Costco's Dried Fruit, Ranked Worst To Best

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Dried fruit is a great snack to have on hand when you want something that's not only sweet but also offers a compelling textural element; the chewiness associated with dried fruit offers a unique mouthfeel and seems a little more satisfying compared to other dried snacks like beef jerky, where it feels like you are gnawing at it like an animal. The fruit flavors and pieces vary widely and create fun, colorful snack options. And there's no better place than Costco to pick up many, many pounds of the stuff.

I decided to critique Costco's dried fruit selection based on the overall flavor, texture, and versatility. Given that you're forced to purchase such large quantities, the ability to use them in multiple ways is just as important as their taste. You might find that your store has different products; some things showed up online but were not available in-store, and sometimes it was the other way around: Things appeared out of stock or didn't come up at all online but were available in the store, so be sure to check out your local warehouse for the most accurate results. If you need some dried fruit, Costco has an array of flavorful options, but a few are much better than others. Let's start from the bottom and work our way up to the best.

These Kirkland Signature Organic Dried Blueberries are dry but totally easy to eat. I was a little scared reading that they were sweetened, but the sweetness doesn't really come across, which leads me to believe that they would be almost flavorless without the organic sugar. I think these would be fantastic on top of yogurt, as a garnish for cocktails, or even in something like blueberry muffins. They're easy to eat and very reminiscent of raisins. 

That said, I don't know that I would identify them as blueberries in a blind taste test, as the flavor is quite mild. The sugary addition, overall texture, and appearance really look, feel, and taste like a raisin. I think these are highly versatile, though, because you could incorporate them into scones, pancakes, and just about anything you desire. The texture is a real pleasure to eat, and the sizing is quite small and pleasant.

However, they rank last because I'm a little disappointed that the flavor leans so raisin-ish. Blueberries have a distinct sweet, tart, almost floral taste that is missing here. I can't rank these can't drink too high, unfortunately. Reviews on Costco's website range from calling them incredibly sweet to raving about them to saying they taste terrible or have no taste at all. Buy at your discretion.

Now, we face the opposite problem in the Kirkland Signature Sweetened Dried Mangoes. They're tasty but limiting. Let's dial it back and start with the flavor: Mango naturally is sugar-forward, so I find the sugar unnecessary; it makes the dried fruit ultra-sweet, transforming it from nature's candy to, well, actual candy. It also gives it a gritty texture that I can feel not only on my tongue, but I can hear the sugar's crunchiness when I chew; it's a bit distracting. I like the plumpness of the dried mango itself and can appreciate that the pieces are really large; that aspect makes them easy to hold and eat. Texturally, they feel a little bit gummy and malleable, which is nice (aside from the sugary grit). 

Still, I think the sweetened aspect is a little limiting. They are tasty, sure, but incredibly sweet, so you have to be strategic about how you use them. It makes it harder to use in savory applications. I'll be happy to slowly eat the bag, but I wouldn't necessarily want to purchase this for my kitchen again. This would be good for a party or if you already have a specific idea for how to utilize these. 

If you want to get your cherry craving year-round but don't want to pay the high cost of seasonal cherries, you might want to snag a pack of the Kirkland Signature Whole Dried Tart Montmorency Cherries. These treats are quite sticky and a little bit oily, thanks to the blend of Montmorency cherries, sugar, and sunflower oil. These are surprisingly tart, too, so I can only imagine how sour they would be without any added sugar. The sweetener doesn't make it cloying or unapproachable; instead, they are easier to use in your kitchen. I still think you could employ them in sweet and savory applications as desired, and they rehydrate pretty easily.

I think these would be especially nice on a salad, in a chicken salad, or incorporated into a nutty trail mix. They are plump and easy to eat, with a pleasant chewiness that makes them seem moister than other options on this list. I like the tart potency, which makes them slightly more interesting than the bland blueberries and extra-sweet mangos.

If you've ever needed 3.5 pounds of prunes, get the Kirkland Signature Sunsweet Whole Dried Plums bag from Costco. For the uninitiated, a dried plum is indeed a prune. Growing up, I always associated them with older adults, and my mom always recommended them for traveling. They have just as much fiber as other fruit on this list, so maybe it's time for prunes to get a rebrand beyond being known for keeping you regular. They taste good!

This Costco product is quite sticky and gooey, with some smashed fruits that make it ultra-tacky as I dig my hand in the bag. They're the messiest of all the fruits, and they are easily the most hydrated among the options in this ranking. Still, I have to say, they are quite delicious. They don't have any sweetener, but they aren't very sweet on their own. They genuinely make for a tasty snack, like a bigger, wetter, more complex, less sweet raisin or date. The somewhat muted flavor gives them plenty of variety in how you decide to utilize them. They work nicely in dishes like chicken Marbella, but hey, you can always take the bag if you're traveling and need fiber. I like the taste and versatility over the cherries, but there are a few better picks to come.

