12 Light Beers That Aren't Worth The Cooler Space

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Light beer can be crisp, refreshing, and is the perfect summer drink for many. However, you'll find some that are best avoided. The difference between regular beer and light beer is that the latter has fewer calories, less carbs, a lower alcohol content, or a combination of all three. This gives it a mild flavor with a crispness and heavy carbonation that's often considered thirst-quenching. Its detractors, however, often claim it's tasteless and not worth drinking. So, which are the worst light beer brands?

We gathered extensive customer feedback from review sites and consumer forums, giving us insight into the most maligned light beers. With ratings and qualitative customer opinions, we were able to build a picture of the bottles that people hate. This isn't about putting down light beers in general, they certainly have their place, but learning which ones don't cut it means you can work on finding one you love

When we surveyed our readers about their favorite light beers, Bud Light came out on top, but there are also ones from smaller breweries that are worth considering. Let's take a look at the 12 light beers that aren't worth the cooler space.

Beer 30 does not have the best reputation. As one Redditor put it, "Beer 30 is the beer where the only thing they could think to advertise about the beer was that there were 30 of them." While another Redditor bluntly said, "I have never tasted anything worse." So, you can only imagine that the light version isn't up to much either.

With an average Beer Advocate rating of 1.66 out of 5, Beer 30 Light is not a popular choice. Made by Melanie Brewing Company in Wisconsin, this beer is known for its cheapness and not much else. Some people say that all light beer tastes the same, but a lot of Beer 30 Light's detractors would say otherwise. One reviewer describes it as tasting of "sour wine, body odor, and skunked beer." Another says it's "the worst excuse for an alcoholic beverage I have ever had the misfortune to imbibe." So, you can see that it's not a fan favorite.

Given the low price — often around $0.50 a can — we can see why people might be tempted to give it a whirl. How bad can it be? Well, if the reviews and ratings are anything to go by, the answer is: Pretty bad. We'd recommend going for quality over quantity and picking up basically anything else.

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Given that Keystone Light is made by the Molson-Coors brewery, you might think it would come out similar to Coors Light. But, that's not the case. According to beer drinkers all over the U.S., Keystone Light is a significant downgrade. Sure, it's cheap, but is it worth it? We certainly don't think so.

According to its producers, this light lager is crisp, clean, and super smooth, but it has very mixed reviews and a terrible rating overall. While some people do talk about it being smooth or crushable, these middling, but generally favorable, reviews are overwhelmed by the negative ones.

One reviewer on Beer Advocate describes it as "just another can of polluted water." Another person took to Reddit to say "Keystone Light is the one beer that is truly awful and objectively the worst." We're not sure their idea of objective is totally fair, but the sentiment remains. This is not a well-loved beer.

Sure, Keystone Light is easy to find and it doesn't cost much, but that's not enough, in our opinion. According to a Mashed poll, Keystone is up there with the cheap beer brands people don't want to drink. At best, it's flavorless, but at worst, it's actively bad. Either way, we don't want it.

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Natural Light is another prime contender for those not worth the cooler space. Affectionately (and unaffectionately) known as Natty Light, this beer is said to be easy drinking by its producers, Anheuser-Busch, but others beg to differ.

Although it has its fans, they're few and far between. "Natty Light is complete garbage," one Redditor said in a discussion about the beer. "It has a very bitter aftertaste compared to the 'regular' lite beers like Bud, Miller, or Coors and is even worse than the lower brand beers like Keystone, Busch, etc." A reviewer on the Beer Advocate website also had bad things to say about this beer. "Everything about Natty light is awful, disgusting and pure absolute and honest garbage," they remarked. "Don't drink it."

What's more, its overall Beer Advocate rating is very poor, at just 1.78 out of 5. Combined with the bad reviews, saying that we aren't convinced about this beer would be an understatement. It's another one that just isn't worth the money, no matter what its small collection of fans might tell you.

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Bud Light is fairly ubiquitous in the light beer market. So much so, in fact, that you might not realise there's another light beer by the same brand: Budweiser Select 55. It's one of the beers with the lowest calories, which is part of its appeal for some drinkers. But, this does mean it comes with some shortcomings, including the taste.

