Key takeaways
- They look and taste a lot alike, which is why people mix them up.
- The easiest differences are size, richness and how they are sold.
- Brie wheels are much larger, and Brie typically has a higher fat content.
- Camembert is usually sold whole in a small wooden box. Brie usually comes as a wedge or half wheel.
Size
This is the clearest difference. A traditional Brie wheel is large: Brie de Meaux is about 36 cm (14½ inches) across and Brie de Melun is 27 to 28 cm (about 11 inches). Camembert de Normandie is only 10.5 to 11 cm (about 4¼ inches) across. The small "Baby Brie" wheels in grocery stores aren't the traditional size.
Richness
The recipes are basically the same, except Brie typically has a higher fat content. Triple-crème Bries have at least 75% fat in the dry matter (the cheese with its water taken out), which makes them extremely rich and creamy.
How you buy them
At the grocery store or cheese shop, Brie is usually sold as a wedge or half wheel, and it is uncommon to buy a full wheel. Because baked Brie is so popular, wedges and Baby Bries are sometimes sold in a wooden box too. Camembert is usually sold whole, and typically, though not always, in its own wooden box.
Taste and the protected names
You are unlikely to taste a big difference: see what Brie and Camembert taste like. Both also have protected versions, described in what Brie and Camembert are.
If you can't tell which is which
At the cheese counter, check the label. The size and the box will usually settle it. For serving, baking and pairing, they are close enough that what works for one works for the other.