Best rated dry dog food
There is no independent official ratings scheme for dry dog food in the UK, so treat "best rated" as shorthand for a food that genuinely suits your dog rather than a fixed league table. The useful comparison is between the protein, fat and calorie figures on the label, read against your dog's actual size, age and activity level, not a single headline number.
Reading the numbers properly
Crude protein and crude fat percentages tell you the food's basic composition, but a higher number is not automatically better — a working, highly active dog genuinely needs more protein and energy than a smaller, less active companion dog, and feeding a very rich food to a sedentary dog is more likely to cause weight gain than any benefit.
Calorie content per 100g varies more between dry foods than owners often expect, and two bags with similar protein figures can differ noticeably in energy density. Checking this alongside the feeding guideline for your dog's actual weight gives a far more useful comparison than protein percentage alone.
Dry versus wet is a separate question
Dry food tends to be more convenient to store and portion, generally costs less per calorie than wet food, and some dogs benefit from the mechanical chewing action it provides. It is not inherently healthier or unhealthier than wet food — both can form a complete, balanced diet when properly formulated.
If your dog has specific needs — sensitive skin, joint support, a smaller or larger breed size — there is usually a dry food formulated around that need specifically, and matching the recipe to the actual requirement matters more than choosing on reputation or price point alone.
What else is worth checking
A named, specific protein source high on the ingredients list, a clear life-stage statement (puppy, adult, senior), and a breed-size guideline that matches your dog are all more informative than marketing claims on the front of the bag, which are not independently verified the way the nutritional panel is.
When trying a new food, introduce it gradually over a week or so alongside the current diet, and judge it over a couple of weeks by your dog's energy, coat and stool quality rather than from a single meal.
Our picks, and why
Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.
Forthglade Cold Pressed Natural Turkey
Cold-pressed turkey kibble for dogs from 2 months, soft enough to mix with water for young pups
£45.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Salmon
Cold-pressed grain-free dry food for dogs, built on fresh and dried salmon
From£16.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Duck
Cold-pressed grain-free duck food with fruit and botanicals, in two bag sizes
From£16.99
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Chicken
Cold-pressed grain-free chicken food with fruit and botanicals, in three bag sizes
From£16.99
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Turkey
A lightly baked complete dry food, 50% turkey, for adult dogs of any breed
From£12.49
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Chicken
A grain-free complete dry food for adult dogs, lightly baked and built on 50% chicken
From£12.49
Forthglade Cold Pressed Small Dog Turkey
Cold-pressed grain-free dry food for small dogs and puppies, built on turkey
£16.99
Forthglade Complete Meal Lightly Baked Lamb
A lightly baked complete dry food, 50% lamb, for adult dogs of any breed
From£12.49
Forthglade Cold Pressed Grain Free Turkey
Grain-free cold-pressed turkey kibble for dogs, gentle on sensitive stomachs
£69.69
Harringtons Puppy Turkey & Rice
Complete turkey puppy food with 30% protein and feeding bands by adult weight
£6.49
Harringtons Adult Dog Turkey Veg
Complete dry food for adult dogs with turkey, chicken and salmon oil, 21% protein
From£3.39
Harringtons Adult Dog Salmon & Potato
Complete salmon and potato dry dog food with 21% protein in a 1.7KG bag
£6.25
Common questions
- Is grain-free dry food better than food with grain?
- Not automatically — grain-free suits dogs with a specific grain sensitivity, but for a dog with no known issue, grain is a perfectly good source of energy and fibre. Neither option is universally superior; it depends on your individual dog.
- How do I know how much dry food to feed my dog?
- Start from the feeding guideline printed on the specific bag, matched to your dog's actual weight, then adjust based on their body condition over time rather than sticking rigidly to the number if your dog is gaining or losing weight unexpectedly.
- Does a higher price mean better quality dry dog food?
- Not necessarily — price reflects ingredients, sourcing and brand positioning, but it is not a reliable stand-alone indicator of quality. Reading the actual nutritional panel and ingredients list tells you more than the price on the shelf.
- Should I pick dry food based on online star ratings?
- Treat ratings as one small signal rather than a reliable guide, since they are influenced by price, packaging and how long a product has been available rather than any independent nutritional testing. Comparing the actual label content across products is a more useful method.
- How do I switch my dog to a different dry food safely?
- Mix increasing amounts of the new food with the old over about a week, rather than changing overnight, to give your dog's digestion time to adjust. Watch stool quality and appetite through the switch, and slow the process down further if your dog seems unsettled by it.
Related
Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.