I bought every vegan butter I could find and tested them all so you don't waste money on the bad ones

Look, I know we're all supposed to pretend that every vegan product is amazing just because it exists. But after dropping over $80 on every vegan butter at three different grocery stores, I'm here to tell you the truth: some of these are incredible, and some taste like someone's first attempt at chemistry class.

I tested each one on toast, in baking, and for cooking. I made notes. I annoyed my partner with constant taste tests. Here's what actually deserves space in your fridge.

1. Miyoko's Creamery European Style Cultured Vegan Butter

This is the one that made me understand why people get weird about butter. It's cultured, which means it has that slight tanginess real butter has. The texture is spot-on, it melts beautifully, and it actually browns when you cook with it.

I used this for chocolate chip cookies and they turned out exactly like the pre-vegan versions I remember. It's pricier at around $6 per tub, but it performs like actual butter in every situation. If you're baking something that matters, like impressing your non-vegan in-laws, this is your move.

The only downside? It's softer at room temperature than some others, so it can get a bit melty in summer.

2. Earth Balance Original Buttery Spread

The reliable friend of vegan butters. Earth Balance has been around forever, and there's a reason it's still everywhere. It's consistent, affordable at around $4, and works for basically everything without being amazing at any one thing.

I've used this for years for everyday cooking and it never lets me down. Sautéing vegetables? Great. On toast? Totally fine. In baking? It works, though it won't give you that cultured butter complexity.

Think of it as the Toyota Camry of vegan butter. Not exciting, but you know exactly what you're getting and it won't disappoint you at 9pm when you're making emergency cookies.

3. Violife Vegan Block Butter

This one surprised me because Violife's cheese products are hit or miss. But their block butter is actually really solid for baking. It comes in sticks like traditional butter, which makes measuring way easier when you're following recipes.

The texture is firmer than Miyoko's, which I actually prefer for pie crusts and biscuits. It creates those flaky layers you want. The flavor is mild and clean, not trying to do too much.

At around $5, it sits in the middle price-wise. I keep this one specifically for baking projects where I need precise measurements and good structure.

4. Country Crock Plant Butter

I was skeptical about this one because Country Crock always felt like the margarine your grandma had in a tub. But their plant butter is actually pretty decent for the price, usually under $4.

It's great for cooking and spreading, less great for baking anything delicate. The flavor is mild and buttery enough that non-vegans at my last brunch didn't notice it on their toast. It melts nicely for popcorn and works fine for scrambles.

The texture is softer and more spreadable straight from the fridge, which is genuinely convenient. Just don't expect it to perform miracles in your croissant recipe.

5. Kite Hill Truffle, Dill & Chive Plant-Based Butter

Okay, this is technically a flavored butter, but I had to include it because it's absurdly good. If you're the kind of person who puts compound butter on steak, this is that energy for vegetables.

I used it on roasted potatoes and nearly cried. It's rich, garlicky, and has actual truffle flavor that doesn't taste like a candle. At $7, it's definitely a splurge, but a little goes a long way.

This won't work for baking obviously, but for finishing dishes or making fancy garlic bread that'll impress literally anyone, it's worth every penny. I keep it around for when I need to make vegetables taste like a restaurant made them.

The ones that didn't make the cut

I'm not going to name names on all of them, but there were a few that just didn't work. One tasted weirdly sour in a bad way. Another had a chemical aftertaste that lingered. One was so hard straight from the fridge that I nearly broke my toast trying to spread it.

The common thread with the bad ones? They tried to cut too many corners. Super cheap ingredients, weird stabilizers, or just not enough fat content to actually behave like butter. You can usually spot these by checking if oil is the first ingredient instead of a cream base.

My advice: if it's under $3 and you've never heard of the brand, maybe skip it unless you're just using it to grease a pan.

Final thoughts

Here's what I learned from this extremely buttery week: you don't need to spend $7 on fancy butter for everything, but having the right butter for the right job actually matters.

Keep Earth Balance or Country Crock for everyday stuff, grab Miyoko's when you're baking something special, and maybe treat yourself to that truffle butter when you want to feel fancy.

The good news is that vegan butter has come so far that the best ones are legitimately indistinguishable from dairy butter in most applications. We're not in the dark ages of weird margarine anymore. The future is creamy, spreadable, and completely plant-based.