The Best and Worst Diets of 2024, According to US News & World Report

Now in its 14th year, U.S. News Best Diets has released its rankings for 30 popular diets in 11 categories based on a variety of criteria, from their healthiness to the likelihood of them helping you lose weight.

So before you decide on a new eating plan or diet, read up on the best – and worst – rankings, just in time to take advantage of the New Year’s resolutions you just started.

Every day, millions of people in the US try to lose weight. According to the International Food Information Council’s 2023 Food & Health Survey, more than half of Americans reported following a specific eating pattern or diet in the past year.

Yet only 20% of dieters will be able to maintain their weight. The truth is that dieting is hard. Many fad diets don’t work, and some can even threaten your health.

US News Best Diets 2024 cuts through the diet chatter to get to the heart of which plans are most likely to help you achieve your goals — whether that’s losing weight, managing a health condition (like high blood pressure or diabetes) or just wanting to eat healthier – so you can decide, in consultation with your doctor or other healthcare provider, which diet is best for you.

To compile the latest edition of the rankings, U.S. News health editors spent months considering potential additions to our lineup of diets. For 2024, the health team has added six new diets:

We gathered medical journals, government reports and other sources and interviewed leading health and nutrition experts to create in-depth profiles for each diet.

Each profile explains how the diet works, determines whether the claims are realistic, scrutinizes it for potential health risks, and shows what it’s like to live on the diet. Each diet profile includes a sample meal plan, foods to eat and avoid, tips for being successful with the diet, and scientific studies that support any health benefits.

Our Best Diets panelists, 43 experts – including physicians, registered dietitians, nutritional epidemiologists and weight loss researchers who are leaders in their fields – thoroughly evaluated all 30 diets.

We worked with The Harris Poll to develop the methodology used in this year’s rankings. When considering the best diets overall, the panelists considered:

They also considered the strengths and weaknesses of each diet and the specific goals each diet could be most effective at, which they shared in open-ended responses. The Best Diets panelists also shared aspects of each diet that they particularly liked or disliked, and offered advice to those considering the plan. The latest rankings, which include everything from the Mediterranean diet to the popular keto diet, can help you find the best plan for you.

The plant-based Mediterranean diet is more of a lifestyle approach than a diet, which is why it has such staying power. Experts like it because it is healthy, tasty and offers variety and flexibility. Plus, it doesn’t restrict any food or food group. It is backed by a vast amount of sound science demonstrating a wide range of health benefits.

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, olive oil and seafood, while red meat and sweets are an occasional treat. The Mediterranean diet is a great example of the fact that dieting can be tasty – it doesn’t have to be bland or prepackaged food.

Coming in at No. 2 and No. 3 respectively are the DASH diet and the MIND diet, both of which follow these essential principles of healthy eating.

The DASH diet, which is specially designed to stop or prevent high blood pressure, offers a little more structure. It limits sodium and saturated fat, limiting daily sodium intake to 2,300 milligrams and limiting fatty meats and tropical oils high in saturated fat. But this balanced diet is suitable for everyone, regardless of health status.

The MIND diet, in third place, is a combination of the DASH and Mediterranean diets. MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay and has the same basic whole food focus as both diets. The big difference is that it focuses on foods believed to improve brain health, foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, nuts, berries and dark leafy greens.

These diets facilitate weight loss at a healthy rate of 1 to 2 pounds per week and maintain it over the long term.

These diets fulfill the short-term goal of losing weight quickly (within three months or less), even if this is not sustainable in the long term.

These diets are the most effective in controlling diabetes or prediabetes.

These eating plans reduce inflammation and contain nutrients and vitamins to support healthy bones and joints.

These diets support an overall healthy eating pattern. They ensure optimal absorption of essential nutrients and do not restrict entire food groups. They also provide sufficient calories and do not lack essential nutrients.

This category includes commercial diets with structured programs that provide support to dieters, including in-person or online coaching and support, as well as packaged foods, bars or drinks that help members stick to the diet plan. Additional support and tools can include food tracking apps, meal plans, and recipes.

These meal plans are great for all types of families to eat healthy together. These diets are flexible for budgetary, cultural and religious preferences. They are also easily adaptable to different ages, body types and activity levels.

These diets are intended for people who want to improve heart health – from controlling blood pressure to lowering cholesterol.

These healthy, plant-based diets range from completely vegan to diets that allow for a flexible mix of plant-based foods with the occasional serving of meat, seafood and poultry. In addition, they ensure optimal absorption of essential nutrients.

These diets don’t require hard-to-remember rules, rigorous calorie counting, hard-to-find ingredients, or excessive meal preparation.

Whether your goal is weight loss, avoiding or controlling diabetes, improving your cardiovascular health, or a combination of these, it’s important to be aware of potential warning signs about your diet, such as extreme restrictions in food or calories.

When it comes to weight loss diets, many people think strictly in terms of which foods they need to completely eliminate from their diets. Instead of focusing on giving up sugar or carbs, focus on what to add to your diet, such as fresh vegetables, whole grains, more seafood or simply more nuts and seeds.

Due to their lack of flexibility, overly restrictive nature, reliance on processed foods and supplements, and the potential nutritional imbalances that can result from following these programs, the worst diets of 2024 generally include:

Rather than focusing on lifestyle changes, these plans offer a quick fix that is not sustainable in the long term.

No matter the category or your desired goal – better heart health, lower risk of diabetes, stronger bones or weight loss – US News’ Best Diets of 2024 have a few things in common:

The characteristics of a best diet include balance, maintainability, palatability, family friendliness, sustainability and healthiness. And according to our panel of doctors and dietitians, the best diet for you is one that you can stick to for the rest of your life and that doesn’t leave you feeling deprived.

It is important to keep in mind that a healthy diet is not just about losing weight. A healthy diet is one that improves health and helps fight disease. We know there’s no one diet that suits everyone, so it’s important to follow an eating plan that’s packed with tasty, healthy foods and takes into account your unique lifestyle.