Is chocolate vegan? It is a question we hear over and over again. Many fear that becoming vegan means a lifetime without chocolate. But fear not, we promise you won't be sentenced to a chocolate-less existence.
Vegan chocolate is extremely easy to come by and it’s exceptionally delicious!
You see, chocolate is naturally vegan on its own. It is only when companies add dairy and other fillers to this heavenly superfood, that chocolate becomes non-vegan.
With that said, dark chocolate is usually vegan, and these days, more and more companies are making vegan chocolate in a variety of flavors.
Chocolate is one of our favorite guilt-free pleasures as cacao is a superfood packed with antioxidants. And let's be honest, who doesn't love chocolate? However, besides being cruelty-free, it's important to make sure that the chocolate you buy is fair-trade.
You see, the chocolate industry is one of the most exploitative in the world. Most chocolate companies use child labor and slavery. So when you buy vegan fair-trade chocolate, you are voting with your wallet, not only against animal cruelty but also against human exploitation.
To help you find the best vegan chocolate brands offering everything from chocolate bars to peanut butter cups and truffles, we have listed the 15 most decadent chocolates for the ultimate indulgence.
Here Are The Best Vegan Chocolate Brands:
1. Theo
2. Endangered Species
3. iChoc
4. Blevas Vegan Chocolate Gourmet Truffles
5. Justin
6. HU
7. Unreal
8. Nutiva Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
9. Plamil
10. Icelandic
11. Enjoy Life
12. Booja Booja
13. Amore di Mona Chocolate Gift Boxes
14. Trader Joe's Pound Bar
15. Chocolove
1. Theo
Theo is one of the most popular producers of vegan chocolate alternatives in the United States, and it was the first fair trade chocolate factory in the country. In addition, Theo only uses eco-friendly cocoa beans in their products.
This amazing brand offers everything from vegan peanut butter cups to regular chocolate bars with a range of exciting flavors such as turmeric, black rice quinoa crunch, salted almonds, and more. Just make sure you avoid the milk chocolate and stick with the darker versions.
- Vegan: No, but they offer several vegan products.
- Our Top Pick: The 70% Dark Chocolate Salted Almond
2. Endangered Species
Endangered Species is another one of our personal favorites that’s sold at most grocery stores across the US.
This brand is focused on offering some of the highest percentage dark chocolates ranging from 75% to 88%. They also offer some fun and interesting flavors. For example, the hazelnut toffee is one of best we’ve tried, but you can also get chocolate with coffee bean, cherries, raspberry and more.
In addition, Endangered Species’ vegan chocolate bars are certified vegan by The Vegan Awareness Foundation and the company uses fully traceable fair trade beans from West Africa.
Endangered Species also gives back 10% of their profits to help save endangered species and protect their natural habitats across the world.
- Vegan: No, but all dark chocolate products are.
- Our Top Pick: The Dark Chocolate with 88% Cacao
3. iChoc
iChoc is an all-vegan chocolate brand from Germany that recently rose to international fame, and for good reason. Currently, they offer 8 chocolate bars that are all incredible substitutions for everyone that misses the taste of milk chocolate. There is a classic bar, a white chocolate bar, nougat, choco cookie, and more.
We first had an opportunity to try iChoc out in Sweden and search it out wherever we go. Honestly, they offer some of the best vegan chocolate out there.
- Vegan: Yes, 100% vegan.
- Our Top Pick: The White Nougat Chocolate Bar
4. Belvas Vegan Chocolate Gourmet Truffles
These vegan truffles are a must-try for anybody who enjoys the finer things in life. Belvas is a traditional, high-quality chocolate factory in southern Belgium offering fair trade chocolate and several incredible vegan delights. Not all of Belvas’ products are vegan but they are clearly marked, and most of their dark chocolate products are dairy-free.
However, if there is one of their products that we recommend above all it would be their artisan bite-sized vegan chocolate truffles which are filled with a creamy hazelnut paste and covered in crunchy dark chocolate flakes.
- Vegan: No, but several of their top products are.
- Our Top Pick: The Chocolate Gourmets Truffles
5. Justin's
Justin's is best known for their incredible nut butters including their to die for chocolate hazelnut butter. But our biggest obsession is their rich and decadent vegan dark chocolate peanut butter cups which are way better than any non-vegan version we’ve ever eaten.
To make things even better, Justin's recently added dark chocolate cashew and almond butter cups to their selection, and we’ve heard rumors that a hazelnut cup is on its way! All versions of the dark chocolate nut butter cups are vegan and organic to boot.
- Vegan: No, but all dark chocolate products are 100% dairy-free.
- Our Top Pick: The Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup
6. HU
HU is another all-vegan chocolate brand that has taken the world by storm. All of their chocolate is vegan, paleo, fair trade, and organic. Moreover, their products are free from GMOs, gluten, soy lecithin, refined sugar, cane sugar, and alcohols.
It feels like HU launches a new product on a monthly basis from chunks and bites to bars filled with nut butter, jelly and mint. And if you ever feel uncertain of which flavor will suit you the best (chances are high that you will!), you can order a gift pack and try a little bit of everything.
- Vegan: Yes, HU is an all-vegan chocolate company.
- Our Top Pick: The Crunchy Mint Bar
7. Unreal
Another thing many vegans miss are M&M’s, both the peanut ones and the chocolate ones. But guess what? There is a vegan chocolate option for that too. Unreal is a company manufacturing several of the world’s most popular chocolate snacks in vegan versions including the peanut butter cup and the chocolate covered peanut M&Ms.
