MomSkoop
Frozen pizza has come a long way from the cardboard-like discs of our childhoods. With busy schedules and dinner dilemmas, many families turn to these convenient options for quick meals. We gathered a panel of hungry testers to sample nine popular frozen pizzas available at most grocery stores, rating them on crust, sauce, cheese quality, and overall taste. After multiple heated debates (and plenty of napkins), we found a clear champion that might surprise you.
1. DiGiorno Rising Crust Four Cheese
Remember that famous slogan “It’s not delivery, it’s DiGiorno”? There’s actually some truth to it. The rising crust technology creates a bread-like base that puffs up nicely in your oven, avoiding the dreaded cracker-like texture of lesser frozen pizzas.
The cheese blend melts beautifully, creating those Instagram-worthy cheese pulls when you grab a slice. The sauce strikes a good balance between tangy and sweet.
While not perfect (the outer crust can get a bit too crusty), DiGiorno earned solid marks across all categories.
2. Tombstone Original Pepperoni
Nostalgic pizza lovers, rejoice! Tombstone delivers that classic frozen pizza experience many grew up with. The thin, crispy crust cooks evenly and provides that satisfying crunch without turning into a brittle mess.
Pepperoni coverage is generous, with those little cups of pepperoni that curl up and get slightly crispy at the edges. The sauce leans toward the sweeter side, which divided our tasting panel.
Price-wise, Tombstone offers serious bang for your buck. It’s not trying to be gourmet, and that’s perfectly fine—this unpretentious pizza secured a respectable middle-of-the-pack ranking.
3. California Pizza Kitchen Margherita
Fancy restaurant vibes from your freezer? CPK’s take on the classic Margherita comes pretty close. The ultra-thin crust bakes up with surprising crispness, mimicking that wood-fired feel without requiring a special oven.
Fresh-tasting tomato sauce dotted with actual basil pieces gives this pizza an elevated feel. The mozzarella isn’t abundant, but it’s placed strategically for maximum flavor impact.
Our panel appreciated the “grown-up” taste profile that doesn’t rely on excessive cheese or toppings to mask mediocre ingredients.
4. Red Baron Classic Crust Supreme
Value seekers have long trusted the mustachioed Baron, and for good reason. This loaded supreme option features a surprising amount of toppings that actually taste fresh after baking—not an easy feat in frozen pizza land.
The crust hits that sweet spot between thin and thick, with a texture that somehow manages to be both crisp on the bottom and slightly chewy in the middle. Pepperoni, sausage, peppers, and onions distribute evenly across each slice.
Some tasters noted the sauce could use more seasoning, but the generous toppings largely compensate for this minor flaw.
5. Amy’s Cheese Pizza
Organic ingredients make Amy’s a favorite among health-conscious pizza lovers. The cornmeal-dusted crust provides a distinctive texture and flavor that stands out from competitors, with a pleasant graininess that feels homemade.
The sauce deserves special mention—bright, tomato-forward, and not overly sweetened like many commercial options. You can actually taste real tomatoes!
Where Amy’s falls short is cheese distribution, with some slices getting significantly more coverage than others. Despite this inconsistency, our panel appreciated the quality ingredients and wholesome flavor profile.
6. Totino’s Party Pizza
Budget-friendly doesn’t always mean taste-sacrificing! Totino’s unique crust—more like a crispy cracker than traditional pizza dough—creates a completely different eating experience that some panelists absolutely loved.
The cheese and toppings fuse together into what can only be described as a harmonious flavor blanket. No, it doesn’t taste like pizzeria pizza, but it never claimed to.
Totino’s has created its own category of pizza-inspired food that hits nostalgic notes for many. While serious pizza connoisseurs scoffed, several tasters confessed this was their guilty pleasure pick.
7. Newman’s Own Thin & Crispy Uncured Pepperoni
Paul Newman’s legacy of quality and charity continues with this impressive frozen option. The crust lives up to its “thin and crispy” promise, achieving that delicate balance where it’s sturdy enough to hold toppings but doesn’t dominate the eating experience.
Uncured pepperoni provides a cleaner flavor without nitrates, tasting remarkably similar to what you’d find at a quality pizzeria. The cheese blend browns beautifully, creating those coveted crispy cheese edges.
Our panel appreciated the high-quality ingredients and the fact that profits support charitable causes.
8. Freschetta Brick Oven Crust Five Cheese
Surprise underdog alert! Freschetta’s brick oven style crust delivers a textural experience that genuinely mimics pizzeria quality. The edge bubbles and chars just like a pizza cooked in a high-temperature oven, creating varying textures throughout each bite.
Five different cheeses create complex flavor layers rather than just a blanket of gooey mozzarella. The sauce strikes that perfect balance between sweet and acidic, with noticeable herbs that complement rather than compete.
Even our most skeptical tasters were impressed by how Freschetta managed to capture authentic pizza elements from a freezer product.
9. Motor City Detroit Style Deep Dish
Crown the champion! This rectangular Detroit-style pizza revolutionizes what frozen pizza can be. The thick, focaccia-like crust develops a caramelized cheese edge (what Detroit pizza aficionados call “frico”) that delivers incredible flavor and texture.
Motor City’s sauce deserves special mention—it’s applied in strips over the cheese rather than under it, preserving its bright flavor. The bottom crust develops a fried-like crispness from the special pan design.
Every tester agreed: this frozen pizza could genuinely pass for carryout from a specialty pizzeria. The authentic Detroit-style experience and exceptional quality made Motor City our unanimous winner.