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My Favorite Girl Scout Cookies in 2024, Ranked Worst to Best

You don't have to agree with me, but there's definitely a clear winner. Can you guess which one?

Katie Teague Writer II
Katie is a writer covering all things how-to at CNET, with a focus on Social Security and notable events. When she's not writing, she enjoys playing in golf scrambles, practicing yoga and spending time on the lake.
Expertise Personal Finance: Social Security and taxes
Katie Teague
6 min read
Someone carrying boxes of Girl Scout cookies

The Girl Scouts earn millions of dollars a year from cookie sales.

Francine Orr/Getty Images

We're in the middle of Girl Scout cookie season, and if you're a fan of these treats that only come around once a year, you've likely already splurged on a few boxes. This season, there are 12 flavors available to buy -- the newest flavor, Raspberry Rally, was discontinued. I've tried all of the cookies below, and yes, I have a favorite.

Before you read my rankings, know that I don't like extra crunchy or hard cookies. When I was a teenager, I took a bite out of a hard cookie and it broke my permanent retainer loose... so now I don't trust them and it may have (definitely has) affected some of my decision making.

Also note that this is nonscientific testing based solely on my opinion. I'm not an experienced food critic, I just like trying new cookies and riling up my family and colleagues who don't have the same opinion as me about which cookie is best. Here's how I ranked all 12 cookies and why. Looking for Girl Scout cookies near you? Here's how to find them.

Which Girl Scout cookie is the best?

Girl Scouts

12. Toffee-Tastic

This is the only one I couldn't swallow. After biting into the hard, gluten-free cookie and letting it dissolve a bit, it felt like I had just eaten a spoonful of sand. And it didn't get any better from there: The toffee bits tasted more like a mediocre caramel and the cookie smelled like actual dirt. 

Toffee-Tastic is a very hard cookie, similar to biscotti. It might taste better if dipped into tea or coffee. The cookie was so hard that I conducted a "drop test" over a concrete sidewalk to see what it would take to break it. After four attempts and a toss, it finally broke clean in half. 

Needless to say, I don't recommend this cookie.

Girl Scouts

11. Adventurefuls

When I first saw the Adventurefuls cookies, I thought they'd become a new favorite. A brownie with caramel filling seemed like it would be delightful, but this cookie was anything but what I expected. For starters, I only like the center of freshly baked brownies, and I won't eat the edge pieces. Unfortunately, this cookie reminds me of overdone brownies. 

I first tried to break it in half, but it was super hard -- even the caramel wasn't as soft as I thought it would be -- so I bit into the center using my molars. The flavor of the brownie part was meh and the caramel-flavored center tasted artificial. 

Girl Scouts

10. Caramel Chocolate Chip

This is another gluten-free option the Girl Scouts offer and while it's way better than Toffee-Tastic, it's still bland. The texture is pleasant, soft and has large chocolate chunks. However, it's not much different from a regular chocolate chip cookie. It's extremely sweet since it has caramel flavoring but it's also a bit salty, which I didn't like.

Girl Scouts

9. Lemonades

Lemonades taste like the custard of lemon meringue pie, but it's the icing that's doing all the work. The cookie itself leaves little to be desired, and maybe it's because the icing is so overpowering. It's one of the larger cookies the Girl Scouts sell, but thin enough to eat in a few bites. If you're going for a lemon-flavored cookie, I suggest trying the Lemon-Ups instead (see below).

Girl Scouts

8. Tagalongs/Peanut Butter Patties

I've only ever had the Tagalongs, but for this taste test I received Peanut Butter Patties. It's been years since I've actually indulged in Tagalongs, but the taste between the two is somewhat different (they're made by different bakeries). 

The upper layer is a soft peanut butter while the lower layer is a crunchy crust, and the entire cookie is covered in a soft chocolate coating. Peanut Butter Patties are a bit too rich in flavor for me but have an overall good taste. 

Girl Scouts

7. Lemon-Ups

I thought Lemon-Ups and Lemonades would taste the same, but they don't at all. Lemon-Ups taste fruitier than the Lemonades and smell like fresh-squeezed lemons. There's a lemon glaze on the cookie's bottom that really drives the flavor home, and also a sort of tanginess that you don't typically get with the average cookie.

I could definitely enjoy these cookies in the spring with a glass of unsweetened iced tea.

