11 Best Sonic Milkshake Flavors (Ranked)

Despite popular belief, you can still be a foodie even if you LOVE slurping down a deliciously thick and creamy fast food milkshake. Just because it’s from a chain store doesn’t mean it’s not amazing!

So what better way to prove that than to rank the 11 best Sonic milkshake flavors?

Today, we have assembled a comprehensive list of our top choices, ranked according to popularity amongst the masses, flavor profile, mouthfeel, and, of course, personal preference.

Stick with us to find out if your favorite made the cut! And if you felt like we missed any of their world-famous shakes, let us know! 

Now, without further ado, let’s jump right in!

How Did We Conduct This Experiment?

There are many ways you can conduct an experiment like this. But if you’re just one person, you will always have a biased outcome in rankings.

Multiple Tasters

For that reason, we’ve assembled a team of 5 to try every single flavor we could get our hands on. And to take it one step further, we grabbed people with very different taste preferences.

What Does That Mean?

Well, you know how some people like bananas on their pizza and others like anchovies? Exactly like that!

Using more than one or even two tasters, you’ll get a much more accurate ranking NOT solely affected by personal taste.

Different Stores

Next up, we also grabbed flavors from 3 different Sonic Drive-Ins. Why? There are two reasons.

The first is because of consistency. There’s no point in us ranking, for example, Strawberry as the best flavor if most (preferably all) of the chains cannot make it the same way. 

The second reason for this is that we had to make sure the flavor is easily available at most (again, preferably all) chain stores. Because what’s the point it’s on the list if not every Sonic makes them?

Now, neither of these factors is guaranteed. Just because we had a good experience with all three of the stores doesn’t mean the store on the other side of the country will yield the same results. But it should be a safe and tasty choice.

Up To Date Flavors

Over the years, Sonic has released A TON of different flavors. We think at one point there was something like 25 flavors available to choose from!

But as time goes on, franchises like this realized that more is just more. If nobody orders the flavors, it’s kind of useless to keep them in stock.

So we could find about 15 flavors consistently. But, to be completely honest, only 12 of those were found at every store. So at the end of the day, we easily narrowed it down to our 11 favorite Sonic milkshake flavors.

How Did We Determine Rankings Today?

There were only about 4 categories we judged each Sonic milkshake on. They included the general popularity of the flavor (amongst the masses), how well the flavors are balanced, the mouthfeel of each milkshake, and our tasters’ personal preferences.

Each category got a score, and in the end, the flavor that ranked highest was placed first.

Now, we want to emphasize that your preference may not be the same as ours. And that’s fine! It’s impossible to make a ranked list for every single person at the end of the day.

So, if you feel like we missed a flavor or want to share why it’s the best (or better than some others), let us know! We are always eager to hear what our readers love!

General Popularity

This goes hand in hand with the availability of flavors. Stores won’t keep flavors that nobody buys. So by that logic, only the popular options remain.

As to what the MOST popular of the leftovers are, that’s difficult to determine. But at least we already narrowed it down to 12.

Balance of Flavors

This is important. If something is marketed as “Cherry” but doesn’t taste like cherry, it cannot be ranked very high. Even worse is when that “Cherry” flavor is super artificial (in a bad way).

The flavor is what makes something popular. But again, you have to consider personal preferences.

Mouthfeel

At one point in time (we couldn’t get our hands on one this round) Sonic had a Peanut Butter Bacon milkshake that had actual pieces of bacon in it. Some people loved it, and others hated it.

It’s the same with very thick milkshakes – some people love it, while others hate it. 

At the end of the day, this will also come down to personal preference. But generally, people have the same mindset here when it comes to creamy milkshakes.

Watery shakes are bad. Creamy shakes are good. Ice-cream thick shakes are bad. Drinkable, but thick shakes are good – that kind of thing.

Personal Preference

Last but not least, we asked out tasters to rank the milkshakes according to their preferences. Then, we took all of these factors into consideration to determine a final ranking.

But again, just because this is our ranking doesn’t mean it will match yours.

11 Best Sonic Milkshake Flavors (Ranked)

Finally, we get to the good part! Now that you know how we ranked the milkshakes, let’s take a look at the results.

1. Oreo Cheesecake Master Shake

Whoever originally created this flavor combination was a genius! There are truly a few things as good as a classic vanilla cheesecake flavor profile mixed with Oreos. That’s why everybody does it and KEEPS doing it!

The secret with this combo though is balance. If they cannot create a balance between the sweet flavors of the cookie and the tangy flavors of the cheesecake, it will never work.

Luckily, Sonic managed to do it well. And this option was hands-down the favorite amongst tasters.

It’s incredibly rich with a predominantly cheesecake flavor. It’s notably tangy but still loaded with sweetness. And if you’re a fan of vanilla, you won’t be disappointed!

The Oreo Cheesecake Master Shake has the perfect consistency to make it easy-drinking but is still thick enough to flood your mouth with an uber-creamy texture.

If you’re on a diet and looking for the ultimate cheat-day treat, this is it!

2. Hot Fudge Classic Shake

Next up is a flavor that we know isn’t among the top for consumers, which honestly surprised us. We didn’t expect the Hot Fudge Classic Shake to rank this high, but the scores cannot lie.

Maybe it’s not marketed well enough, maybe the availability isn’t super high, or maybe it’s just one of those strange phenomena where a flavor goes under the radar for no good reason. Either way, we are here to share the flavor bomb that is Hot Fudge Shake!

