The 8 Best Low-Sugar Ice Creams That Will Satisfy Your Craving, Based on Our Taste Test
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Vanilla and chocolate might have seemed like the only ice cream flavors that mattered when we were kids, but in 2024, there are a zillion flavors to explore in the freezer aisle. And many of them happen to be keto, lactose-free, non-dairy and, perhaps most intriguing of all, low-sugar. But just because the options are plentiful doesn’t mean they’re all worth the buy. (In fact, if you’ve been freezer-burned by “healthy” ice cream in the past, you know all too well that they can be icy in texture, off in flavor and near impossible to scoop.) So, we tried more than 30 low-sugar ice creams to bring you the best of the best. Read on for our top picks.
(Note: An average half-cup serving of regular ice cream contains 12 to 24 grams of added sugar.)
The Best Low-Sugar Ice Cream at a Glance
How We Chose the Best Low-Sugar Ice Creams
Depending on the base (traditional ice cream is made with cream and milk, but there are many brands that use nondairy alternatives, like oat, coconut or almond milks, as well as more unexpected ingredients, like beans or avocado oil), low-sugar ice creams can be a gamble. Some are frosty and crystallized in texture, others smooth and silky like the real thing. Another thing to consider is that some use less real sugar than other brands, while some substitute sugar alcohols or sugar-free sweeteners to keep the sugar content low while maintaining an authentic flavor. Whatever is used, low-sugar ice cream should ideally be as creamy, smooth and tasty as possible.
To uncover the best low-sugar ice creams, we scoured the internet (and surveyed our sundae-loving staff) for their favorite brands and varieties. Then, we nabbed a few flavors from more than 15 brands and tasted them. After choosing our favorites from each, we ranked them on five factors:
The 8 Best Low-Sugar Ice Creams
1. Turkey Hill No Sugar Added Vanilla Bean
TOTAL: 91/100
Let’s start with old faithful, shall we? When in doubt (or when serving brownies, pie, cake—you get the picture), vanilla is an easy win. This is Turkey Hill’s singular option with no added sugar, and it also happens to be fat-free. (Each serving contains 8 grams of sugar from the milk.) It’s made with nonfat milk and real vanilla bean, but the rest of the ingredients are sugar alcohols, thickeners and caramel color. While it doesn’t exactly taste like regular ice cream, it’s still creamy, clean and vanilla-y. Its texture is soft and rich, but it’s best to wait a few minutes before scooping.
2. Rebel Creamery Triple Chocolate
Instacart/Background: amguy/Getty Images
TOTAL: 90/100
If you’re sensitive to lactose, on the keto diet or can only eat sugar-free ice cream, Rebel Creamery is worth considering. Made with real cream, egg yolks, erythritol, monk fruit and gums for texture, these pints contain a few grams of protein and fiber in every serving (this particular flavor has 3 grams and 6 grams, respectively). Their high fat content also makes them an especially good choice for low-carb or keto dieters. We loved the Triple Chocolate variety because of its intense Dutch cocoa flavor and the crunchy chocolate flakes, but wish it was a little easier to scoop and less frosty.
3. Nick’s Strawb?r Swirl
TOTAL: 94/100
We taste-tested Nick’s Swedish-style light ice creams when they first launched, and this fruity flavor was our favorite of the lot. You seriously would have no clue that it wasn’t regular ice cream, thanks to each pint being made with a mix of plant-based sweeteners like stevia, corn fiber, birch sugar and allulose. (Each serving contains less than 1 gram of sugar.) Despite being made with skim milk, the ice cream has a luxuriously thick, creamy texture, courtesy of a plant-based fat called EPG. The vanilla ice cream swirled with ribbons of strawberry tastes like the O.G., but we wish the strawberry was thicker and more prominent.
4. Cado Java Chip Avocado Frozen Dessert
TOTAL: 92/100
“This ice cream is made with organic avocado purée” is a sentence we never expected to utter, but hey, it’s 2024—of course avo ice cream is a thing. Cado’s offerings average around 12 grams of sugar (some from the avocado) per serving, less than many big brands on the market. It’s also lower in calories, free of sugar alcohols and artificial flavorings and made with avocado instead of dairy, meaning it’s loaded with healthy fats, which in turn keep the ice cream easy to scoop and silky in texture. Of the flavors we tried, we most enjoyed the latte-like Java Chip, made with chocolate flakes, organic coffee and a touch of sea salt.
5. Halo Top Oatmeal Cookie Light Ice Cream
TOTAL: 94/100
We *definitely* get why some fans devour Halo Top by the pint. The Oatmeal Cookie variety contains 8 grams of sugar per serving, only 4 of them added (the ice cream gets most of its sweetness from erythritol and stevia extract), along with 6 grams of fiber and 5 grams of protein. That’s pretty darn filling for light ice cream. Its flavor is solid—think brown-sugar caramel meets cinnamony oatmeal cookies—but we wish there were more oats or crunchy bits throughout. Nevertheless, we greatly appreciate how soft it is straight out of the freezer. Go ahead, stow the scoop away in favor of digging in with a spoon.
6. So Delicious Dairy Free Vanilla Bean Coconutmilk Sandwiches
TOTAL: 96/100
As far as dairy-free, vegan treats go, this pick from So Delicious just might be the tastiest we’ve ever tried. Starring non-dairy coconutmilk frozen dessert—thickened with pea protein, locust bean gum and guar gum and sweetened with organic cane sugar—these sammies are as indulgent as they are fresh tasting. There’s no off-putting stickiness around the edges and no weird taste in the cookies, which are made with cocoa, wheat flour, cane sugar and organic brown rice syrup. As long as you like the taste of coconut, these are worth the buy. They aren’t sugar free, but each only contains 7 grams, so you’ll just need to keep from devouring the whole box in one sitting (which is harder than it seems).
7. Yasso Chocolate Fudge Greek Yogurt Bars
TOTAL: 94/100
TBH, these taste almost identical to the Fudgesicles of our youth, only with a bonus 5 grams of protein. (Thanks, Greek yogurt.) We’ve tried our fair share of flavors from this brand, and this one tastes the most like regular ice cream. Each of these Yasso bars, flavored with Dutch cocoa, contains 12 grams of sugar, but only 8 of those are added (no artificial sweeteners here)—the rest are from milk and yogurt. The bars also contain gums for texture, yet the yogurt doesn’t need much help in the richness department. It’s chocolatey without being cloying, but it’s the texture that will keep you coming back for another lick.
8. Chloe’s Oatmilk Cookies and Cream Pops
TOTAL: 91/100
Ice cream bars that aren’t made with real milk often have the texture of ice pops, meaning they’re frostier than they are creamy. But these kid-friendly pops from Chloe’s surprised us, as they deliver sophisticated sweetness and only slight iciness in every bite. Their mild flavor will satisfy the vanilla lovers in your house, while little ones will especially enjoy the chocolatey cookie pieces. Both the oatmilk base and the cookies are sweetened with cane sugar, so each bar contains 11 grams. Not only are they dairy-free, but the cookie crumbs are also made without wheat flour, so gluten-free snackers can get in on the goods, too.
Honorable Mentions
The above low-sugar ice creams are our favorites, but there are a few others we tried that are still worth considering. Here they are, in alphabetical order:
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