Differences Between Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker: Which Is Better?

When you think of boxed cakes, you most likely think of Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker. These are the preferred choice for fast and simple packaged desserts. So which of the two brands is the better option?

Pinnacle Food Inc owns the Duncan Hines brand, while General Mills owns the Betty Crocker brand. Betty Crocker has a larger taste profile and product line than Duncan Hines. Betty Crocker also offers savory things like salads, but Duncan Hines only makes sweets. In terms of cost, they are comparable, with Betty Crocker being somewhat more expensive.

In this post, we will delve further into the histories of two boxed dessert titans. We will examine the large range of things they create, the prices they charge, and their popularity throughout time.

Duncan Hines Vs. Betty Crocker: Differences

Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker are two companies that have perfected the production of ready-to-go box mixes to make it simpler for inexperienced chefs or busy individuals to enjoy something sweet and tasty. By simply adding a few components to a mix, the well-known brand items transformed into a fantastic dessert-making option.

History

Duncan Hines

Duncan Hines is named after a real traveling salesperson, Duncan Hines. He was more of a restaurant aficionado than a chef, yet he established himself as a renowned expert on great and economical food. In the 1950s, he collaborated with Roy H. Park and permitted his name to appear on a variety of culinary goods, ranging from cake mixes to ice cream cartons.

Betty Crocker

Betty Crocker, unlike Duncan Hines, is not the name of a real person. Rather, she began as a symbol for American home bakers in the early nineteenth century. In 1921, the Washburn-Crosby Company, a flour mill, launched a contest in which home chefs could solve puzzles to win prizes.

Nonetheless, many home chefs utilized this to request professional baking advice. To address their inquiries, the corporation need a figurehead who represented American women at the time. As a result, the persona of Betty Crocker was created, and she became linked with the company’s commercial pitch.

Products

Cakes

Duncan Hines offers a diverse selection of cake flavors divided into two major categories: traditional and signature.

Each cake mix comes in a 15.25 oz. bag. The back of the boxes include an instruction manual as well as other important information such as ingredients, allergies lists, and so on. They presently have a total of 20 cake mixes available.

Betty Crocker provides three different varieties of cakes. Regular, Super Moist Pleasure, and Super Moist Favorites. They carry everything from standard pound cakes to gourmet and extravagant goods like confetti and red velvet cakes. There are also lava cake and cheesecake mixtures available.

Brownie Mix

Duncan Hines once again offers two varieties of brownie mixes. Their typical brownie varieties include milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and chewy fudge. Their distinctive brownie mixes come in six different flavors.

Betty Crocker offers 10 brownie mixes and 3 different brownie bar mixes. Each brownie mix comes in a 16.5 ounce bag. They are available in a variety of tastes, including dark chocolate, milk chocolate, salted caramel, and walnut. The brownie bars come in peanut butter, cookie dough, and Reeces peanut butter tastes.

Cookies

Duncan Hines cookie mixes are all labeled jumbo cookie. They include selections for sugar, double chocolate, single chocolate chunk, and festive giant cookies. The weight of the boxes varies depending on the product, ranging from 6.6 to 8.4 oz.

Betty Crocker offers a plethora of cookie mix selections. They currently offer 9 standard cookie mixes. They also offer limited edition cookie mixes and often collaborate with other big businesses. Hershey’s kisses, gingerbread, pumpkin spice, apple sugar, and more limited-edition tastes are available. Their cookie mixes come in 17.5 ounce containers.

Muffin Mix

Duncan Hines offers two muffin mix flavors: Blueberry Streusel Muffin and Triple Chocolate Chunks. The blueberry mix comes in 20 oz boxes, while the chocolate chunk mix comes in 17.5 oz boxes.

Betty Crocker now sells 14 distinct muffin mixes. They are classified as pouch muffins, box muffins, and muffin top mix. The pouch muffins come in 6.5 oz packages, whereas the box muffin mixes come in 12.5 oz packages. The top mixes are ready-made toppings for the muffins.

