I tried and ranked apple-cider doughnuts from Wegmans, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s. The winner tasted incredible in my air fryer.

I tried and ranked apple-cider doughnuts from Wegmans, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s. 

Pumpkin spice is often considered the unofficial flavor of autumn. However, this fall, many Americans have grown tired of pumpkin spice dominating the season.

I’m with them, as I believe there’s nothing better than a freshly made apple-cider doughnut and a cup of hot coffee on a crisp fall day.

I grew up in the Northeast and frequently made trips to upstate New York and New England during foliage season. The leaves were beautiful, but the apple-cider doughnuts were often the highlight of these trips.

Now that I live in New York City, it’s a long drive to my nearest apple orchard. I wanted something to satisfy my favorite autumn craving, so I bought apple-cider doughnuts from Trader Joe’s, Wegmans, and Whole Foods and taste-tested them with my wife and kids.

Here’s my ranking, from worst to first.

Prices may vary by location.

Trader Joe’s apple-cider doughnuts looked like typical supermarket doughnuts.

According to the Trader Joe’s website, its apple-cider doughnuts are made in a bakery in western Massachusetts. 

According to Trader Joe’s website, its apple-cider doughnuts come from a family-owned bakery in western Massachusetts. They’re made from real apple cider to give them a fluffy texture and tangy flavor.

Although they were rolled in cinnamon sugar, they otherwise looked like cake doughnuts from a supermarket, very regular in shape and fairly dense.

The apple-cider doughnuts from Trader Joe’s were our least favorite of the three we tried.

I thought Trader Joe’s apple-cider doughnuts tasted like green-apple candy.

Trader Joe’s apple-cider doughnuts were fairly moist, but despite the website’s description, I found them to be more gluey than fluffy. They also didn’t taste like cider to me.

Instead, the flavor reminded me of green-apple candy. It almost seemed like the doughnut was attempting to imitate the flavor of apple cider.

At $4.50 for a box of six, they were the least expensive of the three I tried, but I still wouldn’t buy these again.

Wegmans apple-cider fry cakes were coated in a thick glaze.

I wasn’t used to seeing apple-cider doughnuts covered in glaze.

Wegmans uses the term “fry cakes” for what I’d typically call a cake doughnut. On the day I visited, I got the last box in the store.

It took me a while to find them because I usually expect cider doughnuts to be plain or rolled in cinnamon sugar. However, these were coated in a thick glaze.

A pack of four cost me $5.

My kids liked the Wegmans apple-cider fry cakes the most.

My kids loved the glaze on Wegmans’ apple-cider fry cakes.

The glaze was enough to win over my kids, who both thought Wegmans’ apple-cider fry cakes were the best of the three we tried. I liked them, too.

Wegmans’ hearty, cakey doughnuts had a nice hint of cider flavor. They tasted fresh, and the glaze added a different texture.

But ultimately, I don’t really need my cider doughnuts to be glazed, and the cake wasn’t as puffy or moist as I’d prefer.

I’d pick them up again if I was at Wegmans and needed doughnuts, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy them.

The Whole Foods apple-cider doughnuts were the most expensive of the three we tried.

Whole Foods’ apple-cider doughnuts reminded me of the ones I’d find at a farm.

I didn’t know Whole Foods sold apple-cider doughnuts, as I couldn’t find them online for store pickup on the day I went.

I decided to check anyway and found them in the bakery section in plain plastic containers that looked like they had been packed by hand.

There were no labels besides the price tag, which reminded me of something I’d find at a farm. At $6.50 for a pack of four, these were the priciest of the doughnuts we tried, but they were also the largest.

My wife and I agreed Whole Foods easily had the best apple-cider doughnuts.

Of all the food rankings I’ve done, I’ve never had an easier time choosing a winner. 

The Whole Foods apple-cider doughnuts were great. They had a tasty cider flavor, and the full coating of cinnamon sugar gave them a nice spice and texture. The doughnuts were also surprisingly moist for being so thick and crusty on the outside.

After a few minutes in the air fryer, they tasted as good as the ones I’d get from the New England countryside. These were the clear favorite for my wife and me.

Of all the food rankings I’ve done, this one was the easiest, with Whole Foods clearly coming out on top. I’d absolutely buy these again anytime I’m craving cider doughnuts.