‘It just wasn’t very buttery’: the best (and worst) unsalted butter, tasted and rated

Butter days ahead: the right pat can really elevate your bakes. Photograph: Robert Billington/The Guardian

Unsalted butter is easily one of my most used ingredients. At any given time, I have at least four blocks in my fridge, ready to be softened and whipped into cakes or rubbed into flour for pastry. There is a camp of people who prefer to use salted butter for baking, and while there are definitely instances where that has its place (think shortbread and cookies), I find it much easier and more consistent to be able to control the salt level myself, especially because it varies so much between brands.

However, I tasted each butter on its own (much harder than you think!) and spread it on a plain cracker. The differences between them were much more subtle than I’d been expecting and, for the most part, it was hard to tell which was which. I don’t think you can go too wrong when deciding what to choose, especially if you’re using the butter in baking. But, personally, I avoid those newly downsized 200g blocks – they can work out to nearly double the price a kilo!

***

Best all-rounder
Waitrose Essential unsalted butter

_{£2.25 for 250g at Waitrose}
★★★★★

A strong contender. The butter flavour comes through pretty well, it’s creamy without being greasy and has a soft, sweet smell. A very good all-rounder, I’d say.

***

Best bargain
Marks & Spencer unsalted British butter

_{£2 for 250g at Ocado}
★★★★★

This immediately stood out from the others. It has the strongest, butter-forward, creamy flavour, and it spreads really well, too. It also happens to be the cheapest of the bunch, so it’s a win-win!

***

Best splurge
Country Life unsalted butter

_{£2.60 for 250g at Waitrose
£3.10 for 250g at Sainsbury’s}
★★★★☆

This has the most notable aroma, with a subtle sweetness to it. It leans towards the creamier side and I’d happily use it in cakes and pastries.

***

And the rest …

Yeo Valley organic unsalted butter

_{£3.20 for 200g at Waitrose
£3.05 for 200g at Sainsbury’s}
★★★☆☆

The only organic option here, and one of those smaller 200g blocks, which I don’t love. The butteriness is pretty subtle, but this has a lovely creaminess and good mouthfeel.

***

Lurpak unsalted butter

_{£2.15 for 200g at Waitrose
£2.15 for 200g at Ocado}
★★★★☆

One of the best for spreading consistency at room temperature. Faintly sweet, good creaminess and one I’d be inclined to use to make compound butters.

***

Müller unsalted British butter

_{£2.20 for 250g at Co-Op}
★★★★☆

A pleasantly clean and milky flavour that doesn’t leave a greasy aftertaste. A solid all-rounder.

***

Sainsbury’s unsalted British butter

_{£1.99 for 250g at Sainsbury’s}
★★★☆☆

Another neutral-leaning option that won’t steer you far wrong. It spreads quite nicely and has a very subtle butter flavour.

***

Cowbelle British unsalted butter

_{£1.99 for 250g at Aldi}
★★★☆☆

A mild and plain-tasting butter, but it doesn’t have the best spreadability at room temperature. A fine option for baking when you need a neutral backdrop.

***

Tesco unsalted butter

_{£1.99 for 250g at Tesco}
★★☆☆☆

The most neutral-tasting of them all, and neither here nor there. Fine for when you’re looking for a blank canvas to add your own flavour, but it just isn’t very buttery.

***

Anchor unsalted butter

_{£2.60 for 200g at Ocado
£2 for 200g at Morrisons}
★★☆☆☆

There’s a gentle butter flavour in this one, but overall it’s quite neutral. Perhaps a little greasier than some of the others.