Girl Scouts

6. Girl Scout S'mores

S'mores Pop-Tarts heated in a toaster were always my favorite as a kid, and the Girl Scout S'mores cookies taste similar. They're very soft with a buttery graham cracker sandwich filled with creamy chocolate and marshmallow-flavored filling. 

But since s'mores aren't meant to be cold, I decided to heat these cookies up in my microwave. Fantastic decision. The chocolate melted as it should and the marshmallow filling became much softer. If you buy these, I recommend heating them up (I used increments of 7 seconds to be on the safe side).

No, they still don't taste like the s'mores you make by a campfire, but they're pretty good.

Girl Scouts

5. Trefoils/Shortbread

Trefoils may look like plain cookies, but the taste is far from plain. They have a buttery taste perfectly balanced with a sweetness that isn't overpowering. These cookies pair great with coffee if you're a cookies-in-the-morning kind of person.

This simple shortbread cookie is baked in the shape of the Girl Scouts logo and has a soft texture that melts in your mouth like cotton candy. Now I understand why these cookies came in fifth place in our survey above.

Girl Scouts

4. Do-si-dos

Do-si-dos are soft, easy-to-break peanut butter sandwiches. Not only do they have peanut butter in the center, but the cracker also tastes like peanut butter. The entire cracker melts in your mouth and has a nice, subtle flavor -- I could eat these as is without the peanut butter. 

The peanut butter tastes different in the Do-si-dos than in the Tagalongs because it's not so overwhelmingly sweet. To me, it tastes more like authentic peanut butter without artificial flavors and has the same texture.

Girl Scouts

3. Thin Mints

Thin Mints are a popular choice for a reason. They melt in your mouth with the first bite and have a minty-chocolate flavor similar to an Andes chocolate mint. They're thin and have just the right amount of crunch. 

Pro tip: Eat one right after a garlicky meal to cleanse your palate. It's a close second to brushing your teeth, right?

On a professional note, if you ever decide to do a Girl Scout cookie taste test, save the Thin Mints for last because the minty flavor sticks around for a while after eating and could compromise the flavor of the next cookie you try. 

Girl Scouts

2. Toast-Yay

These cookies knocked Thin Mints into my personal third place, and I'm not sorry about it. Have you ever tried Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal? That's what the Toast-Yay cookies remind me of. They have a gingerbread and cinnamon graham cracker taste with a delicious layer of icing. The crust melts in your mouth almost instantly.

The large bread-shaped cookies are nearly the size of my palm. They're only available in certain regions, however, so they may be hard to come by. But if you can get your hands on some, I highly recommend them.

Girl Scouts

1. Samoas/Caramel deLites

If you know, you know: The Samoas cookies are the best. If there was ever a perfect cookie, it's this one. It deftly balances coconut, chocolate and caramel with a soft cookie crust. Samoas are really the only Girl Scout cookies with a classically chewy texture, and they're also a bit sticky if you break them in half. The texture reminds me of a no-bake cookie.

The Samoas Girl Scout cookie is easily the most divisive, as one of the main ingredients is coconut, a consistently polarizing food. It seems that most people I've spoken with who don't enjoy the donut-shaped chocolate and caramel goodness of this cookie are usually not a fan of coconut. Go figure. 

How my colleagues voted

I also wanted to see which Girl Scout cookie was the favorite among the CNET staff. To my surprise, nearly 55% voted for Samoas, with Thin Mints coming in second place with just over 27%. 

  • Samoas/Caramel deLites: 54.5% (30 votes)
  • Thin Mints: 27.3% (15 votes)
  • Tagalongs/Peanut Butter Patties: 10.9% (6 votes)
  • Do-si-dos/Peanut Butter Sandwich: 1.8% (1 vote)
  • Trefoils/Shortbread: 3.6% (2 votes)
  • Lemonades: 1.8% (1 vote)

Read more: DoorDash Will Deliver Your Girl Scout Cookies. Here's How 

What is the bestselling Girl Scout cookie? 

The Girl Scouts sell about 200 million boxes of cookies a year. According to the GSUSA website, these are the bestsellers.

  1. Thin Mints
  2. Samoas (Caramel deLites)
  3. Tagalongs (Peanut Butter Patties)
  4. Do-si-dos (Peanut Butter Sandwich)
  5. Lemon-Ups (Lemonades)