Girl Scout Cookie Knockoffs

Did you know that you can buy generic Girl Scout cookies or Girl Scout cookie knockoffs in stores and the cookies taste like the real thing? Sure, they don’t have the same names as your favorite Girl Scout cookies.

However, if you were to do a blind taste test, I’m confident you couldn’t tell the difference. Why? Because I recently did such a taste test (albeit not blindfolded).

When I first wrote this article, I compared the Samoas Girl Scout cookies (which I grew up calling Caramel Delites) with store-bought brands. I was shocked at how similar they tasted. They tasted like the real deal!

After that, I tried out copycat Thin Mints cookies that you could buy in the store. Then, most recently, I decided to expand this article to include Tagalongs, which I grew up calling Peanut Butter Patties. In each of these instances, I found at least three different store-bought versions.

Let me tell you how this taste test went down with these generic versions of Girl Scout cookies aka Girl Scout cookie dupes. I say generic because that’s the best way to describe these Girl Scout cookie knock-offs.

Comparing generic Girl Scout cookies

There are lots of Girl Scout cookies where it’s easy to do a taste test comparison with store bought cookies. 

For example, I’m guessing you could easily replicate the flavor of Do-Si-Dos or the Girl Scout peanut butter sandwich cookies with nutter butters or a shortbread cookie version of the Trefoils. Those are easy to find.

However, other flavors are harder to match. So, we went about finding the generic, store-bought version of our two favorite Girl Scout cookies. And when I say, “we” and “our,” I’m talking about my husband and me.

His favorite is Thin Mints; mine is the aforementioned Caramel DeLites aka Samoas.

As I mentioned, then we came back a year later to add Tagalongs aka Peanut Butter Patties to the mix. We bought this box of peanut butter cookies shown below from a troop selling them at a local mall.

So, in addition to tasting these cookies side by side, we also did a price comparison. Look, I know that Girl Scout cookie sales are a fundraiser to help support the Girl Scouts. I get that since not only was I a Girl Scout but also I was a troop leader.

However, Girl Scout cookies sales typically are held January through April. That’s four months only. When you’re craving your favorite cookie and Girl Scout sales are not happening, what are you supposed to do the other eight months of the year to get that cookie fix? So, I wanted to offer a taste-comparable and money-saving way to feed that craving.

Why Girl Scout cookies have different names

Before I get into the actual taste test part of this article, I wanted to explain why my favorite Girl Scout cookies, which I bought in Western Pennsylvania, are called Samoas.

On the other hand, when my daughters were Girl Scouts in Eastern Pennsylvania and I bought my favorite cookie, they were called Caramel Delites.

Well, it has to do with the bakery that’s contracted to make cookies for different Girl Scout councils.

One is called ABC Bakers. It is located in Virginia. The other is called Little Brownie Bakers. They are in Kentucky.

ABC Bakers are the ones who make Caramel Delites. On the other hand, Little Brownie Bakers make the exact same coconut and fudge cookie, but they call them Samoas.

Another cookie with two names: Tagalongs vs Peanut Butter Patties. I only ever knew these fudge covered peanut butter filled cookies as Peanut Butter Patties.

Since first writing this article on knockoff Girl Scout cookies, I’ve noticed that grocery stores have peanut butter fudge cookies that look like Tagalongs or Peanut Butter Patties. These include:

• Benton’s peanut butter-filled cookies at Aldi (you can also find these on Amazon but they’re crazy expensive)
• Great Value Fudge-Covered Peanut Butter-Filled Cookies from Walmart
• Signature Select Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies from Shaw’s (part of the Albertson’s family)
• Clover Valley Fudge Peanut Butter Filled Cookies from Dollar General

So, that’s why I’ve added them to this taste test and price-comparison article. Unfortunately, Bill won’t be able to help me do the taste test as he cannot eat anything with nuts anymore. He’s very sad about it because he used to love almonds and peanuts.

This article explain how Girl Scout cookie season works.

Vegan Girl Scout cookies

A reader surprised me with this question: are any of the Girl Scout cookies vegan? In case you’re not aware, that means that they don’t use any animal-derived ingredients.

I figured, no way, that wasn’t possible. But since then I’ve learned a few things.

One, every Girl Scout cookie flavor variety is kosher. Also, they’re Halal certified.

And, two, there are vegan Girl Scout cookies. They are:

• Thin Mints
• Peanut Butter Patties
• Lemonades
• Toast-Yay

Finally, Girl Scout cookies are even gluten free. Well, two are. They are Toffee-tastic and Caramel Chocolate Chip cookies.

Now, I’ll need to dig a bit deeper to find out if the generic version or if these Girl Scout cookie dupes are vegan, too. Stay tuned.

In the roundup of copycat Girl Scout cookies below, I’ve included links if you want to do online shopping. If you click through my links and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. There is no cost to you for clicking those links. Now, onto the taste testing.

Generic version of Thin Mints

Anyway, after visiting multiple stores, I was able to find cookies for the Thin Mints portion of the taste test. That included stalking nearby Walmart stores and Shaw’s supermarkets (they’re in the Albertsons Safeway family) for their version of fudge mint cookies that I hear are just as good as Thin Mints along with Aldi’s.

What cookies did I compare to Thin Mints

Eventually, I was able to find three generic Girl Scout cookie versions that I thought would taste like Thin Mints.

For kicks and giggles, I also added in a mint version of generic Oreos.

So, I had:

Benton’s Mint Striped Fudge Cookies from Aldi.

Benton’s Mint Chocolate Cream Filled Cookies from Aldi.

Keebler Grasshopper Mint & Fudge Cookies.

Great Value Fudge Mint cookies from Walmart.

When I picked out the Great Value cookies at Walmart, there was an employee nearby stocking shelves.

“You’d better take two,” she suggested. “They sell out fast.” Yes, I know. I had to drive to another state to find them in stock at Walmart.

Look of the Thin Mints knockoff

I took a cookie from each package, placed it on a plate and then put the package it came from next to the cookie.

Of the five cookies I was comparing, only two looked eerily similar to Thin Mints.

On the other hand, the Mint Striped Cookies and the mint Oreos knockoffs, both from Aldi’s, looked completely different.

So, after I took the picture below, I took the three fudge-covered cookies into the next room and had my husband try them one at a time.

Taste of the Thin Mints vs store-bought copycats

Clearly, I didn’t tell him which were the Thin Mints and which were the knockoffs.

Besides, unless you knew to look for differences–and you really needed a magnifying glass to accomplish that–it would be hard to tell.

His assessment? All were delicious. However, the generic versions from Walmart and Keebler were mintier and the centers a darker fudge flavor.

Also, even though the other two cookies looked different, only the Benton’s Mint Striped Fudge Cookies mimicked the taste, texture and mouth-feel of a Thin Mint.

Packaging and servings of Thin Mints and copycats

Here is a side by side comparison of the size of the packaging of each kind of these fudge mint cookies, including how many cookies come in a package.

However, I’m not including the Oreos knock offs because, despite being delicious in their own right, they don’t really taste like a Thin Mints Girl Scout cookie.

Great Value Fudge Mint cookies

• 10 ounces
• 40 cookies

Keebler Grasshopper Mint & Fudge Cookies

• 10 ounces
• 40 cookies

Girl Scouts Thin Mints

• 9 ounces
• 32 cookies

Benton’s Mint Striped Fudge Cookies

• 11.5 ounces
• 28 cookies

Keep in mind that the Benton’s cookies are nearly twice the size of the Thin Mint lookalikes.

Cost to buy Thin Mints and copy cats

This is how much I spent to buy a box or package of cookies.

Also, I’ve figured out what the cost per Thin Mint-like cookie is by brand.

Great Value Fudge Mint cookies

• $1.73
• 4 cents per cookie

Keebler Grasshopper Mint & Fudge Cookies

• $4.99
• Approximately 12 cents per cookie

Girl Scouts Thin Mints

• $5
• Approximately 16 cents per cookie

Benton’s Mint Striped Fudge Cookies

• $1.89
• Approximately 7 cents per cookie

One more Thin Mint knockoff

Recently, I discovered another chocolate mint cookie at Target that deserves to be in this article. It is Mint Cookies from Goodie Girl brand. I’d never seen it before.

These Goodie Girl mint cookies were among the “natural” cookies on the Target shelf. On the box, you can see that they are made without:

• artificial flavors, colors or preservatives
• high-fructose corn syrup
• gluten, peanuts or eggs

One box of Goodie Girl Mint Cookies has 24 cookies, and the package weighs 7 ounces. We paid $5.49 for the box. That’s 23 cents per cookie, so the most expensive of the bunch. However, they are delicious.

