Coho vs Atlantic Salmon (and Sockeye): Taste, Fat & Price

Coho salmon vs Atlantic salmon is a wild-versus-farmed choice with a flavor gap in the middle: coho is a wild Pacific salmon with orange-red flesh, medium fat and a delicate, clean flavor, while Atlantic salmon in US stores is always farm-raised, with more than twice the fat and a softer, milder, buttery bite. Coho tastes more like salmon than Atlantic does but less assertive than sockeye, which is why cooks who find sockeye too strong and Atlantic too bland settle on coho.

Choose coho for the grill and for a lighter salmon flavor. Choose Atlantic for price, year-round supply and a fattier fillet. Choose sockeye when you want the boldest flavor and the reddest color.

Coho salmon vs Atlantic salmon at a glance

	Coho salmon	Atlantic salmon
Species	Oncorhynchus kisutch, “silver salmon”	Salmo salar
Wild or farmed in US stores	Wild; over 90% of the US catch is from Alaska (NOAA). Some farmed coho is imported from Chile	Farmed; wild Atlantic salmon fishing is prohibited in the US (NOAA)
Size	8 to 12 lb, 24 to 30 in (NOAA); one fillet portions neatly	Harvested at farm market size; thick, wide fillets
Flesh color	Reddish-orange, paler than sockeye or king (NOAA)	Pink-orange, from astaxanthin in the feed (NOAA)
Flavor	Delicate, light salmon flavor (NOAA, ASMI)	Mild, buttery, rich (NOAA)
Texture	Soft when raw, firm and flaky when cooked (NOAA)	Soft, large oily flakes
Fat / calories / protein per 100 g raw (USDA)	5.9 g / 146 kcal / 21.6 g	13.4 g / 208 kcal / 20.4 g
EPA + DHA omega-3 per 100 g raw (USDA)	1.09 g	1.96 g
Fresh season	Mid-June to mid-October from Alaska; frozen year-round (ASMI)	Year-round (NOAA)
Price	Varies; usually between farmed Atlantic and sockeye	Varies; usually the cheapest fresh salmon
Best cooking	Grill, broil, roast, poach; medium fat gives some margin	Roast, sear, poach, slow-bake; very forgiving

What does coho salmon taste like?

Clean and delicate, with a medium oil content that keeps it from tasting fishy or heavy. NOAA says smaller coho “have a delicate flavor” and that larger fillets are milder still; the flesh “has a high oil content and appears soft when raw, but becomes firm and flaky when cooked.” The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute describes “orange-red flesh, firm texture and delicate flavor,” credits its “medium oil content” with keeping the taste light, and notes that many cooks consider coho the best salmon for grilling.

That makes coho the easiest wild salmon to like. It has enough fat to stay moist over coals and enough flavor to taste like the real thing, without the concentrated richness of king or the bold, almost meaty intensity of sockeye. Our what does salmon taste like guide walks through all the species.

Coho vs sockeye: which is better?

Sockeye for flavor and color, coho for a gentler fillet that forgives the grill. NOAA calls sockeye the reddest-fleshed wild salmon with a rich, firm, fatty character; coho runs paler orange and milder. Both are wild Alaska fish with Marine Stewardship Council and Certified Seafood International certification (ASMI).

On the nutrition panel they are close. USDA’s Standard Reference entries list wild coho at 146 calories, 21.6 g protein, 5.9 g fat and 1.09 g of EPA plus DHA per 100 g raw, and sockeye at 131 calories, 22.2 g protein, 4.7 g fat and 0.72 g EPA plus DHA. Coho is slightly fattier and higher in omega-3s; sockeye is slightly leaner and higher in protein and vitamin D.

Availability favors sockeye. NOAA reports 2024 US landings of about 196 million pounds of sockeye versus 14 million pounds of coho, and ASMI puts coho at roughly 2% of Alaska’s salmon harvest by volume against 23% for sockeye. Sockeye runs fresh mid-May through September; coho follows, mid-June to mid-October (ASMI). Expect to see coho less often and to pay somewhere between sockeye and farmed Atlantic for it.

