Dry dog food: Nutro wins
Nutro's Adult Chicken & Brown Rice scores 83 to 70. The biggest difference is nutrition standards, where Nutro leads by 9.2 points.
| Nutro | Blue Buffalo | |
|---|---|---|
| Product | Adult Chicken & Brown Rice | Life Protection Formula Adult Chicken & Brown Rice |
| Grade | B (83/100) | C (70/100) |
| Safety and recalls | 30/30 | 23/30 |
| Nutrition standards (WSAVA) | 25/25 | 15.8/25 |
| Owner rating | 4.6★ (2,296) | 4.7★ (29,400) |
| Value | $1.52 per 1,000 kcal | $1.37 per 1,000 kcal |
| Brand-line recalls since 2016 | 0 | 4 |
| Made by | Mars Petcare | Blue Buffalo (General Mills) |
Questions
Is Nutro better than Blue Buffalo?
Nutro comes out ahead in our grades. Dry dog foods: Nutro 83, Blue Buffalo 70. Scores are out of 100.
Which is cheaper, Nutro or Blue Buffalo?
For dry dog foods, Blue Buffalo costs less ($1.52 per 1,000 kcal vs $1.37 per 1,000 kcal).
Have Nutro or Blue Buffalo had recalls?
Since 2016 we found 0 recalls for Nutro brand lines and 4 for Blue Buffalo. Each brand page lists them with sources.
Prices, ratings and recalls checked October 2026. We compare each brand's top-selling product in each category. How we grade.