Australia's best and worst frozen chips have been revealed so here are the ones you need in your shopping trolley

Looking to recreate pub night at home, or save a few dollars on ordering food delivery? You’ll find most Australian supermarkets are stocked with a slew of oven-ready frozen chips and fries, with many stacking up to the real deal. But which products are actually worth it?

Fortunately, leading consumer advocacy group CHOICE has done the hard yards for you, ranking the best – and worst – frozen chips across Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and IGA. In a first for the organisation, judges taste-tested 34 types of chips from the four stores, including battered, crinkle-cut, shoestring and straight-cut varieties.

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“There’s an overwhelming number of products available, so we’ve tested over 30 frozen chips, cooking them in an air fryer to see which ones are a must-try,” CHOICE editorial director Mark Serrels said.

Judges blind-tasted each oven-baked snack and rated them based on appearance, aroma, flavour and texture. Read the verdict below, including a surprising rank for the cheapest chip – Woolworths home brand shoestring fries.

Australia's best frozen chips

Best straight-cut chip

Birds Eye’s Golden Crunch Thin and Crispy chips placed first in the straight-cut category, with a CHOICE rating of 88 per cent. The classic chips are known for their crunch factor and cost just $5.80 for a 900g pack.

“Our expert judges praised them for their golden colour and crispy and fluffy texture,” Serrels said.

Best crinkle-cut chip

Birds Eye snagged another win in the frozen chip rankings with its Golden Crunch crinkle-cut chips, scoring 85 per cent. Serrels said the crinkle-cut snack scored well for its crunchiness and slightly salty flavour.

Like the brand’s straight-cut variety, a 900g pack will set you back $5.80.

Best shoestring chip

In a surprising feat, the most affordable frozen chip – Woolworths Essentials french fries – snared the gong for best shoestring chip. At just $4 for a 1kg pack, the frozen fries rated 66 per cent by CHOICE judges.

“(They) were praised by our judges for their crispness, appealing colour and strong potato taste,” Serrels explained.

Best beer-battered chip

In another win for the supermarket conglomerate, Woolworths’ Australian Beer Batter Steakhouse chips ranked first in the beer-battered chip category, with a strong rating of 76 per cent.

The steakhouse-style fries cost just $4.50 for a 750g pack, and were scored highly for their “delicious smell” and balance of crispness and fluffiness, according to Serrels.

Australia's worst frozen chips

The CHOICE team also highlighted the chips to avoid putting in your trolley. Despite Birds Eye’s wins in the straight and crinkle-cut categories, its Golden Crunch Microwave Shoestring Chips received the lowest score by judges at just 37 per cent.

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Aldi’s home brand also fared poorly in the blind taste test, with the Aldi Seasons Pride crinkle-cut and steak-cut chips ranking 46 and 48 per cent respectively. And with a rating of 56 per cent, Potato Utopia’s’ Beer Batter Flavoured Fries were also among the lowest-scoring frozen chips.

“Our results show that just because one product performs well, others from the same brand might not necessarily have the same results,” Serrels added.

Lord of the Fries co-founder and owner Amanda Walker was among the judging panel, in addition to three CHOICE staffers.

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