When there’s no time to prepare a homemade snack with fresh and wholesome ingredients, packaged cereal bars represent a decidedly practical solution for anyone on the move and looking for a hunger buster. Not all of them, however, offer the same value: on supermarket shelves you can find very different products in terms of composition and nutritional parameters, with the health profile that can vary markedly.
The main types on the market have these distinctions:
Altroconsumo subjected over 100 references to examination, weighing ingredients and nutritional values, and selected the best according to a rigorous evaluation scale.
The best bars according to the test
Of the approximately 120 bars analyzed, only eight achieved a “good” or “very good” rating. Below are the products that stood out, with scores and notes of merit:
Test method
Altroconsumo evaluated around 120 bars purchased from Italian supermarkets and discount stores in March 2025. The final evaluation gives each product a score from 0 to 100 and takes into consideration different parameters, broken down as follows:
The products were then classified into rating bands: Very good (80-100), Good (60-79), Acceptable (40-59), Poor (20-39) and Very poor (0-19).
What it means for the consumer
The test reiterates that the choice of a supermarket bar cannot be reduced to taste alone, because elements such as the composition of the ingredients and the nutritional profile determine the real quality of the product. Some references stand out for more natural ingredients and a balanced sugar and fat content, while others are more elaborate and less healthy.
If you are looking for a practical but also healthier snack, it would always be a good idea to carefully read the label and evaluate various factors, such as the presence of dried fruit, the percentage of whole grains, the absence of synthetic sweeteners and the level of processing of the ingredients.
