8 Best Powdered Milk Brands: Taste Test RESULTS!

We conducted a (blind!) taste test of the 8 best powdered milk brands to see which are worth your money...and which you should avoid. In this video I share our results.
Here are the 8 brands we taste tested, in no particular order:
1. Better Than Milk Vegan Soy Powder
2. Nestle Carnation Instant Nonfat Dry Milk
3. Z Natural Foods Coconut Milk Powder
4. Nestle NIDO Fortificada Dry Milk
5. Peak Instant Full-Cream Dry Whole Milk Powder
6. Milkman Instant Low Fat Dry Powdered Milk
7. Hoosier Hill Farm All American Whole Milk Powder
8. Meyenberg Whole Powdered Goat Milk
I recruited 4 people to taste these milks and then rate the taste and aftertaste of each on a 5-point scale.
I count down the brands from worst to best and at the end make recommendations for those looking for the brand with the best overall taste, the dairy alternative with the best overall taste, and the brand that is best for campers and backpackers as determined by a combination of taste, aftertaste, and calories per ounce ratio.
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[@paulcharlesworth809]

Nido needs to be mixed with warm water, and then chilled for best result.

[@samartinez1988]

Absolutely number one for value.

[@superbizee1]

I add 6 grams of sugar to a quart (about a teaspoon) and mix it in. Tastes very good to me. 100% better than non fat dry milk.

[@jungleno.]

Nido is the best tasting. And it is whole milk...not nonfat.

[@AwfulErik]

By a mile

[@ziljin]

I only tried Nido and Carnation brands. I actually like Nido much better. Tasted like cream.

[@Nan-Elle]

I recently bought the powdered milk before people were stripping the store shelves. I bought it from WalMart, so it was their brand. I mixed it up and added just a little bit of light cream as I mixed it, because the fat-free powdered milk can taste better by replacing a little of the fat. My father was a mess sergeant in WWII. Years ago he told me that they used powdered milk during the war, and to make sure to avoid the "chalky" taste that people didn't like, he would add a spoonful of vanilla. That made it taste much better.

[@Hundert1]

☝️Do they make regular whole milk powdered milk? Why not just get that and dilute it with more water if you need less fatty milk.? Also try Amazon. Walmarts is a good place too for better lower prices than most places. Prost 🥛🍶

[@kathleensaenz4717]

@Nana Jan. Thank you!

[@chrisquinty3726]

Thank you. Brought back memories as I was a cook in the Army.

[@cookingwithmissi5938]

Thanks for that advice

[@startupadmin540]

My grandma who lived through WWI and WWII eras, would add a tablespoon of the Light Karo syrup for the same reason. 😋

[@pamalawyerick2004]

I literally just made "SALTED BUTTER" with NIDO! I was delighted that it turned out perfect! The recipe is super easy! NIDO, coconut oil, salt , water=Salted butter 🧈. I found the recipe on KZbin. You could also substitute the coconut oil with olive oil or some other type of oil. I chose coconut oil for its health benefits and the one I buy doesn't have a coconut flavor. The butter taste just as good as any name brand salted butter I've ever purchased and now I will not be spending $5 for four sticks of butter but instead I will make my own in a mason jar. I also whipped it this morning to add some air to it and make it lighter and fluffier and it whipped up perfectly.

[@nemomarcus5784]

I downloaded that recipe for butter onto my Paprika app. I would definitely stick with Nido rather than Carnation for making butter.

[@moreclips805]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing, im going to try this.

[@laurelcherry7007]

Wow! I loved the way that you did these comparisons! Excellent job! Thank you!

[@Mercury688]

Thanks for making this! Super informative and I was happy to see both dairy and non dairy options

[@LizfollowsHIM]

I was just writing a grocery list for my food prepping project. Thank you for this info!

[@Makanimusic]

Very thorough Taste Test and explanation! Great job! I've decided to purchase Carnation and also the Coconut powdered milk brands. Thanks for the video!

[@99boulders]

Thank you! Enjoy!

[@M-M911]

Nido is the best! Period! I take it with my coffee

[@vickysahota5169]

Thank you so much for doing such a great job for rest of us. God Bless You dear.

[@paulastrachan4053]

I'm glad to see this. I have always kept a little powdered milk in case of emergency in my pantry and it has always been Carnation. Only one I've tried. Same one my parents kept when I was little. Due to current conditions and feeling a need to stock more, when I couldn't get Carnation, I ordered a case of Milkman. Hopefully it will do for cooking and coffee creamer. I don't actually drink milk but always have it on hand for cereal and cooking, or if I run out of creamer.

