Choose a spritz biscuit if you want a crisp, buttery biscuit to serve with your drinks; choose a plain digestive if you’d rather serve a wheat biscuit and compare fibre content per 100 g. Chocolate is a separate flavour choice. If a guest needs a gluten-free option, choose only a variant explicitly labelled gluten-free and check the other allergens on the packaging too.
You’re mainly looking for a crisp, buttery biscuit to enjoy with coffee or tea at your Friday afternoon get-together. You don’t need to treat a spritz biscuit as an alternative to a digestive with a stated fibre content.
You want to serve plain digestives alongside or instead of spritz biscuits. In that case, the ingredients, fibre content per 100 g, pack size and allergens for the specific pack you choose are all relevant.
A regular spritz biscuit or digestive made with wheat isn’t a suitable alternative for these guests. Even with a variant explicitly labelled gluten-free, check the other allergens and warnings on the current packaging.
First decide whether you want to serve spritz biscuits or plain digestives. Consider chocolate as a flavour option and any gluten-free requirements separately: those choices don’t automatically go together with a particular type of biscuit.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who is this most important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Classic spritz biscuits | Check the flavour and ingredients; for the spritz biscuits examined, look out for wheat and milk ingredients. | If I want to serve a crisp, buttery biscuit with coffee, I’d choose spritz biscuits. Around 33% of consumers put this classic choice first. |
| Plain digestives and fibre | Compare fibre per 100 g and the ingredients listed on the packaging of the exact variant. | I want to be able to choose plain digestives based on the stated nutritional information, not just the name. For around 33% of consumers, this comparison is the top priority. |
| Gluten-free option | Look for an explicit gluten-free label and check the other allergens and any warnings too. | If a guest eats gluten-free, I want to be able to serve a suitable biscuit separately. This is the top priority for around 17% of consumers. |
| Chocolate variant | Check the type of chocolate, sugars and saturated fat per 100 g, as well as the allergens for that variant. | For a bit of variety on the drinks table, I’d rather serve a chocolate biscuit than another plain one. Chocolate flavour is the main reason for choosing a biscuit for around 17% of consumers. |
The name isn’t proof that a biscuit aids digestion. For McVitie's Digestives Pure Chocolade, Jumbo explicitly states that the ingredients don’t contain substances that aid digestion.
Choose based on flavour and check the ingredients and fibre per 100 g on the packaging, rather than assuming the name tells you what it does.
Jumbo Digestive Volkoren contains wheat and isn’t the same product as Jumbo Lekker Vrij van Gluten Digestives Melkchocolade. According to Jumbo, this separate gluten-free variant also contains milk, oats and soya, and may contain nuts.
If you need a gluten-free option, look for an explicit label on the pack you choose, then check the other allergens too.
A chocolate variant has its own ingredients and nutritional information. For example, the product information for McVitie's Digestives Melkchocolade lists 30% milk chocolate and names milk, soya and wheat as allergens.
Compare the nutritional information and allergens for the exact variant you plan to serve.
Lidl lists its Digestives naturel as a product sold in store only. A product page doesn’t mean you can order the pack online.
If you need a particular biscuit for a planned get-together, check in good time how you can buy it.
These brands offer examples of spritz biscuits and digestives. Compare the exact variants: ingredients, nutritional information and allergens can differ within the same brand.
Verkade offers examples of both types of biscuit with Nobo Sprits Original and Digestive Original.
A brand to consider when comparing plain digestives with a chocolate variant.
Jumbo offers a wholemeal digestive, as well as a separate gluten-free digestive with milk chocolate.
Albert Heijn offers AH Spritsen and also lists digestive variants in its biscuit range.
ALDI’s own brand offers examples of both digestive biscuits and butter spritz biscuits.
PLUS offers plain digestives and a separate variant with dark chocolate.
Lidl lists Digestives naturel as an option for anyone looking for a plain biscuit.
These products include plain digestives, digestives with milk chocolate and a spritz biscuit variant with milk chocolate. Compare them as different flavour choices; the chocolate spritz biscuits shown are not the same variant as spritz biscuits without chocolate.
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A plain digestive for anyone who wants to serve a wheat biscuit as well as spritz biscuits.
The pack contains 400 g. This variant lists 3.7 g of fibre per 100 g; if you have allergies, check the label on the pack you receive.
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A digestive for anyone who wants to add chocolate as a separate flavour to the drinks table.
The pack contains 266 g, and the product information lists 30% milk chocolate. According to that information, this variant contains milk, soya and wheat; if you have allergies, check the current label.
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A spritz biscuit variant for anyone who wants to serve a biscuit with milk chocolate at their get-together.
The pack contains 150 g. Check the current label for the ingredients and allergens in this chocolate variant, especially if you’re also considering spritz biscuits without chocolate.
You can’t tell that from the name digestive. For McVitie's Digestives Pure Chocolade, Jumbo states that the ingredients don’t contain substances that aid digestion. So compare biscuits by flavour, ingredients and the stated nutritional information.
Choose a variant explicitly labelled gluten-free on its current packaging; a regular wholemeal digestive made with wheat isn’t an alternative. Check the other allergens and any warnings too, as according to the product information, Jumbo’s gluten-free variant contains milk, oats and soya, and may contain nuts.
Seal the pack tightly or use an airtight tin, and store the biscuits somewhere cool, dry and dark. Follow the storage instructions on the specific pack if they differ.
Check the label on the pack you receive before serving the biscuits. Albert Heijn and PLUS point out that product information can change. If the allergens aren’t clear for a guest, don’t serve the biscuit until you’ve confirmed what it contains.