People often complain about light beers being watery or tasteless, and this can be chalked up to preference. Some like the mild flavor, while others think it's a flaw. However, with Select 55, it seems like the flavor really leaves a lot to be desired. Add that to the fact that it's only 2.4% ABV, which is about half the strength of an average lager, and you have yourself a very unsatisfactory beer.

"Fill a glass with crushed ice and shredded cardboard. Then add a Budweiser to it. Let it sit out on the counter overnight and that would be close to what this tastes like," is one of many less than favorable reviews on Beer Advocate. More than one reviewer refers to it as the worst or the grossest beer ever made, so that probably tells you everything you want to know. With hardly any alcohol in it and almost no flavor, you might as well save yourself a few bucks and drink sparkling water.

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Made by Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee's Best Light is a light lager with 4.2% ABV, meaning it's a fairly average strength, but that still doesn't seem to make up for anything. Milwaukee's Best doesn't seem all that accurate for this beer. More like "Milwaukee's Most Mediocre" or "Milwaukee Meh."

It's not an exceptionally terrible beer, it's just very forgettable. There are plenty of light beers that you could choose ahead of this one that would be more enjoyable, and that's why we wouldn't recommend it. Its Beer Advocate ratings aren't great either, racking up to an average of 1.85 out of 5, with one reviewer saying that it "Smells like mineral water" with "no malt or hops present." That just about sums it up.

It might be fairly inoffensive, but not in the kind of way where you actually want to drink it. Some people complain that it tastes a little off and it's not particularly carbonated, even when it's fresh. So, if you're looking for a solid light beer, you could definitely do better. These types of beer fill a real gap when they're made well, but Milwaukee's Best Light misses the mark.

If you're looking for a beer that's not very boozy and tastes like a glass of water that's been sitting next to a lager overnight, Miller Extra Light might be for you. Otherwise, it's not worth the cooler space. As an extra light beer it's focused on being low in calories and has a low ABV. While there might be times when you fancy a beer without the buzz, you're probably better off drinking a non-alcoholic beer in these cases.

Its sympathizers note that it's fizzy and refreshing, but if that's the best you can say about a beer, it probably has a long way to go. It also has a sweetness that's a bit over the top for some and gets in the way of the crisp finish that you want from a light beer. "More like a soda than a beer," says a Beer Advocate reviewer. "One of the worst travesties to have passed my lips," they add. If that's not a reason to avoid it and go with a more palatable beer, we don't know what is.

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Just when you thought there wasn't room for any more mediocre light beers, here comes Busch Light, muscling its way into the party. In a thread about the worst beers, a Redditor describes it as "bland and forgettable" and we think that's fair. On Beer Advocate, its producers, Anheuser-Busch, say that it's "the coldest and smoothest light lager there is," which is a bit of a weird claim, as it's only as cold as the temperature you chill it to.

Others don't describe it so favorably. "Why is there so much corn syrup in this beer?" asks one Beer Advocate reviewer. "It's basically Cream Corn Light," they add. "Probably the most watered down beer I have ever had," says another drinker on the site. Across the board people seem to talk about how bland it is. There's basically no flavor, it doesn't have any notable mouthfeel, it doesn't smell like much.

You're not going to get any terrible surprises with this drink. It's a bit on the sweet side and some find the carbonation a tad aggressive, but certainly not disgusting. However, it might make you wonder why you even bothered. It's an absolute nothing of a drink and who has time for that when there are so many better beers to sample.

Carlton Cold is an Australian light lager, and before you start thinking that sounds kind of exciting and interesting, don't get your hopes up. Australia has some great beers, but this isn't one of them. It's a mid-strength light beer, at just 3.5% ABV, and it doesn't even make up for it with a mild, inoffensive flavor. No, it's worse than that.

"Looks like beer, smells and tastes like urine with a metallic taint to set your teeth on edge," says a Beer Advocate reviewer. "An almost unbelievably woeful attempt at brewing beer," says another, adding that "breweries that churn out abominations like this shouldn't be allowed to call it lager or beer." So, that's fairly definitive. It might even leave you longing for one of the more bland and watery options.