All of their products are non-GMO, fair trade, organic and sourced from sustainable ingredients, making their chocolate the perfect guilt-free snack.
The only downside with Unreal is that their milk chocolate M&M's aren't vegan approved. But we hope they will phase it out and go all-vegan because their vegan chocolates are truly unreal (no pun intended)!
- Vegan: Yes, except for one product that contains dairy.
- Our Top Pick: The Dark Chocolate Peanut Gems
8. Nutiva Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
As two people that were raised on Nutella, we were ridiculously excited when we found the Nutiva chocolate hazelnut spread. And we take every chance we get to incorporate it into our breakfast routine.
This vegan chocolate hazelnut spread is the perfect substitute for Nutella. Just be aware that its creamy, rich, and nutty flavor is highly addictive and questionable for your waistline so enjoy it in moderation. Or don’t, it’s up to you, and we won’t blame you for losing self-control around this chocolate spread.
- Vegan: Yes, Nutiva is a vegan brand.
- Our Top Pick: The Vegan Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
9. Plamil
Plamil is one of the largest manufacturers of vegan foods in the United Kingdom. The company has been around since 1965 and sell some of the best vegan mayonnaise and dairy-free milk alternatives in the world. However, we love Plamil for their vegan chocolates.
Regardless if you’re looking for baking chocolates, dark or milk chocolate bars, chocolate spreads, or even a vegan chocolate Advent Calendar, Plamil can sort you out. As of 2018, they even have a vegan white chocolate calendar in their SoFree collection.
- Vegan: Yes, Plamil is the oldest vegan company in the UK.
- Our Top Pick: Pretty much anything from the SoFree collection.
Read Next: Are Starburst Vegan? Find Out Here!
10. Icelandic
We found the Icelandic vegan chocolate by accident at a Whole Foods on the East Coast once, and it has been Adam’s personal favorite ever since. The chocolate is produced by Noi Sirius, which is the largest and oldest candy producer in Iceland, and it’s pure perfection.
The brand has a huge selection of products but we prefer the pure 54% and the 70% vegan chocolates without any additional flavors. However, the best part about these vegan chocolates is that every pack comes with two 100g bars so that your enjoyment can last even longer.
- Vegan: Noi Sirius offers both vegan and non-vegan products.
- Our Top Pick: The 70% Pure Chocolate Bar
11. Enjoy Life
Enjoy Life offers a huge range of vegan chocolates that are all nut, soy, gluten, egg, and GMO-free, meaning they have some of the cleanest and least allergenic chocolates on the market.
Their selection spans from vegan baking chocolate and chocolate chips to vegan milk chocolate bars and cookies. We have tried several of Enjoy Life’s vegan chocolates and have really fallen in love with their baking chocolates. The chocolate chips are especially decadent and can be used to make cookies or can be melted for other recipes.
12. Booja Booja
Booja Booja is an award-winning producer of all things dairy-free from vegan ice cream to some of the best vegan chocolates you can buy. Their chocolate truffles are especially incredible and what put this company on the map. In fact, their truffles are so good that we have to keep ourselves from ordering more too often or we wouldn’t be eating anything else.
Just be aware that these amazing vegan truffles are artisan products that should be handled with care and they need to be stored cold, otherwise they melt. So, do yourself a favor and treat yourself to some world-class indulgence, just remember to pop the truffles in the fridge as soon as you can.
- Vegan: Yes, Booja Booja is 100% vegan.
- Our Top Pick: The Chocolate Truffles
13. Amore di Mona Chocolate Gift Boxes
One of the most appreciated gifts for vegans is a chocolate gift box, and today there is a huge range to choose from. On Amazon alone, there are hundreds of options to choose between. However, no one does vegan chocolate gift boxes like Amore di Mona.
Each box contains a number of carefully selected high-quality chocolates that are sure to impress even the pickiest chocolatier. Better yet, all the best vegan chocolate boxes from Amore di Mona are delivered in a cute box with golden ribbons and see-through covers for the ultimate vegan gift.
- Vegan: Yes, Amore di Mona only sells vegan products.
- Our Top Picks: The Artisinal Vegan Gift Box
14. Trader Joe's Pound Bar
In the past couple of years, Trader Joe’s has taken the lead when it comes to developing and offering vegan products, and their chocolate is no exception. The Trader Joe’s Pound Plus bars come in three vegan options, the dark chocolate, the 72% dark chocolate, and the bittersweet almond. All are dairy and egg free and amazing vegan chocolate bars.
And while you’re at it, Trader Joe's semi-sweet chocolate chips are also 100% vegan and a great substitute for chocolate chip cookies or any other chocolate recipe.
- Vegan: No, altough Trader Joe's has a large selection of vegan products.
- Our Top Pick: The Dark Chocolate Pound Plus Bar
15. Chocolove
Chocolove is an American manufacturer of premium chocolates with a big vegan selection. Most of their dark chocolate arrives to their facility kosher parve which means it has not been used on the same machinery as other dairy products. In addition, Chocolove uses separate equipment for molding their milk chocolate and dark chocolate.
Chocolove’s products are fair trade, and they use fully ripened beans for the ultimate decadent chocolate flavor.
Victoria’s favorite is the raspberries in dark chocolate bar and Adam swears by the coffee crunch in dark chocolate.
- Vegan: No, but a large part of their selection is.
- Our Top Pick: The Raspberries in Dark Chocolate Bar
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I love booja booja! Thanks for sharing the others as some I have never heard of!
Author
Glad you liked it!! Booja booja is one of our favorites too 😀