Fred Marion

Our vet rails against cheap dog food. She did everything but roll her eyes when we told her what we were feeding Maddy last time we visited her office. “You have to get on DogFoodAdvisor.com to find the best dog food,” she said. DogFoodAdvisor ranks dog foods on a scale of one to five, with 5 stars being the best. Right now, 54 dog food brands make their list of 5-star dog food. Since DogFoodAdvisor doesn’t rank the foods by price, I figured I’d do that to save you some time.

Where possible, I priced the food on Amazon.com (with links) so Prime members can get free shipping in some cases, and – in most states – avoid sales tax, too!

Before diving into the list, here are some interesting facts:

• Cheapest 5-star dog food not on Amazon: Infinia ($1.33 per pound)
• Cheapest 5-star dog foods with Amazon Prime: Premium Edge Weight Reduction ($1.46 per pound) or Wysong Optimal ($1.56 per pound)
• Most expensive 5-star dog food (dehydrated): Wysong Archetype ($20.44 per pound). Note that Wysong Archetype is actually dehydrated dog food that you add water to and serve like a gravy. It definitely goes further per ounce than dry food.
• Most expensive 5-star dog food (dry): Oven-Baked Tradition ($11.68 per pound). We normally buy dog food bags that weigh around 30 lbs. That would mean we’d be paying $350!
• Best dog food for older dogs: Orijen Senior ($2.42 per pound). Note that this is the only dog food for seniors that makes DogFoodAdvisor’s list of the 5-star dog foods.
• Best dog food for puppies: Orijen Puppy ($2.60 per pound). Note that this is the only dog food for puppies that makes DogFoodAdvisor’s list of the 5-star dog foods.
• Best dog food for dogs with allergies: Brothers Complete Allergy Formula ($4.60 per pound). Note that this is the only dog food for dogs with allergies that makes DogFoodAdvisor’s list of the 5-star dog foods.
• Number of 5-star dog foods that qualify for Amazon Prime: 15 (as noted with the Prime icons below)
• Cost of Walmart’s cheapest dog food: Ol’ Roy ($0.40 per pound)
• Most unusual ingredients in the best dog food: Blue Buffalo contains salmon and sweet potatoes. Evo contains cottage cheese and dried chicory root (along with herring and salmon), Fromm contains cauliflower, blueberries, Wisconsin cheddar cheese and parsley, and Wysong Optimal contains shreds of freeze-dried raw organic chicken.