With so many light beers available, it's incredible that breweries can make one like this and people still buy it. There are less offensive options, there are cheaper options, so where's the appeal here? Sure, it takes all sorts, but we can't imagine who's genuinely chugging Carlton Cold on a hot day.

As someone who bears the surname Corona, I hate to say it, but Corona Light isn't worth the money nor is it worth the cooler space. The difference between Mexican and American lager is that the former tends to have a more complex flavor with sweet and bitter notes the American kind often lacks. But, Corona Light has no such complexity.

As one Beer Advocate reviewer puts it, the bitter notes of Corona Extra are "subdued by undertones of grainy tap-water." Another says that taste-wise, "not much is going on." That tracks, but we're disappointed by it. Yes, light beers should be refreshing, but that doesn't mean they have to be totally devoid of flavor. We deserve more than that.

Pop a wedge of lime in the neck and it's moderately improved, but it's still not worth shelling out on. If you like Corona beer, you'll still find the original refreshing and it has so much more flavor going on. There's really no reason to subject yourself to Corona Light.

If you're looking for a Canadian light beer, you might come across Sleeman Clear. It's low in carbs, contains 90 calories, and still manages to boast a reasonable ABV of 4%. But, does that alcohol content translate into more body and flavor? Honestly, no it does not. Rather, it's a bland, watery beer that we would say was forgettable if it wasn't so disappointing that most buyers probably remember wasting their money.

It seems that this beer has taken the light beer brief of being mild and refreshing and taken it too far. "Without a doubt, the worst beer ever created by man," says one disgruntled buyer on Beer Advocate. "Carbonated water with some light colour added is the best description of this flavourless thin weak excuse for a beer," they add. So, not a lifelong fan created there.

Some people say that it's smooth and refreshing and good enough for a light beer, but it has some vocal detractors that make it clear that this goes beyond an average light beer into something worse. We're open to beers that aren't packed with flavor but are crisp and refreshing. This one, however, is just weak, and we intend to steer clear of it.

Since Molson Canadian 67 comes from Molson-Coors, the brand behind Coors Light and Miller Lite, you might expect another crisp, crushable light beer. While it's not exactly offensive, it isn't something we'd pick up from the liquor store. As the name suggests, it contains just 67 calories, so if a low-cal drink is your main priority, then fine, but the trade-off is a lower ABV (just 3%) and very little in the flavor department.

"It tastes like if you left bread in a Perrier overnight," says a Beer Advocate reviewer, and this basically sums up how flavorless it is. Not just mild, but flavorless even for a light beer. Another reviewer backs this up by saying it has "a faint flavour of beer, but mostly like beer flavoured tonic water or club soda," adding that there's "nothing horribly offensive" about it. Why should we be settling for not terrible when there's a whole world of other beers out there?

If you don't like beer and you want to get a slight buzz on, maybe it's an alright choice, but anyone who wants at least a bit of lager-ish flavor is going to be left disappointed here. It's basically a seltzer with a hint of beer and there are far better options to spend your money on.

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It has its fans, but Bud Light Lime is also considered one of the worst beers by some. While some folks appreciate the zesty citrus flavor, others think they'd be better off putting some real lime in a Bud Light, and we can't help but agree. It claims to be brewed with real lime but it still comes out like a faux lime flavor, which seems silly when the real deal is so easily accessible. And, if you need that in order to make the beer palatable to you, maybe you'd be better off with a different type of beer.

There's really not much flavor to this beer aside from the hint of lime, and even that's not all that authentic. "It tasted like the dollar store equivalent to 7-Up," notes one Beer Advocate reviewer. "Honestly, just get a radler instead," they add. We definitely agree that if you want a fruity flavor to your beer, a radler is a tastier choice, or you could opt for something more complex, like a quality fruit sour.

This beer is refreshing, sure, but it's not one of the greats. We'd recommend saving the cooler space with this one. Opt for a more interesting light beer, and squeeze some fresh lime juice into it.