The best pizza toppings are, of course, subjective. We all have our favorite pizza toppings.

Many people prefer to remain in the realm of tradition and convention when it comes to toppings. Pepperoni, sausage, green peppers, mushrooms and fresh basil are all tried-and-true favorites that pair perfectly atop our favorite cheese pizza. And for good reason.

But if you’re among the more adventurous types, you might want to branch out with your meats – bacon, ground beef, chicken, smoked sausage, maybe a full 24 oz porterhouse steak? 93% of Americans have at least one slice of pizza per month, so nothing is off limits!

You could also run a full grocery store produce section on your pizza if you wanted to, and rest-assured, people certainly have. There likely isn’t a single edible ingredient that hasn’t found an implementation as a pizza topping somewhere or another.

Top Pizza Toppings

Everyone knows that the best pizza toppings are in the eye of the beholder. For some, this means traditional pies like cheese, pepperoni, sausage and supreme. For others, pizza becomes a blank canvas upon which the world is their oyster (oysters, in fact, may be a topping).

Still, we wanted to get our finger on the pulse of how Americans are really consuming pizza, so we chatted with our friends over at Pequod’s Pizza in Chicago to find out the top 10 toppings that are most ordered by customers. The survey left us with some big surprises, like mushrooms coming in at #2, as well as confirmed some of our own stats aka pepperoni is the #1 pizza topping in America. 

Note, any of these pizza topping ideas can be added to a flatbread or gluten-free pizza with ease. Whether it’s homemade pizza or classic pizza from a pizzeria, these toppings are sure to satisfy.

1. Pepperoni.

Possibly the king of all pizza toppings depending on whom you ask. Pepperoni is – by a landslide – the most popular pizza topping in the United States.

Unless you prefer meatless pizzas or have a particular aversion to pork, it should come as no surprise as to why this is such an immensely satisfying choice for the best pizza topping.

It’s got versatility out the wazoo – you can find a space for pepperoni seemingly anywhere on a pizza regardless of what’s already stacked on. It’s also relatively light, with a hint of spiciness that can compliment many other ingredients.

2. Mushroom.

Here is pizza’s favorite fungi. Mushrooms are the $2 most ordered pizza topping and boy are we glad. 

Mushrooms have a near perfect taste/texture balance to compliment pizza, with an indelibly soft yet springy chew and a subtle savory quality that blends in with a crowd of other toppings rather than stealing the show.

It would be nigh unthinkable to exclude this as from a veggie style pizza.

3. Extra cheese.

For some, this may not count as a topping, but for us, there’s no such thing as too much cheese… on anything… anywhere.

Extra cheese means double of the good stuff, whether you’ve ordered a classic mozzarella pie or a four cheese. Extra layers of cheese can add more flavor depending on your topic preferences, and we always love a white pie with extra cheese to get more of that ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan and romano goodness. 

You can also add more exotic cheeses, like a gorgonzola, feta or goat cheese, if your pizza place has the fixin’s.

4. Sausage.

If “meatiness” is the note you want to hit most of all when deciding the best pizza topping, you likely won’t find a more worthy choice than sausage.

Sausage has a robust, fennel-forward flavor that typically finds its home as a roommate to green bell peppers or onions.

Unsurprisingly, it’s a favored pizza topping for Chicago deep-dish style pizzas.

5. Onion.

While many pizza lovers value their sweetness, onions also have a bite to them that is often undervalued, especially when red onions are used.

But sweetness is a hugely important quality on a pizza, as it balances the acidity of the pizza sauce and the saltiness of the cheese beautifully, so slow-cooked caramelized onions are unsurprisingly the most popular option.

6. Black olives.

Olives are not going to win over everybody, it’s just not their way. But they don’t need everybody to like them because those that do love them devotedly.

Regardless of how you may feel about them, you have to pay respect to such an enduring pizza topping that has amassed such obsessed fans. Most importantly, olives are essential to the experience of a “supreme” pizza.

7. Green pepper.

Bell peppers are without a doubt sausage’s best friend on a pizza – though they are obviously delicious combined with any “heavier” spicy meat or with other assorted veggies. While there is no obligation to use green bell peppers over the other popular variants like orange or red peppers, green is typically preferred for its accessibility. 

They’re firm without being too crunchy, and sweet without being cloying. It’s been a common thread throughout this list that the best pizza toppings are those that harmonize best with other ingredients, and bell peppers shine brightly in this regard.

