There is something to be said for a sweet treat.
Whether you skedaddle into town for an iced latte, grab a pastry from your local bakery, or simply reach for a chocolate bar in your pantry, everyone deserves to have a little delicacy in their life.
However, eating a vegan or plant-based diet can make it a little more difficult to find a treat that meets your dietary needs — and is made well.
Regardless of whether you’re trying to find the perfect consumable gift for your plant-based pals, or you’re just trying to satisfy your sweet tooth without buying yet another pack of Oreos, we’ve got your back.
First, we’ll share a little bit more about plant-based chocolate, and then you can continue to explore our list of some of the best vegan chocolate on the market. It’s time you snag your next sweet treat with ease.
By the way, some of the products and links in this article are affiliates, which means we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Everything in this article was independently and honestly written by the Good Good Good team. Thank you for your support!
What is plant-based chocolate?
Plant-based chocolate — or vegan chocolate — is chocolate that doesn’t contain any animal products. Since many popular chocolate confections are made with cow’s milk, vegan chocolate uses plant-based alternatives like oat milk, coconut milk, or other nut milks.
Dark chocolate is also commonly animal-free, but make sure you read labels to avoid traces of milk or other animal products like honey, whey, or some caramels.
Some chocolate is “accidentally vegan” which means that while the manufacturer didn’t necessarily intend to create a plant-based product, the end result is still completely free of animal products.
The best vegan chocolate brands for your next sweet treat
TCHO Chocolate
TCHO is a certified B Corp dedicated to making better chocolate. Its initiative, TCHO Source, was built to co-create better cacao by working directly with farming partners around the globe, including infrastructure investments, improved fermentation centers, and more.
TCHO’s chocolates are either vegan dark chocolate, or oat, cashew, and coconut-sugar plant-based milk chocolate. Additionally, all of the brand’s products use non-GMO and Fair Trade-certified ingredients.
Varieties in flavor, thanks to varieties in cocoa beans, include tasty chocolate bars like Toffee Time, Born Fruity, and Choco Latte.
Lovo Chocolate
Lovo Chocolate makes 100% vegan chocolate from ethically sourced beans and plant milks, including almond milk, coconut milk, hazelnut milk, and oat milk.
All of the brand’s chocolates are manufactured in Switzerland, and its packaging is 100% recyclable.
Lovo is suitable for vegans, plant-based people, and anyone who is looking for a dairy-free sweet treat. The brand is currently in the process of finalizing its vegan certification.
Shop: Amazon | Lovo Chocolate
Taza Chocolate
Taza makes vegan, stone-ground chocolate that elevates cacao flavors through the grinding of organic beans into unrefined, minimally processed products.
Whether you’re looking for dark chocolate or creamy almond milk chocolate, you’ll be impressed with flavors like Wicked Dark With Toasted Coconut, Chocolate Cookie Crunch, or a classic Dark Sea Salt & Almond.
Shop: Amazon | Taza Chocolate
7th Heaven Chocolate
7th Heaven is home to “delicious, dairy-free indulgence.”
All treats are vegan, and the brand uses oat milk and Fair Trade-certified cocoa beans. With flavors like Peanut Butter Cream, Hazelnut Cream, White & Cookies, and more, you’re sure to find a tasty treat in no time.
Shop: Amazon | 7th Heaven
Unreal Chocolate
Unreal Chocolate was created to answer the question “why do the foods we love most have to be so bad for us?” The brand uses simple, organic, sustainable, and non-GMO-certified ingredients, as well as up to 51% less sugar than other leading brands.
Unreal’s line of vegan chocolates includes tasty treats like peanut and almond butter cups, coconut bars, and crispy quinoa “gems” that are all made with dark chocolate.
Enjoy Life Chocolate Bars
Enjoy Life makes allergy-friendly foods, including dairy-free chocolate!
All of the brand’s products are dairy- and egg-free, including dairy sugars and dairy proteins, like casein and whey. Whether you adhere to a vegan lifestyle or have allergies or intolerances, you can enjoy these candy bars.
Check out Enjoy Life’s rice milk chocolate and dark chocolate options for all the vegan-approved goodness.
By the way, Enjoy Life Chocolate Bars are our favorite option for vegan s’mores!