Frostings

Duncan Hines offers two varieties of frosting: creamy and whipped. The creamy frostings are thicker and come in 15-ounce containers. Whipped frostings are lighter and fluffier, and come in 14 oz containers.

Betty Crocker’s frostings are divided into comparable categories. The thick and creamy frostings come in 15.5 oz tubs and available in a greater variety of flavors. These whipped frostings are lighter in texture and come in 12 oz containers.

Pie Fillings

Duncan Hines makes a variety of pie fillings for you to test. They are available in 21 ounce cans.

There are several flavors to pick from, including blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, caramel apple, and others.

Betty Crocker does not provide a variety of pie fillings. They do, however, provide a ready-made pie crust alternative.

Savory Options

Betty Crocker distinguishes itself from many of its peers in this regard. While sweets are their main source of business, they also sell a variety of savory foods. They offer enough items to complete a 3-course dinner, ranging from mashed potatoes and casseroles to fast and simple salads.

Duncan Hines has thus far only made desserts. There are no salads or other savory goods available.

Cake Decorations

Betty Crocker has an edge in this regard as well. Along from supplying a variety of cakes and brownies, they also produce decorative items such as writing gel, candles, sprinkles, food colors, candy decorations, and food cups.

Others

Betty Crocker makes brittle, oat brownies, pancake mix, Bisquick mix, and fruit snacks. Duncan Hines does not have such a diverse product line. Cakes, frostings, cookies, brownies, and muffins are their only offerings.

Price

The pricing will vary based on the goods. The majority of Duncan Hines cake mixes cost $1.24 or $0.08 per oz. Betty Crocker cake mixes come in a wider range of flavors. Depending on the kind of cake mix, they might vary from $0.07 to $0.17 per ounce.

Betty Crocker items are often more expensive than Duncan Hines ones.

Popularity

Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker are both household names in the boxed dessert market. When you think of boxed cakes, you probably think of one of their numerous offerings. The majority of either brand’s items are available at all major retail outlets such as Walmart, Amazon, and Target.

Betty Crocker rose to prominence much earlier. This extended to early radio broadcasts, cookery shows, and other formats. Betty Crocker is a cultural touchstone as well as a food business.

Duncan Hines’ fame never rose to the level of cultural icon. Although Betty Crocker and her various photos became household names throughout the years, Duncan Hines never had such a well-known visage.

Shelf-life

Betty Crocker and Duncan Hines goods have very identical shelf lives. Each of their boxes has a best-by date. This is the manufacturer’s best guess as to how long the product will be of the greatest quality. But, if the package is still intact, you may eat the goods beyond the expiration date.

Logo

Every Duncan Hines product has the company’s distinctive emblem on the front. The logo is a stylised rendition of the company’s name.

Betty Crocker’s logo is a stylised rendition of the company name on a red spoon. Every product in the firm comes with a red spoon, which is an iconic component of the brand. As a result, the corporation chose to include the spoon into its emblem.

Duncan Hines Vs. Betty Crocker: Which Is Better?

It is difficult to distinguish between the two in terms of flavor. It everything boils down to personal taste. You may prefer one company’s product over another’s, and vice versa for a distinct taste.

Duncan Hines is well known for their boxed cake mixes, although they offer a wide range of items. Duncan Hines provides a dessert for every occasion, from brownie mixes to pie filling.

Betty Crocker, on the other hand, provides a lot more alternatives in terms of variety. Betty Crocker offers a considerably larger inventory of cakes, cookies, frostings, and brownies. They also include savory alternatives such as fast salads, mashed potatoes, casseroles, and so on.

They also offer more limited-edition or special-occasion items than Duncan Hines.

Betty Crocker holds the advantage in terms of popularity. This is due to the extensive prominence this sign has gotten since its introduction. Betty Crocker’s empire included cookery shows, radio shows, cartoons, and novels. All of this meant that Betty Crocker’s image became considerably more well-known across the United States and abroad.

To summarize, there is a reason why these two brands have dominated the boxed dessert market. Hence, whatever brand you select, you will have a great time.