What cookies did I compare to Caramel Delites

Years ago, I remember eating a Caramel Delites knockoff that I purchased at Family Dollar. However, I was unable to find them when I went back to my local Family Dollar.

So, instead I shopped at Walmart, Giant Eagle, Aldi and Dollar General. The cookies I ended up purchasing were:

Great Value Caramel Coconut cookies–Great Value is one of the Walmart store brands.

Keebler Coconut Dreams, which I purchased at Giant Eagle. You can buy them at any store that carries the Keebler brand.

Benton’s Caramel Coconut Fudge Cookies from Aldi.

Clover Valley Coconut Fudge Caramel cookies–Clover Valley brand is from Dollar General.

By the way, with each store I visited to buy the cookies above, the cashier who rang me up said, “Those taste just like Girl Scout cookies.”

Literally, every single time so I told them how we were going to be doing a taste test at home.

Look of the Girl Scout cookie knockoff

I took a cookie from each package, placed it on a plate and then put the package it came from next to the cookie.

Then, I ate my way around the plate, leaving the Girl Scouts Samoas for last. However, in just looking at the cookies overall, they appear to be the same size and similar looking all around. Only the Girl Scout cookie has a filled-in center.

So, I guess, that’s just a wee bit more cookie goodness than the others that have a hole in the middle of the cookie.

Taste of the Caramel Delites plus the generic

Every cookie, knockoff or not, had a strong coconut smell and taste. Also, they each had just enough fudge and caramel.

However, every cookie but the Girl Scout brand of Samoas/Caramel Delites was crunchy. On the other hand, the Girl Scout cookie was softer and chewier. I wonder if they are simply fresher since we are currently in the throes of Girl Scout cookie season. And because they’re fresher, they are softer and chewier.

But beyond consistency, I have to tell you that all of the cookies were delicious. Like if you’d blindfolded me and let me eat to my heart’s desire, I wouldn’t have been able to figure out the Girl Scout from the generic cookie based on taste alone.

Since they did taste so similar, I checked to see if any of these other brands of cookies used the same ABC Bakers or Little Brown Bakers that the Girl Scouts did.

No, they do not.

However, I did notice something interesting: both Girl Scout cookies and the Keebler cookies say that they are distributed by the Ferrara Candy Company in Chicago.

Knowing that, I took another bite of the Keebler and Girl Scout cookies. Nope, still can’t tell them apart. However, I do think there is a connection here somehow.

Packaging of Girl Scout cookies vs store bought knockoffs

My daughters haven’t been Girl Scouts since 2008. Clearly, a lot has changed since then.

One, the price has gone up. Two, the cookies themselves have gotten smaller–I don’t remember Caramel Delites being about the size of a poker chip. And, three, the packages of Girl Scout cookies have gotten smaller. You know, shrinkflation. Even the Girl Scouts aren’t immune.

Packaging and servings

So, let me do a side by side comparison of the size of the packaging of each kind of cookie, including how many cookies come in a package.

Great Value Caramel Coconut cookies

• 8.5 ounce package
• 18 cookies in a package

Keebler Coconut Dreams

• 8.5 ounce package
• 18 cookies in a package

Benton’s Coconut Caramel Fudge Cookies

• 8.5 ounces
• 18 cookies in a package

Clover Valley Coconut Fudge Caramel cookies

• 7 ounces
• 15 cookies in a package

Girl Scouts Samoas cookies

• 7.5 ounces
• 15 cookies in a package

Cost to buy cookies

This is how much I spent to buy a box or package of cookies.

Also, I’ve figured out what the cost per cookie is by brand.

Great Value Caramel Coconut cookies

• $2.08 at Walmart
• Cost per cookie: approximately 12 cents

Keebler Coconut Dreams

• $4.59 at Giant Eagle (I could have bought them at Target instead for $3.36.)
• Cost per cookie: approximately 26 cents

Benton’s Coconut Caramel Fudge Cookies

• $1.99 at Aldi
• Cost per cookie: 11 cents

Clover Valley Coconut Fudge Caramel cookies

• $2 at Dollar General
• Cost per cookie: approximately 13 cents

Girl Scouts Samoas or Caramel Delites

• $5 from Girl Scout cookie table outside store
• Cost per cookie: approximately 33 cents

Store-bought versions of Tagalongs or Peanut Butter Patties

It’s been years since I’ve purchased Tagalongs or Peanut Butter Patties from the Girl Scouts. As I’ve mentioned, my favorite cookie to buy during cookie season is Caramel Delites. Plus, no that Bill can’t eat peanuts, I try not to buy anything that might tempt him.