Shop: Amazon | Enjoy Life
Beyond Good
Beyond Good makes its chocolate bars with single-origin Madagascar and Uganda cocoa, and since they’re all dark chocolate, they’re all vegan! This includes flavors like salted caramel, orange zest, and toasted hazelnut.
The brand notes that it makes some chocolates with a co-manufacturer that uses milk chocolate, so some bars’ packaging states “may contain traces of milk.”
Shop: Amazon | Beyond Good
Whims Peanut Butter Cups
While Reese’s has recently announced a plant-based peanut butter cup option, Whims might still be the way to go. The delectable dairy-free peanut butter cups only contain one gram of sugar and no palm oil.
Whims’s oat milk chocolate peanut butter cups are available in bags of five.
Alter Eco
Alter Eco offers a variety of plant-based dark chocolate bars that are sure to make your mouth water — while also doing better for the environment.
The brand uses fully recyclable or compostable packaging, grows its ingredients in small-scale, Fair Trade farms, and founded the Alter Eco Foundation to help combat climate change and inequality through regenerative agriculture.
Do keep in mind that Alter Eco’s caramel, malt, and toffee chocolate varieties are not vegan, but definitely bite into plant-based favorites like the Classic Blackout, Quinoa Crunch, or Raspberry Blackout!
Raaka
Raaka makes unroasted dark chocolate from scratch — known for its fruit-forward flavor. All of Raaka’s chocolate is certified organic, kosher, and non-GMO, as well as gluten- and soy-free. Plus, all of its dark chocolate bars are vegan.
Check out the oat milk or coconut milk-based bars (or get a vegan chocolate sampler pack!), or snag one of Raaka’s many dark chocolate options like the Bourbon Cask Aged or the Strawberry & Coconut dark chocolate bars.
Lake Champlain Chocolates
A small chocolate factory based in Burlington, Vermont, Lake Champlain carries a wide assortment of chocolate goodies but has recently improved its vegan varieties.
On its website, the brand has a dedicated menu for vegan options, including items like dark chocolate-covered orange peels, vegan chocolate truffles, and even organic hot cocoa mix. Its plant-based truffle bars are also all the rage.
Shop: Amazon | Lake Champlain Chocolates
Chocolove
Chocolove’s assortment of dark chocolates (minus those with nut butter fillings, caramel, or toffee) are a delightful — and often, different — vegan flavor.
With options like a Chili Mole Strong Dark Chocolate, or Elderberries and Blueberries Dark Chocolate, you’ll get to explore some iconic tastes without the dairy additives.
Hu Kitchen
Hu Kitchen was founded on the belief that simple, healthy ingredients can be at the center of even the most delightful of treats. When the brand’s founders couldn’t find a chocolate that met their standards, they made their own.
All of Hu’s dark chocolate products are vegan. Sample a variety pack, stick with a Simple Dark Chocolate, or try chocolate bars with flavors like Crunchy Mint or Hazelnut Coffee.
Shop: Amazon | Hu Kitchen
Theo
Theo, known for its organic and Fair Trade chocolate bars and its interactive Seattle factory and confection kitchen, has a variety of vegan options.
With over 18 flavors — all made with dark chocolate — in its plant-based collection, enjoy favorites like Vanilla Cocoa Nib, Mint Chocolate, or Cherry Almond.
Lily’s
Lily’s makes lower-sugar options for all the sweet tooth owners out there. All of its products are “botanically sweetened,” and there are no refined or processed sugars. Many of the bars contain stevia, but that’s only to balance out the overpowering cacao taste.
All of the items in Lily’s Extra Dark Chocolate line are vegan (any bars that have cacao content of 70% and up). Reach for the classic Extra Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt or the Blood Orange Extra Dark Chocolate, if you’re feeling adventurous.
Shop: Amazon
Divine Chocolate
Divine Chocolate is co-owned by cocoa farmers and certified Fair Trade. Plus, the brand’s dark chocolate varieties are vegan-friendly.
Snack on a bar of Dark Chocolate with Hazelnut Truffle or go wild with a Dark Chocolate, Turmeric & Ginger delicacy.