[@TruthWillSetYouFree832]

I watched the video based on the Hoosier Hill Farm whole milk powder being tested. It's 2.5 years later, so maybe it's different now, but I've been using it as a creamer stirred directly into coffee and also mixed with cold water as a base for Ovaltine, and it's been fine. It's the only powdered milk I've ever tried, so I can't say how it is compared to others. It is whole milk and tastes very much like it is. One person had reviewed it saying that it was too creamy for them, which is what sold me on it. They weren't wrong, but in a good way. Edit to add: I've also been able to successfully make soft cheese from it with the intention of trying it for a mozzarella-type cheese next.

[@cakes_alot5782]

This is what we use and I love it in Recipes and mixed with 1% I rate it a 8 out of 10

[@carrington2949]

I’m sold.

[@poppylove3673]

Very helpful! Thank you 👍🙂 I subscribed and I am really looking forward to more videos like this!

[@Oregu7]

Thank you SO much for this video, it really helped me to stock up on good tasting long-term milk reserves.

[@dorene8479]

Thanks for doing this, very helpful. You did a great job!

[@Ceme612]

We did a similar review and Peak beat Carnation. We love Peak especially with coffee. We make a batch every 3rd day or so and keep in a mason jar in the fridge. Carnation was kind of grainy, but it’s the least expensive. Peak is harder to find locally, but a big tin lasts a while. Thanks for the review.

[@csjytview]

Great Blind Taste Test and mixing results. Thanks for all your efforts. It would also be very useful to know how many servings each Brand really makes? And maybe the price per serving at the time of purchase? Or the availability near you or would they need to be bought Online?

[@Angelica71771]

Great!! Was looking for just this to help me choose a brand:) Thanks

[@lakeerieprepper4073]

Good job! I saw one other taste test of dry milk and Nido won that test. So your top three should be considered as acceptable I would say.

[@Rick-vm8bl]

Nido (pronounded Nee-doh not Nigh-do) has to be prepared with warm water in a container and you add the powder into that (not the other way around). You then have to chill it. That gets rid of any after taste and its essentially the same as whole milk if prepped correctly.

[@efzapp7]

Almost correct. There is no hard "D" in Spanish and the "O" is softer, too. The "D" is soft like a "TH" sound. So "Nee-though".

[@Umkarz]

@@efzapp7 D don't know who you're talking to but that's not how it's said.

[@gwenjackson4362]

Glad you did this. Just curious if you had water as a palette cleanser between them.

[@jennshomesteadbackup8661]

I would have liked to see regular milk added to this mix too.. to make it even more interesting and to see how it would rank. Lol

[@lhasaapso3360]

I was sold on Carnation years ago. I have not tried any of the others. If I could absolutely not find Carnation, I might try the coconut ... or do without until I could find what I want. Thanks for the vid.

[@irenehaugen6143]

Very interesting. I recently watched a video about dried milk and the problem with "flavor". Because we are used to fresh milk, we tend to not like the reconstituted milk. One solution (sorry, I have personally not tried this) came from a chef. She said that adding a tsp. of vanilla and 1/4 cup of sugar to a gallon of reconstituted milk, solves the problem. Because the natural sugar in fresh milk, disappears during the freeze drying process, and the flavor changes just enough to make it "taste odd". Vanilla and sugar can be increased depending on your taste buds....

[@mollylamberth5148]

Yummy sounds like snow cream

[@snake1625b]

Interesting. I wonder why freeze drying makes the sugar disappear

[@Aaron-8989]

Thank you now I know which milk 🥛 to get for prepping or camping out thank you 🙏

[@wcwright44]

Really happy that I have Carnation powdered milk in my pantry. I prefer to drink regular milk but in times like now when purchases of milk are limited, I use it for puddings and subbing milk in cooking and don’t notice a difference.

[@drleo6409]

Thank you for your work. I have heard most say they don’t like dried milk so this helps , I will just get carnation. Done

[@marleneolson3008]

Hoosier Hill Farm used to make a powdered coconut milk. It was awesome - tasted just like the canned Thai coconut milk and worked extremely well in cooking. Unfortunately they don’t make it anymore. I bought another brand but haven’t used it yet. Hoosier Hill Farm has a lot of great powdered products.

[@ryandlion6961]

That's so cool I never had or got this stuff before,and Leche is the one I got.

[@d.benders2413]

Very impressed by your efforts, Thank You so much! In the Caribbean, we use Klim, Nido and Carnation powdered milk. However, the Dutch powdered milk FRIESCHE VLAG is by far the best. It is very expensive and of very good quality. Not sure if Holland exports this to the US. I grew up with this brand and so did my daughter who is now 19 years. this brand sells out very fast in the Dutch Caribbean. Keep those videos coming. Kind regards, D.

[@lynnbernard7030]

Can you please share the exact name of the milk that you're recommending? The are multiple products under this name, and I cannot read which one is the powdered milk.

[@d.benders2413]

@@lynnbernard7030 The milk that I am recommending is called "Frisian Flag" (Friesland Campina) this is the name of the brand. The words "instant whole milk powder" is also mentioned on the tin. Hope this helps. Kind regards.

[@Mariemarie-uw7id]

Where do you buy this? I’m from the netherlands its for long term storage just in case

[@d.benders2413]

@@Mariemarie-uw7id I buy this at supermarkets in the Caribbean (Carrefour and also Sunny Foods). And, yes it has long term storage.

[@whos_a_goodboy7401]

I was surprised and not surprised to find a video on exactly this. Dried milk taste test. I've had some dried milks that tasted better then others. Right now I'm drinking Mountain Maid. It tastes less like a cardboard box and more like real milk.

[@AO-qy8fp]

Very under rated video. Much appreciated.

[@kitkatkamp7979]

I disagree about nido.i find it disolves quickly.tastes creamy.

[@aedgvv6095]

Nido is different in every Market the Middle East version the one he is using is very different in the Carnation one is way better than that yes Nieto is what it is but not all versions

[@rayberger2694]

I agree with you Kitkat, I just mix mine with room temp. water in a plastic bottle and the put it onto the frig. No Problem. Yes I read the instructions and they do say warm water but room temp water is fine. To make it into a little treat add a few drops of vanilla extract and a teaspoons of sugar.

[@sacopantry9734]

Have you tried Saco Mix'N Drink Instant Skim Milk? It's available in a variety of sizes for campers and long-term storage and tastes great!

[@rayberger2694]

Knowing wish one has the longest shelf life would be helpful, But I did like your video. I like Nido the best but have never tried the Peak.

[@NoelEmmanPader]

We used Bear Brand powdered milk here in the Philippines. It is not only delicious but stores longer than carton milk.

[@dennisburke199]

Thanks bud, I appreciate this.

[@janthompson581]

Thank you, very helpful and much appreciated more please dried eggs please

[@BrokeNerfing]

I knew Carnation would be first place. I enjoyed that brand a lot when I had to use powdered milk and I an a big REAL milk drinker.

[@raksha1940]

Recently I tried Nido, I liked it a lot.. it's the best to klim milk.. but next time, I am going to try carnation milk. Thanks for all the information. GOD BLESS ❤ 😊

[@MrAllan9]

Thanks, I was going to try some for prepping.

[@hisbeautifultruth5931]

I have carnation and great value for prepping. And I've never even drank powdered milk. This was helpful.

[@eigen1255]

Nido is so delicious when warm, though! And good nutritive value, as well. Idk how Carnation compares.

[@eigen1255]

@Gray Au Your sources?

[@littlebitmckee8234]

Thank you for doing this for us!

[@ndrthrdr1]

Nido is my favorite. It's pronounced NEED oh. It means 'nest' in Spanish.

[@mysticloverfairy1]

When I was a kid in the late 80s and 90s we used to go down to Baja California and our Mom would bring powdered milk it lasted longer than regular store bought refrigerated milk

[@MrLeo7627]

Prices ? Also price compared to regular milk ?

[@shirleysmith3652]

not sure how nonfat dried milk could taste more like milk and "creamy"; I use NIDO frequently and if mixed well with hot water and chilled overnight, can't tell its not whole milk from a jug.

[@Bevity]

Shirley Smith I really, really like Nido.

[@olliemoee]

Thanks for that input. I was looking for some to buy to use in my bread dough and that’s the only kind they sell in my area

[@26debsterdots]

Shirley Smith I so agree with you. Have used both Carnation and Nido and Nido is hands down far better ! Tastes like milk mot powdered milk

[@hechla]

Judees whole milk powder tastes great with the 1/3 cup mix

[@christyl7909]

Appreciate you doing the test, didn’t know what brand to keep for emergencies, would hate to be drinking chalk. Thank you !!!

[@nonniegonzalez3382]

Thank you so much, really appreciate it!

[@HassanMohd]

Could you please do a review on DANO and Fresh Milk? Thanks.

[@mimia8388]

Thanks for the review

[@99boulders]

You're welcome!

[@brendaspicer5526]

A price per oz or serving would be helpful also

[@Writerdust]

Have you noticed all almost all of these containers leak powder? I had two of the Carnation ones split in the middle of the package it is very brittle.

[@saxmusicmail]

I prefer Carnation, too. Pro tip... mix well and put in the fridge overnight. Mix again the next day. It will be far better than mixing and drinking immediately.

[@WallFlower81]

Thank you for doing this!

[@bobwright3438]

I have a distiller and use only distilled water with "Trace Mineral" to mix the Dry Milk. it has a very Good taste;

[@lorindahall1560]

I think the Goat milk in the refrigerated section is very good! Perhaps it's the difference between powdered and refrigerated milk.

[@superbizee1]

I would like to know if the Carnation is non fat milk powder or whole milk powder. Just read another comment that the Carnation is non fat dry milk. Nido is whole milk powder. It is very good to me. When mixing up the Nido whole powder, I add 6 grams of sugar to a quart. That equals out to a little less than a teaspoon per quart of milk. Tastes very good to me. I will try to find Carnation milk powder to do a comparison myself. I enjoyed this video. I will have to find the Peak powdered milk. I never heard of it.

[@mattiethesurfer]

Every night of my life before bed, I have a glass of cold milk and a chocolate bar. Would this sort of milk give me that milk kick if I’m out camping?

[@thatandthese]

Thanks for doing this :)

[@99boulders]

No problem!

[@ajayshakti5818]

I think peak should be no 1..

[@dalalj9502]

This is very helpful thank you

[@KarinBretz-lx6yv]

Good information. Thanks 👍

[@wandabrown3622]

Thank you, now I know what to buy

[@sandraleighty8617]

Thanks! Big time and money saver!

[@cmont5636]

I wonder if these could be ranked with nutritional value in mind because on SHTF situation, there could be issues of malnutrition.

[@771blahblah]

thanks, great info!

[@missdulce123]

My favorite is Peak, specially in coffee ☕

[@wendywendy646]

Go for Nestle 'Everyday' Milk Powder. Best to bottle cold in fridge, Coffee & Tea awesome.

[@wendywendy646]

Also bottle Milo Chocolate cold frige cold awesome

[@belladona001]

Peak Milk is #1 then Nido milk #2 in every African home especially Nigerians. What is tea without Peakmilk or Nido? Tried Carnations and I didn’t get the taste.

[@nemomarcus5784]

I bought the Nido brand because it was whole milk. Carnation, from my understanding, is skim milk. I use the powdered milk for cooking and emergencies when I run out of milk.

[@mikemike6443]

Great job!

[@briancook8938]

Cool I buy the goats milk but I like the walmart powder milk and haven't tried Carnation powdered milk but I will

[@cmoon8526]

Good video but it would have been good to include the Great Value brand from Walmart as a lot of people have access to that.

[@jeybabyag6033]

I wouldn't say it's best, cuz everyone taste food or drinks differently. My choice is still Peak and Nido

[@donnachildersderrick1345]

Goat milk is very good for animals. We raised a baby deer and the vet had us give him that until we could get deer replacement milk! Also was told to feed it to kittens.

[@carolynlewis9019]

Carnation, was raised on it. My Mom and Dad always mixed it with whole milk it make the milk go fever, back when the milk was sky-high,in the late 60s and early 70s. Carnation powder milk is good.

[@59kuphoff]

My favorite is Judee's whole milk. Tastes delicuious!

[@cocoachocolat]

Thank You!

[@miguelperez-gb5kr]

I got nido milk, when I was age of 0, which is my baby I was drinking a nido milk with feeding bottle.

[@susan3200]

My Nido is in a Mason jar and past expiration date. Is it safe to drink?

