The scores
Merrick: B (80/100) — Above average. Traditional premium kibble with named animal proteins up front and quality whole grains.
Freshpet: B (78/100) — Above average. A refrigerated fresh food with a short, clean ingredient list built around whole proteins and vegetables.
A 2-point gap at this level is essentially a tie in terms of nutritional quality. Both brands earned a B grade, and both sit comfortably in the upper half of that range. The difference comes down to ingredient philosophy rather than ingredient quality — fresh whole foods versus well-formulated kibble.
How the ingredients compare
The top five ingredients highlight two very different approaches to dog food:
Freshpet: Chicken, Eggs, Cranberries, Carrots, Ground Oats
Merrick: Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Brown Rice, Barley, Sweet Potato
Freshpet reads more like a recipe you’d find in a home-cooking guide than a dog food label. Chicken and eggs provide the animal protein, while cranberries and carrots add whole-food vitamins and antioxidants. Ground oats round out the formula as a gentle, easily digestible grain. The entire ingredient list is short and recognizable — you could buy most of these items at a grocery store.
Merrick takes the more traditional premium kibble approach, and does it well. Deboned chicken leads as a named whole meat, and chicken meal at #2 provides concentrated animal protein (roughly 3x the protein density of whole chicken since the water has been removed). Brown rice and barley are quality whole grains that provide slow-release energy and fiber. Sweet potato adds another complex carbohydrate with vitamins and minerals.
Both formulas avoid the common pitfalls of lower-quality dog foods — no unnamed proteins, no by-product meals, no artificial preservatives, and no heavy reliance on corn or wheat fillers. The difference is format and processing: Freshpet is gently cooked and refrigerated, while Merrick goes through the standard extrusion process that all dry kibble undergoes.
Where Merrick pulls ahead
Dual animal-protein opening: Merrick’s one-two punch of deboned chicken (#1) and chicken meal (#2) delivers more actual animal protein by weight than whole chicken alone. Chicken meal is already dehydrated at roughly 65% protein content — far more protein-dense than the ~18% protein of whole chicken. That concentrated animal protein is what pushes Merrick 2 points above Freshpet on our ingredient rubric.
Broader carbohydrate profile: Brown rice, barley, and sweet potato together provide a more nutritionally varied carbohydrate base than Freshpet’s ground-oats-only approach. Each grain contributes different fiber profiles, vitamin/mineral content, and glycemic properties — a small but real edge for dogs who thrive on variety.
Shelf-stable convenience and cost: Merrick stores in a pantry for months, costs roughly half as much per serving, and is available at most pet retailers. Freshpet’s refrigeration and 7-day open shelf life are real practical constraints, especially for multi-dog households or travelers. Shop on Amazon →
Where Freshpet holds its own
Minimal processing: Freshpet’s biggest advantage is how little its food is processed compared to any kibble. Refrigerated fresh food is gently steam-cooked at lower temperatures, which preserves more of the natural nutrients in the ingredients. Kibble, by contrast, goes through high-heat extrusion that can degrade some heat-sensitive vitamins and amino acids. This doesn’t make kibble bad, but it does mean fresh food delivers nutrients in a more bioavailable form.
Whole-food simplicity: Freshpet’s ingredient list is strikingly short and transparent. When you see chicken, eggs, cranberries, and carrots, you know exactly what your dog is eating. There’s no need to decode ingredient names or wonder what “chicken meal” actually contains. This simplicity also means fewer potential allergens and irritants, which matters for dogs with sensitive digestive systems.
Egg protein: Eggs are one of the most biologically available protein sources for dogs — they’re essentially the gold standard for amino acid completeness. Having eggs as the #2 ingredient is a meaningful nutritional advantage that most kibble formulas can’t match.
Freshpet’s biggest edge is one our ingredient-list rubric can’t fully score: minimal processing. Fresh food is gently steam-cooked at lower temperatures, preserving more of the natural nutrients than high-heat kibble extrusion. This doesn’t make kibble bad — it just means fresh food delivers nutrients in a more bioavailable form.
The whole-food simplicity matters too. Freshpet’s ingredient list is strikingly short and transparent — chicken, eggs, cranberries, carrots. You know exactly what your dog is eating, with no decoding required. This matters for dogs with sensitive digestive systems where fewer potential allergens is a real advantage.
Eggs as the #2 ingredient is a meaningful nutritional advantage. Eggs are essentially the gold standard for amino acid completeness — more biologically available than most protein sources dogs typically get. That’s a quality input that offsets the lower protein density of whole chicken vs chicken meal. Shop on Amazon →
The bottom line
This is one of the closest matchups we’ve scored. Merrick wins by 2 points on ingredient concentration, but the real choice comes down to what matters more to you: the convenience and cost savings of premium kibble, or the nutritional edge of minimally processed whole food that our rubric can’t fully credit. Both brands sit firmly in B-grade territory, and your dog will do well on either one.
If you want a high-quality food that stores easily, costs less per serving, and delivers dual animal protein up front, Merrick is an excellent choice. If you can handle the refrigeration requirements and higher price and want maximum nutrient bioavailability, Freshpet’s fresh format is hard to beat even at a slightly lower score. Read our full reviews of Freshpet and Merrick for the complete breakdown.