I did a best of dairy-free/vegan butter taste test and ranked them so you don’t have to! That’s right, I straight up ate vegan butter, plain. I tried four popular brands of dairy-free/vegan butter on their own to see which one tasted and felt the most like real butter: Earth Balance, Melt, Miyoko’s, and Milkadamia.
Info on each butter product, their pricing and my quick review is all below. Watch my video below to see my reaction to each and check out my ranking on which dairy-free/vegan butter is the best tasting! Which one of these spreads is your “go-to”, or which will you try now?
Note: this ranking is based more on taste, texture, and a bit on the quality of ingredients list, over the price of the plant-based butter per ounce or container.
On-to the dairy-free/vegan butter taste test…
THE RESULTS
Earth Balance Soy-Free Vegan Buttery Spread
Non-gmo, soy-free Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Spread is made from an oil blend, and a little bit pf pea protein, salt, thickeners and annatto color. The major oils in this blend like canola, palm fruit, and safflower are a lot more processed and not usually something I go for. It is high in Omega-3 fatty acids though. It is easily found at grocery stores, Target, and more for a little less money, which is a plus.
Current Price Range: ~$4.30-$5.50 per 15oz container
Ingredients: Vegetable Oil Blend (Palm Fruit, Canola, Safflower, Flax, and Olive Oils), Water, Contains Less than 2% of Salt, Natural Flavor, Pea Protein, Sunflower Lecithin, Lactic Acid (to Protect Freshness), and Annatto Extract (Color).
Initial Reaction: A little salty, with a great mouth feel. It’s not super buttery, and had a very subtle chemical flavor finish.
Would I buy again: No
Overall: Good, accessible, but not my favorite oils in the ingredients. There are so many other options now, I think there are better choices for dairy-free/vegan butter on this list.
Melt Organic Plant Butter
Organic, non-GMO and high in Omega-3 fatty acids. No nut-based oils or major allergens in this butter, though it says it could contain traces of milk or tree nuts. It does contain some of those processed oils like canola, but at least it is expeller-pressed and organic (less synthetic pesticides is a win!). I haven’t seen this one before, so it could be new, exciting to try!
Current Price Range: ~$4.60-$6 per 13oz container
Ingredients: Expeller-pressed Organic Oil Blend (coconut, Sustainable Ethical Palm Fruit*+, Canola, Hi-oleic Sunflower, Flaxseed), Water, Sea Salt, Sunflower Lecithin, Natural Flavor, Tocopherols, Organic Annatto Extract Color.
Initial Reaction: Really buttery flavor, soft melting point and good mouth feel. It was quite good! I preferred the Melt to the Earth Balance.
Would I Buy Again: Yes
Overall: This one surprised me, and I really liked it! Great for people who don’t want nut-based oils and have good overall taste.
Milkadamia Buttery Spread, Salted
Non-gmo ingredients and I love that there is no palm oil in this, though there was still canola oil. The additions of macadamia oil and coconut oil together are unique to this brand.
Current Price Range: $3.99 per 8oz container
Ingredients: Macadamia Oil Blend (Coconut Oil, Canola Oil, Macadamia Nut Oil), Water. Contains 2% or Less of: Sunflower Lecithin, Natural Flavors, Yeast Extract, Lactic Acid, Annatto Extract (Color).
Initial Reaction: Tasted good, almost a grassy tint to the flavor. It was melting quite easily at room temperature, which may not suit all uses.
Would I Buy Again: Yes, if as an option over Earth Balance.
Overall: It was good, but the softness/meltiness might be an issue in use.
Best: Miyoko’s European Style Cultured Vegan Butter
Organic, fermented/cultured for good probiotics, soy-free and palm oil-free. I am biased towards Miyoko’s already and I usually have it in my kitchen. The company says it “melts, browns, bakes & spreads phenomenally”, and I have found that to be generally true. It is coconut oil based with the addition of cashews, which is a pretty different blend from the other three butters.
Current Price Range: $5.99-$6.49 per 8oz container
Ingredients: Organic Coconut Oil, Filtered Water, Organic Sunflower Oil, Organic Cashews, Organic Sunflower Lecithin, Sea Salt, Cultures.
Initial Reaction: Tastes like butter!
Would I Buy Again: Yes, for sure!
Overall: Whether it’s baking or spreading on toast, it’s so very good.
Final Rank of my Dairy-Free/Vegan Butter Taste Test:
Best: Miyoko’s
Runner-Up: Melt
Middle Ground: Milkadamia
Least Best: Earth Balance
Overall, if these four butters were on your refrigerated grocery shelf, you couldn’t go wrong. I hope that more butter in the future will contain less processed oils like canola, and more oils and ingredients with Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCT) oils.
Let me know in the comments on this post or on my YouTube video sharing which one you would choose. Have you tried any of these before? Which dairy-free/vegan butter is your go-to?
Jana Eats Recipes using dairy-free/vegan butter:
Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Lemon Bars
The BEST Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever