For decades, there have been two cheese flavored snacks controlling the market. Their names: Cheez Its & Goldfish. One being a salty, cheese flavored square, and the other forming a small fish. Both are worthy contenders for a hungry stomach, but only one can take the crown as the best. Using popular statistics and publicly accessible facts, it can be said that Cheez Its should be called the superior snack.

“I prefer the square shape of Cheez Its and also I think they have more flavor and are less dry than Goldfish” Junior Ashley Warman said. This statement is not simply an opinion; furthermore, Cheez Its physically have more flavor than its fishy competitor. According to their respective factories, the recipe for a Cheez It involves multiple types of cheese along with its special kick: paprika, while Goldfish is just salt, yeast, and sugar. When it is broken down to the simple ingredients, Cheez Its are made to have more flavor. On top of this, Cheez Its have been around much longer than Goldfish. In 1921, the first Cheez It was born. Since then, over 200 million pounds of that cheesy goodness are made every year. Goldfish, late to the game, came out with their take on cheese crackers in 1962. Talk about a slow swimmer. Another aspect on both snacks is their spin-offs on their original flavors. Kellogg’s has made 16 different flavor combinations of Cheez Its, with every single one of them being a complete hit in the market. Quite recently they have released the Cheez It Snapped line of extra crispy, extra cheesy crackers.

“Cheez Its are more flavorful…pepper jack and mozzarella taste drastically different, yet equally fantastic. Goldfish flavors are all kinda the same” says Junior Sydney Wackerly. Pepperidge Farms have 30 varieties of the original Goldfish Cracker. In this instance; however, more did not mean better. A survey on Thrillist put 6 of the flavors as simply bad. Not even “decent” or “good but not great”, simply horrid. On top of this, every whole grain flavor of the goldfish was rated at the worst against the 30 total variants. Cheez Its, on the other hand, have successfully pulled off the whole grain take and made an equally healthy and flavorful spin off their original square. The Goldfish pitfall does not end there. On a flavor titled, “original”, consumers would expect their classic taste of a cheesy Goldfish Cracker. They would be wrong. Pepperidge Farms “original” flavor is simply a cracker in the shape of a fish…that’s it. With no space to fit toppings on, and no significant flavor to the cracker, it seemed that Pepperidge Farms is running out of ideas.

On a different note, it can be argued that: while not as tasty, Goldfish are significantly healthier than Cheez Its. According to the nutrient’s facts, this is true. Based off their serving size, Goldfish hold 250 mg of sodium on top of 20 grams of carbs, versus Cheez Its 230 mg of sodium with 17 grams of carbs. The shocker is in the serving size itself. A Goldfish package states that 55 crackers equal a serving while Cheez Its meet their serving in 27 crackers. On top of this, Goldfish provides some flavors including grahams and some other sweets, while Cheez Its do not. Lastly, Goldfish are known as “the snack that smiles back” due to the smile that appears on the cracker itself. Not only is the design more appealing than the basic square of a Cheez It, but it provides a better message throughout.

With these facts presented, Cheez Its remain superior. When looking for a snack, not everyone is in search for the healthiest option. In fact, according to a survey with Klein ISD students, 10 out of the 10 surveyed said they would prefer Cheez Its over Goldfish. Furthermore, a Cheez It package provides more bang for your buck. A 6 oz. bag of Goldfish costs roughly $2.39, while double the quantity of Cheez It will only cost $3.50. Lastly, “the snack that smiles back” is 60% a lie. Only 40% of the fish shaped crackers include the famous grin while the remaining majority remains plain. This is no manufacturing incident, according to the popular T.V. show, How It’s Made, the imprint machine in the factory only presses a smile onto every 2 out of 5 fish. Cheez Its provide consistent, uniform squares, all with the tiny recognizable hole in the center of each square.

So, there it is, indisputable facts that put Cheez Its miles ahead in the race against Goldfish. In the end, Cheez Its remain supreme due to their soft yet crunchy texture, and overall better flavor. In 1921 the best cheese flavored snack was released and since then, competitors have tried and failed to reach its superiority. Cheez Its are and always will be, the superior snack.