Supermarket own-brand chocolate digestives crowned best in UK — even better than McVitie’s

There’s nothing better than settling down with a cup of tea and a brand new, unopened packet of biscuits.

Chocolate digestives are always an elite choice, and you’ll likely be opting for McVitie’s – it’s a classic for a reason.

But the results of a new Metro taste test might have you rethinking your snack choices next time you head to the shop.

We pitted branded and supermarket own-brand versions of chocolate digestives against one another in a blind taste test, and there was a surprising winner. 

Here’s everything you need to know…

How we conducted the taste test

The Metro team conducted a blind taste test of milk chocolate digestive biscuits, sampling treats from Tesco, Aldi, Lidl, Morrisons, Asda, Co-op, M&S, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s, as well as branded versions by McVitie’s and Galaxy.

We scored each biscuit across five different categories, including chocolate to biscuit ratio, appearance, texture, dunkability and overall flavour, giving each product a potential maximum score of 100.

Which biscuit won Metro’s chocolate digestive taste test?

It was Marks & Spencer’s Milk Chocolate Digestives (£1.25 for 300g) that proved victorious, garnering an overall score of 86 out of 100.

According to M&S, these biscuits contain demerara sugar for ‘a crunchier texture’, and they certainly didn’t disappoint in this department.

They scored highly for their ‘satisfying crunch’ and ‘memorable flavour’, and proved especially popular with the team when it came to dunkability (a crucial factor for any biscuit lover), with a rating of 18 out of 20.

‘The chocolate got nice and melty, the biscuit softened just enough but still retained some bite,’ read one of the reviews.

This one was sugary, but just on the right side of being too sweet, and gave off a real sense of being ‘high quality’, which we loved.

In comparison, ‘the nation’s favourite milk chocolate biscuit’, McVitie’s, only scored 61 out of 100 in our test.

The branded biscuits, which were the most expensive of the bunch (priced at £2.25 for 266g), failed to wow the team, being described as tasting ‘a little bit stale’.

The appearance wasn’t very uniform, and there was a disappointing lack of chocolate on top, according to our reviewers. The texture was also deemed a tad too ‘crumbly’, meaning it almost ‘disintegrated into sand in the mouth’, which wasn’t too pleasant…

That said, McVitie’s scored pretty well for dunkability (16 out of a possible 20), so there’s always that.

Tesco’s Milk Chocolate Digestives (£1.10 for 300g) came a close second to M&S, with a total score of 77 out of 100.

These biscuits earned an almost perfect score when it came to dunkability, being hailed as ‘the perfect dunk’.

They also scored highly for their chocolate-to-biscuit ratio, with a ‘nice, thick layer of chocolate’ on top, which complements the slightly oaty flavour of the digestive beneath.

The appearance wasn’t the best of the bunch, with the chocolate layer being described as ‘messy’ and ‘all over the place’, but they clearly proved it was a case of don’t judge a book by its cover, as they ranked so highly overall.

Asda’s Milk Chocolate Digestives (£1.10 for 300g) were in third place with a score of 71 out of 100, and these were praised for their texture, being dubbed ‘the crunchiest’ of the lot 

However, they lost several points for their appearance as the chocolate didn’t have much of a glossy shine to it, and there were some gaps in the chocolate, meaning the biscuit was visible underneath in places. 

Galaxy’s version of the biscuits (£1.50 for 300g) was a surprising hit, scoring 70.5 out of 100. This branded treat, which was found on the shelves in Tesco, had a generous amount of chocolate, but ultimately didn’t taste quite as good as it looked. 

Lidl’s Tower Gate Milk Chocolate Digestives (99p for 300g) came in fifth place with 69 out of 100, while Sainsbury’s (£1.25 for 300g) finished in the middle of the bunch, earning 64 out of 100.

At the bottom of the scoreboard was Waitrose, as the retailer’s Essential Milk Chocolate Digestive Biscuits (£1.30 for 300g).

These only managed to score 46 out of 100, with the texture of the biscuit being compared to a ‘brick’. Some of those who tried it also commented that it was ‘too grainy’.

Its score for overall flavour was particularly low (four out of a possible 20), which was a surprise given the usual quality of Waitrose products and the price (it was one of the more expensive options we tried).

One scathing comment alongside the scores read: ‘Not a fan one bit, very hard, almost tastes stale. There’s a solid layer of chocolate, but it doesn’t really matter because I’m too busy worrying about my teeth, as it’s so hard.

‘This is a bad, bad biscuit – it shouldn’t be allowed to call itself a chocolate digestive. No love has been baked into this biscuit.’

Do you have a story to share?

Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@Metro.co.uk.