Best Low-Calorie Ice Cream Ranked: Halo Top, Nick’s & More

Review

The best, and for good reason.

Nick’s comes at a premium price, containing ice cream that rivals top “normal” name brand ice creams such as Ben & Jerry’s, Haagen Dazs, and others. And this should go without saying–this is the healthier option. How does Nick’s do it, and most importantly, how is their ice cream?

Creamy, thick, and loaded with mixins that make you wonder how they got their calorie count so low, Nick’s is where it’s at. Their ice creams are on the sweeter, more punchy side, too, making you ponder even more: how do they do it without sugar? Surely, there will be a sweetener aftertaste—perhaps something that tastes or feels off—but nope, Nick’s ice cream is the real deal. It’s genuinely a premium experience front-to-back and in my opinion, kind of magical!

Nick’s also offers a plentiful amount of flavors. From “plain” Vanilla Bean to extra-loaded Triple Chocolate Brownie pints, you will absolutely find something you love. However, as mentioned above, their ice cream is notably sweeter than your average sugary iced treat, so if you want something milder (really, even their Vanilla Bean is super sweet), consider looking at another brand, such as Breyers or Halo Top.

Overall, if you can afford the extra cost, Nick’s is the way to go. Throw down your wallet, pick up a pint, and I guarantee you won’t be disappointed. The flavors, quality, and overall scooping experience rival those of the highest echelon of ice cream brands.

You can visit my full review of their flavors here.

Review

Not having nearly as many options as Nick’s or Halo Top, and even being on the cheaper side, Breyers still competes!

Breyers feels like you bog-standard ice cream. Essentially, it’s just right. Not nearly as sweet or punchy as Nick’s, and a tier above the overall Halo Top experience. It’s your average ice cream, not cheap feeling by any means, yet not premium, and of course, minus the extra calories. With that, Breyers is genuinely something you could trick your friends and family with quite easily. Switch up most other brands in your freezer, they’ll never notice!

The few flavors they have are tasty, have a respectable amount of mix-ins, and have a traditional ice cream sweetness level. The ice cream also comes across as reasonably creamy and thick, with nothing, from taste to texture, that feels fake or artificial. In fact, blindfold yourself and compare! “This is regular ice cream,” is surely something you would say!

You can visit my full review of their flavors here.

Review

Halo Top has so many flavors, and they’re expensive, too, so why are they in last place?!

Halo Top is good, so let’s get that out of the way. They have an average sweetness level, rivaling Breyers or other name brands, yet aren’t as sugary-tasting or punchy as Nick’s. They also have a wide offering of flavors that would suit even the pickiest ice cream hater. Unfortunately, not all of their flavors offer the experience as Breyers or Nick’s.

Simply put, their flavors lack the mixins that their competitors offer. Perhaps you don’t care about that, and if you don’t, that’s fine, but I do, and it frustrates me that Halo Top’s solution is their Mix-Ins line. At the expense of hundreds of additional calories, Halo Top can finally compete with Breyers and Nick’s… horray? I’m not celebrating. At that point, just consider another ice cream brand entirely, or just look for Breyers or Nick’s.

If I had to continue to nitpick, Halo Top ice cream, while still reasonably creamy and fulfilling, especially compared to cheapo ice cream, does have a smidge of an icy feel at times, especially if you really look for it. And notably, their ice cream appears to melt just a little faster than average for whatever reason. Again, nitpicks, but something to consider.

Nonetheless, a premium brand shouldn’t have any of these issues, so what’s going on? I don’t know, and frankly, should you even care? Would you even notice? Probably not.

If you aren’t an ice cream connoisseur and were given a pint, you might not even be able to tell the difference between a pint of Halo Top and your average ice cream. I’m the same way, in a sense. I still love Halo Top, it’s a reasonable quality ice cream with a ton of different flavors. Unfortunately, it could be so much better, especially given the price. Either way, despite being last, no matter what flavor you end up scooping from, Halo Top is still a tasty, though mostly average, ice cream treat.

You can visit my full review of their flavors here.