8. Fresh garlic.

Garlic is probably the most essential ingredient in Italian cuisine, and everyone knows that garlic is liberally used to flavor a traditional red sauce for a pizza.

But would garlic on its own work as a topping? The answer is a resounding yes, especially if the garlic is fire roasted.

Finely chopped cloves of garlic become crunchy little morsels after cooking in a piping hot brick or wood oven, and the bitter edge of the raw garlic mellows considerably after it crisps.

9. Tomatoes.

Tomatoes are already an integral ingredient in most pizzas due to red sauces reining supreme over everything else. Tomatoes simply make a lot of sense on pizza, as it allows for a burst of acidity and sweetness to amplify the sauce at the pizza’s base, or to shoulder the flavor labor entirely themselves in a sauce-less pizza.

10. Fresh basil.

Not long after Italy was unified under one ruler in the late 19th century, apizza was served to Queen Margherita in order to celebrate Italy’s national heritage.

This was a simple pizza – thin crust, tomato sauce, topped with mozzarella and fresh torn basil leaves – that would become known as arguably the most important pizza in history. It essentially created the mold, or archetype, for every modern round pizza that we eat every day.

Basil was the integral ingredient which helped create this historic pie, allegedly selected primarily to complete the pizza’s color scheme to match the Italian flag.

Other Pizza Toppings People Enjoy

We’ve gone through the ultimate top 10 toppings, but we’ve really only just scratched the surface on the offering out there. Here’s an extensive list of other toppings you can enjoy on your pizza. Don’t be afraid to try something new!

Bacon.

It would be easy to write off bacon as pepperoni’s poser cousin, but it would also be wrong.

Bacon has an indelible crunch and presents a more pronounced burst of saltiness in lieu of spice. It’s pork-ier and in general compliments sweet and savory ingredients more effectively than other meats can.

It’s also bacon. Acknowledging that it is bacon – if you think about it – should be where it begins and ends when arguing in its favor.

Meatball.

If you like a meaty pizza, and you love a meatball, a meatball pizza is the one for you.

Homemade meatballs are stewed with herbs and tomato sauce and used on Italian subs, served as sides, and most importantly, added as toppings to cheese pizza.

Ground beef.

This is an ingredient that is rarely in competition for best pizza topping, but it has potent applications in certain styles of pizza.

The obvious and best use for it is in a taco pizza, which is a quirky and surprisingly delicious specialty pizza that was first served in 1972 at Happy Joe’s in Bettendorf, IA.

Ironically, the first iteration did not include ground beef, but since then it has become a staple ingredient for the unique pie.

Chicken.

This is one of those non-traditional sleeper picks for best pizza topping that is rapidly growing in popularity.

Chicken is a lean, flavorful, and versatile meat that can be adapted to many artisanal pizza styles.

The barbecue chicken pizza is probably the most famous use of chicken on a pizza, and it has found its way out from the California Pizza Kitchen and spread throughout U.S restaurant chains.

Alternatively, you may enjoy the chicken alfredo pizza if you want to embellish the theme of Italian cuisine, or the buffalo chicken pizza if you want some spice with your tang. And if that doesn’t do it for you maybe a little fried chicken will cure your pizza woes?

Steak.

Steak is definitely not the obvious choice here but we keep seeing it on pizza menus around the country, so we can’t ignore it.

While it may be obscure, there’s certainly something there to argue for steak as a pizza topping, particularly the. Combined with onions and peppers and maybe even a little provolone cheese to give it a real cheesesteak effect.

Ham.

Ham is another topping aimed at pleasing the meat-lovers.

As explained previously, it works as a great balance to something sweet like pineapple, and it goes without saying that the “Hawaiian” (ham and pineapple) style is the most popular application of ham on a pizza.

But ham can find pleasant company on any sort of carnivore style pizza just as well.

Anchovies.

A topping that may fall into the same camp as olives or pineapples when it comes to favored pizza toppings, anchovies are considered a bold, niche choice.

Unlike pineapples and olives however, anchovies have OG credentials as pizza toppings. The original Neapolitan style pizza employed anchovies as a topping as far back as the 16th century!

For a salty, funky, fishy, flavor profile, there is no substitute for the anchovy.

Red Peppers.

Peppers are wildly versatile so appear in many dishes we all know and love today, but it is surprising that only the green bell gets the action when it comes to pizza.