The flavor of the sweet, caramel hot fudge is what first hits your palate. Many people think that Sonic’s version of this flavor is quite bland. But that wasn’t our experience at all!

Maybe they updated the recipe, but the flavors were incredibly potent, well-balanced, and extremely traditional in a sense. 

While we aren’t saying that Sonic makes the best hot fudge shake ever, they definitely shouldn’t be taken out of the race. If you were disappointed before, give it another try and let us know if your mind has been changed.

3. Strawberry Classic Shake

This one was hard to place this high because it’s somewhat basic when compared to most of the other options on Sonic’s menu today. But if it’s good, it’s good. And even when compared to strawberry shakes from other franchises, this one takes the cake.

The key to making a good strawberry milkshake is to ensure that the flavor isn’t too artificial. 

What makes this a top choice at Sonic is the fact that they use REAL strawberries to create the flavor. Now, we cannot guarantee there isn’t any type of strawberry syrup in there. But when you sip on the shake, you’ll sometimes find pieces inside which confirms our claim.

Are the strawberries fresh or frozen? We don’t know. That’s impossible to tell unless you work at Sonic. But it’s loaded with fresh flavors either way.

4. Oreo Peanut Butter Master Shake

Is there anything that doesn’t pair well with Oreo? Luckily, this vanilla cookie is great with virtually all popular flavors, which is why Sonic capitalized on this! They have a ton of Oreo-something flavor options in their Classic and Master Shake ranges.

Oreo peanut butter has long been a fan favorite. And this ranking confirms it again!

Now, keep in mind that this may just be the richest milkshake on Sonic’s menu to date. It’s loaded with sweetness, an uber-creamy peanut butter mouthfeel, and a rich nutty undertone.

It’s also incredibly thick, which is the only reason it ranked lower. It was somewhat difficult to drink with the shake constantly getting stuck in the straw. But if that’s your thing, you’ll LOVE this option!

5. Vanilla Classic Shake

Vanilla is always a hit or a miss, but it differs from establishment to establishment. At one point in time, everybody used artificial vanilla flavorings, which, as you may know, can taste revolting.

Luckily, that trend is passing quickly. Today, what sells is a subtle, more natural vanilla flavor profile, which is also what makes this vanilla shake from Sonic so good.

While it’s still considered to be boring by some people, there’s a reason vanilla is the go-to “neutral” flavoring for virtually any drink or baked goodie. It’s because it’s good! 

The Classic Vanilla Shake from Sonic is amazing. It’s simple, well executed, not very artificial, not overly sweet, and it has a super thick (drinkable) consistency.

It may not be unique, complex, or anything special. But classic is sometimes still best.

6. Strawberry Cheesecake Master Shake

Cheesecake! But this time with that real strawberry flavor as well. So why isn’t it as high as the plain strawberry flavor?

Honestly, it’s as simple as “it’s just a little too sweet.” The classic strawberry shake is super easy to drink, whereas the strawberry cheesecake master shake is uber-rich and a little more difficult to get down.

Nevertheless, it’s still great! It’s extremely thick, not difficult to drink, and has a well-balanced sweet, fruity, and tangy flavor.

7. Chocolate Classic Shake

Chocolate is another flavor that for some reason, more establishments get wrong that right. Often it’s extremely artificial or just outright bad. Like cheap chocolate that only costs a couple of cents.

Luckily, that’s not the case here. This chocolate shake is definitely loaded with delicious sweet and cocoa-like flavors. It’s not light but also not completely dark – it’s just, we guess, chocolate.

So if it’s good, why isn’t it higher? Well, it’s a little boring. It’s not that it’s bad. It’s executed well. But there’s truly nothing exceptionally special about it.

If you are looking for a classic milkshake that’s easy to drink but not too sweet, this option is fantastic!

8. Banana Classic Shake

We know! Bananas are always a fan favorite. But for some reason, it just didn’t go down as smoothly amongst our group of tasters that it does for the general population. 

What we will say about this shake is that it is made from real bananas. This contributes to its more natural flavor and ridiculously thick consistency.

It’s not super thick and quite easy on the palate. But the thickness makes it slightly uncomfortable. It’s one of those shakes that you have to suck super hard to get a tiny sip. But again, if that’s your thing, you’ll love this shake!

9. Peanut Butter Classic Shake

Why does peanut butter rank so low?! It’s peanut butter! 

The ONLY reason this shake is ranked low is because of its thickness. It was extremely uncomfortable to drink and almost takes your breath away in the process. If you have a weak lung capacity, this drink is not for you.

But when it comes to the flavor, it’s not too bad (if you manage to taste it).

This shake is very sweet, not overwhelmingly nutty, and has a slight caramel-like undertone. While it’s not bad, it’s definitely not a fan favorite.

10. Cheesecake Master Shake

You may have been wondering if the cheesecake shake will make this list. And it does. So why isn’t it higher? Because the other options are just better.

If you think of the amazing combinations that Sonic creates with this ingredient, it’s not surprising that it won’t do as great on its own.

That being said, for those who don’t love a super complex flavor profile but still want something unique, a tangy and sweet cheesecake shake is the way to go.

11. Caramel Classic Shake

You would think that the caramel shake is loaded with flavor. But that’s where you are wrong. It’s actually the most neutral (aka bland) of the bunch. 

That being said, it’s still pretty good in comparison to other franchise caramel shakes. 

There’s nothing much to say about this flavor. It’s sweet, has a slight caramel flavor, and has a well-balanced profile. It’s not super thick, but not watered-down either.

It’s good, just not as good as the others listed above.