The 26-ounce bag of Kirkland Signature Organic Dried Pineapple Tidbits is pretty great. I love pineapple, so enjoying a dried version is kind of fun. They are quite fibrous, so you have to chew on them to really break them down. Additionally, the fruit pieces are totally smashed into the bag, so it's like getting a big, compressed brick of dried pineapple pieces. Separating them from each other almost rips them into smaller shreds. That is a tad annoying; in the photo, I show you a mass of the fruit as well as what the smaller pieces look like to give you an idea of what we're working with here. 

Still, I can appreciate that there is no sugar added, which provides a bittersweet profile and sets the taste apart from others on this list. It makes it feel multidimensional with every bite. They are dry and a bit rough on the tongue, but not overly firm when you bite into them. I like the tanginess and think that makes them particularly compelling, but simultaneously a bit limiting because you might not want your fruit yogurt to be so tart. I'd be inclined to eat these alone or perhaps dunk them in chocolate or pair them with coconut. These could be ideal in baked cakes when you don't want the added moisture of a canned or fresh pineapple, but you could try them in an upside-down pineapple granola bar or in a DIY trail mix. 

I knew I bought dried figs, but for whatever reason I was expecting little pieces of fruit from the bag of Sunny Fruit Organic Sun-Dried Figs. Having a whole dried fig offers quite a nice experience and opens the possibilities even further. That said, the top of the fig is very tough to eat, which is effectively like eating a stick, so avoid nibbling on that. My suggestion would be to rip it off or bite it from the top immediately and toss the nub. Then the rest of it is like eating the center of a Fig Newton.

The exterior is somewhat tough, leathery, and dry, but then it gives way to the inside, a gooey center of sweet jamminess. The seeds also add a pleasant texture and crunch. These are perfect for various salads and other applications; they are already quite sweet once you hit the middle, and I'm happy that there isn't any added sugar. There are a plethora of ways to use dried figs, from incorporating them in fruitcake to stuffing them with cheese or pairing them with prosciutto. The fruit also works to enhance pot roasts, so you'll find plenty of uses for the 40-ounce bag. The overall flavor, texture, and versatility of this dried fruit give it the third-place position, as there are a couple of other options that I find I'd reach for more frequently.

The Kirkland Signature Unsweetened Organic Dried Mangoes are perfect. Some of the other fruits had oil, which made them stickier than necessary, while others contained sugar for added sweetness. These are just plain organic dried mango; they are dry and chewy but have some sort of juiciness that doesn't leave my mouth dry. They are unsweetened and without any other additives to distract you from the natural flavor. That leaves them a relatively blank slate, whether you want to eat them alone or prefer to coat them in dark chocolate; however, they are erratically sized. Certain pieces are larger while others are small little fragments, so admittedly, that's a slight nuisance. 

Of all the dried fruits thus far, I think this is the easiest to eat on its own. It doesn't leave a sticky residue; it's sweet but not overly sugary, and it has a slight, barely-there tartness that gives it dimension to make every nibble interesting. That said, they were deemed an organic item to skip from Costco because they dry out quickly; if you get these, have a plan of action to consume them relatively fast. Still, I liked them and think they're one of the best dried fruits I tried in this review, and I did not factor in longevity. I like the overall flavor of this more than the figs, but this may be a personal preference.

I have had dried apricots for decades; they were always a mainstay in my house growing up, something we would eat with nuts. So I've had many kinds over the years, buying them in bulk from places like Sprouts and in packages from places like Trader Joe's. The Nature's Garden Probiotic Dried Apricots come with 40 ounces of product and are perfectly plump and fresh, unlike some apricots that might have been sitting around at the grocery store, all dried out. 

These have plenty of life and feel like a fun way to get a bit of added probiotics, too. They taste true to their form — sweet, with a hint of acidity and a touch of floral –  and I love that they're versatile, whether you prefer to eat a handful from the bag or chop them up for a salad. There's no shortage of ways to employ these in all types of cooking and dishes, so your bag will be depleted easily. You can use these wonderful morsels in anything from apricot buttermilk coffee cake to a savory goat cheese and apricot appetizer. The options feel really limitless, and that's a major reason this ranks so high. Not just that, though; these are great, sweet, plump dried apricots.

I purchased all items from one Costco location and tested the various fruits over a couple of days. I tried a small piece of each and repeated that multiple times to get a sense of how each one differs. I, of course, factored in the overall taste of the fruit itself; if it was sweetened, I wanted a balanced flavor that wasn't overly sugary. It was important for the fruit's flavor to shine. In addition, I was looking for something easy to eat and chew, not overly jagged or incredibly dry. 

I was also seeking fruits that could be used in myriad ways in cooking and baking. The dried treats ranked higher if they were not only flavorful but also if I could come up with multiple ways to use them in my kitchen beyond just digging my fingers into the bag. Nothing was especially unpleasant, so this is purely based on the criteria I listed. You can't go wrong with these as long as you know that you and your family can consume a bag within a reasonable time.