Red peppers have a slightly sweet brightness to them that both accentuates a vegetable pie and cuts the fattiness of a supreme of meat lovers, leaving a dreamy flavor combination. Roasted red peppers maintain the peppery flavor you crave.

Jalapenos.

Fresh, pickled, seeded or not, jalapeños know how to turn up the heat when it comes to pizza. 

They can easily dress up your average pie to add a little kick, but when they’re not standing on their own, they are playing very nicely with others. Add jalapeños to your meat pizza and be both surprised and delighted.

Banana peppers.

A favorite of Italian subs and hoagies alike, the banana pepper brings a mix of heat, salt and zing from the brine that goes with almost anything.

Vegetable pizza and meat-topped with love the texture and brightness of these guys.

Sun-dried tomatoes.

Make your pizza fancy with sun-dried tomatoes. These tomatoes bring a roasted, earthy depth of flavor that’s missed in a standard pie.

Plus, they add a nice texture to each bite and make a great combination when joined by their friends fresh garlic, basil and even feta cheese.

Artichokes.

Truth be told, artichokes, with their fuzzy exterior and thorny edges, make for a terrible pizza topping.

Artichoke hearts however, fare much better. They’re similar in consistency to brussels sprouts – which are surprisingly awesome on pizza – but have a meatiness to their chew which adds depth to its flavor profile.

Artichoke hearts pair very well with garlic and tomatoes, as well as with plenty of salted, crispy meats like bacon or prosciutto. If you want to get real fancy you can also pair it with our next topping.

Spinach.

Spinach! This is the crop that Popeye – with a little help of British propaganda and faulty nutrition statistics – convinced us would give us super strength upon consumption. Now, while this may not be true, it is nonetheless a tasty pizza topping.

Spinach is typically chewy when blanched on its own but crisps nicely when baked on a pizza. Unlike arugula or basil, spinach is definitely better cooked on a pizza as opposed to fresh.

Broccoli.

Broccoli may seem like it doesn’t “go” on pizza, but have you ever had a chicken and broccoli pizza? Or a white pizza with broccoli? It’s divine. 

Sneak in those vegetables and allow the broccoli to totally elevate the texture profile of the pizza, creating a nice chew and flavor.

Olives.

Black olives may steal the show in the top toppings category, but don’t sleep on green olives. The natural salty brine of the green olives meet their match with cheese, elevating the mozzarella to new territory. 

Also not to be missed are kalamata olives that can be used on a Mediterranean style pizza with feta and more.

Eggplant.

Eggplant can be roasted, fried, grilled  or fresh, and either way, it’s perfect on pizza. 

Think of a breaded eggplant parmigiana cutlet and put that on a pie. Perfect. How about a roasted, crispy eggplant? A grilled eggplant? A thinly sliced fresh eggplant? All perfect. All on pizza.

Pesto.

It’s a little controversial to list pesto as a topping, but we’d be remiss to exclude it on principle alone. 

Some prefer it as the sauce base to their pizza rather than a traditional tomato sauce, while others prefer it gently drizzled over top for an extra olive oil and basil bite. Whether you decide to fully transform your pizza or just give it an oomph, we support you.

Pineapple.

Pineapples on pizza remains today as one of Canada’s most important and enduring cultural achievements.

It shares the familiar origin story of many other old-school pizza innovations – an immigrant finds opportunity in mid-20th century North America and creates something new. It’s tangy and sweet, with a texture that is crisper and firmer than tomatoes.

This is best paired with ham or Canadian bacon – one of the few times Canada’s bacon reigns over traditional bacon.

Popular Pizza Topping Combinations

It’s impossible to cover every single ingredient that’s ever topped a pizza, but what we can do is show you how all of those toppings work together to earn their own label, like the Hawaiian, meat lover’s and supreme. 

Every pizzeria usually has their own pizza recipes, so these combinations can vary, but there are generally the toppings you’ll see on pizza night.

Wondering what’s inside your favorite style of pizza? Find out, now.

Meat Lovers.

A standard meat lovers pizza is everything they’ve got in the kitchen that’s made of roasted, baked, brined or grilled meat.

The classics might include pepperoni, sausage and bacon, but beyond the frame is ground beef, ham, spicy pork, meatballs and even steak. If you’re a meat lover, you’re getting all the meat.

Supreme.

It’s not easy to nail down the best pizza combinations or which supreme pizza toppings to use other than a lot.

