24% Think This Is The Best Donut At Dunkin'

Right around this time of year in 2018, Dunkin' announced that it was on a mission to innovate. As Dunkin' Brands CEO and Dunkin' U.S. President David Hoffmann noted, "Our new branding is one of many things we are doing as part of our blueprint for growth to modernize the Dunkin' experience for our customers." Among Dunkin's many initiatives since then, we've seen cool new products like Donut Fries, the introduction of Dunkin's DIY Halloween Donut Kit, and on-trend coffees such as cold brews and candy-inspired macchiato. However, we've recently stumbled upon evidence that Dunkin's efforts to innovate may constitute something of an overcorrection. What we mean is that a recent Mashed survey — in which we asked Americans to name Dunkin's "best" doughnut variety — suggests that the vast majority prefer the oldest of the old school classics. 

Specifically, the vast majority of the survey's 604 respondents voted for three of the oldest of the doughnut shop's classics. In fact, 24% made it known that for them, the "best" equals what might be regarded as the least innovative Dunkin' doughnut variety of them all. 

In a recent Mashed survey, we asked Americans to identify the "best" Dunkin' "donut." Since Dunkin has 22 classic flavors and dozens of limited editions, we decided to streamline the process by narrowing down the choices to seven of the more ubiquitous varieties: apple cider, jelly, Boston Kreme, French cruller, strawberry frosted, glazed, and vanilla frosted with sprinkles. As it turns out, nearly two-thirds of our 604 respondents voted for either glazed, Boston Kreme, or French cruller — all of which have been on the Dunkin menu for as long as most anyone can remember. In particular, glazed came out on top with 24.17% of the votes. 

Right behind glazed was Boston Kreme (with 23.51% of the votes), which happens to be a true Dunkin' tradition given that its first shop was in Boston's nearby Quincy, Massachusetts. At the rear of the top three was the French cruller, which garnered 16.89% of the votes. That left strawberry frosted (with 10.10% of the votes), apple cider (with 9.11%), vanilla frosted with sprinkles (with 8.61%), and jelly (with just 7.62%) to split the remaining approximately one-third of the votes. So, Dunkin', if you're listening, please know, Americans apparently love you just the way you are.