Why a whole site about tinned sardines

By the collector behind sardines.world · Updated July 2026

The short version

I've loved sardines since I was a kid. First it was the taste, then the artwork and the way the tins look. As an adult I always have to have a big stack of cans, either in the pantry or displayed on a shelf. I like looking at them. Somehow a kitchen doesn't feel complete without them, wherever in the world I am. It's like a safety net.

A row of sardine tins laid out on the author's kitchen table — The current stack. It rotates; it never empties.

Lisbon made it worse

The turning point was my first trip to Lisbon, a business trip. I walked past the first shop I'd ever seen dedicated only to sardines and couldn't believe such a thing existed. I fell in love with the city, the country and its sardine heritage, and went from one sardine shop to the next. I spent a few hundred euros buying everything I could carry, and it's been a ritual every time I'm back.

A carousel display of year-dated sardine tins in a Lisbon shop — The Lisbon shop display that started it: a tin for every year.

To this day, the first thing I do in a supermarket in a new country is find the canned fish aisle. I'm always a bit disappointed if they don't have my favourite style: spiced, in olive oil, whatever the brand.

A stack of Tunisian sardine tins next to wine and olive oil — The ritual travels: a haul from Tunisia.

Why this site exists

A few years ago that love made me register the domain sardines.world. I didn't have a clear idea of what to do with it at the time, then life got busy and it just sat there. Eventually I decided the obsession and the domain deserved each other. What you're reading is the result: rankings I actually stand behind, a growing directory of the world's sardine brands and the canneries behind them, guides to species and seasons, and health pages built on sources instead of hype.

It's a good start, not more. I'm hoping to keep growing it with the help of people who love this stuff as much as I do.

How this site is made (the fine print, up front)

The illustrations are AI-made, because I can't draw and I don't have the rights to real photos of most tins. Every fact, price and health claim is researched and sourced by me, and when readers find an error, I fix it and say so.
Some buying guides carry Amazon affiliate links, marked on the page. They don't change the rankings: the commission is the same whichever tin you buy.
No sponsored placements. If that ever changes, it will be labelled in plain sight.

Help me build the directory

If you collect tins and have photos you'd be happy to see in the brand directory, I'd be honoured to feature them, credited to you. Email hello@sardines.world. Corrections, missing brands and strong opinions about my rankings are equally welcome.

Trays of colourful Portuguese sardine tins with illustrated labels — The artwork did the rest.

A wall of tinned fish on display rails in a Lisbon conserveira — Somewhere I'll always go back to.