Jade Coull
There’s something pretty soothing about sausages. Think about it, we often reach for snags to dampen life’s tiny blows. Whether it’s getting up at dawn to exercise your democratic right to vote, enticing a fussy toddler to consume their protein, putting dinner on the table without breaking the budget, or procrastinating in a Bunnings car park before getting started on yet another home improvement project – we just subconsciously know that sausages will be there for us.
Which is why it’s hard to pass by the sausage section when you’re trying to keep your weekly grocery bill down. You can often buy twenty for $12 – an absolute steal. But which affordable supermarket sausages are actually the best? Is it worth forking out extra for fancy seasoning – fennel seeds, herb and garlic, honey – or does cheap and cheerful reign supreme? Who has the best snags: Coles, Woolworths, Aldi or IGA? These are the questions the Better Homes and Gardens team, led by senior food editor Sarah Murphy, set out to answer in a blind taste test.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The overall winner of our sausage taste test was also the cheapest: Aldi’s thin sausages, at $3.99 for 500g.
- Our expert taste-test winner was Aldi’s honey beef sausages, which cost $4.09 for 500g.
The verdict
Our panel of 16 office taste testers voted Aldi’s thin sausages as the overall winner. Panellists praised this sausage for its balanced flavour, just the right amount of saltiness and its crisp casing. Our expert taste tester Sarah, on the other hand, voted Aldi’s honey beef sausages as her overall winner. She particularly enjoyed this sausage’s sweeter flavour.
Expert winner
Aldi honey beef sausages
7.75/10
Panel winner
Aldi thin sausages
6.9/10
How we tested the supermarket sausages
We blind taste-tested 14 different supermarket sausage products from Coles, Woolworths, Aldi and IGA.
All of the sausages were prepared in our test kitchen and were air-fried in batches. We chose to air-fry the sausages to provide a consistent cooking environment. Each batch was cooked according to a standardised method, with timing adjusted for thick and thin sausages. Each batch was transferred to a cool room after cooking. Immediately before the taste test, all sausages were wrapped in foil, numbered, and reheated in a moderate oven for 5 minutes.
All of the samples were presented on identical platters and numbered from 1 to 14. Sausages were tested on their own without condiments or bread. Taste-testers shared their responses via an anonymous online form, ranking each sausage sample out of ten for four criteria: appearance, taste, texture and overall satisfaction. Taste-testers were also encouraged to leave constructive comments on what they liked and disliked about each sample.
How we selected which supermarket sausages to test
To be included in our taste test, the sausages had to be widely available in supermarkets nationally. This meant most of the sausages in our sample were budget rather than gourmet and ranged from $4 to $11 per packet. This may explain why the scores were skewed slightly lower than similar tests we’ve done for other products. We also wanted to sample a wide range of different sausages, rather than homing in on a specific type of protein. We included sausages made from beef, chicken, pork, or a mix (some of the mixed-meat sausages contained lamb) in our lineup.
Australian supermarket sausage taste test results
| Ranking | Name of product | Overall score out of 10 | Expert score out of 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aldi thin sausages | 6.9 | 7 |
| 2 | Aldi chicken, fetta and parsley sausages | 6.4 | 5 |
| 3 | Aldi honey beef sausages | 6.2 | 7.75 |
| 4 | Woolworths Gourmet pork fennel and garlic sausages | 6.2 | 7 |
| 5 | Coles pork sausages | 5.8 | 5 |
| 6 | Aldi thin pork sausages | 5.8 | 7 |
| 7 | Aldi herb and garlic beef sausages | 5.7 | 5 |
| 8 | Coles chicken, sage and thyme sausages | 5.6 | 4.75 |
| 9 | Woolworths chicken sausages (10 pack) | 5.1 | 6.75 |
| 10 | Coles The Original beef sausages | 5.1 | 6 |
| 11 | Woolworths thin beef sausages | 4.9 | 5.5 |
| 12 | Slape Sons BBQ sausages | 4.7 | 4.5 |
| 13 | Peppercorn beef sausages extra lean | 4.2 | 6.75 |
| 14 | Cleaver’s organic grass-fed beef sausages | 3.4 | 6 |
Panel winner
Aldi thin sausages
Expert score: 7
Panel score: 6.9
ALDI’s Ready, Set… Cook! Thin Sausages is a 500g pack of Australian-made snags priced at $3.99.