For this version of the taste test, I shopped at Walmart, Shaw’s (part of the Albertsons/Safeway family), Aldi and Dollar General. In addition to a box of Girl Scout cookies, I bought:

Great Value Fudge Covered Peanut Butter Filled Cookies

Signature Select Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies

Clover Valley Fudge Peanut Butter Filled Cookie

Benton’s Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies

Look of the Peanut Butter Patties knock offs

When I put all of the cookies on a plate, as you can see above, you’ll notice that they all look pretty much the same. The only difference that I could tell was that the Girl Scout version was slightly smaller. It’s the cookie at the top of the plate shown below.

Next, I cut each cookie in half. I wanted to see if the inside looked any different from cookie to cookie. Boy did it. Notice, below, that the Girl Scout cookie is the only one with a light-colored wafer inside. All of the other cookies from the store either had a chocolate wafer or almost a graham cracker as the base of the cookie.

Taste of the Tagalongs knockoffs

Once I discovered that the inside part of the cookie was different, I knew it would be impossible to do a side-by-side taste test of the Girl Scout version versus store bought. I mean, the Girl Scout cookie has an almost vanilla-tasting cookie inside that is topped with peanut butter and then surrounded by chocolate.

The store versions all have a different kind of cookie than the Tagalongs. However, the peanut butter topping and chocolate surround are the same.

So, how did they taste? The Girl Scout cookie has a strong peanut butter flavor. You almost don’t taste the chocolate covering at all. The cookie inside is delicious.

With the Walmart Great Value cookie version, the chocolate cookie inside tastes like the chocolate of the Thin Mint, without the mint. In fact, that cookie was more chocolate than peanut butter.

What about the other three cookies? Both the Dollar General and Shaw’s generic cookies were just that — generic. Don’t get me wrong. If I was stuck on a desert island and needed something to eat, I wouldn’t hesitate to grab them. Finally, the Aldi version was a nice balance of both peanut butter and chocolate.

Price comparisons and packaging

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the size of the packaging of each kind of cookie, including how many cookies come in a package. Also, I’ve included the cost per cookie of these chocolate and peanut butter delights.

Great Value Fudge Covered Peanut Butter Filled Cookies

• 9.5 ounces
• 18 cookies per package
• $2.12 at Walmart
• Cost per cookie: approximately 12 cents

Signature Select Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies

• 7 ounces
• 16 cookies per package
• $2.99 at Shaw’s
• Cost per cookie: approximately 19 cents

Benton’s Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies

• 9.5 ounces
• 18 cookies
• $1.99 at Aldi
• Cost per cookie: 11 cents

Clover Valley Fudge Peanut Butter Cookies

• 7 ounces
• 16 cookies
• $2.50 at Dollar General
• Cost per cookie: approximately 16 cents

Girl Scouts Tagalongs or Peanut Butter Patties

• 6.5 ounces
• 14 cookies
• $6 from Girl Scout cookie table outside store
• Cost per cookie: approximately 43 cents

Winner of the best off-season generic Girl Scout cookie

So, based on my very unscientific taste and cost comparison, it’s clear that the Great Value generic brand of Thin Mints not only tastes the best but costs the least. In this Thin Mints showdown, it is by far the best knockoff Girl Scout cookie. The Keebler’s grasshoppers were also delicious but much more expensive.

By the way, these Starbucks secret menu drinks pair well with Girl Scout cookies.

With regard to caramel fudge coconut cookies, the Benton’s brand from Aldi is the winner. It’s your best bet in the off season. The close second? The Great Value generic brand of cookie from Walmart.

Finally, the peanut butter fudge cookies that took on the Tagalongs/Peanut Butter Patties. Clearly, the Girl Scout cookie is the most expensive, at more than double the per-cookie cost of any of the knockoff brands. However, buying Girl Scout cookies supports a good cause. However, if you’re craving them in the off season, to me the clear winner was the Benton’s Peanut Butter Fudge Cookies that you can buy from Aldi. They taste the best and cost the least.

Final thoughts on knockoff Girl Scout cookies

So, during Girl Scout cookie season, by all means support your local troop. Perhaps even buy more than you need at the moment and store some in the freezer.

However, during the many months when you cannot buy Girl Scout cookies or if you run out of your freezer stock, then the generics, if you will, from Aldi and Walmart should please your palate.