It’s essentially every major toppings touchstone put together atop one pie, which is as excellent as it sounds. The standards typically include pepperoni, green bell peppers, olives, onions, and sausage, but there’s no reason for the party to stop there.

The best pizza combinations may also include mushrooms, jalapenos, ham, beef, tomatoes, roasted garlic, and more. Supreme pizzas can and should be thought of as edible expressions of hedonism and decadence, so restraint should be the last thing on your mind when considering tackling such a beast.

Veggie.

It’d be a shame to overlook a veggie combination for this list, and to say vegetarian pizza ingredients run the gamut would be an understatement. Veggie pizzas can be topped with anything from the garden that’s accessible to your pizza chef, so think mushrooms, green peppers, onions and black olives.

Other adventurous add-ons include roasted tomatoes, garlic, green olives, spinach, broccoli and more. There’s never going to be a universal consensus on the best veggie pizza toppings, but this is a surefire selection of ingredients to please people of all tastes and preferences.

Buffalo Chicken.

The buffalo chicken pie has all the flavors of your wing-and-sauce combos but on easily accessible pizza dough. 

Chicken breast cutlets are the star here, either grilled or fried, followed by a blend of monterey jack and mozzarella cheeses, hot sauce and ranch dressing. More refined versions may include blue cheese crumbles, blue cheese sauce, spring onions and even a proprietary blend of local spicy sauces.

Barbecue Chicken.

For all your BBQ lovers out there, combine your favorite Southern barbecue flavors with cheesy good pizza on a BBQ chicken pizza. 

Rather than using marinara sauce, the pizza is slathered with BBQ sauce and sprinkled with a cheese blend before being topped with grilled or pulled chicken. You’ll love the tangy flavor.

Chicken Bacon Ranch.

By now, you’ve heard of the chicken bacon ranch flavor combination that has swept our fine nation. There’s nothing bad about any one of those ingredients, yet when they come together, they become something extraordinary.

This pizza is topped with grilled or fried chicken, crispy bacon in bits or strips, cheddar cheese and lots of ranch dressing.

Hawaiian.

This has been brought up before, but there’s no reason this iconic pie doesn’t deserve a callback. Hawaiian pizza has lived and prospered in countless restaurants and titanic franchises throughout not just the U.S, not just North America, but throughout the entire world. All enduring food trends incorporate a sense of balance, and the combination of ham and pineapple perfectly encapsulates sweet and salty. The prime minister approves.

White Clam.

White clam is one of the most popular pizza styles in coastal cities like New Haven, and while it may seem like a strange mix, it is wildly delicious.

The white clam pizza is served without sauce, just a classic cheese blend, and is topped with roasted garlic, pecorino romano of fresh clams that are steamed in a garlic white wine sauce.

Pulled pork.

It may feel sacrilegious to put pulled pork on your pizza, but BBQ fans will be surprised and delighted to find that this flavor combo actually works. Like, really works.

Sweet and spicy barbecue sauce serves as the base and it is topped with a variety of cheese before getting the full pulled pork treatment. Throw some red onions on there and you have yourself a party.

Breakfast.

It is common knowledge in the foodie world that there is a breakfast version for everything nowadays – even breakfast ice-cream is a thing now. Pizza is no exception.

You’ll likely find some version of a breakfast pizza in the frozen food aisle or at a Casey’s general store, but if you’re lucky enough you may also find restaurant quality takes. Breakfast pizzas love italian sausage and bacon, and of course eggs are also worked into the mix as well – either scrambled or nestled over-easy atop the pie. For a more interesting conception of a breakfast pizza, look to Lions Tigers and Squares’ version: a Detroit style sausage pizza topped with maple syrup.

Conclusion

There are an awe-inspiring number of different options for pizza toppings these days, and there’s no shame in feeling intimidated or helplessly overwhelmed at the amount of choices we have at our disposal.

There’s nothing more comforting than a pepperoni pizza, and there’s no foodie in the world pompous enough to give a person grief for selecting it as their favorite. Sometimes less is more.

However, it is also equally and literally true that more is more. Fellini’s pizza in Rhode Island serves an entire thanksgiving dinner as toppings for their seasonal favorite pie. New York City’s Tony Baloney’s version of a taco pizza includes literal tacos individually prepared and assorted next to each other in a ring around a guacamole pool – all sitting atop a pizza base.

It’s a safe bet to conclude that there is something out there for everyone. It is comforting to know that no matter who you are, no matter where you are, the best pizza toppings are waiting for you somewhere.