They’re marketed as a good source of protein with no artificial colours or flavours, but when it comes to what’s actually inside, things get a little mysterious. The 71% meat content is listed as “Beef, Lamb or Chicken,” meaning you won’t know exactly which animal you’re eating.
Despite the mystery meat, taste testers were won over, with one noting it had a “good balance of salt, not too gamey, slightly crunchy casing” and would “go great with bread and tomato sauce.”
Others agreed, calling out the satisfying crispiness and nostalgic flavour, “like a sausage I loved as a kid”, with more than one tester drawing the ultimate Australian comparison: “tastes like a Bunnings BBQ.”
Price: $3.99
Available at Aldi
Expert winner
Aldi honey beef sausages
Expert score: 7.75
Panel score: 6.2
ALDI’s Ready, Set… Cook! Honey Beef Sausages are a step up from the standard thin snag; they’re gluten-free, made in Australia, and ready in 12 minutes for $4.09.
The sweet, caramelised honey flavour was a hit with most taste testers, with one calling them “juicy, sweet and moreish” and another praising the “really sweet, caramelised onion base flavour.”
Available at: Aldi
The rest
Aldi Chicken, Fetta & Parsley Sausages
Expert score: 5
Panel score: 6.4
ALDI’s Specially Selected Chicken, Fetta & Parsley Sausages are the most premium of the Aldi sausage bunch at $8.00 for 500g.
Unfortunately, our taste testers were far from impressed, with reactions ranging from lukewarm to “not great”. The consensus seemed to be that these look the part, “aesthetically a good sausage”, but the eating experience doesn’t deliver.
In saying that, they came in second place in the panel score, so they can’t have been that bad.
Price: $8
Available at Aldi
Woolworths Gourmet pork, fennel, and garlic sausages
Expert score: 7
Panel score: 6.2
Woolworths’ Gourmet Pork Sausages Italian Style with Fennel & Garlic are made with 93% Australian pork, red wine, fennel seeds and garlic. They also took out a joint 5-star rating in the Canstar Blue 2025 awards for pork sausages, rated top for value, taste and freshness.
Our panel, however, was a little more divided. Fennel lovers were in their element, “great flavour and texture, it’s Italian”, said one person. But those less keen on the aniseed hit found it overpowering, with one tester warning, “If you don’t like fennel, you won’t like this.”
Price: $9
Available at Woolworths
Aldi thin pork sausage
Expert score: 7
Panel score: 5.8
ALDI’s Ready, Set… Cook! Pork Sausages are a no-fuss, gluten-free snag at $4.09 for 500g. The expert score of 7 suggests there’s a decent sausage here, and some testers agreed: one declared it the best they’d tried across the whole lineup, and another enjoyed its “porky, slightly sweet” flavour.
The panel, however, wasn’t as keen, scoring it a 5.8. Some felt this sausage was too salty.
Price: $4.09
Available at Aldi
Aldi herb and garlic beef sausages
Expert score: 5
Panel score: 5.7
ALDI’s Ready, Set… Cook! Herb & Garlic Beef Sausages are a gluten-free, Australian-made sausage at $4.69 for 500g, seasoned with a blend of herbs and spices and free from artificial colours and flavours. The tasting panel’s feedback could be summed up in one word: fine.
Comments ranged from “pretty good standard sausage” to “tastes like an average sausage. ” One tester perhaps captured it best by calling it “an honest sausage.”
There were a few brighter comments, with one person praising the seasoning as “just right” and predicting it could become a family staple, while another enjoyed the slight pepperiness and meatiness.
Available at Aldi
Coles chicken, sage and thyme sausages
Expert score: 4.75
Panel score: 5.6
Coles’ Chicken, Sage & Thyme Sausages are a lighter alternative to classic pork or beef sausages, made with 76% RSPCA-approved Australian chicken, gluten-free, with no artificial colours or flavours, and lower in fat than most on this list.
The panel was divided, though. Fans appreciated the flavour, with one tester declaring it better than all six beef sausages that came before it, while others enjoyed the “good bounce” and herby taste.
