Everyone loves chocolate, including vegans! Many common candy bars are made with non-vegan ingredients that may not be ethically sourced, and companies often sneak small amounts of dairy into these products.
Luckily, you can still indulge your vegan chocolate craving because there are many types of vegan chocolate bars and candies that you can find at the supermarket or online.
Vegan Chocolate – 2023 Guide
Is Chocolate Vegan?
Yes, chocolate is vegan! Or rather, it can be vegan. Most dark chocolate is vegan, but be sure to check the ingredients for dairy products. The additives in chocolate such as milk or flavors like caramel or nougat are often not vegan.
Is there a vegan milk chocolate?
Most milk chocolate you find at the supermarket is not vegan, but there are a few companies that make vegan milk chocolate with non-dairy milk such as coconut milk, rice milk, and even oat milk.
Some of the best vegan milk chocolate bars are from No Whey Foods, Vgan Chocolate, and Endangered Species which is available at Target!
You can even make your own at home! Try this vegan milk chocolate recipe by Dasha at Charming Food.
Best Vegan Chocolate Brands and Options
1. Go Max Go Foods (*Editor’s Choice*)
While artisan dark chocolate is nice, sometimes we all crave the super sweet candy bars of our childhood.
Go Max Go Foods makes dupes of common candy bars without the animal products, artificial ingredients, or trans fats. They use fair trade cocoa and ethically sourced palm oil so you can feel good about eating these vegan chocolate bars.
Plus, each candy bar has a whimsical name such as Buccaneer (“3 Musketeers”), Twilight (“Milky Way”), and Thumbs Up (“Butterfinger”).
If you’ve ever wondered if there is a vegan Snickers bar, be sure to try Go Max Go Foods’ Jokerz bar. Filled with buttery caramel, nougat, and roasted peanuts, the Jokerz bar is a true Snickers dupe without the dairy.
- Where to buy: Vegan Essentials (Worldwide Shipping), some Whole Foods Market locations, and local vegan/health food stores
- Product Attributes
- Gluten Free
- No Artificial Ingredients
- No Hydrogenated Oils / Trans Fats
- Vegan
- Non-GM Ingredients
- No Corn Syrup
- Fair Trade Cocoa
- Ethically Sourced Palm Oil
2. Enjoy Life
Enjoy Life is America’s #1 allergy friendly chocolate brand! From vegan chocolate bars to baking chocolate and vegan chocolate chip cookies, Enjoy Life has an extensive product line made in allergy friendly facility.
These chocolates are a wonderful option for vegans with food allergies. They even have vegan Halloween candy!
- Where to buy: Walmart, Target, Amazon
- Product Attributes
- Free of 14 Common Allergens
- Wheat Free and Gluten Free
- Many FODMAP Friendly Items
- Sustainable Palm Oil
3. UnReal
Like Go Max Go Foods, UnReal makes vegan chocolate candy bars similar to popular candy bars found in the US, but without “the bad stuff”. Their peanut butter cups taste even better than a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, and they boast 3 types of candy-coated chocolates similar to M&Ms.
- Where to buy: Walmart, Target, Vegan Essentials (Worldwide Shipping), Amazon
- Product Attributes
- Non-GMO Verified
- Fair Trade Ingredients
- Sustainable Ingredients
- Organic Ingredients
- Nothing Artificial
- Certified Gluten Free
4. No Whey! Foods
No Whey! Foods is a vegan and allergy friendly chocolate company that makes all kinds of fun vegan chocolate and candies for the everyday and holidays (check out their Halloween and Easter candy!).
- Where to buy: Amazon, Vitacost, Vegan Essentials (Worldwide Shipping)
- Product Attributes
- Milk Free
- Peanut Free
- Tree Nut Free
- Gluten Free
- No Artificial Colors and Flavors
- Free of the common eight allergens
- 100% Vegan and Kosher
5. Endangered Species
Endangered Species is much more than a delicious chocolate bar. Each year, they donate 10% of their profits to their GiveBack Partners to support conservation efforts for endangered species and habitats, hence the name.
Most of their chocolate bars are vegan (be sure to check the ingredients), and each one features an endangered animal and lists facts about the animal on the wrapper.
- Where to buy: Whole Foods, Target, Walmart, Amazon, some local supermarkets
- Product Attributes
- Premium, High Quality Ingredients
- Many Vegan Options
- Non-GMO
- Fair Trade
- 10% of Net Profits Donated Annually
6. Theo
Theo is driven by the mission of supporting farmers with fair trade standards and the belief that organic food is better for people and the planet. Plus, their chocolate bars are delicious and there are many vegan options!
Try the Dark Chocolate Salted Almond or Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups.
- Where to buy: Whole Foods, Target, Walmart, Amazon, your local supermarket
- Product Attributes
- Soy Free
- Fair Trade
- Organic
- Many Vegan Options
7. Sjaak’s
If you need a classic box of vegan chocolates for Valentine’s Day, an anniversary, or just because, Sjaak’s has you covered! They also make chocolate bars, foil-wrapped chocolate bites, and chocolate hearts.
- Where to buy: Amazon, Vegan Essentials (Worldwide Shipping), local vegan shops
- Product Attributes
- 100% Vegan Company
- Great for Gifts
- Organic
- Non GMO
- Kosher
8. Lindt
Lindt is a Swiss chocolatier founded in 1845. If you walk into any retailer, supermarket, or drugstore on the hunt for vegan chocolate, you are likely to find a Lindt chocolate bar.
They also make dark chocolate bunnies for Easter! While most of their products are not vegan, Lindt is a great option because the chocolate tastes good and is easy to find anywhere in the US.
- Where to buy: Your local supermarket or drugstore (such as Walgreens), Target, Amazon
- Product Attributes
- Widely Available
- Sustainable, Fine Cocoa
- Premium ingredients
- Several Vegan Options
9. Ritter Sport
While many of the other vegan chocolate companies on this list eschew common allergens like soy, gluten, and nuts, Ritter Sport is all about nuts! In fact, their tagline is “Only a nut would refuse them!”
Ritter Sport has several certified vegan chocolate bars available, including their 50% Dark Chocolate Bar.
- Where to buy: Your local supermarket or drugstore (such as Walgreens), Target, Amazon
- Product Attributes
- Widely Available
- Sustainable Ingredients
- Fair Trade
- Several Vegan Options
More amazing brands selling vegan chocolate:
How to Identify Vegan Chocolate
The easiest way to identify vegan chocolate is to look for the “V” or “Certified Vegan” symbol on the package. It’s still good to double check the ingredients list to make sure the product wasn’t labeled vegan in error.
Even if it doesn’t have a symbol on the package, the product could still be vegan. Read the ingredients on the package and look out for non-vegan ingredients like milk, milk powder, or confectioner’s glaze (a shellac made from insects).
Another way to double check if the chocolate is vegan is to look at the allergen disclaimer. If it says “Contains: Milk”, the chocolate is not vegan.
If it says “May Contain: Milk”, this simply means that the product was manufactured in a facility that also manufactures dairy products.
The company is required to disclose that the product was produced on shared equipment and may contain trace amounts of a common allergen, but it does not mean that it contains this ingredient.
Where to Buy Vegan Chocolate?
You can buy vegan chocolate in many local and online stores. Your local supermarket and retailers such as Whole Foods, Target and Walmart may carry some of the brands mentioned above.
If you’d prefer to shop online, Vegan Essentials offers worldwide shipping and carries many vegan chocolate brands such as Go Max Go Foods, UnReal, Sjaak’s, and more!
You can also purchase some chocolates and chocolate bars on the companies’ own websites, or Amazon.
Melting Vegan Chocolate
The two most common ways to melt vegan chocolate are in a double boiler or in the microwave.
To melt chocolate in a double boiler, fill the bottom pan with water and place the chocolate in the top pan. Let melt over medium, heat, stirring frequently until melted.
If you don’t have a double boiler, you can make one by filling a large, wide pan with water and melting the chocolate in a saucepan or glass bowl placed in the water.
Make sure the water never touches the chocolate or it will seize, which means it will become thick and grainy.
To melt chocolate in a microwave, place the chocolate in a microwave-safe container and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until smooth. If you melt the chocolate in the microwave without stirring, it will burn.
Tempering Vegan Chocolate
What is tempering vegan chocolate? Just like it sounds, tempering chocolate involves the temperature of the chocolate. That is, heating it and cooling it at specific temperature so it maintains a glossy finish and doesn’t melt in your hands.
How to temper vegan chocolate
When you are dipping desserts or fruit in chocolate, making truffles, or making chocolate bark, it’s important to follow these steps for the best results.
- Heat the chocolate to 100°F using the double boiler (or makeshift double boiler) method above, stirring constantly.
- Place the bowl of chocolate in a bowl of cold water and bring the temperature down to 82°F.
- Return the bowl of melted chocolate to the double boiler and heat it back up to 90°F.
- Use as directed in your recipe for dipping or pouring, then let cool at room temperature (do not refrigerate or freeze).
While dipping or pouring your chocolate, it’s important to maintain the 90°F temperature.
Vegan Chocolate Recipes
If you are sick of chocolate and looking for more creative and thoughtful vegan Valentines’s gifts, search no more!
More vegan guides:
- a guide for vegan Starbucks options
- a guide for vegan McDonald’s options
What is your favorite vegan chocolate?
Let me know in the comments below!
Hello-I want to share our vegan chocolate company with you, it’s Amanda’s Own Confections http://www.amandasown.com We have chocolates and sweets for every holiday and occasion. Our chocolate is produced in our dedicated facility so there’s NO chance for any cross contamination. I started my company in 2005 due to my daughter Amanda’s food allergies and have been growing ever since. I hope you have some time to check out our site.
You can’t leave out Taza Chocolate, from Somerville, MA! Or Raaka from Brooklyn!
love the site and effort you have put into it , just wanted to point out that here in Canada Lindt chocolate is not vegan however they did come out with a Lindt vegan chocolates with 3 flavours, hazelnut, salted caramel and original, the packaging is baby blue to make it stand out from the regular Lindt chocolate bars.