It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it. In the lead-up to Easter, we’ve eaten our way through an inordinate amount of hot cross buns in a bid to definitively uncover those which reigns supreme. Whether you’re more of a heavy fruit, heavy spice lover, partial to an indulgent chocolate iteration, a fan of a classic with lashings of butter, or looking for something different entirely, we’ve tasted (and rated) them all.

Here, we present our guide to the best of the best, including something for every taste preference — mapping out our personal favourites across all of the important categories. Enjoy.

Beabea’s

It feels somewhat unfair to double down on the winner two years in a row, but we simply must speak the truth — and the truth is that Beabea’s makes the best hot cross buns in town. Only opening its doors last year, this beloved Westmere local has quickly become known for its unique, modern, and honestly, utterly delicious take on traditional Kiwi bakery fare, and their hot cross buns do not deviate. The 2025 recipe differs slightly from 2024’s (and somehow, is even more delicious), crafted to fly closer to a traditional panettone recipe, with more spice, and more divine soaked fruit. The result is buns that are insanely light and fluffy — impossibly so — but still have enough bite to them to feel like a traditional take. Beabea’s head baker and co-owner Ben doesn’t mess around, and these hot crossies showcase the best of his incredible talent.

Texture: Pillowy clouds (light, airy, with the perfect bite)
Crust: Soft and sticky with a healthy dose of not-too-sticky glaze
Serving suggestion: In our opinion, these are best served fresh with no butter, exactly as God intended — toast from day two onwards
Price: $4 each, or $22 for a half dozen

Mor

Known for making some of the most sought-after patisserie and viennoiseries in town, Remuera-based bakery Mor has, unsurprisingly, once again mastered the hot cross bun this Easter. The buns balance their traditionally dense texture with a fluffy, light quality that gives them a superb mouthfeel — a little bit chewy and perfectly soft. The spice is right too, with each bun boasting that classic flavour we crave at this time of year, and one of the best fruit-to-bun ratios of the 2025 cohort. There is also a tantalising glaze (housemade apricot jam & spiced sugar syrup) that adds a touch of extra sweetness without overpowering the inherent nature of these morsels which are, at their heart, just really good, classic, moreish hot cross buns — exactly as you want them. They came with an indulgent Lewis Road Creamery butter with toasted croissant bits, which, while not entirely necessary considering how good these buns are au naturale, was a welcome addition and a nice way to change things up.

Texture: Soft and fluffy with the perfect amount of bite
Crust: Coated with a subtly-sweet glaze, which beautifully softens the crust
Serving suggestion: Fresh from the oven is the dream, otherwise lightly toasted — topped with Mor’s delectable croissant butter (or house apricot jam if you’re dining in)
Price: $5 each

Copain Chocolate

From French patisserie La Petite Fourchette (and their sister venue, Copain) comes some of the most authentic French buns we’ve tried. These unique takes are incredibly soft and spongy, evidently fresh from the oven, and decidedly French. Generously, we were allowed to sample both the traditional buns and the chocolate buns — and while the traditional were delicious, the chocolate was a stand out. More like a chocolate brioche than a hot cross bun per se, the soft, buttery bread was light and fresh, with chocolate chips smattered through in perfect ratio. These are the ultimate Sunday morning, long weekend breakfast in bed companions, and could easily double as a tasty after dinner treat.

Texture: Unspeakably soft
Crust: Squishy, but with the right amount of firmness
Serving suggestion: Fresh, no butter needed — there’s plenty of that in the batter
Price: $3.50 each, or $19 for a half dozen

Spiced Fruit

The Pantry