Shop: Amazon | Divine Chocolate
EVOLVED Chocolate
All EVOLVED chocolate bars, chocolate chips, and chocolate cups are plant-based and contain no animal products. Plus, if you’re ready to hit the gym, one of the brand’s protein bar flavors (Dark Chocolate & Quinoa) is vegan, too, and made with plant-based proteins.
Enjoy a pack of Hazelnut Butter Chocolate Cups, or opt for a classic Signature Dark chocolate bar instead.
Tony’s Chocolonely
We’ve been long-time fans of Tony’s Chocolonely, especially for its massive, yet ethically-sourced chocolate bars. Excuse us, bricks.
The brand’s dark chocolate varieties (minus the Dark Milk Pretzel Toffee) get the vegan seal of approval, so feel free to fulfill that craving with either a Dark Almond Sea Salt bar or a timeless Dark Chocolate classic.
Shop: Amazon | Tony’s Chocolonely
Endangered Species Chocolate
Endangered Species Chocolate donates 10% of its annual profits to wildlife conservation efforts, so you can feel even better when you take a bite of chocolate.
The company’s dark chocolate bars are all vegan (except for the Hazelnut Toffee and Caramel Sea Salt options), and it has begun venturing into oat milk-based chocolates for a creamier experience.
Since 2016, Endangered Species Chocolate has donated over $3.1 million to its global partners, and you can do your part by snacking on something as tasty as a Rice Crisp Oat Milk Chocolate bar, or an Espresso Bean and Dark Chocolate blend.
Shop: Amazon | Endangered Species Chocolate
VGAN Chocolate
VGAN Chocolate, which started as an operation in Norway, is now spreading to the U.S. with its premium plant-based chocolate, treats, and sweets.
All products are organic and GMO-free as well, and the brand’s cocoa beans are sourced from small family-owned cooperatives in Nicaragua, Colombia, Ecuador, and the Dominican Republic.
Check out flavors like Coconut Cream or Grapefruit & Chia!
Shop: VGAN Chocolate
Equal Exchange Chocolate
Equal Exchange started with a simple question: “What if food could be traded in a way that is honest and fair, a way that empowers both farmers and consumers?”
We can get behind that! And of course, empowering all of those stakeholders also means taking care of the earth. Equal Exchange offers a variety of vegan-friendly items like dark chocolate and coconut milk chocolate bars.
Try the Lemon Ginger Dark Chocolate bar or the Mint Crunch Dark Chocolate option!
Shop: Amazon | Equal Exchange
No Whey! Milkless Chocolate Bars
No Whey! Foods makes vegan and Kosher foods that are free of nine of the most common allergens.
The brand’s Milkless chocolate bars are the dairy-free alternative to the classic chocolate bar. Made with vegan cane sugar, cocoa butter, and rice syrup powder, among other natural ingredients, you can enjoy a delightful chocolate taste without worrying about the milk products.
Shop: Amazon | No Whey! Foods
Ghirardelli
While Ghirardelli is known for its creamy milk chocolates, you can still enjoy some vegan options!
The brand’s Intense Dark 72% Cacao Twilight squares are a safe, dairy-free bet, as well as its 72% and 100% Cacao Premium Baking Chips.
If you’re looking to sip on something sweet, the Double Chocolate Premium Hot Cocoa Mix is also vegan-friendly.
Shop: Amazon | Ghirardelli
Lindt Chocolatier
None of us are above popping one-too-many Lindt truffles until we develop a tummy ache. Bad news? Those truffles aren’t plant-based. Good news? The brand still makes lots of tasty vegan-friendly dark chocolate bars.
Any of Lindt’s Cocoa Excellence bars or Oat Milk Chocolate bars are perfect for plant-based bliss.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is oat milk-based chocolate healthy?
Sometimes, people are drawn to vegan or plant-based labels because they assume an item is healthier. That said, oat milk-based chocolate typically isn’t going to be free of the sugars and fats you’re used to with sweet treats. But oat milk does offer some fiber and iron, as opposed to other dairy-free milk alternatives.
Cocoa is also known to contain micronutrients like magnesium and copper that are good for heart health. So, when you opt for dark chocolate with a higher cocoa percentage, you’ll be choosing a slightly healthier option than a dairy-milk chocolate bar you might get trick-or-treating rather than on the shelves of your nearest Whole Foods.
