The 3 Best Margarita Mixes of 2023, Ranked

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Backyard parties, Taco Tuesdays, Friday night drinks—few cocktails fit a celebratory occasion as well as the margarita. You don't need a store-bought mix to make a good margarita at home, but if you’re having a big gathering and preparing your own is too time consuming, or you like the convenience or sweeter taste of a premade mix, it's a quick and easy option.

We tested 12 margarita mixes to find our favorites, focusing on options with widespread availability throughout the country. A store-bought mix will never taste as natural or fresh as a margarita you can make from scratch, and many of the mixes we tried exuded artificial flavors ranging from lime candy to lemon Pledge. But a few tasted natural enough to pass as real margaritas, and our top recommendations also provide the best value of price to serving.

1. Favorite Day Original Margarita Mix ($7 for 32 fluid ounces at the time of publication)

In every brand-concealed test we conducted, the Original Margarita Mix from Favorite Day—a Target proprietary brand—came out on top. Most other mixes we tried overpowered the palate with artificial flavors, but the Favorite Day Original mix tasted like it had the real ingredients we’d expect to find in a classic margarita. Unlike most competitors, its lime flavor actually tasted close to fresh-squeezed lime juice, though we wish it had just a touch more tartness. The mix complements tequila without watering it down and has a honey-like sweetness that's forward but not cloying. When served with a lime wedge and a salt rim, this cocktail rounds out beautifully.

Ingredients: water, organic agave nectar, lime juice concentrate, natural flavorsServings per bottle: about 10

2. Favorite Day Organic Margarita Mix ($9 for 32 fluid ounces at the time of publication)

The Favorite Day Organic Margarita Mix is surprisingly distinct from the Original Margarita Mix, though the near-identical labels and names make it easy to confuse the two. This mix bears a close resemblance to lemonade, and people who like things on the sweeter side may prefer this to the original version. It has a sugary, orange taste that needs a touch more acidity to bring it closer to a classic margarita profile, but this can be easily remedied with a fresh lime wedge. Compared with the original mix, it's more concentrated and slightly less natural tasting, but it becomes more balanced as it dilutes over ice, making it ideal to nurse on a hot day.

Ingredients: water, organic agave nectar, organic lime juice, organic natural flavorsServings per bottle: about 10

3. Powell & Mahoney Classic Margarita ($8 for 25.36 fluid ounces at the time of publication)

Unlike the Favorite Day mixes, which can only be purchased at Target, the Powell & Mahoney Classic Margarita can be found at various liquor and grocery stores. The lime flavor lacks the zest and bitterness of fresh citrus, but overall, this mix makes a pleasant and refreshing margarita with a faintly floral note and an orangey sweetness. When mixed into a cocktail using the recipe on the bottle, the flavor doesn't overshadow the taste of the tequila—a good thing if you’re using a spirit that you want to savor. The Powell & Mahoney Classic Margarita does taste more artificial than the Favorite Day mixes, but doctoring it with fresh ingredients, like just-squeezed lime juice, can mitigate this.

Ingredients: filtered water, cane sugar, lime juice concentrate, organic agave syrup, citric acid, natural flavor, natural orange extractServings per bottle: about eight

If you like a strong drink, or want a nice-looking bottle: The WithCo Agave Margarita ($30 for 24.5 fluid ounces at the time of publication; 10 servings) was the most polarizing mix of the bunch. Among the close to 60 testers who tried it, the feedback was split on nearly every front. Some felt it was balanced, while others found it too acidic. Some tasted fresh lime, others didn't taste lime at all. But we unanimously agreed it was the funkiest tasting, with a love-it-or-hate-it flavor best compared to apple cider and a citrus component that tastes like it came from cooked or fermented fruit rather than fresh-squeezed lime. Although it's nowhere close to a real margarita, it is enjoyable in its own way, if potent—the WithCo Agave Margarita was the only contender that called for a 1:1 ratio of mix to alcohol. Its attractive packaging could make a nice gift or adornment for a home bar, but this is also the most expensive option we tried, and generally, a margarita mix shouldn't cost more than a decent bottle of tequila. The mix also comes in a 16-ounce bottle, but the larger bottle offers a better value per drink.

If you like a margarita that skews fruity and tropical: The Tres Agaves Organic Lime Margarita Mix ($10 for 33.8 fluid ounces at the time of publication; 11 servings) makes a refreshing cocktail that's tequila-forward if you follow the bottle's recipe, and it strikes an ideal balance between tart and sweet. But it has notes of tropical fruit like pineapple and coconut that don't capture that classic margarita flavor as well as the Favorite Day or Powell & Mahoney mixes do—it might be better paired with rum for a daiquiri or tiki-style cocktail. Although it veers off the margarita path, it's a solid option for lovers of fruity drinks.

The Jose Cuervo margarita mix ($13 for 33.8 fluid ounces at the time of publication) tastes noticeably artificial and has a thick, syrupy sweetness that overpowers what little lime flavor it has. The mix is acceptable if it's your only option, but you may want to help it out with a squeeze of fresh lime.

We found the Agalima Margarita Mix ($10 for 33.8 fluid ounces at the time of publication) to be too sweet. It coats the tongue with fake, sugary flavors like lemonade and candy, which we found surprising given its wholesome ingredient list.

The Hella Cocktail Co. Classic Margarita mix ($11 for 25.4 fluid ounces at the time of publication) has a pungent flavor that's hard to place—some testers detected maltiness, and others found it akin to apple cider. It's extremely acidic and astringent, yet lacks the flavor of real lime.

Everyone who tried the Master of Mixes Margarita Mixer ($14 for 33.8 fluid ounces at the time of publication) compared it to a different sweet treat—Skittles, Life Savers, lime Otter Pops—and none of those flavors should pass in a good margarita.

Our testers had a lot of creative ways to describe the Stirrings Margarita Mix ($8 for 25.4 fluid ounces at the time of publication): "I can't imagine something natural creating these flavors," said one. "Why is it so bitter? It tastes like a bathroom cleaner," complained another. Answered a third: "Who knows, it could be real soap!"

The Zing Zang Margarita Mix ($10 for 59.2 fluid ounces at the time of publication) has a rancid taste and a thick texture that feels fuzzy on the tongue.

We disqualified the Barsmith Margarita mix ($12 for 32 fluid ounces at the time of publication) for smelling and tasting like cleaning chemicals. As one tester put it, "A good time was had by none."

A good tequila, a bottle of triple sec, and a couple of ripe limes are all you need to make a classic margarita that tastes more natural than any store-bought mix ever will. Some people may prefer the sweeter taste and thicker texture of a premade margarita mix, but all of them lack the zest of a fresh-squeezed lime. If you’re making a margarita for your own enjoyment, the process is simple enough for home bartenders of all experience levels. If you have the time to batch margaritas before a big party, you and your guests will likely be happier with the results.

There are two prevalent margaritas recipes: the classic margarita and the Tommy's margarita. Both are prepared the same way (shaken with ice, strained, and served on the rocks with or without a salt rim), but the classic version uses triple sec while the Tommy's recipe calls for agave nectar instead. It's completely up to you which recipe you use; some people think the Tommy's has a cleaner taste that spotlights the tequila, and others like how the triple sec rounds out the cocktail. You can use any triple sec or curaçao you like in a margarita, but we recommend Cointreau because it has an aromatic orange-peel flavor and a dry finish, and it's a higher quality than some cheaper triple secs you can find. Additionally, it's most common to see blanco tequila used in a margarita, but you can use any reposado or añejo you’re partial to.

For a classic margarita, we like the version from renowned cocktail bar Death & Co, which uses both triple sec and agave nectar. If you don't have agave on hand, it's okay to omit it for a slightly tarter margarita (which is the recipe that we used in our testing):

To make a Tommy's margarita, the recipe is as follows:

To batch from-scratch margaritas, multiply either recipe by as many drinks as you want to make, combine all of the ingredients in a container, stir without ice, and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. For the best result, shake the cocktails with ice and strain into a glass to remove any citrus pulp or ice chips. If that's not possible, serving it straight over ice does the job. We don't recommend adding ice to batches ahead of time, as you run the risk of overdiluting your drinks.

