The Best Vegan Cheeses on the Market!

All these tasty cheese recommendations have been suggested by Tracey and the wonderful volunteers at

Harmony Farm Sanctuary!

I remember years ago uttering the sentence, “I could never be vegan - what would I do without cheese?”

I’m sure I said that multiple times. You don’t know what you don’t know, right? Well, I very much didn’t know two things. 

One was that I frequently felt sick after eating cheese (or any dairy for that matter). I had no idea that roughly 68% of the world’s population has difficulty digesting lactose! I was used to feeling generally crappy after eating it and I just figured that was normal and how it would always be. 

Secondly, I assumed that any cheese out there that wasn’t made out of dairy would taste bad and do nothing to satisfy my cheese craving. I was so wrong!

Do any of these thoughts sound familiar to you??

I hope so because I can help!

This is our go-to list of the best dairy-free cheeses that we have found. It’s the list I wish I would have had four years ago when I was starting my adventure into veganism!

It’s wonderful to see this many choices available at both mainstream and specialty grocery stores, but it can also feel a little overwhelming if you’re not sure where to start!

Please keep in mind that new ones come out all the time! If you find some you really like, please let us know! Everyone’s taste buds are different, and everyone’s local grocer carries something different. Here are our favorites to help get you started whether you’re just looking to swap out your American singles, or even if you want to create a vegan charcuterie board that will amaze your guests!

Cheese slices

Chao slices by Field Roast. Honestly, no other slices compare (so far). We love the creamy original flavor best but there are some other options. This is also commonly carried in mainstream stores so it should be easy to find. It even melts on sandwiches when heated up! 

Cream cheese

Kite Hill, particularly the chive flavor. Many of our volunteers mentioned this one specifically!

Violife, original cream cheese flavor. This is my personal favorite and happened to have it on sourdough toast this morning! I also like this one for when soups call for cream cheese, like this one for a Vegan Creamy Sausage and Potato Soup. They do have other flavors you could try as well.

Shredded cheese

Chao shreds come highly recommended from Harmony Farm Sanctuary founder, Robine. 

Violife shredded cheddar. Honestly, I like this, but I don’t love it. It does melt pretty well and has an agreeable flavor, and is the best texture out of the bunch, but still ranks as just ‘good enough’. This does well in the mac and cheese recipe I make, but if you’re looking for a cheese to just sprinkle on top of things, then the next recommendation is for you.

Nutritional yeast

Looking for something to sprinkle on top of soups or stews that will add a good cheesy flavor? Then nutritional yeast is for you. It’s easy to find, inexpensive, common in bulk bins, and gives you a boost of B12. Bragg makes the most commonly found kind out there.

Snack cheese

Babybel. Can you believe it? Yes, Babybel cheese has a plant-based snack cheese that I think about at least once a day. It is so good! Growing up in Wisconsin I used to snack on cheese throughout the day and this is the only one I have found where I find myself popping into the fridge to grab a couple for a mid-day snack. They are simple, have a great texture, and scratch the itch of a cheese craving in no time. They are being offered in more grocers all the time! I’ve recently seen them in Trader Joe’s, Safeway, and multiple discount grocers. They have the original flavor and a white cheddar option. I prefer the original, but they’re both good!

Parmesan

Follow Your Heart makes the only kind of vegan parmesan I’ve ever liked! I strongly prefer the kind in the tub over the kind in the shaker. Thankfully this one is really easy to find and reasonably priced too!

Feta substitute

Violife. This is the absolute best, and there isn’t a close second. I’ve often added this to salads and even eaten on its own.

Spreadable cheese

Miyokos cheese spread, roadhouse cheddar flavor is fantastic. I grew up in Wisconsin with an assortment of spreadable cheese in the refrigerator and this one blew my mind. The first time I bought this it only lasted three days in our house!

Treeline Cheesemakers French-Style Cashew Cheese - creamy scallion flavor. I just picked this up from a natural food store in Eugene, Oregon, and loved it! They’ve got a solid line-up of products and with such a reasonable price tag I’ll be sure to make my way through their other offerings.

Fancy cheese for charcuterie boards

Sri Mu absolutely blew me away. The texture is magical, the flavor is rich, and you can tell from the website to the packaging to the actual cheese, this is an art. It’s the highest price tag I paid for vegan cheese, and I’ll pay it again and again. If you want to create a high-quality, honestly dazzling charcuterie board for yourself, this will knock your socks off. I tried the Gold Alchemy and the Everything cheese and WOW. I could go on for days about them.

Rind brand was a suggestion from one of our volunteers as was Cultured Kindness, which happens to be made in Portland, Oregon!

Miyokos has a line of artisanal cheeses that are incredible in flavor, and often a little hard to find as they quickly sell out! If you happen to run across any of these, I highly recommend snatching up a couple.

Vtopian also has some great flavors that hold up well on a charcuterie board.

Mozzarella

Miyokos pourable mozzarella for baked ziti and even pizza. You may find it strange to buy cheese that comes out of a bottle, but it does work well and tastes great! If you’re going to use it for pizza I’d recommend broiling it the last few minutes for the browning effect.

Miyokos nearly has the vegan mozzarella market cornered, as we also love this one that they offer. I grate it over pizzas or even salads and also love it sliced. The texture is amazing.

A volunteer also mentioned that Trader Joe's has a great cashew-based shredded mozzarella option. I’ll be picking this up to try next time I’m there!

Good Planet mozzarella olive oil cheese shreds also come highly recommended by one of our volunteers.

We sincerely hope this helps you venture into the world of non-dairy cheese with a little more confidence! Are there other vegan cheeses you love? Let me know at tracey.harmonyfarmsanctuary@gmail.com 

Every choice we make related to what we eat impacts us, the environment, and animals. You can start making a meaningful difference with one meal, one choice, one moment of willingness to get curious and try something new.