It’s a battle for the prestigious accolade of the Best Hot Cross Buns in the country. It’s a tight and delicious race and I wish that I was on the tasting panel!

Hot Cross Buns have been spotted on supermarket shelves since Boxing Day so it’s not really a treat restricted only to Easter but these buns do become more popular as the egg-citing holiday approaches.

So to help you pick the best of the best Hot Cross Buns, CHOICE conducted a taste-test of 15 different varieties of hot cross buns (traditional, choc chip, and gluten free) – from major supermarket chains, bakery chains, and Costco.

The buns were judged on flavour, appearance, aroma, and texture.

And The Winner Is….

The overall victor of the Best Hot Cross Buns crown was awarded to Bakers Delight, with both their traditional and choc chip hot cross buns achieving top scores in the test.

Favourite Flavour

Hot Cross Buns come in all sorts of weird and wonderful flavours. Coles even launched a Lamington Hot Cross Bun mash-up for Australia Day.

However, Aussies are all about tradition and the polls consistently showed that a traditional fruit hot cross bun is a firm favourite.

Other winning buns in the Best Hot Cross Buns contest included: Woolworths, Coles, and Aldi.

The Top Winners Of The Best Hot Cross Buns (Traditional-Style)

1. Bakers Delight Traditional Fruit Hot Cross Buns

These buns came in first place, with an overall score of 78%. They’re nice and soft, and the spices in the dough give them a great flavour.

2. Woolworths Traditional Fruit Hot Cross Buns

“Woolworths also did well in our testing, with their traditional buns receiving a score of 72%,” says CHOICE food journalist, Rachel Clemons.  “They have a nice, soft texture, and a good aroma.”

3. Coles Traditional Fruit Hot Cross Buns

Coles received a score of 71% for their traditional fruit hot cross buns. The sultanas in these buns are evenly distributed and plump.

4. Aldi Bakers Life Fruit Hot Cross Buns

Aldi’s buns also scored 71% in our testing. These are the second cheapest buns in our test (after Costco buns, which come in packs of 24 only and can only be purchased by members).

Winners Of The Best Hot Cross Buns (Choc-Chip)

1. Bakers Delight Choc Chip Hot Cross Buns

This Bakers Delight bun scored first place, receiving 82% in our testing. It has lots of chocolate pieces and a good moist, soft texture.

2. Coles Chocolate Hot Cross Buns

Overall, these Coles buns scored a solid 77%.

With 28% choc chips, these are the most chocolate-y of the choc chip products tested by CHOICE.

3. Woolworths Hot Cross Buns with Cadbury Milk Chocolate Chips

These buns scored 74% in our testing. If you’re a Cadbury fan, these might be a good pick for you – the choc chips in these hot cross buns are made by Cadbury.

The Biggest Hot Cross Bun Eaters

Coles has shared that the suburb with the biggest appetite for Coles’ hot cross buns is Waurn Ponds (VIC) with more than 120,000 buns sold since Boxing Day.

Oher top-selling suburbs of hot cross buns in each state are Castle Hill (NSW), Carindale (QLD), Gawler (SA), Glenorchy (TAS), Warwick Grove (WA) and Alice Springs (NT).

Make Your Own Hot Cross Buns

Why don’t you make your own hot cross buns this Easter? We reckon they’ll even be better than the top store-bought ones.

Try this recipe for traditional hot cross buns.

Or else make these scrumptious Double Hot Choc Cross Buns.

Which are your best hot cross buns? Tell us in the comments below.