Coho vs sockeye vs Atlantic vs king

Per 100 g raw (USDA)	Coho (wild)	Sockeye (wild)	Atlantic (farmed)	King / Chinook (wild)
Calories	146	131	208	179
Protein	21.6 g	22.2 g	20.4 g	19.9 g
Total fat	5.9 g	4.7 g	13.4 g	10.4 g
EPA + DHA	1.09 g	0.72 g	1.96 g	1.95 g
Flesh color	Orange-red	Deep red	Pink-orange	Darker orange-red than coho (NOAA)
Flavor	Delicate	Bold, rich	Mild, buttery	“Pronounced buttery, rich taste” (NOAA)
Typical size	8 to 12 lb	4 to 15 lb	Farm market size	About 30 lb (NOAA)
Fresh season	Mid-June to mid-Oct	Mid-May to Sept	Year-round	Summer and early fall
Seafood Watch 2026 guide	Wild US: Good Alternative	Wild US: Good Alternative	Maine/Faroes: Good Alternative; Canada, Chile, Norway, Scotland: Avoid	Wild US: Good Alternative

King is the fattiest wild salmon and the priciest; NOAA describes it as oily, flaky and meaty, and USDA’s samples ranged from 3.3 to 19.6 g of fat per 100 g, so individual fish vary a lot. Farmed Atlantic matches king on total omega-3 only because it carries the most fat of the four. For a sharper head-to-head of the two extremes, see sockeye vs Atlantic salmon.

Is farmed coho the same as wild coho?

No. Farmed coho comes mainly from net pens in southern Chile, and it eats and sells more like a mild farmed fish than like Alaska coho. Seafood Watch’s December 2021 assessment of Chilean farms rated farmed coho “Avoid” in every region because escaped coho have established wild populations in Chilean waters, including the Beagle Channel and the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve, where the report calls them a high risk to native species.

One point in farmed coho’s favor from the same report: antimicrobial use in Chilean coho farming was “consistently and substantially lower” than for Chilean Atlantic salmon, about 29 grams per metric ton of production in Region X in 2020 versus a 440 g/mt national average for Atlantic. Chilean Atlantic salmon from Regions X and XI is also rated Avoid for chemical use; Region XII earns a Good Alternative. US law makes the distinction easy to check: the USDA’s Country of Origin Labeling rule requires grocery retailers to mark fish as wild or farm-raised and to name the country. Our wild vs farmed salmon guide covers the rest of that comparison.

Which is healthier: coho or Atlantic salmon?

Coho is the leaner protein; Atlantic delivers more omega-3 per bite because it is fattier. USDA lists wild coho at 146 calories and 5.9 g fat per 100 g raw against 208 calories and 13.4 g fat for farmed Atlantic, with EPA plus DHA at 1.09 g versus 1.96 g. Coho is higher in selenium (36.5 µg versus 24 µg) and slightly lower in sodium (46 mg versus 59 mg); Atlantic edges ahead on vitamin D (11 µg versus 9 µg).

Both are low-mercury choices. If you are counting calories or want the most protein per ounce, coho. If you are eating salmon mainly for omega-3s and don’t mind the extra fat, Atlantic gives more per serving.

Which should you buy?

Grilling: coho. Enough fat to stay moist, enough flavor to taste wild, and a fillet size that portions cleanly.
A big-flavor centerpiece: sockeye for color and intensity, king for richness.
Weeknight budget salmon or picky eaters: farmed Atlantic, preferably from Maine or the Faroe Islands if you follow Seafood Watch.
Poaching or salmon salad: coho or Atlantic; coho stays firmer and flakes cleaner.
Something between trout and salmon: coho is the closest salmon to rainbow trout or steelhead in flavor.
Curing or smoking at home: fatty Atlantic; see lox vs smoked salmon.

If you are eating with us in Orlando, the menu runs on Gulf fish, grouper, mahi and shrimp, so this guide is for your grocery run.

Bottom line

Coho is the wild salmon in the middle: lighter than sockeye, leaner than king, and more flavorful than farmed Atlantic. Pay for sockeye when flavor is the point, buy Atlantic when price is, and reach for coho when you want a wild fish that behaves well on the grill. Read the label; “Atlantic” always means farmed, and farmed coho from Chile is a different product from Alaska silver.

Coho vs Atlantic Salmon: What's the Difference?