The Truth About the Girl Scout Cookies You're Buying

If you've ever questioned the differences between Girl Scout cookies from one part of the country and another, you're not crazy. The differences between two types of Thin Mints, Peanut Butter Patties, and even Caramel deLites and Samoas are real, and there's a perfectly reasonable explanation. Girl Scout cookies are made by two different bakers, ABC Bakers and Little Brownie Bakers, and the bakers vary by regions in the country. If you buy a box of Thin Mints in North Carolina, you could be eating totally different Thin Mints than the ones your friend is eating in Georgia.

The Los Angeles Times took a deeper look into the Girl Scout cookie phenomenon to determine the specific differences between each company's cookie, down to the amount of sugar in each. For example, Caramel deLites have "more cookie than caramel," "milkier chocolate," and slightly less sugar and fewer calories than Samoas. The Thin Mints made by ABC Bakers are "crunchier, with more mint than chocolate in each bite," and the tops look like they've been pricked with a fork, while the ones made by Little Brownie Bakers have a smoother chocolate coating.

Babble took the cookie investigation even further by doing a side-by-side comparison of Caramel deLites and Samoas, two coconut cookies that many people have sworn are the exact same thing. They found that Samoas are larger than Caramel deLites and have "toastier coconut," while Caramel deLites have a bit more caramel.

Do these little details make us any less excited for Girl Scout cookie season? Not a chance. Whether you're eating version A of a Thin Mint or version B, you're still eating one of the best cookies in the universe. We'll take any and all variations of every cookie while the season lasts and a box of each of the new s'mores Girl Scout cookies, too.