Shelf Check › Aisles › Pestos
The best pestos in UK supermarkets, ranked
We ranked 219 pestos sold in UK supermarkets using the nutrition panel and ingredients printed on each pack. Of these, 47% are ultra-processed (NOVA group 4), 38% get a red traffic light for salt and 32% get a red traffic light for saturated fat. The typical one has 4g protein, 3.3g sugar and 1.3g salt per 100g.
Jump to: Lowest salt · Lowest saturated fat · Lowest calories · Fewest additives
The short answer
- Lowest salt: Specially Selected Pesto Alla Genovese (0.21g per 100g)
- Lowest saturated fat: Holland & Barrett red lentil & tomato pesto (0.7g per 100g)
- Lowest calories: Holland & Barrett red lentil & tomato pesto (142 kcal per 100g)
- Fewest additives: Holland & Barrett red lentil & tomato pesto (0)
Want a different "best"? Open the full aisle to rank by anything and leave out allergens, palm oil, seed oils, sweeteners or ultra-processed products.
Lowest salt pestos
Ranked by salt per 100g out of 164 pestos with complete labels. At most two per brand.
| # | Product | Salt per 100g | Nutri-Score | Traffic lights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pesto Alla GenoveseSpecially Selected | 0.21g | C | |
| 2 | red lentil & tomato pestoHolland & Barrett · 190g | 0.48g | B | |
| 3 | Basil pestoEssential Waitrose | 0.52g | C | |
| 4 | PestoSainsbury's | 0.55g | C | |
| 5 | Italian Red PestoCo-op · 190g | 0.71g | C | |
| 6 | Kale & Spinach PestoHolland & Barrett | 0.78g | C | |
| 7 | Italian Organic Chilli & Garlic PestoMr Organic · 190g | 0.8g | B | |
| 8 | Basil pestoAsda · 130 g | 0.81g | D | |
| 9 | Red PestoMorrisons · 190 g | 0.83g | D | |
| 10 | Green PestoMorrisons · 190 g | 0.86g | D |
See all pestos ranked by salt →
Lowest saturated fat pestos
Ranked by saturates per 100g out of 172 pestos with complete labels. At most two per brand.
| # | Product | Saturates per 100g | Nutri-Score | Traffic lights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | red lentil & tomato pestoHolland & Barrett · 190g | 0.7g | B | |
| 2 | Rose Harissa PestoCypressa · 170g | 0.8g | C | |
| 3 | Italian Organic Chilli & Garlic PestoMr Organic · 190g | 1.5g | B | |
| 4 | Kale & Spinach PestoHolland & Barrett | 1.5g | C | |
| 5 | Green PestoTesco · 190g | 1.9g | C | |
| 6 | Hot Chilli PestoFilippo Berio · 190 g | 2g | C | |
| 7 | Hot Chilli PestoSacla | 2g | E | |
| 8 | Hot Chili PestoFilippo Berio | 2g | C | |
| 9 | Eat smart - Counted Green PestoMorrisons · 190 g | 2.1g | C | |
| 10 | Green pestoAsda · 190 g | 2.1g | C |
See all pestos ranked by saturates →
Lowest calories pestos
Ranked by calories per 100g out of 175 pestos with complete labels. At most two per brand.
| # | Product | Calories per 100g | Nutri-Score | Traffic lights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | red lentil & tomato pestoHolland & Barrett · 190g | 142 kcal | B | |
| 2 | Italian Organic Chilli & Garlic PestoMr Organic · 190g | 155 kcal | B | |
| 3 | Artichoke pestoWaitrose · 190 g | 158 kcal | C | |
| 4 | Green pestoAsda · 190 g | 161 kcal | C | |
| 5 | Hot Chilli PestoFilippo Berio · 190 g | 162 kcal | C | |
| 6 | Hot Chilli PestoSacla | 162 kcal | E | |
| 7 | Hot Chili PestoFilippo Berio | 162 kcal | C | |
| 8 | Eat smart - Counted Green PestoMorrisons · 190 g | 177 kcal | C | |
| 9 | Italian Red PestoCo-op · 190g | 182 kcal | C | |
| 10 | Lighter green pestoSainsbury's · 190g | 184 kcal | C |
See all pestos ranked by calories →
Fewest additives pestos
Ranked by additives out of 127 pestos with complete labels. At most two per brand.
| # | Product | Additives | Nutri-Score | Traffic lights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | red lentil & tomato pestoHolland & Barrett · 190g | 0 | B | |
| 2 | Kale & Spinach PestoHolland & Barrett | 0 | C | |
| 3 | Red tomato pestoWaitrose · 190 g | 0 | C | |
| 4 | Tomato & Ricotta PestoFilippo Berio · 190g | 0 | E | |
| 5 | Sundried Tomato Pestoplants by Deliciously Ella | 0 | C | |
| 6 | Sun dried dried tomato pestoFilippo Berio · 190 g | 0 | E | |
| 7 | Itailian PestoMarks & Spencer | 0 | E | |
| 8 | Vegan Red PestoOrganico · 120g | 0 | E | |
| 9 | Green pestoWaitrose | 0 | D | |
| 10 | Vegan basil pestoZest | 0 | D |
See all pestos ranked by additives →
How these rankings work
Every figure is per 100g, taken from the label as recorded in Open Food Facts, the open food database built by volunteers. Products whose numbers don't add up (for example, energy that doesn't match the fat, carbs and protein) are left out of these tables but still appear in the full aisle. Traffic lights follow the UK front-of-pack thresholds for fat, saturates, sugar and salt. Nutri-Score runs from A (best) to E. Brands can't pay to appear here. Spot a mistake? Fix it at the source on Open Food Facts and it reaches Shelf Check at the next refresh.