I got my start in craft cocktail mixology the day after I turned 21 and have worked professionally as a bartender ever since. I’ve worked as a bartending teacher in breweries and behind numerous cocktail bars in San Francisco, and I worked at one of the biggest whiskey bars in the United States. I had my first internship with a Bay Area beer magazine back when I was a journalism student, and I also used to bartend private events independently and for two event-planning and beverage-catering companies. I’ve attended more than three-dozen formal trainings and workshops related to beer, wine, sake, amari, and liquor, and I am currently studying for my level-one sommelier certification.

Writer Arianna Flores, who, as a native Texan, knows her way around a margarita, also conducted the initial research and testing for this guide.

I tested margarita mixes for this guide alongside Arianna and other members of Wirecutter's kitchen team: senior editor Marguerite Preston, supervising editor Marilyn Ong, editor Gabriella Gershenson, and senior staff writer Lesley Stockton, all of whom brought a mountain of expertise to each round of tasting.

When researching margarita mixes for this taste test, we checked the inventory of major retailers in person and online to see what was most widely available. We also read user reviews as well as ranked lists on sites such as Liquor.com, Bon Appétit, and The Spruce Eats to get a sense of the mixes people enjoy most. While we did include some more-expensive options, such as mixes from WithCo and Hella Cocktail Co., we aimed to mostly test mixes that we consider a good value. Since we wanted mixes that can approximate from-scratch margaritas, we favored ones that use real citrus and other natural ingredients. But in the interest of tasting what's out there, we included some mixes from popular brands that contain artificial and processed ingredients, too.

For our initial round of testing, we tasted all 12 margarita mixes with the labels concealed (to eliminate any bias toward packaging or brand names) with a group of colleagues, friends, and family. We tried the mixes without tequila first to get a sense of them on their own, shaking 2 cups of each mix with 1 cup of ice for 30 seconds, then straining and refrigerating them. We also had water and tortilla chips on hand for palate cleansing. When sampling the mixes, we noted the color, fragrance, and mouthfeel, observed how natural or artificial each one tasted, and analyzed any tart and sweet components. At the end of the first round, we dismissed the mixes that we deemed overly fake or harsh.

For the second round of testing, we gathered nearly 50 Wirecutter staff members at a company retreat to try a smaller selection in another brand-concealed test. This time, we made cocktails from four mixes (Favorite Day Organic, Agalima, WithCo, and Jose Cuervo) according to the package instructions using blanco tequila. We also included a from-scratch margarita as a control, following a standard recipe of 2 ounces of tequila, 1 ounce of fresh lime juice, and ¾ ounces of Cointreau. Our staff weighed in using the tasting criteria from the first round. To arrive at the finalists, we evaluated the feedback from both tests and conducted a tasting of our combined favorites.

To our surprise, the from-scratch control margarita ranked lowest at the company-retreat tasting. Based on the feedback, the culprit was the bitterness of the citrus pith and the acidic pucker of fresh lime juice; both flavors are difficult to replicate in shelf-stable mixes, which are also considerably sweeter. Our theory is that the subtler flavors of the from-scratch margarita might have gotten lost when sipped alongside the less-nuanced bottled mixes.

We held a final brand-concealed tasting of our top four contenders by tasting each mix in a cocktail with tequila, made according to the respective package instructions and served over ice with no garnish. We used Tapatío Tequila Blanco, recommended in our tequila guide, because it's moderately priced and mild enough to let the mixes shine through. Once more, we included a from-scratch margarita control following the same recipe as the previous round. After testing each drink, we experimented with squeezing a fresh lime wedge and adding a salt rim to each one to see how they fared. All of the mixes we recommend benefit greatly from these garnishes.

This article was edited by Gabriella Gershenson and Marguerite Preston.

Haley Perry

Haley Perry is an associate staff writer at Wirecutter covering video games and technology. She used to review video games full-time, and she's also a big fan of mezcal. If you get enough in her, she may just admit that she still plays The Sims ... a lot.

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