The Top 20 Chicken Wing Sauces Ranked

Chicken wings are a staple in restaurants and homes. Easy to make and shareable, wings are a go-to dish in my book. While many of us know the tried-and-true Buffalo sauce, others might be looking to branch out into sweet, smoky or spicy. When I started my food service career as a cook in a local Applebee’s restaurant, I made hundreds of wings per night tossed in any and all of the sauces that were on the menu.

One thing I learned in many kitchens is that while the item itself is important, it’s the sauce that gives each item it’s own uniqueness and is what many remember. And fortunately, you can easily make these recipes at home and have them ready to go in just a few minutes. Check out my collection of wing sauces.

#20 – Harissa

Harissa is a fiery, complex chili paste with a smoky, spicy, slightly-tangy flavor. Made with roasted red peppers, garlic, olive oil, cumin and coriander, harissa lends dishes not only heat, but also flavor. Its thicker, more paste-like consistency makes it perfect for coating wings evenly, which allows the flavor to adhere to the wings and intensify as they cook. Many people prefer the depth of taste and aromatics found in harissa, making chicken wings with it more complex than those flavored with a more run-of-the-mill hot sauce.

#19 – Sriracha

One of sriracha’s best features is its texture, which coats each wing evenly. Its slightly thicker texture allows it to coat each piece of chicken, enhancing the chicken’s natural flavors rather than smothering it. Consisting of red chili peppers, vinegar, sugar, garlic, and salt, sriracha is mildly to moderately spicy with a hint of sweetness and garlic. With a zesty kick, wing lovers will enjoy the tangy addition to chicken and the flavorful bites.

#18 – Honey Mustard

Honey mustard sauce has a slightly creamy, smooth texture. It coats wings evenly, ensuring that each and every bite will be bursting with flavor. Honey mustard sauce features a mix of tangy notes with a touch of sweet. Its rich and mild flavors make it approachable to most people, with the honey balancing out the sharpness of the mustard. It is a great counterpoint to the savory chicken, making honey mustard a versatile sauce to have on hand in a variety of culinary situations.

#17 – Chipotle

Chipotle sauce is made with the smoke-dried jalapeño pepper. On chicken wings it adds a nice spice that isn’t too hot, a wonderful wood-smoke flavor, and a hint of sweetness. The smoky flavor enhances the savory chicken, the spice adds a bit of heat, and the texture of the sauce allows it to coat the wings evenly so you get the chipotle flavor with every bite.

#16 – Thai Curry

Thai curry sauce brings a rich, creamy mix of spice, herbs, and coconut that gives wings a unique and full-bodied taste. Most Thai curry sauces are made from a paste of chilies, garlic, lemongrass, and aromatics, then simmered with coconut milk to create a smooth sauce with layered heat. This combination adds warmth along with savory, slightly sweet, and tangy notes that enhance the natural taste of chicken. Whether using red, green, yellow, or Panang curry paste, the sauce adds complexity while keeping the meat’s flavor noticeable. Lime, basil, and ginger are often present in the sauce, giving wings a lively and aromatic profile.

#15 – Nashville Hot

Nashville hot sauce gets its distinctive flavor from cayenne pepper and paprika with garlic and brown sugar mixed in for depth. The perfect Nashville hot sauce recipe will have a well-balanced bold, spicy, smoky flavor with a hint of sweetness from the brown sugar. Nashville hot sauce has an oil base which is perfect for helping it coat wings. It ranges from mild to super-hot and gives wings a beautiful, deep, red color along with a fiery kick.

#14 – Hot Honey

Hot honey is basically just that: a combination of sweet and spicy flavors, where the latter comes from chili flakes or cayenne. The predominant flavor will be that of honey, followed by a kick of spice. It’s quite mild overall, making it popular with those who can’t necessarily handle too much heat.

Used on chicken wings, it provides a sweet, spicy kick. The natural sugars in honey caramelize well and create a sticky consistency, so it coats chicken well and provides a shiny finish. The stickiness also means that the flavor is well-distributed and consistent across the wings.

#13 – Honey Garlic

Honey garlic sauce brings together sweet honey and bold garlic to create a sticky, rich taste that many people enjoy on chicken wings. The honey adds smooth sweetness while the garlic gives a savory, slightly pungent note that lifts the overall flavor. When tossed with hot, crispy wings, the sauce clings well and gives each bite a consistent mix of sweet and savory taste. This combination adds depth without relying on heavy heat, so it appeals to people who like a balanced but flavorful wing.

