Cranberries vs. Raisins

Photo courtesy of Joanna Kosinska on

Sam Shen and Luke Hou

The age-old question that has most definitely been on everybody’s mind: Which is better? The one and only Sun-Maid produced raisins, or the staple of Thanksgiving dinner, cranberries?  

Raisins, or “sultanas” if you are a part of some Commonwealth countries, are dried, seedless grapes. They are a common snack food, eaten often with some cereals, and are produced in many parts of the world. Raisins are consumed in many forms, with variants such as chocolate-covered raisins appealing to many. 

Its competitors, cranberries (and we’re not talking about the Irish band), are a popular superfood that is native to North America. Most people consume cranberries as a sauce or juice, or in addition to various casseroles and desserts. Cranberries also come with a large number of health benefits including lower risk for UTIs, improved immune function, and even prevention of certain types of cancer. 

We enjoy both, raisins for their soft sweetness, and cranberries for their slightly more crispy tartness. However, sometimes, the sourness of cranberries can be a bit too much, leading to our overall preference for raisins. 

In a survey of 120 students, we found that the majority of people agreed with us that raisins are better, but there was only a very small majority. 58 people preferred cranberries (46.8%), and 66 people preferred raisins (53.2%).

In further research on this topic, we also interviewed 25 students on what type of juice they enjoy, cranberry juice or grape juice. 55.6% of our participants said that cranberry juice was better than grape juice, while 44.4% disagreed. Although the sample size was smaller, the point can be seen. 

Interestingly enough, throughout our study, we discovered that people who preferred one type of fruit often preferred the opposite type of juice (for example, preferring raisins over cranberries but cranberry juice over grape juice). This could be because people prefer a sweet taste in fruits, such as strawberries, watermelon, or apples, whereas a preference for sour fruity drinks, such as most common being lemonade, would result in people picking cranberry juice over grape juice.