I tried different brands of store-bought canned tomato soup and ranked them from worst to best

• I tested three different kinds of canned tomato soup to determine which had the best flavor.
• The Campbell's Well Yes! tomato-basil bisque was perfectly seasoned and just creamy enough.
• I also enjoyed Progresso's basil-packed soup.

I taste-tested three different kinds of canned tomato soup to determine which one was my favorite.

I tried Campbell's tomato soup, Progresso's tomato basil soup, and Campbell's Well Yes! tomato-and-sweet-basil soup. All of the canned soups impressed me, but one stood out from the rest for its creamy texture with just the right amount of seasoning.

Here's how each canned tomato soup ranked, from worst to best.

First up on my taste test was Campbell's tomato soup — it's arguably iconic and a go-to for grilled cheeses and quick lunches alike.

The can of soup cost me $1.49 for 10 and 3/4 fluid ounces of condensed soup, which is then doubled with one can of water.

The tricky thing I find with condensed soup is making sure the base and water are well incorporated.

When I first added the tomato soup into the pot, it looked unappetizing and similar in consistency to ketchup.

Though it's still easy to make, the extra step of adding water set this soup apart from the ready-to-heat canned soups I tried. I had to stir the soup the entire time it was heating up in order to remove the small clumps of tomato paste. 

The color of the soup was the same nostalgic orange-red shade I remembered from my youth.

However, to me, the extra effort the soup required me to make simply didn't pay off. The soup was watery and I still managed to find small tomato clumps floating in my soup, despite vigorous stirring. 

I thought it tasted pretty one-note and could have used some seasoning or basil. However, it did have a nice tangy flavor balanced out by sweetness, which made it more enjoyable.

While Cambell's tomato soup is undeniably classic — and inexpensive — I'd probably only choose it if there were no other options. It doesn't taste homemade, just nostalgic.

Progresso's tomato-basil soup was my second-favorite soup.

It cost $2.99 for 19 fluid ounces at my local grocery store.

As I began heating up the soup, I immediately saw a difference between this one and the Campbell's.

It had small flecks of basil throughout and smelled noticeably less like ketchup. 

It wasn't as creamy as the other two soups, but that wasn't what was advertised.

Instead, this soup was slightly more liquid, but the seasoning made up for it. It had a strong basil flavor, complemented by the sweetness of the tomato. It tasted more homemade than the Campbell's, and I was overall impressed. 

I would reach for this canned soup again.

In my opinion, the best canned tomato soup I tried was from Campbell's Well Yes! line.

It was also the most expensive at $3.69 for a 16.3-ounce can.

It had a slightly creamier texture than the Progresso soup but also had basil.

After a few minutes of heating it up on the stove, I was ready to dive in. It smelled like basil, similar to the Progresso soup, but the tomato base also had its own distinct aroma.

I would choose this one over the others. It would go perfectly with a grilled cheese sandwich on a cold day.

It was perfectly balanced between savory, sweet, and acidic. The soup's basil flavor came through without being overpowering, and the tomato base itself tasted practically homemade.

If I were to pair any grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup, it would be this one.

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