#12 – Spicy Garlic

Spicy garlic sauce is a thick, garlicky sauce that clings to the surface of the wing. The roasted or sauteed garlic lends a savory, meaty flavor to the sauce, balanced by a kick of chili or cayenne, which enhances but doesn’t overwhelm the flavor of the poultry. The heat level is fairly mild and balanced with strong garlic flavors to produce a spicy, flavorful, and zesty sauce. The thick, viscous texture coats each piece evenly, infusing the dish with bold, aromatic flavors in each bite.

#11 – Cajun

Bite into a Cajun sauce covered wing and you’ll be met with a savory and mildly spicy flavor that compliments the taste of the chicken perfectly. Paprika, garlic, onion, black pepper, cayenne, thyme, and oregano are mixed together to create a smoky and mildly spicy glaze for the wings. The bite of cayenne pepper doesn’t over-power the natural flavor of the wing, providing just enough warmth, complimented nicely with the earthy paprika seasoning. With such a well-rounded assortment of seasonings, each bite provides a well-balanced and varying taste.

#10 – Honey BBQ

Our Honey BBQ Sauce combines the smooth, mellow notes of honey with all of the classic flavors of BBQ. The tangy BBQ is enhanced by a subtle, smoky sweetness to create a multi-dimensional and familiar wings flavor. Its thick and shiny texture makes it easy to spread, forming a perfect glaze around chicken wings to make sure that flavor is packed into every bite. The sweetness of Honey is mild enough to allow the flavors of the chicken and the BBQ to shine through.

#9 – Korean BBQ

Korean BBQ sauce is a combination of sweet, savory and a little heat. It’s one of the best-tasting sauces you can put on chicken wings and it’s because of its perfectly balanced flavors. Typically, Korean BBQ has a soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and sugar base, and is commonly mixed with gochujang, a Korean hot sauce, for a little spice and extra depth of flavor. Once slathered over chicken wings it creates a delectable coating, not drowning out the meat, just enhancing it with bold, perfectly balanced flavors. The slight sweetness coupled with the saltiness make Korean BBQ a must-have on your list of chicken wing sauces.

#8 – Sweet Thai Chili

Sweet Thai chili sauce is a party and weeknight crowd-pleaser. It’s so easy to make, taking just a few minutes and combining sweet, tangy and spicy flavors. Take sweet chili sauce up a notch by mixing together sriracha, garlic, soy sauce, butter for body and shine, so the sauce clings to the chicken, and a squeeze of lime for brightness. Use it on fried, baked, air-fried chicken wings, and the flavor is mildly spicy and addictively delicious.

#7 – Caribbean Jerk

#6 – Mango Habanero

Perfect for those who like their wings with a little more kick. Use one habanero pepper for moderate spice and two peppers for fiery, flaming heat. The ripe mango complements the spicy habanero pepper wonderfully. Honey, lime juice and vinegar provide a tangy zing and melted butter lends a lovely shine to this sweet, tangy, spicy concoction. The result is a smooth and vibrant wing sauce that’s perfect for a game day party or summer cookout. Highly recommended for your next spicy snack.

#5 – BBQ

#4 – Teriyaki

#3 – Garlic Parmesan

Garlic Parmesan is a savory sauce used on wings. Though not spicy at all, Garlic Parmesan wings are rich in flavor, courtesy of the Parmesan cheese.

This sauce typically contains roasted garlic, butter, and Parmesan cheese, which come together to create a creamy, flavorful mixture that coats wings well. Garlic Parmesan is a sauce where bold and pungent garlic and nutty and savory Parmesan flavors complement each other nicely to provide an aromatic layer of flavor while still allowing the flavor of chicken to shine through.

#2 – Lemon Pepper

Lemon pepper wings are either sauced or seasoned with lemon pepper seasoning, which is composed of a number of different ingredients including pepper, citrus, garlic, and a bit of salt. The tangy zest of a citrus fruit mixed with the bite of cracked pepper creates an interesting combination that is refreshing yet spicy. The seasoning has a strong flavor that does not cover up the taste of the chicken.

#1 – Buffalo

Classic, and arguably best, buffalo sauce is the original pairing of hot sauce with melted butter. This tart, spicy combination creates a deliciously piquant coating for wings. Its spice is noticeable, but not intimidating; the butter lends a richness that balances the heat; and, most importantly, buffalo sauce enhances rather than masks the flavor of the chicken, making for a perfectly balanced and smooth-coated wing. It is the standard for modern-day wings.