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Low-Fat Greek Yogurt

Low-fat Greek yogurt can be a nice compromise between the über-rich full-fat version and the leaner nonfat style. We tasted four brands to find our favorite.

Published May 1, 2011.
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WinnerFage Total 2% Greek Strained Yogurt (Plain)

Like its nonfat sibling, this “super-creamy” yogurt was big on “milky richness” and “great dairy flavor” but particularly “mild.” Several tasters “liked the mellowness”; others called it “boring and bland,” even in tzatziki sauce.
Protein: 14.57gTotal fat: 3.43gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skimmed milk and cream, live active yogurt cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 7 oz. for $1.79
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Like its nonfat sibling, this “super-creamy” yogurt was big on “milky richness” and “great dairy flavor” but particularly “mild.” Several tasters “liked the mellowness”; others called it “boring and bland,” even in tzatziki sauce.
Protein: 14.57gTotal fat: 3.43gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skimmed milk and cream, live active yogurt cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 7 oz. for $1.79
Learn More
See Everything We Tested

What You Need to Know

Low-fat Greek yogurt can be a nice compromise between the über-rich full-fat version and the leaner nonfat style. We sampled four brands of plain, unflavored low-fat (2%) Greek yogurt, comparing them in blind tastings straight from the container and mixed with cucumbers, garlic, and herbs in our recipe for tzatziki sauce. While all four brands received “recommended” scores from our tasters, our favorite was “super-creamy” with “great dairy flavor” in both applications. Other brands fell short for being slightly too tangy or even sour and sharp. (Note: For comparison, fat and protein levels are shown for a 6-ounce serving.)

Everything We Tested

Recommended

WinnerFage Total 2% Greek Strained Yogurt (Plain)

Like its nonfat sibling, this “super-creamy” yogurt was big on “milky richness” and “great dairy flavor” but particularly “mild.” Several tasters “liked the mellowness”; others called it “boring and bland,” even in tzatziki sauce.
Protein: 14.57gTotal fat: 3.43gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skimmed milk and cream, live active yogurt cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 7 oz. for $1.79
Like its nonfat sibling, this “super-creamy” yogurt was big on “milky richness” and “great dairy flavor” but particularly “mild.” Several tasters “liked the mellowness”; others called it “boring and bland,” even in tzatziki sauce.
Protein: 14.57gTotal fat: 3.43gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skimmed milk and cream, live active yogurt cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 7 oz. for $1.79

Chobani Greek Yogurt Lowfat Plain 2%

When tasted plain, this yogurt earned top billing for its “über-creamy,” “buttery” taste, which had a “really nice balance of creamy flavor and tang.” However, it fared less well in the tzatziki sauce, in which it struck tasters as “very tangy” and “lean.”
Protein: 16.5gTotal fat: 3.75gIngredients: Cultured pasteurized nonfat milk and cream. Contains live active cultures. Price at Time of Testing: 8 oz. for $1.69
When tasted plain, this yogurt earned top billing for its “über-creamy,” “buttery” taste, which had a “really nice balance of creamy flavor and tang.” However, it fared less well in the tzatziki sauce, in which it struck tasters as “very tangy” and “lean.”
Protein: 16.5gTotal fat: 3.75gIngredients: Cultured pasteurized nonfat milk and cream. Contains live active cultures. Price at Time of Testing: 8 oz. for $1.69

Olympus Traditional Greek Lowfat Yogurt Strained 2% Plain

Tied for second place with Chobani, this low-fat version of our favorite nonfat Greek yogurt was deemed “exceptionally creamy and pillowy,” with “bold, complex flavor” both plain and in the tzatziki sauce. However, a few tasters picked up on a “funny lemony undertone” and “a sourness that seems off.”
Protein: 15gTotal fat: 3gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized reduced fat milk, yogurt culture.Price at Time of Testing: 6 oz. for $2.19
Tied for second place with Chobani, this low-fat version of our favorite nonfat Greek yogurt was deemed “exceptionally creamy and pillowy,” with “bold, complex flavor” both plain and in the tzatziki sauce. However, a few tasters picked up on a “funny lemony undertone” and “a sourness that seems off.”
Protein: 15gTotal fat: 3gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized reduced fat milk, yogurt culture.Price at Time of Testing: 6 oz. for $2.19

Voskos Greek Yogurt Plain Lowfat 2%

While some tasters liked this yogurt’s “balance of creaminess and tang”—especially in the tzatziki sauce—several thought that its flavor was uneven, “sharp,” and “far too tangy to eat plain,” perhaps due to its slightly lower fat content.
Protein: 17.25gTotal fat: 2.25gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skim milk, cream, live and active cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 8 oz. for $1.79
While some tasters liked this yogurt’s “balance of creaminess and tang”—especially in the tzatziki sauce—several thought that its flavor was uneven, “sharp,” and “far too tangy to eat plain,” perhaps due to its slightly lower fat content.
Protein: 17.25gTotal fat: 2.25gIngredients: Grade A pasteurized skim milk, cream, live and active cultures.Price at Time of Testing: 8 oz. for $1.79

*All products reviewed by America’s Test Kitchen are independently chosen, researched, and reviewed by our editors. We buy products for testing at retail locations and do not accept unsolicited samples for testing. We list suggested sources for recommended products as a convenience to our readers but do not endorse specific retailers. When you choose to purchase our editorial recommendations from the links we provide, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices are subject to change.

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