What are the best cider brands?

There is no single best cider brand: "best" depends on the style and sweetness you like. A practical way to choose is to pick a style first, such as English, French, Spanish, perry or ice cider, then compare makers within it. Protected names, competition results and other drinkers' ratings help narrow the choice.

Updated 2026-10-02

Key facts

Styles differ a lot. BJCP's 2025 guidelines describe English cider as usually made from bittersweet and bittersharp apples, French cider as medium to sweet and often made by keeving, and Spanish cider as dry and fresh, made from sharp and bittersharp apples and traditionally unfiltered. [1]
Strength varies by style. BJCP gives about 3–6% ABV for French cider, 6–9% for English and 5–6.5% for Spanish; its guidelines say these figures are general guidelines, not absolutes. [1]
Protected names are a quality signal of origin, not a ranking. Examples: Herefordshire Cider (PGI) in the UK and Cidre Pays d'Auge (AOP) in France. [2] [3]
Juice content isn't on most labels. In the UK, legal cider needs only 35% apple or pear juice, which may be from concentrate. [4]

How do I choose a good cider?

Pick the sweetness. Dry, medium or sweet matters more to most people than the brand. See cider sweetness levels.
Pick the style (see below).
Try a few makers in that style. Small producers often make several ciders; tasting across one maker's range teaches a lot.
Describe what you taste. It helps you find more of what you like. See how to describe cider taste.

Which cider styles should I try first?

English cider: tannic and full, from bittersweet and bittersharp apples. [1]
French cidre: fruity, soft and often sweeter, frequently keeved. [1]
Spanish sidra: dry, sharp and lively, traditionally unfiltered. [1]
Craft cider: single-varietal, barrel-aged, hopped or rosé ciders from newer makers.

Pear-based drinks are a separate family; see perry vs pear cider.

Related answers: which cider is the sweetest · French vs English cider · the best calvados

Find it on Cider Radar

Cider makers: 2,329 on the map in more than 50 countries (as of 2026-10-02), from large brands to farm producers. Listing is not an endorsement.
In the app, scan a label to see tasting notes and community ratings.
You can order directly from the maker in Cider Radar (iOS, Android and web).
Open the map: app.ciderradar.com · iPhone · Android

Cider, perry, calvados and pommeau are alcoholic drinks. Enjoy responsibly and follow the legal drinking age where you live.

Questions

Can I see cider ratings in Cider Radar?

Yes. In Cider Radar people rate ciders from 1 to 5 and on five scales: sweetness, body, tannin, turbidity and funk. You can also scan a label to see tasting notes and community ratings.

Is craft cider better than mass-market cider?

Not by definition. "Craft" has no legal definition for cider in UK duty rules; compare juice content, apples and method instead. [4]