Brandless Best Food Products

This is the smartest $20 you'll spend all year

What a time to be alive: There's now an online, direct-to-consumer-model store selling everything from ketchup to hand soap where everything costs just $3.

As Brandless says on its website, "We estimate the average person pays at least 40% more for products of comparable quality as ours." The promise of groceries that cost less and taste the same (or better) is a siren call to the snackers among us, so we've decided to round up our favorite products on the site—all of which cost less than an Uber ride home.

① Sea Salt Quinoa Chips

These remind us of SunChips but with a more interesting grainy taste, since they're primarily made of quinoa and yellow pea flours, rather than corn and wheat. This open bag did not last long in our office—and no one even bothered with the "take this away from me, so I don't eat it all" song and dance.

Organic Peanut Powder

Some peanut butter powders taste like edible spackle, but this one doesn't—it's spreadable and tastes like the real thing, and is great for adding to smoothies. It's also a great value (a common theme), as other nut powders can be pricy.

Organic Crunchy Peanut Butter

It's a bit drippy, but that's par for the course for organic nut butters—and makes it our new go-to for drizzling on apple slices, salads and ice cream. There's no added sugar here, only peanuts and the just-right amount of sea salt.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Thins

Think grocery store cookies from your childhood (OK, or from last week) but small enough that you can eat 17 of them and feel great about it.

Gluten Free Brownie Mix

The mix contains a mere seven ingredients—a far cry from the typical boxed mixes on store shelves that come with a paragraph of everything involved. Once you add butter, water and eggs, you have a cake-like dessert that you can't even tell lacks gluten, especially when covered in vanilla ice cream (which we definitely did). It is easy to make, easier to eat and definitely worth every cent of the three dollars.

Chef's Knife

Not a snack, sure, but the concept of getting a passable chef's knife that costs less than a latte is too wild to pass up. It may not be the sharpest knife in the shed (heh), but it's great for anyone starting a kitchen or looking for a backup. And though it's out of stock for now, it looks like the Brandless team will be bringing it back.