Others weren’t as keen, with comments like “rubbery,” “tasted weird,” and simply “not yummy” were submitted.
Price: $6.50
Available at Coles
Woolworths chicken sausages (10 pack)
Expert score: 6.75
Panel score: 5.1
Woolworths’ 10 Chicken Sausages swept the Canstar Blue 2025 chicken sausage awards, taking out 5 stars across every single category, value, taste, freshness and overall satisfaction.
Our panel, however, had a very different experience. Made with 76% RSPCA-approved chicken and gluten-free, the sausages divided the room, with reactions ranging from a simple “yummy” to the more memorable verdict that “chicken sausage should be illegal.”
Saltiness was a recurring complaint, with one tester noting they couldn’t taste much past the salt.
On the positive side, a handful of testers enjoyed the flavour and texture, and for the price, the value is hard to argue with.
Price: $6.50
Available at Woolworths
Coles The Original beef sausages
Expert score: 6
Panel score: 5.1
Coles’ The Original Beef Sausages carry some serious bragging rights, winning the CHOICE Democracy Sausage poll in 2022 with 51% of the vote, and are made with at least 96% Australian ingredients and no artificial colours or flavours.
Testers consistently described it as a reliable, classic sausage, “juicy,” “tastes like classic sausage,” and, inevitably, “like a Bunnings BBQ”, which, in Australia, is arguably the highest compliment a snag can receive.
A few noted the skin was a touch firm and the flavour on the plainer, oilier side, but nobody hated it. With an expert score of 6 and a panel score of 5.1, this is the definition of a crowd-pleaser: not exciting, not offensive, just a good, honest sausage.
Price: $6.50
Available at Coles
Woolworths thin beef sausages
Expert score: 5.5
Panel score: 4.9
Woolworths’ 10 Beef Sausages took out the top spot in the CHOICE sausage sizzle poll with 45% of the vote.
Made with 71% Australian beef and gluten-free, the sausage sounds decent, but our testers were unimpressed across the board. Complaints centred on oiliness, a hard skin, and a processed texture.
On the other hand, some panel members wrote: “Nothing unusual, I’d like this on a sausage sandwich”, and “classic sausage, not fancy but not trying to be.”
Price: $6.50
Available at Woolworths
Slape Sons BBQ sausages
Expert score: 4.5
Panel score: 4.7
Slape & Sons have been making sausages since 1965, and their BBQ sausage recipe hasn’t changed in over 20 years.
Reactions ranged from “not memorable” to outright refusal to finish the sausage, with several testers flagging a deep, unusual flavour.
The lone champion of the group argued that it would make a perfect sausage sanga. “I think this is the perfect sausage sanga sausage – not too overpowering flavour-wise (not too many herbs or competing flavours) and would complement bread and tomato sauce well. Bunnings/10 .”
Price: $5.90
Available at IGA
Peppercorn beef sausages extra lean
Expert score: 6.75
Panel score: 4.2
Peppercorn’s Extra Lean Beef Sausages have strong health credentials. They’re made with 100% Australian beef, less than 3% saturated fat, gluten-free, no artificial colours or flavours, and just 96 calories per sausage.
Our panel was far less enthusiastic. The dominant theme was texture trouble, chewy, gristly, hard skin, and a casing several testers found strange or off-putting.
The pepper, at least, was detectable, with one tester noting it was essentially the only flavour they could identify. The upside? One tester who enjoyed it said it was not too salty, and the deep colour looked appealing on the plate.
Price: $11.50
Available at Coles and Woolworths
Cleaver’s organic grass-fed beef sausages
Expert score: 6
Panel score: 3.4
Cleaver’s Organic Grass-Fed Beef Sausages are certified organic, certified carbon neutral, grass-fed and finished, no antibiotics, no added hormones, no GMOs, no synthetic chemicals, no artificial preservatives, colours or flavours, and gluten-free. Made with 80% organic beef, along with organic carrot, onion, garlic, and herbs, these are about as ethically produced as sausages get.
The feedback, though, wasn’t all great. The strong, unfamiliar flavour profile is likely a result of the grass-fed beef and absence of the usual additives and flavour enhancers found in conventional sausages.
Price: $11
Available at Coles
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