroger have the best generic brand soda?" Commenters assented, specifically praising Diet Big K cola. One wrote, "I love it! ... Drinking a diet cola now," and another said, "I like it far better than my old go to of Pepsi. Even when I go out and get Pepsi from a restaurant it only reinforces how much more I like Big K cola." 

Customer rave over Diet Big K on the Kroger website too. "I like this better than Diet Pepsi and Diet Coke. The flavor tastes sweeter to me," wrote one. Others weren't quite as elated, and one customer wrote, "This is decent. It's obviously not exactly like Diet Coke but it is pretty close." Regardless, the price is hard to beat. At Kroger, a two-liter bottle of Diet Big K is currently on sale for $1.00, and a 12-pack of 12-fluid-ounce cans costs $4.33. By contrast, a 12-pack of Diet Pepsi costs $10.99 or $3.49 for a two-liter. If you opt into the grocery chain's industry-leading rewards program, Diet Big K can be even more cost effective.