[@Nina-tb6lq]

Where can I order the carnation milk? Couldn’t find it on amazon

[@hisbeautifultruth5931]

Bought mine at Walmart

[@user-vd3tp4vm8l]

Nido is best refrigerated after mixing, but is very creamy due to its high fat content. Carnation is skim and tastes terrible to me. I usually drink fat free milk but knowing I dislike the dry version moved me to try Nido. Nido is whole milk. Going to try and mix Carnation with Nido for lower fat content and to see if the taste works better for me. If I had to choose solely between Nido and Carnation Nido would win.

[@fullcirclerepair2655]

You should know if you make powdered milk in refrigerator overnight for at least 8 hours it taste twice as good. And I was a kid we were very broke my mom used to buy it we hating it. Then she started refrigerating it for 8 hours before giving it to us and I can tell you it was way better

[@mang_thomas4163]

i grew up drinking nido when before i came to america and tbh i couldn’t really tell the difference

[@michaelbauer6496]

This is good truck driver food, try the coconut milk powders for ur oatmeal and blueberries on top!!!

[@copo3300]

Nido and peak milk are the the best they are really common in Ghana

[@99boulders]

Both are great options!

[@isprukungkung]

nido is very common also in the philppines

[@fatimanoorahmad8720]

In whole west africa i think

[@brownsugarjasmine1737]

Nido and peak are my favorite 😋

[@aramatoulayedabo3438]

I'm from Senegal west Africa grew up on Nido. I love eating in powder form or milk form. I was so excited when I first saw it in the states because I couldn't stand American milk powder

[@gizzyguzzi]

Carnation is fat free. So it is straight out. NIDO is easy to find and what I've used, will have to look for Peak. Thanks for the review. Edit: Peak costs 3x NIDO on Amazon. Peak costs 2x Carnation. NIDO is cheapest, is full fat and still easy to find locally at Wally World. I think I'll stick with NIDO.

[@jungleno.]

Nido is the best tasting. And it is whole milk...not nonfat.

[@rddav1]

Not easy to find anymore!

[@gizzyguzzi]

@@rddav1 NIDO from Europe is available, but very expensive. Tastes better though.

[@rddav1]

@@gizzyguzzi Found a 56 oz can at my local supermarket yesterday. I was just walking down the aisle and the stocker was in the same aisle just putting the product on the shelves. I grabbed two cans and praised the stocker...LOL!

[@superbizee1]

My can of Nido whole milk powder came from Mexico. I buy it at Walmart on the isle where the Mexican food is.

[@lja000]

The main reason I buy Hoosier Farms heavy cream is because that IS the only ingredient. Flavor wise ... it doesn’t taste great, but better than black coffee and great for emergency.

[@ilovejerseyshore7710]

What powder milk is the best for cereal? My son is 9 years old Please can somebody help me

[@kimdavis2508]

I would buy/order Nido

[@catsupchutney]

Goat yogurt is a bit funky, but I like it.

[@arturoroco1540]

After doing some research on soy products, I’ve cut it out of my diet. My friend, a cancer survivor, has done research as well and believes it trigger cancer cells to misbehave.

[@christinemccurdy9898]

I like carnation over all that's what I was raised on when I was younger it taste like milk 🥛

[@firecracker8071]

Two things way heavy on the like or just like and that was did you thoroughly mix it and was it ice cold

[@KeyClavis]

Mixed up powdered milks taste better if you let them sit in the fridge overnight before using. _Especially_ whole milks. The ones that will taste best when you mix it up just before using are those that don't contain fat... which is probably why your non-fat milk did best. I mix up Milkman 12 hours (at least) before using and have a hard time telling the difference between it and regular whole milk. However, if I taste it immediately, it's awful.

[@Hundert1]

👍Thanks for video. Maybe don't mix the different types of milks next time. I mean compare the several varieties of each type milk. I mean compare the various brands of cows milks, compare the various brands of coconut milks, compare the various brands of almond milks, etc. Thanks, Prost 🥛🍶

[@aCycloneSteve]

How much of this is "what I'm use to" is the best?

[@arieloneil4883]

Several years ago I used the Carnation dry mix--but noticed that it had sweeteners and chemicals in it. The Hoosier Hill Farm brand tastes fabulous if you use a blender to mix it and then chill the milk for 24 hours before use. I have no idea if any of these were chilled or how they were mixed, but I would say that the taste, texture and usability of the Hoosier Hill brand far outperforms the others. And all it has in it is MILK.

[@christensennavales1829]

Do you have the file still?